Reform UK’s ‘pro-family’ policies are an exclusionary sham, minister says
Reform UK’s “pro-family” policies are a sham and exclude non-traditional families, the government’s early years minister has said before the rollout of hundreds of new Sure Start-style family centres across England on Monday.Olivia Bailey said she wanted the hubs to be inclusive for all families and transform communities, after what she called the “criminal” dismantling of Sure Start under the last Conservative government.“Sure Start is one of our proudest achievements as a Labour party,” she said.“Best Start is central to what we’re trying to do as a government.For the first time in a long time, even ever, this is a government that is really focusing on the early years and making sure that we give every child the best possible start in life.
”Bailey, who adopted two children with her wife and is also an equalities minister, said she worried about the “chilling” effect a Reform government could have on gender equality and LGBTQ+ families,“I do worry about Reform,” she said,“They say that they’re the party of the family, but that’s a complete sham,They say they support families, but I don’t think they support families like mine,”Bailey pointed to the appointment of James Orr, a rightwing theologian who opposes abortion even in cases of rape, incest or serious risk to health, and to remarks made by the Reform MP Danny Kruger, who has stated that the UK is “suffering from having a totally unregulated sexual economy” and warned of the UK being led by an “appalling Hamas-supporting, LGBT-supporting nationalist party”.
Reform’s plans to repeal the Equality Act would have “a chilling effect on the rights of women”, she added.“They are not the party that is going to stand up for families like mine, for families of all different shapes and sizes,” she said.“I do worry that Reform will just turn the clock back.”Speaking at the bustling Harmood family hub in Camden, north London, Bailey said the one-stop-shop centre – where parents can access services including childcare, health, parenting tips and support – was a model for the first 200 of 1,000 new Best Start family hubs that will open in England from Monday.Ministers say the plan is backed by almost £1bn of funding, including £500m specifically for the hubs.
The centres would not be a “plug and play” copy of Sure Start – which peaked at about 3,600 sites under Gordon Brown – but would work with private and voluntary sector childcare settings while keeping the “same ambition”, she said.A study from the Institute for Fiscal Studies found that those living near a Sure Start centre in their early years got better GCSE results, were in hospital less often and had fewer absences from school.More than 1,400 of the centres were closed from 2010 onwards.“It was absolutely criminal what the Conservatives did to Sure Start.It gutted the heart out of communities across the country,” said Bailey.
“Parents tell me they feel like they are passed around between services and don’t know where to go to get help [but] Best Start hubs are driving this connection between services, and driving this sense of community again.”The hubs will also be a part of government plans to overhaul how children with special educational needs are supported, with £200m allocated to fund a family-facing Send practitioner in every hub.Bailey said: “We saw with Sure Start [that] if you get that help with speech and language, or whatever it may be, to children early it reduces the need for a Send diagnosis further down the track.”Early years development has become an increasing concern to educators – and politicians – with about one in four children who started reception in 2025 not having been toilet trained, according to a recent survey of teachers.Ministers have set a target for 75% of children to be school-ready by 2028; at present, only 68.
3% of children meet the criteria, according to the latest Department for Education figures,On Monday, ministers will give local authorities specific statutory targets to hit by 2028, to raise the proportion of children achieving a “good level of development” – including being toilet-trained and able to communicate – by the end of reception,Councils will also have to have a local Best Start plan to improve child development, setting out how they will work with other organisations and fund help for children up to five years old,Bailey, whose children went to a maintained nursery that used to be a Sure Start centre, said she wanted all parents to share her own positive experience,“As an LGBT family, I was worried about whether I’d be accepted, but we found a real sense of belonging and community,” she said.
“I got so much strength from the help that I got, and I want that for everyone.”
‘It feels like they’re pulling figures out of the sky’: UK pet owners welcome crackdown on vet fees
The UK’s competition watchdog has ordered vets to cap written prescription fees at £21, and practices will have to publish price lists in a crackdown on rising fees.The Competition and Markets Authority also said a costcomparison website would be introduced to increase competition and drive down costs.These are just some of the measures due to come into force later this year.The Guardian spoke to pet owners in the UK about their experiences with vet bills. Many felt prices had increased so much that they were becoming difficult to afford
Hundreds of North Sea licences granted by Conservatives have ‘so far produced only 36 days worth of gas’
Hundreds of licences granted for new oil and gas projects in the North Sea under the Conservatives have so far produced only 36 days’ worth of gas, according to analysis.Research by the energy consultancy Voar and the campaign group Uplift found that between 2010 and 2024, the government handed out hundreds of new North Sea oil and gas licences in seven licensing rounds.This led to 20 new and relicensed fields that have the potential, over their lifetime, to produce enough gas to supply the UK for only six months. To date they have produced the equivalent of 36 days of extra gas.The findings cast doubt on claims by Reform UK and the Conservatives that new drilling licences in the North Sea would help to reduce energy bills and boost the UK’s energy security
‘Our assumptions are broken’: how fraudulent church data revealed AI’s threat to polling
If you had been keeping tabs on the news about church attendance in Britain lately, you would be forgiven for thinking the country was in the midst of a Christian revival.Stories of swelling congregations, filled with young people returning to the flock, spurred on by everything from social media to a rise in bible sales appeared to be confirmed by a 2024 report from the Bible Society.Based on data collected by a YouGov survey, it claimed church attendance was increasing in England and Wales. The findings drove headlines, and the narrative was established.There was just one problem – the survey turned out to be based on “fraudulent” data and has been withdrawn
‘They feel true’: political deepfakes are growing in influence – even if people know they aren’t real
Online content creators are not just building fake images and videos of prominent public figures, they are also fabricating people and using them in military contexts, which can make them money and even serve as effective propaganda, according to artificial intelligence researchers.Some of these online avatars are sexualized images of women wearing camouflage garb that have generated a significant audience and helped create an idealized image of political figures like Donald Trump, even if the viewer knows the content is not real, according to experts.“We are blending the lines between political cartoons and reality,” said Daniel Schiff, an assistant professor of technology policy at Purdue University and co-director of the Governance and Responsible AI Lab (Grail). “A lot of people feel like these images or videos or the stories they convey, feel true.”The amount of political deepfakes has increased dramatically in recent years, according to a Grail database
Aryna Sabalenka edges tense battle with Coco Gauff to triumph in Miami Open final
Aryna Sabalenka had many reasons to believe that history could have been grimly repeating itself on Saturday afternoon. Despite starting her Miami Open final against Coco Gauff striking the ball with clear-minded aggression, the complexion of the match rapidly changed. Suddenly, having been pulled into a tense final set, she was struggling to hold on.Similar scenarios played out in her two most important matches against Gauff, and both times Sabalenka had pitifully crumbled under pressure in the final set. For all her imperfections, though, the Belarusian’s career has been defined by her desperation to improve
Prem top four looks done and dusted after Northampton repel Saracens comeback
Strange words to write for anyone who has covered this competition for any length of time, but we kind of know who the Prem semi-finalists are going to be. And there’s still six rounds to go.Saracens had to win here at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium against the league leaders to maintain any realistic chance of taking their customary place in the playoffs. This is the last season at the helm for Mark McCall, the man who has guided them through their glory years, before he “moves upstairs”, but it is looking increasingly likely that his era will draw to a close without further silverware. Saracens are mathematically still in it, of course, but, 12 points adrift of fourth spot with those six rounds to play, they will need to call on more than their own prowess to make it
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