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      Keir Starmer pledges to focus on self harm in drive to bring down suicide rates

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      Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailSir Keir Starmer has promised special training for mental health professionals to support people who self-harm in a bid to bring down suicide rates.The Labour leader said “too many families are being ripped apart” by suicides, rates of which have been increasing since the Conservatives came to power in 2010.Then, there were 9.3 deaths by suicide per 100,000 people in England and Wales, compared with 10.7 in 2022.And, with a general election expected this autumn, Sir Keir pledged a focus on self harm to reverse the trend, saying mental health professionals will be trained to spot cases and intervene early.He said prevention would be at the heart of a Labour government, saying: “The value of getting in front of problems is no more apparent than when it comes to our children’s mental health.”Labour Party leader Sir Keir Starmer promised to reverse the trend of rising suicide rates (Peter Byrne/PA)“The number of children showing signs of acute distress is heart breaking, and behind those stats are millions of families going through hell. Urgent action is vital, and my government will deliver it,” he added.And, expanding on the party’s focus on suicide, Sir Keir said: “Almost all of us can think of someone who has tragically lost their life to suicide. Too many families are being ripped apart by grief after losing a loved one to suicide. It is a raw pain – that fact alone should shock us all into action.”Labour has promised to recruit 8,500 new mental health professionals, to offer specialists in every school and guarantee treatment within four weeks to anyone who needs it.It says the change is funded by scrapping a tax loophole used by private equity companies.And it has now promised the 8,500 new mental health professionals will be given “specialist self-harm training”.Research by the charity Samaritans has found that people who self-harm can be turned away from primary mental health services for being “too high risk”, meaning they are left without the vital support that they need.And analysis of NHS England figures shows hospital admissions due to intentional self-harm and overdose have more than doubled since 2011.Samaritans welcomed Labour’s pledge, with chief executive Julie Bentley saying “more specialist trained mental health staff would play a big part in ensuring that there is ‘no wrong door’ in the health system for people who self-harm or experience suicidal thoughts”.Mental health charity mind also welcomed the promise, saying “in many cases, it could save lives”.Chief executive Dr Sarah Hughes said: “The ongoing fallout from the coronavirus pandemic, coupled with a deepening cost of living crisis, have led to more and more people struggling with their mental health, many to the degree they are self-harming. We know that young people have been hit particularly hard.“So, we welcome this promised step towards making sure people get the support they need.”And Brian Dow, deputy chief executive at Rethink Mental Illness, called it a “sensible idea which could reduce the risk of people taking their own lives”.“We will never address the chasm between rising levels of demand and the lack of provision within mental health services unless we have a workforce with the skills to help people with their problems as early as possible,” he added. More

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      Yemen airstrikes – live: US officials warn Houthi militia keep bulk of missile ability after major strikes

