What the papers said in the week ending 17 December 2022
Harsh times, and conflict:
The old and vulnerable get special mention as the many-headed stresses threaten people’s well-being and survival: Excess deaths could rise as vulnerable skimp on heating, UK charities warn | UK cost of living crisis | The Guardian
- Our government is turning to the armed forces to counter some of the problems: Cobra meeting to discuss plans for military staff to cover striking workers | Military | The Guardian
- This puts them at odds with nurses, ambulance drivers, train drivers, postmen and others Nurses pledge tougher new strikes as NHS crisis deepens | Nursing | The Guardian
A cold coming:
The severe weather and cost of fuels have exposed additional hazards, particularly from gas: Hundreds in Sheffield still without gas 10 days after pipes flooded | Sheffield | The Guardian
- Jersey explosion: nine people confirmed to have died | Jersey | The Guardian
- Shetland residents still without power as engineers battle snow | Scotland | The Guardian
- People seek other ways of keeping warm: ‘Like an oilwell in your back yard’: Irish people turn to cutting peat to save on energy bills | Ireland | The Guardian
- Mind the gap: draught excluders are back as Britons rush to cut energy bills | Energy bills | The Guardian
The vision of something from nothing is raised by news of a breakthrough in nuclear energy. Will this prove to be the start of a safer, affordable world? Or will it lose its lustre in the light of further study? US scientists confirm ‘major breakthrough’ in nuclear fusion | Nuclear power | The Guardian
- Wednesday briefing: Why the nuclear fusion breakthrough doesn’t mean we’re in energy utopia | Energy | The Guardian
- Despite the hype, we shouldn’t bank on nuclear fusion to save the world from climate catastrophe | Robin McKie | The Guardian
Health Care:
The problems of our own healthcare system are clear, and especially relevant for older people and the less well-off. Causes and blame are exposed. Is there the will and humility to do what is necessary to correct matters? ‘Like a horrific board game’: 33 hours inside an NHS in crisis | NHS | The Guardian
- Decade of neglect means NHS unable to tackle care backlog, report says | NHS | The Guardian
- Treatment delays leave UK facing cancer emergency, doctors warn | Cancer | The Guardian
- Who do you believe: the brilliant NHS staff who treated my cancer, or ministers who spin and lie? | Polly Toynbee | The Guardian
- Despair and dedication in a crumbling NHS | NHS | The Guardian
We are not alone in these difficulties, which are evident in differing degrees across Europe: ‘A ticking time bomb’: healthcare under threat across western Europe | Health | The Guardian
Ways forward:
As other routes to shopping have become more difficult, the attractions of the high street may prevail: UK Christmas shoppers urged to return to high street amid Royal Mail strikes | Retail industry | The Guardian
Finances are bad, but perhaps not quite as bad: UK inflation eases slightly to 10.7%, but cost of living crisis grinds on – as it happened | Business | The Guardian
We may be losing old friends, but there will be new ones: More than 1 in 10 species could be lost by end of century, study warns | Cop15 | The Guardian
The BBC continues to wish itself into a world where older people and others who are less able, and less wealthy will be excluded: We would ask that they play to their strengths – people like radio and TV as they are and have been: Funding cuts mean BBC can’t compete with Netflix, says watchdog | BBC | The Guardian
Other politics:
We are horrified by the loss of lives amongst asylum seekers. We would wish to find a caring way of helping people: Rishi Sunak tells MPs he will clear asylum backlog by end of 2023 | Immigration and asylum | The Guardian
We are reminded that people in the most senior elected positions may have their weaknesses: ITV dramatises life of John Stonehouse MP who faked his death in 1974 | ITV plc | The Guardian
Other matters:
Places and things which touch our hearts are recognised: Watermill and shipwrecks among heritage sites listed in England | Heritage | The Guardian
Henry Moore’s drawings of the conditions in which his father worked, remind us: ‘Like hell’: Henry Moore drawings of coalminers’ wartime work on show | Henry Moore | The Guardian
Tintin drawings from the 1940s are valued: Hergé illustration for Tintin in America expected to sell for €2m | Books | The Guardian
Attempts to improve great art, may not work for everyone: ‘Almost as botched as Monkey Christ!’ Has the National Gallery ruined a Nativity masterpiece? | Art | The Guardian
Glad to see the ice melting, we may not have a White Christmas: Snow chance: how white Christmases have become rarer in Britain | UK weather | The Guardian
David Jolley. Chair of Christians on Ageing, in a personal capacity.
