Immigration: Official Data 'Poor' Leak Reveals

Immigration A Toxic Issue In UK

Updated: 4:07pm UK, Saturday 07 September 2013

By Anushka Asthana, Political Correspondent

Leaked Government documents always cause a stir of interest among Westminster's media pack, not least when they are labelled "sensitive" and "should not be forwarded".

The latest, from the Department for Education, is all about the looming crisis in school places.

A baby boom matched by a surge in immigration is loading pressure onto primary schools, with reports last week of children packed in like "sardines". This memo suggests that the pressure will soon mount on secondarys, too, with 35,000 extra places needed by 2015.

So why the controversy?

What makes this story political is the reason behind the mess and - crucially - who is to blame. After all, immigration is a toxic issue in Britain, with concerns of its impact thrown regularly to MPs when they doorstep their constituents.

For Conservatives it is seen as key to retain a strong stance in the face of the growing threat of UKIP to the right.

That is why Tory sources typically point the finger at Labour to explain the surge in immigration. And it is certainly the case that this internal analysis points to a "threefold increase in net long-term migration since the mid-1990s".

But what is interesting is another line that raises questions about current Government policy, warning that data on immigration is "poor" and it is unclear if current policies will be effective. Whitehall officials are admitting that things are not back on track inside a document that was never meant to be seen outside their own offices.

For a Prime Minister who has promised to bring net immigration down to the "tens of thousands" this conclusion is a problem because it adds fuel to the warnings of critics that his promise is unrealistic.

The freedom of movement within the EU makes it very difficult to take action. Moreover, limiting visas for students or high-level workers from elsewhere could damage the UK economy.

Already this issue has led to a clash between the Conservative Home Secretary Theresa May and Lib Dem Business Secretary Vince Cable, who thinks restricting certain types of immigration could be bad for industry.

Whatever the reason, one thing is clear: Schools are at the sharp end.

According to the memo, some local councils are facing a situation in which demand outstrips supply even when only taking into account the children of migrant workers.

Tories will promise that free schools will help ease the pressures - but can they really be opened quickly enough?

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Sex Education: Online Porn 'Should Be Included'

Sex and relationship education in schools must address the issue of internet porn, David Cameron has insisted.

But the Prime Minister said there was no need for wholesale reform and parents must learn more about how to protect their children from accessing pornography on the internet.

Mr Cameron admitted he was still "grappling" with how to talk with his own children about online dangers.

Mr Cameron is "grappling" with how to teach his own children

He said: "We need to make sure we are up to date on the problems of the internet.

"Where I absolutely agree with the Education Secretary is that I am not looking for wholesale reform of the curriculum on sex education.

"We should be alert to those points and make those changes, but I don't think we need wholesale reform."

He added: "We have all got to get involved because of the internet. We all have to learn more about the internet, the dangers of the internet, the issue of access for children."

Parents had to be ready to talk to their children about pornography and to educate themselves about the use of parental controls to limit what their children can access, he said.

Mr Cameron added: "Because so much computer access goes on in the home, I am afraid we are all going to have to get better at understanding all these issues around parental controls."

It comes after Education Secretary Michael Gove ruled out an overhaul of the Government's guidance on sex education, hours after Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg publicly called for it to be updated.

Mr Gove said the guidance had been recently reviewed, but experts suggested there was no point altering it because "technology changes so rapidly".

The guidance has remained the same for more than a decade and critics claim it has been overtaken by technological changes.

Campaigners want schoolchildren to be taught about internet pornography, social media and relationships as well as the practicalities of how reproduction works.

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Dartford Crossing Closed By 'Security Incident'

Thousands of drivers have been stranded for hours on the M25 after a major security alert closed the Dartford crossing while a coach was also stopped as part of investigations.

A suspicious item was found on the Kent side of the crossing, closing the Queen Elizabeth II (QE2) bridge and both tunnel bores for around seven hours.

An Army bomb disposal team sent to the scene later confirmed the item posed no threat, although a male pedestrian was arrested after he was spotted "behaving unusually".

The Dartford crossing was closed for several hours, causing long delays

Police said no items were found on a coach stopped in Aycliffe, close to the Port of Dover, as part of the Dartford inquiry.

The vehicle was pulled over on the A20 around two hours after the alert in Dartford, which caused more than nine miles of queues for drivers travelling between Kent and Essex.

The A20 has been reopened and no further arrests were made.

The closures also caused gridlock on other routes, with long delays reported on the A2 in east London and the A13 in Essex.

A spokesman for Kent Police said: "We would like to thank motorists for their patience and support during what must have been a very frustrating wait."