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      Aerial footage shows moment RAF Typhoon strikes Yemen military targetFor free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emailsSign up to our free breaking news emailsUS officials have issued a warning over the missile capability of the Houthi militia despite major airstrikes against nearly 30 locations on Thursday and Friday.The UK joined the US-led operation in hitting more than 60 missile and drone targets in response to the group targeting ships in the Red Sea.But despite around 90 per cent of the targets being hit, two US officials warned on Sunday that the group retained about three-quarters of its ability to fire missiles and drones at vessels using the narrow strip of water.Speaking on condition of anonymity, the New York Times reported that the two officials said only about 20 to 30 percent of the Houthis’ offensive capability had been destroyed.They said the difficulty was that much of the offensive weapons were on mobile platforms and could be moved or hidden.It comes as the Lord Cameron warned Britain could strike Houthi targets again if the rebel group continued to attack ship in the Red Sea.Suggesting that the Iran-linked militants could force up prices in Britain, he said that not acting would be accepting that Houthi attacks could “virtually shut a vital sea lane with relative impunity”.Show latest update
      1705243851Hezbollah sees all maritime navigation in danger after US strikes on YemenThe Iran-backed Lebanese group Hezbollah said on Sunday that the United States was wrong if it thought the Houthis of Yemen would stop confronting Israel in the Red Sea, saying U.S. actions there had endangered all maritime navigation.Describing U.S. and British strikes on Yemen as an act of stupidity, Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah said the Houthis would continue targeting ships belonging to Israel and going to its ports.“The more dangerous thing is what the Americans did in the Red Sea will harm all maritime navigation, even the ships that are not going to Palestine, even the ships which are not Israeli, even the ships that have nothing to do with the matter, because the sea has become a theatre of fighting, missiles, drones and war ships,” he said.“Security has been disrupted.”Maryam Zakir-Hussain14 January 2024 14:501705241100John Rentoul: Will war in the Middle East cast a shadow over a Starmer government?The shadow cabinet is more deeply divided than it appears. Labour is still subject to less media scrutiny than the Conservatives, despite the widespread assumption that Keir Starmer will become prime minister this year.Most Labour MPs are also more disciplined than most Tory MPs because they can feel election victory within their grasp, whereas the Tories are either fed up or have given up, and so are happier to be rude about each other in private and in public.As ever in politics, Labour’s divisions are a mixture of the personal and the ideological, and foreign policy is one of the hidden fractures threatening the foundations of an incoming government.Maryam Zakir-Hussain14 January 2024 14:051705239527Why are Britain and US attacking Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi rebels?The attacks came after the Houthis launched their largest attack on Red Sea shipping, one of 27 such assaults since 19 November.Officials said that 21 missiles and drones were fired at warships and commercial vessels near the Bab al-Mandab Strait earlier this week, the southern bottleneck of the Red Sea, with US and UK warships blowing them out of the sky.Here is what we know so far:Maryam Zakir-Hussain14 January 2024 13:381705236961Germany to take part in EU Red Sea naval mission – legislatorGermany is expected to participate in a European Union naval mission to protect shipping in the Red Sea that EU foreign ministers will approve this month, the head of the German parliamentary defence committee said.Speaking at her party’s reception for the new year on Sunday, Maria-Agnes Strack-Zimmermann said the aim of the mission would be for EU frigates to protect commercial vessels passing through the strait.The approaches to the Suez Canal, one of the world’s most important shipping lanes, have been all but paralysed by attacks on passing vessels by Iran-backed Houthi forces on the Yemen coast.“This is an attack on free trade and has to be countered,” Strack-Zimmermann said. Newspaper Welt am Sonntag earlier reported that the German frigate Hessen would set sail for the Red Sea on Feb. 1.Parliament must approve any foreign deployment of Germany’s armed forces.Maryam Zakir-Hussain14 January 2024 12:561705235147RAF strikes not an escalation of war in the Middle East, Lord Cameron insistsLord Cameron has denied RAF strikes in Yemen will escalate the picture in the Middle East, as he warned the world faces a period of great peril.The Foreign Secretary insisted it was the Houthi rebels who had taken steps to escalate conflict in the region with their attacks on container ships passing through the Red Sea.The militant group, which backs Hamas, claims they have targeted ships with links to Israel.The Houthis’ actions have posed a threat to the flow of global trade, disrupting merchant vessels from passing through the sea to the Suez Canal, a route which serves 15% of world shipping.The Foreign Secretary denied that the UK had escalated the situation by taking part in US-led air strikes on Houthi military facilities across Yemen overnight on Thursday.He had previously warned the RAF could join the USA in further strikes against the Houthis in order to deter their attacks.“The escalation has been caused by the Houthis. I mean the point is since November 19, you have had these 26 attacks”, Lord Cameron told the BBC’s Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg.He added: “There have been more of them, they have been getting worse, and you know, not acting is also a policy, it is a policy that doesn’t work.”Maryam Zakir-Hussain14 January 2024 12:251705234053Mapped: How the US and UK attacks on Houthi rebels took place and what weapons were used?Huge explosions were seen in Yemeni cities including Sana’a and Hodeidah in the early hours of Friday, with the US military saying 60 strikes were launched against 16 sites linked to the Houthis’ military operations.Below, The Independent looks at how the attacks unfolded and what weapons were used in the strikes.Maryam Zakir-Hussain14 January 2024 12:071705232329 More

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      Editor-in-chief Geordie Greig discusses return of ‘Rolls-Royce’ David Cameron to UK politics

