We need a national plan to tackle the health inequity that is killing people | Letters

How could I fault Aditya Chakrabortty’s account of the failure to prioritise the nation’s health as he cites me as its inspiration (This is a life and death story for the UK – so why is it being brushed under the carpet?, 6 March). However, it is important to emphasise that the government is well aware of the gross health inequities that scar our nation and limit lives as well as economic prosperity, but chooses not to prioritise them. The ministerial response last month to the House of Lords report on ageing contains this shocking statistic: a girl born in Barnsley can expect an average of 53 years of good health, whereas one born in Wokingham can look forward to 71 healthy years – an extra 18 years.Throughout the country deprivation accelerates ageing, which for many means an unnecessary premature exit from the labour market and premature need for social care. But the main focus of health policy is the manifesto commitment to reduce NHS waiting times, a target that has very little impact on health inequity

Proposed law does not protect children born to convicted paedophiles, Lords to hear

A proposed law to restrict paedophiles’ parental rights in England and Wales is too weak because it does not protect children of theirs born after their conviction, parliament will hear this week.Under the victims and courts bill, a parent convicted of serious sexual offences against any child and who is sentenced to four or more years in prison will lose parental responsibility but they could come out of jail and have other children who would not be protected.An amendment to end this anomaly has been tabled by the crossbench peer and former family court judge James Meston, and will be debated in the House of Lords on Tuesday.The move to restrict parental responsibility came after the BBC reported the case of a mother, Bethan (not her real name), who spent £30,000 in legal fees to stop her paedophile ex-husband having contact with their daughter.Bethan said: “This amendment will prevent the formation of a deeply unfair two-tier system, where children born before the paedophile parent’s conviction are safe from abuse, but younger siblings, born even a day after conviction, are still under the control of, and highly likely to be abused by, the paedophile

Almost a third of people in England use private dentists amid NHS dental crisis

Almost a third of people in England now use private dentistry, with a sharp rise in the number of poorer households forced to pay for fillings and extractions.The scarcity of NHS care means the proportion of people turning to private dental services jumped from 22% in 2023 to 32% late last year, the health service’s patient watchdog found.The reliance on paid-for treatment is so significant that dental care is becoming a costly “one tier” – private-only – service for more and more people, Healthwatch England is warning.It is concerned that the percentage of people who describe themselves as struggling financially that have used private dentistry has almost doubled in recent years from 14% to 27%.Those who do are hit with a “double penalty”, the watchdog added

Gambling crackdown in Romania as councils can ban ‘toxic’ betting shops

Romania’s government has overhauled gambling regulations through an emergency decree allowing municipalities to restrict or ban betting shops and slot machine halls in the biggest tightening of the industry the country has seen.Licensed operators must now obtain not only a national permit but also local authorisation to open a gambling venue, giving mayors and local councils a decisive veto power. Officials say more than 200 localities could pursue full bans.There has been a rapid expansion of Romania’s gambling industry, with tens of thousands of slot machines and betting outlets open nationwide, especially in the capital, Bucharest.Until now, gambling halls were authorised centrally without city approval, leaving communities powerless even as venues proliferated near schools and residential areas

Labour to set up new extremism whistleblowing service for university staff

The UK government will expand powers to tackle extremism by setting up a new whistleblowing route for university staff and giving the Charity Commission powers to shut down charities, as part of a new action plan to strengthen social cohesion.The plan, announced by the housing, communities and local government secretary, Steve Reed, will invest a further £5m in the Common Ground Resilience Fund, which was launched to support organisations and authorities tackling divisions in communities.“We must listen to people’s concerns about growing divisions and take action to bring our communities back together,” Reed said.As well as a new whistleblowing service, the plan will include a new Campus Cohesion Charter to strengthen respect and shared values across universities.The strategy will also introduce an annual State of Extremism report setting out the nature and scale of the threat facing the UK and the government’s response, while the Visa Watchlist Taskforce will be strengthened to block hate preachers and extremists from entering the country

Cancer death rate in Britain down by almost a third since 1980s

The rate of people dying from cancer in the UK has fallen by almost a third since the 1980s amid seismic progress in prevention, diagnosis and treatment, a report has found.About 247 in every 100,000 people die from cancer each year, a 29% drop from the peak in 1989 of about 355 per 100,000, according to an analysis by Cancer Research UK (CRUK).Cancer remains Britain’s biggest killer, causing about one in four deaths, and survival rates lag behind a number of European countries, including Romania and Poland.However, in the past decade alone, the rate of people dying from cancer has fallen by 11%. The death rate for ovarian cancer dropped by 19% between 2012-2014 and 2022-2024, stomach cancer fell by 34% and lung cancer 22%