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Woman Dies In Birmingham Car Collision

A woman has died and three other people have been taken to hospital after several pedestrians were hit by a car in Birmingham.

Paramedics battled to save the woman at the scene and on the way to hospital, but she was pronounced dead a short time later.

Among those hurt in the collision in Heybarnes Road in Small Heath was a four-year-old boy who suffered suspected fractures to his pelvis and leg.

He had to be immobilised with a neck collar and spinal board before being taken to Birmingham Children's Hospital by ambulance.

Two other pedestrians, a woman in her 20s and a two-year-old boy, were also taken to hospital.

A 21-year-old man has been arrested on suspicious of dangerous driving, West Midlands Police have said.

A West Midlands Ambulance Service (WMAS) spokeswoman said: "One pedestrian, a woman, sustained multiple injuries and was in cardiac arrest.

"Crews immediately commenced advanced life support at the scene but, due to her critical condition, they decided to 'scoop and run', conveying her by land ambulance on blue lights to Heartlands Hospital whilst they continued emergency treatment en route.

"Sadly despite the best efforts of ambulance crews and hospital medics, nothing could be done to save the woman and she was confirmed dead a short time later."

The male driver of the car was uninjured in the crash, which happened just before 1pm on Friday.

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Millions 'Should Not Be In A&E' - Exclusive

By Thomas Moore, Health Correspondent

Up to 6.5 million patients every year should avoid going to A&E and be treated by GPs, paramedics and even chemists instead, the doctor leading the review of NHS emergency services claims today.

Around one third of all people who visit A&E each year could be diverted away from hospital under plans to be unveiled shortly by NHS chiefs.

In an exclusive interview with Sky News, the doctor in charge of re-shaping emergency services in England said family doctors, ambulance staff and pharmacists could treat them instead to relieve the pressure on A&E.

Indicating for the first time how he hopes to radically reform A&E, Professor Keith Willett, the national director for Acute Episodes of Care, said: "We know that 15% to 30% of people who turn up to be treated at A&E could have been treated in general practice.

"They did not know that because the system did not obviously make itself available to them."

He said patients with routine medical problems are going to A&E because they cannot get a quick enough appointment with their GP. Others are frustrated by out-of-hours services.

Prof Willett says a long-term solution is needed

"We can look at the way primary care is available to people," he said.

"By changing the way we deliver services we can start to address the demand. We can do the same thing in terms of the ambulance services and how much, how many patients they treat, at the scene, rather than transfer and that's about them having the right information.

"We would look to the public to understand the issues and when the situation does get difficult, to take the advice that I've suggested about phoning first, to get the right advice, to go to the right place, to think of using your general practitioner or indeed your pharmacist, (who) give a lot of advice for minor ailments."

Professor Willett and the medical director for NHS England, Professor Sir Bruce Keogh, will publish their plan for reforming emergency services later this autumn. It is expected to be implemented two years from now.

The plan will acknowledge that demand for care will continue to rise with an ageing population. But it will set out a series of measures for reducing pressure on A&E departments.

They are expected to include:

:: A&E units will have to ensure a consultant is available seven days a week

:: Other senior doctors, such as elderly care specialists, will be expected to help assess and treat patients arriving at A&E

:: Paramedics will treat more patients at home or by the roadside so they don't need hospital care

:: Patients will be encouraged to 'ring first', using the NHS111 helpline to be directed towards appropriate care.

Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt wants GPs to be more proactive

Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt has also said GPs must take on a bigger role. Next week he will call on GPs to do more to prevent patients with chronic conditions, such as diabetes, from suffering emergency complications.

In an interview for State Of Emergency, Sky News' 24 hours of live coverage from Nottingham's Queen Medical Centre which begins today at 5pm, Mr Hunt said: "The role of GPs in caring for older people needs to be proactive - checking up on people, finding out how they are, heading off problems before they happen - rather than reactive.

"GPs are busy, so to make that happen we have to find ways of getting more capacity in the system and that is a big challenge.

"But we have to address that. In the end, if the NHS is to be sustainable, it has to be about prevention as much as cure."

But GPs say they are already doing what they can.

Professor Mike Pringle, president of the Royal College of General Practitioners, said: "They are overwhelmed by the workload they are expected to deliver.

"We have got to start to build general practice, not blame it, not victimise it.

"We have to invest in it if we are going to solve these problems. And I am sure the Secretary of State recognises that."

England's A&E departments were under severe pressure last winter.

Waiting times reached their worst in nine years between January and March 2013, with more than 300,000 patients waiting more than four hours for treatment.

The Government has given the NHS an extra £500m over two years to find short-term solutions to the likely rise in demand for emergency care in the winter months.

