What the papers said in the week ending 21 January 2023
Care:
There is focus on the contribution of unpaid carers, often family, and often is support of older people: Five million people in England and Wales are unpaid carers, census shows | Carers | The Guardian
- The Guardian view on unpaid carers: labour, even if it is for love | Editorial | The Guardian
- This is not a new situation. It is important that it be acknowledged, understood and respected
- The personal experience of families when dementia comes, are highlighted by celebrities: John Lydon hopes to highlight ‘torture’ of Alzheimer’s with Eurovision bid | John Lydon | The Guardian
The contribution of contact sports when pursued intensively, is now very clearly understood. Can recompense be made? Will future generations change their practices? Amateur players launch lawsuit against rugby authorities over brain injuries | Concussion in sport | The Guardian
Care can be very costly – Those making profits often seem to lack heart and sensitivity: Families still being charged thousands in care home fees after relative’s death | Social care | The Guardian
Health can be improved by life-style and diet: Meditation could have positive impact on gut and overall health | Meditation | The Guardian
- Scientists suggest eating oily fish linked to lower risk of kidney disease | Medical research | The Guardian
- And by modified approaches to treatment: New treatment strategy cuts risk of bowel cancer returning by 28% | Bowel cancer | The Guardian
Trends in deaths are complicated to interpret: there have been over 500,000 more deaths in England in the last year, but fewer deaths in hospitals or care home. People’s expressed wishes to die at home seem to be realised, but whether this is really good news needs investigation. Only 4% of deaths in the year are registered as due to Covid. There were more deaths from flu and pneumonia than in previous years Flu and pneumonia deaths a quarter higher than usual in England and Wales | Health | The Guardian
We worry about the state of our health service, especially the care and treatment of people with mental illness, but we are reminded that conditions in some other countries are much worse, as were our own in the past: ‘Patients were chained to walls and beds’: Freetown’s psychiatric hospital released from the past | Global development | The Guardian
Economy
World leaders are meeting to consider finances The worst thing about Davos? The Masters of the Universe think they are do-gooders | Hamilton Nolan | The Guardian
- There is interest in redistributing wealth to improve life for the less well-off. Call for new taxes on super-rich after 1% pocket two-thirds of all new wealth | Inequality | The Guardian
- But it is these less well-off who are experiencing greatest stress Cost of supermarket budget brands rose 20.3% in December, survey finds | Inflation | The Guardian
There is some respite from reduced bills for fuels: UK energy bills to fall to about £2,200 from July as wholesale gas costs drop | Energy bills | The Guardian
Plans to raise the pension age in France from 62 to 64, are not popular: More than 1m march in France amid strikes over plan to raise retirement age | France | The Guardian
Reconnection with skills of the past, to preserve what is good and potentially useful, makes sense: Trend to mend: cost of living crisis puts darning back in vogue | John Lewis | The Guardian
- But younger generations have become enthralled by rapid, throwaway modes of being and communication: ‘They’re 25, they don’t do emails’: is instant chat replacing the inbox? | Email | The Guardian
The Churches:
Continue to struggle in their views on gender: Justin Welby ‘joyful’ at C of E switch but will not bless same-sex civil marriages | LGBTQ+ rights | The Guardian
There are new beginnings:
New life in the 70s: Ken Bruce to leave BBC for new radio show | BBC | The Guardian
Rediscovery of old towers: ‘Better than finding gold’: towers’ remains may rewrite history of English civil war | English civil war | The Guardian
We have lost:
Gina Lollobrigida: Gina Lollobrigida obituary | Film | The Guardian
Ronald Blythe: Ronald Blythe obituary | Science and nature books | The Guardian
Eve and Ranshaw: One of UK’s oldest department stores Eve & Ranshaw to shut as costs rise | Retail industry | The Guardian
And too many local banks: we need banks, post offices, libraries, schools and churches near to us and staffed by people who can talk to us and help us when we need help: Lloyds and Halifax to close 40 more bank branches – BBC News
David Jolley. Chair of Christians on Ageing, in a personal capacity
