Councillors in England face suspensions for misconduct as part of government overhaul

Mayors and councillors in England face suspensions of up to six months for serious misconduct and repeated rule breaches as the government seeks to overhaul standards in local government.Under plans unveiled on Tuesday, local authorities will be handed powers to suspend rule-breaking councillors and mayors, including those found guilty of bullying and assault, and to withhold their allowances.Ministers said the changes, which will be introduced via parliamentary legislation, would help improve public confidence in local government.Steve Reed, the local government secretary, said he was committed to “rooting out those who bring the system into disrepute” and that “when a small minority behave badly, it’s a disservice to hard-working councillors and to taxpayers”.The government said there were two cases of councillors this year who were convicted for serious offences but remained in post until they were handed prison sentences

AI chatbots could help stop prisoner release errors, says justice minister

Artificial intelligence chatbots could be used to stop prisoners from being mistakenly released from jail, a justice minister told the House of Lords on Monday.James Timpson said HMP Wandsworth had been given the green light to use AI after a specialised team was sent in to find “some quick fixes”.A double manhunt was launched last week after the incorrect release of a sex offender and a fraudster from the prison in south-west London.Release errors over the past fortnight have been seized upon by opposition MPs as evidence of the helplessness of ministers in the face of chaos within the criminal justice system.David Lammy, the justice secretary, is expected to address parliament about the number of missing prisoners when MPs return on Tuesday

A Neet way to help youth in Dudley | Brief letters

Regarding Dudley having the highest rate of young people not in education, employment or training (How Dudley became centre of UK’s youth jobs crisis, 8 November), this doesn’t surprise me, having taught for 24 years in the Black Country. The area has a large proportion of working‑class communities that value technical education, but the national curriculum makes little provision for this. Investment in technical education from an early age would equip these young people with the skills that would attract employers to the area.Kartar UppalSutton Coldfield, West Midlands In response to Bill Onwusah’s winter fuel payment query (Letters, 6 November), the Department for Work and Pensions calculates it based on your circumstances in the “qualifying week”, principally your age in September this year and if you were living in England or Wales, whereas your actual entitlement to the payment depends on your income in the 2025-26 tax year, which HMRC won’t know until April next year at the earliest.Godfrey KellerDepartment of economics, University of Oxford Regarding the issue of changing the name of Epstein Road in Thamesmead (Letters, 7 November), this could be solved by adding “Jacob” to the beginning

Crisis charity to become a landlord in attempt to rectify ‘catastrophic’ housing in UK

The homelessness charity Crisis is going to become a landlord for the first time in its 60-year history, saying the housing crisis in the UK has reached a “catastrophic scenario”.Matt Downie, the charity’s chief executive, said it was preparing to launch a fundraising appeal to buy its own housing stock as it can longer get access to social housing to help homeless people.“We don’t want to do this, but if nobody else is going to provide housing, we’ll do it ourselves,” he said.“It’s something that would have been inconceivable for my predecessors 10, 30, 50 years ago, because people would have expected both councils and housing associations to provide the stock needed for people on low incomes. It’s just no longer available

‘Similar pressure to London’: the housing crisis reaches Newcastle

It used to be rare to see people waiting outside the Crisis centre in the heart of Newcastle, but now a queue of people snakes around the building most days before it opens its doors.It is a constant stream of rough sleepers, workers sleeping in their car or sofa-surfing, families reeling from an eviction notice, people fleeing domestic violence or recently arrived refugees with nowhere to go filing in desperate for help.The north-east city used to be considered among the country’s most affordable places to live, but in recent years it has been engulfed in a housing crisis that has pushed the city closer to London with its soaring rents and long waiting lists for social housing.“Five or six years ago, I’d say to colleagues here: ‘You’ve got it easy compared with Brent, this is no problem compared with Croydon.’ The pressure in London is definitely worse, but we’re seeing similar situations in the north-east now,” said specialist housing adviser, Mark Reynolds

Gren Gaskell obituary

My stepfather Gren Gaskell, who has died aged 89, was a former miner who pulled himself up by his bootstraps to become a company manager with a passion for learning. In later life he published three books, including poetry and short stories, inspired by his experiences in the coalmining community.Born in Bulwell, Nottinghamshire, Gren, short for Granville, was the son of John, a miner, and Eliza. John died in a pit accident when Gren was four, and Eliza struggled to look after him and his five siblings. Experiencing hunger and cold as a child made him count his blessings as an adult, as he championed the rights of the less fortunate