Hospitals could bring GPs into A&E departments to see patients with more minor problems and more locum A&E doctors are likely to be employed to fill vacancies.

Only half the training posts for emergency medicine have been filled in the last two years, and more than a third of hospital trusts have vacancies for A&E consultants.

Professor Willett said a long-term solution is required.

"We do have to address the emergency medicine workforce," he said.

"But that will not produce new consultants for several years. So we have to manage the situation and take away from emergency medicine teams those patients who could be managed by other parts of the system.

"Defaulting to seeing an emergency medicine consultant is not necessary for many of those patients and it is frustrating to wait."

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Buckingham Palace Break-In: Two Arrested

Security Scares For Royal Family

Updated: 6:27am UK, Saturday 07 September 2013

The break-in at Buckingham Palace is the latest in a series of security scares involving the Royal Family.

:: In March 2011, a car carrying the Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall was mobbed by demonstrators who had split from a protest against higher university tuition fees.

Camilla was visibly distressed after being poked in the ribs with a stick through an open window in the distinctive Rolls-Royce Phantom VI as she and Charles travelled to the Royal Variety Performance at the London Palladium.

:: In 2003, comedian Aaron Barschak managed to get into Prince William's 21st birthday party at Windsor Castle.

The self-styled "comedy-terrorist" set off a series of alarms and was caught on CCTV before he joined 300 guests at the bash and was removed.

:: In 1994, student David Kang charged at Charles while firing a starting pistol during a ceremony in Sydney, Australia.

Kang was wrestled to the ground by New South Wales premier John Fahey and another man, while Charles was praised for his calm reaction.

:: In 1981, six blank shots were fired from the crowd while the Queen rode during the Trooping the Colour ceremony.

The Queen's horse was startled but she managed bring it back under control while police rushed to grab the shooter.

:: In 1974, Princess Anne was the target of an apparent kidnap attempt in The Mall near Buckingham Palace.

Four people, including her bodyguard, Jim Beaton, were injured after shots were fired when their car was forced to halt by another vehicle which blocked their route.

A police officer chased the driver, Ian Ball, and brought him to the ground before arresting him.

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Winter Wonderland: 'Unbelievable' Hail Storm

A freak hail storm left part of a Cornish town looking like a winter wonderland.

After the hottest summer in the county for seven years, residents in Boslowick, Falmouth could have been left wondering if it was already nearing Christmas with the scenes in their streets.

Hail and flash flooding in Falmouth (Pic: Pirate FM)

Resident Tommy Matthews filmed the snowy-like conditions on Friday morning.

He said they were "the likes of which I don't think I've ever seen before".

Mr Matthews added: "You can see the hail just mounting up everywhere and there are rivers of water just pouring down between it.

"It's absolutely unbelievable".

The hail then thawed and coupled with torrential downpours brought flash flooding to the town on Friday night.

Fire crews were scrambled to help pump water away as roads turned to rivers.

Heavy rain and cooler temperatures have led to a major change from summer heat to autumnal weather across much of the UK.

Sky's weather forecaster Isobel Lang said: "Last week's mini heatwave came to an abrupt halt on Friday with heavy, thundery downpours.

"Durham recorded 63mm in just 24 hours which lead to the Environment Agency issuing two flood warnings on the River Esk.

"Parts of Falmouth in Cornwall were transformed into a winter scene after a thunderstorm left a blanket of hail which proceeded to thaw bringing local flooding.

"Storms of this nature are not unusual at any time of the year, although after the week's sunshine and heat, it was a bit of a shock."

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Bill Walker: Law Change Could Make Him Quit

By Jane Chilton, Scotland Correspondent

The Secretary of State for Scotland Michael Moore has called on the Westminster and Scottish governments to work together to change parliamentary law - which could force disgraced MP Bill Walker to resign.

The 71-year-old Independent MSP for Dunfermline was found guilty of domestic abuse charges involving his three ex-wives and step-daughter spanning 28 years between 1967 and 1995.

He denied any wrongdoing throughout a two-week trial at Edinburgh Sheriff Court, and is currently awaiting sentence.

Walker has insisted he will not step down from his position as an elected MSP and, under parliamentary law, little can be done to force him out of office.

He faces a maximum of 12 months in prison, but parliamentarians are automatically expelled only if they are jailed for more than a year.

The rules are laid down by Westminster and cannot be changed by Holyrood.

Michael Moore says Bill Walker should have resigned

Mr Moore has called for a meeting of the Westminster Government and the Scottish Government to jointly work together to change the law.

Mr Moore told Sky News: "It is wrong for someone convicted of domestic abuse to continue to serve as an MSP.

