British Isles
Petrol supply issues
Retailers and hauliers say the government's plan to offer temporary visas to foreign lorry drivers will not solve supply chain issues. The transport secretary said there is ‘plenty of fuel’ in the refineries…
Furloughing ends, new support fund announced
The UK's economy grew 5.5% between April and June as spending surged after lockdowns. However an investment and markets analyst said, ‘Any hope that the end of the furlough scheme would solve the…
Move to online worship a loss, not a gain
A ‘deep-seated dissatisfaction’ with online worship has been identified by year-long research by two universities. They state, by almost every measurement, the experience of pandemic online rituals are perceived as less meaningful, less…
NHS Highland pays millions to bullied staff
In 2018 a group of senior clinicians at NHS Highland reported that a culture of bullying had existed for at least a decade. They described a ‘practice of suppressing criticism, which emanated from…
Church schools help pupils with mental health issues
Oxford Diocese has launched a contemplative toolkit in response to the growing mental health crisis among young people. It is a time of daily reflection founded on ancient pathways and practices of meditation…
Black priest claiming 'racism' as parish is dissolved
Rev Yvonne Clarke was ordained as a deacon in 1987 and has served All Saints Shirley, in Southwark Diocese, for over 20 years. On 29 September the diocese decided to divide the parish…
Street preacher accuses police of overreacting
Pastor Peter Simpson, a Methodist minister, was preaching outside Uxbridge Station in August when 14 officers approached him. The Met Police confirmed that officers had received complaints that a man was using homophobic…
France: fishing in UK waters
Three-quarters of small French fishing boats could be denied access to British waters under a post-Brexit regime in a move that risks further damaging Anglo-French relations. The UK government had granted only 12…
Princess Beatrice gives birth to a girl
On 18 September the Queen's granddaughter, Princess Beatrice, gave birth to a baby girl weighing 6lb 2oz, at the Chelsea and Westminster Hospital. Buckingham Palace said the princess and her daughter were doing…
Youth groups grew into a church
A missionary planted a church in Nicholas Lebey’s village in Ghana. Now Nicholas has done the same in south-east London and Bradford as a pioneer evangelist. In 2013 he came to Woolwich, and…