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      The Independent’s editor-in-chief Geordie Greig described David Cameron as a ‘Rolls-Royce’ returning to politics during a new interview on Sunday With Laura Kuenssberg this morning (14 January).“He’s smooth, he’s persuasive, he powers along”, Mr Greig noted, adding that there were ‘definitely bumps in the road’ – referring to the foreign secretary’s refusal to say how much he was paid by Greensill Capital.“Such a flatterer!”, Isabel Oakeshott responded to the analogy, however, Mr Greig insisted we’d “seen it all before”.David Cameron also appeared on the show, as well as Labour leader, Keir Starmer. More

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      David Cameron refuses to say how much he was paid by Greensill Capital

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      Foreign secretary David Cameron has refused to disclose how much he was paid by Greensill Capital for work undertaken when he stepped away from politics.Documents seen by the BBC suggest the former prime minister allegedly received a sum of around £10 million, however, Cameron says he was a ‘private citizen’ during the work, and has the right to keep it under wraps.”That isn’t true”, he claimed of the figure during an appearance on Laura Kuenssberg’s show, and admits he’s given up his ‘other roles’ since rejoining government.”I’ve given all the information to the person responsible for registering a minister’s interests.” More

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      Suella Braverman attacks Rishi Sunak for relying on ‘bad weather’ to stop small boat crossings

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      Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailSuella Braverman has taken her latest shot at Rishi Sunak, accusing the PM of relying on “bad weather” to stop small boat crossings.The former home secretary lashed out at the PM after Britain saw the first arrivals across the channel this year.The country had seen zero arrivals in 26 days, which was the longest period of no small boat crossings since 2020.But, as the poor weather eased, around 50 people were reported to have been brought ashore from the channel by the UK Border Force.Suella Braverman has said she will vote against the Government’s Rwanda Bill next week if there are ‘no improvements’ (Justin Tallis/PA)“‘Bad weather’ is not a sustainable policy for stopping the boats,” Ms Braverman said.Labour took advantage of the infighting, saying Mr Sunak and home secretary James Cleverly “spent the festive period crowing about their small boats policies, but [crossings resuming] proves what experts said the whole time”.“The pause in crossings had nothing to do with them and everything to do with the wet, windy weather,” shadow immigration minister Stephen Kinnock said. The interventions come days before MPs vote on Mr Sunak’s backup Rwanda bill, aimed at reviving plans to deport asylum seekers to the east African nation.It was deemed illegal by the Supreme Court in November, but Mr Sunak is seeking to pass a fresh bill to get planes in the sky. It is a key part of the PM’s pledge to “stop the boats”, set out last January.Right-wing MPs are demanding a backup bill, designed to salvage the policy, is strengthened to allow the government to override international laws such as the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR).But moderate MPs from the One Nation caucus have threatened to vote the bill down if it risks breaching Britain’s international obligations.Her latest attack on the PM came after Ms Braverman threatened to vote against Rishi Sunak’s Rwanda Bill next week unless he commits to toughening up the flagship legislation.She told GB news that the British people are “fed up with the boats” and “fed up with broken promises” and that this is the “last chance” for the government to get it right.Former immigration minister Robert Jenrick has called for tougher measures to stop the boats (Stefan Rousseau/PA)She said: “What my objective is, is to deliver a bill that works. And it’s far better to defeat this bill, because it doesn’t work, and start again with a new bill that will work than proceed on a false premise, than proceed on a basis that amounts to something that won’t stop the boats.”She was joined by fellow right-wing rebel and former immigration minister Robert Jenrick, who said the bill “will not work” without amendments.And he said the measures failing would lead to an illegal migration “catastrophe”.He wrote in the Daily Telegraph: “In short, as currently drafted, every single small boat arrival will be able to concoct a personal reason for why Rwanda is unsafe for them and they can’t be removed.“This will lead to individuals being taken off flights, the courts being overwhelmed and the operational collapse of the policy, with illegal arrivals being released on bail from detention as the backlog of hearings grow.”He added: “As legislators, we have the power to avert this catastrophe, for in our sovereign parliament the law is our servant, not our master. We owe it to our constituents – whose interests we are sent to Parliament to advance – to deliver.“They will tolerate nothing less.”Mr Jenrick has tabled amendments to the bill to strengthen it, which are backed by 10s of right-wing MPs. But if the bill is toughened up, it risks losing the support of more than 100 moderate One Nation Conservatives and failing. More