"The right course of action would have been for Bill Walker to resign.

"There is currently no sign of that that is to happen and I am writing to the Presiding Officer and Scotland's party leaders with a view to finding the right outcome to deal with all the relevant issues that this case raises."

Options that could be considered include devolving further powers to Holyrood to enable the Parliament to remove MSPs from their seats in such cases.

On Thursday, Scotland's presiding officer, Tricia Marwick, instructed officials to examine whether Walker's salary could be stopped if he is sentenced to prison, as Holyrood may be able to make decisions on MSP pay provision without having to refer to Westminster.

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'Devoted' Mum Killed In Holiday Boat Tragedy

A British mother has been killed in a boating accident during a dream holiday with her family in Brazil.

Gillian Metcalf, of Tenterden, Kent, was travelling with her husband and two daughters when their boat was struck at high speed by another vessel.

The 50-year-old died instantly from head injuries during the collision on the Rio Negro river on September 5.

It is believed the other boat did not stop to help.

It was "an accident that should never have happened", her husband Charlie told the Daily Mail.

Daughter Alice, 18, added "she died happy, painlessly and with her family around her".

Friend and colleague Richard Locke said he was "devastated" by the death and paid tribute to Mrs Metcalf, saying "we have all lost a very special person".

Mrs Metcalf was a partner at the affordable housing law firm Sharratts, which she helped set up in 1999.

In a statement on the firm's website, he said: "As you will imagine this news has hit us all very hard.

"Gill was a marvellous lawyer, a generous friend and most of all a loving wife and devoted mother to her two girls."

Mrs Metcalf counted skiing, golf, cinema and reading among her hobbies.

A Foreign Office spokesman said: "We are aware of the death of a British national in Manaus on September 5.

"We are providing consular assistance to the family at this difficult time."

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Exclusive: Hunt Warns On Winter A&E Care Crisis

By Thomas Moore, Health Correspondent

It will be 'very, very tough' for the NHS to avoid a repeat of last winter's A&E care crisis, Jeremy Hunt has warned for the first time.

In an exclusive interview with Sky News, the Health Secretary admits to being "concerned" about the high demand for emergency care and the pressure staff are under.

Asked how confident he is that patients will not experience a repeat of the long waiting times seen last year, Mr Hunt said: "It is going to be very, very tough.

"But we can get through this winter. It is entirely possible to meet A&E targets, and I am determined we should."

His warning comes as a poll commissioned for State Of Emergency, Sky News' weekend of live coverage from Nottingham's Queen's Medical Centre, shows that two thirds of people - 66% - believe A&E services are in crisis and patients are being put at risk.

Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt

The Sky News poll of 1,106 people carried out by Survation also shows that more than eight in 10 (81%) of people believe the Government must take immediate action to avoid major issues in A&E.

And 65% blame government cuts for any staff shortages and poor levels of care. However, 75% of those questioned agreed that doctors and nurses were trying their best but were being worked too hard.

The poll also found that a large majority of people - 72% - believe that people visiting A&E for injuries sustained while drunk or under the influence of recreational drugs should have to pay extra towards the cost of treating them.

And more than 90% oppose the provision of breast enlargements and tattoo removals on the NHS.

To address the A&E care crisis, almost two thirds of people - 65% - think that consultants should be forced to work weekends and nights, with 43% saying that senior doctors who refuse should receive less pay.

Some 65% of those questioned also believe that NHS managers are paid too much.

In the first three months of this year, 94 out of 148 hospital trusts failed to meet the target for treating 95% of patients within four hours of them arriving at A&E.

Although the pressure eased over the summer, waiting times have begun to climb once more. Some hospitals are already breaching the target, even before winter pressures kick in.

The government has given the NHS an extra £500m to pay for short-term measures over the next two years to help ease the pressure.

That could include employing more locum consultants in A&E departments and setting up GP surgeries inside hospitals.

"A lot of things are happening to give support to the front line," said Mr Hunt.

"But that's not to say we are not worried about it, because it is going to be very tough, and we understand that."

The National Director for Acute Episodes of Care for NHS England, Professor Keith Willett, told Sky News that demand for emergency care is likely to rise once again this winter.

He will shortly unveil plans to divert more A&E patients towards the care of GPs, paramedics and chemists.

But in the short term, patients will have to accept they have to wait for care.

"Safety is the priority," he said. "We will do everything we can to maximise the way patients receive their care as quickly and optimally as possible.

"But it is a pressured system and we have to work within the envelope we have and the skills and staff we have."

*As part of the poll 1,106 adults were surveyed on 2-3 September by Survation on behalf of Sky News.

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