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      Houthi airstrikes live: US launches fresh missile strikes in Yemen to attack rebel radar site

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      Aerial footage shows moment RAF Typhoon strikes Yemen military targetFor free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emailsSign up to our free breaking news emailsThe US military struck another Houthi-controlled site in Yemen today after Joe Biden vowed to protect shipping in the Red Sea. US Central Command said the “follow-on action”, early on Saturday local time against a Houthi radar site, was conducted by the Navy destroyer USS Carney using Tomahawk land attack missiles.A Houthi official told Al Jazeera that no injuries resulted from today’s strikes by the US, and vowed a “strong and effective response”.The first day of strikes on Friday hit 28 locations and struck more than 60 targets.On Friday, a fresh missile attack on a Red Sea ship was reported after Houthi rebels warned that British interests were “legitimate targets” following the RAF and the US unleashing airstrikes.The overnight bombardment by US and UK warplanes, ships and submarines was launched in response to weeks of drone and missile attacks on commercial ships in the vital Red Sea.The US said the strikes, in two waves, took aim at targets in 28 different locations across Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen.Show latest update
      1705156643UN envoy urges restraint over Yemen, region ‘increasingly precarious’The U.N. special envoy for Yemen on Saturday urged maximum restraint by all parties involved in Yemen and warned of an increasingly uncertain situation in the region.The envoy, Hans Grundberg, “notes with serious concern the increasingly precarious regional context, and its adverse impact on peace efforts in Yemen and stability and security in the region,” he said in a statement.Maryam Zakir-Hussain13 January 2024 14:371705154407Congresswoman says Biden is ‘violating Constitution’ with Yemen strikesCongresswoman Rashida Tlaib said Joe Biden is “violating Article I of the Constitution by carrying out airstrikes in Yemen without congressional approval” in a post on X. She added that Americans “are tired of endless war”. Maryam Zakir-Hussain13 January 2024 14:001705152607 More

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      Yemen airstrikes latest: US launches more attacks against Houthi rebels

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      Aerial footage shows moment RAF Typhoon strikes Yemen military targetFor free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emailsSign up to our free breaking news emailsThe US has carried out a second round of airstrikes against Houthi rebels in Yemen, a day after American and British forces mounted their first attacks.Earlier on Friday, a fresh missile attack on a Red Sea ship was reported after Houthi rebels warned that British interests were “legitimate targets” following the RAF and the US unleashing airstrikes.The overnight bombardment by US and UK warplanes, ships and submarines was launched in response to weeks of drone and missile attacks on commercial ships in the vital Red Sea. The Houthis vowed fierce retaliation. Military spokesperson Brigadier General Yahya Saree said the strikes would “not go unanswered or unpunished”.And on Friday evening, the UK Maritime Trade Operations, which oversees Middle East waters, reported a new missile attack off Yemen.It said the missile was fired towards a ship 90 miles southeast of Aden, Yemen, but the ship reported no injuries or damage.A British maritime security firm said the militants had mistakenly targeted a tanker carrying Russian oil.Show latest update
      1705113769US military strike another Houthi-controlled site after risk to Red Sea shipsThe US military early today struck another Houthi-controlled site in Yemen that they determined was putting commercial vessels in the Red Sea at risk.That is according to two US officials who spoke anonymously to the Associated Press to discuss an operation that had not yet been publicly announced. More

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      Ed Davey declines ten times to say sorry for role in Post Office scandal

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      Sir Ed Davey declined ten times to explicitly apologise over inaction in the Post Office scandal.Speaking to ITV News, the Liberal Democrats leader said he “deeply regrets not getting to the bottom of the lies that were told” when he was postal minister in the coalition government.Sir Ed was told of concerns about the faulty software before hundreds of postmasters were prosecuted.”I deeply regret that I was lied to on an industrial scale,” he added.He said his “heart goes out to the people that were hit” by accusations of theft, fraud, and false accounting due to faulty computers. More