REVEALED | More than 16,000 Afghans were secretly brought to the UK in largest covert peacetime evacuation after MoD put them in danger of being targeted by the Taliban

worth reading from @hollybancroft.bsky.social on a government superinjunction that has just been lifted www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home...

New: 'Defects' in decision-making led to Afghan special forces being wrongly denied relocation to the UK, High Court rules Caseworkers weren't given access to relevant payment records & were 'overly reliant' on UKSF's input @hollybancroft.bsky.social write-up www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home...

Afghan resettlement schemes to the UK have been closed to new applicants as of today. MoD's Arap scheme for those who worked alongside British was closed at 3pm today, and the ACRS scheme for Afghans at risk is also shut to new referrals. www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home...

A Brazilian fine art student has said her “dreams are on hold” after being left in limbo for seven months due to Home Office visa errors. “I’ve had to give up on so many dreams and I feel lost in the system," Julia said. www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home...

Man with cerebral palsy and epilepsy detained by Home Office for 10 months despite doctor’s warning www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home...

Repeated failings at migrant hotel where asylum seeker killed himself exposed www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home...

Last year was another disastrous summer for British butterflies. These declines are the tip of an invertebrate iceberg that's melting away. The only way to stop these losses is to radically reset the way we live, work, eat and farm. www.theguardian.com/environment/...

Hundreds of complaints escalated to Home Office asylum hotel providers last year: I've been looking at some of the evidence to MPs for their asylum accommodation inquiry and there are some very concerning cases submitted and clear safeguarding issues. www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home...

Tiktok will be compelled to give evidence in 13-year-old Maia Walsh's inquest. Pre-inquest review hearing heard yesterday that she had been watching 'concerning' content on the app before she died. www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home...

Anxiety and poor mental health exacerbated by the pandemic is a key driver behind the school absence crisis, a programme supporting students to return to the classroom has found. www.independent.co.uk/news/educati...

A mother who admitted killing her baby 27 years ago said her arrest in 2023 was a “relief”, telling detectives: “It’s not easy to live with all that time. I thought this would happen, you don’t get away with anything forever”. www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/crim...

A serious problem at the moment. Rising rents are rapidly outstripping frozen housing benefits, leaving so many in impossible situations. One man I spoke to, Steve, told me that almost all of his health benefits go towards his private rent now. The layered consequences of inadequacy and inaction:

A nice positive story for a Monday: how Switzerland cleaned up its polluted lakes and rivers

The Secret Campaign in China to Save a Woman Chained by the Neck really extraordinary reporting of a grim story of human bondage and state silencing of protest in China www.nytimes.com/interactive/...

Breaking: Kyle Clifford looked up Andrew Tate's podcast the night before raping and murdering his ex-girlfriend and killing her sister and mother Prosecutor Alison Morgan KC said Louise Hunt's friends and family had already noticed "misogynistic traits" and seen him watching a Tate video

Boys in England are significantly outperforming girls in maths and science, according to a new study. Research from UCL shows that a huge disparity emerged between boys and girls in maths education in 2023 - ending years of similar results. www.independent.co.uk/news/educati...

Children are starting primary school struggling to communicate, teachers have warned. The findings come as early years charities and organisations today publish a list of things children should be able to do before they arrive at reception. www.independent.co.uk/news/educati...

NSPCC are launching their six-point action plan for children today. One of the asks is new legislation to tackle the emerging risks from generative AI. You can read my interview with their CEO Chris Sherwood here: www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home...

People in London have been breathing significantly cleaner air since the expansion of the ultra low emission zone #ULEZ #airpollution www.theguardian.com/environment/...

A vulnerable woman who lay dead in her flat for three years was "left to fend for herself" by social services despite police warnings, her family have said. www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home...

UK urged to act now on net zero – and skip two kebabs’ worth of meat a week - Climate Change Committee issues advice to government on meeting carbon emissions target by 2050 Story by @fionaharvey.bsky.social #climatecrisis www.theguardian.com/environment/...

Girl, 14, found in holdall in car boot trafficked to UK after being handed over to French police, report says New inspection report into UK-run short term holding sites in France. www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home...

Asma Khan has been told she will be deported to Pakistan and be separated from her mother. Britain has been her home for 14 years, and they've not been allowed to work, study or get benefits for nearly a decade. Thanks to Asma for sharing her story: www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home...

“I was sleeping, and then all of a sudden I heard this horrible sound..." Cockroaches climbing in ears, lifts that haven't worked for years and water being cut off - life in the Croydon flat block linked to billionaire property landlord Asif Aziz www.londoncentric.media/p/asif-aziz-...

Self-harm and suicide attempts are among over 400 incidents recorded at the government’s flagship asylum camp last year – shining a spotlight on the “highly dangerous” conditions at the site that Sir Keir Starmer tried to shut down. www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home...

MoD is facing legal action over the evacuation of former Afghan commandos to the UK. Legal challenge is being brought over how the Triples review is being carried out. Piece below with new stats on UK accommodation. www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home...

"70% of UK food and drink is plastic wrapped – 51% of this unnecessarily so, according to one study". #PlasticWaste = #PlasticPollution = massive threat to #PublicHealth & environmental health www.theguardian.com/environment/...

Thousands of migrants held at UK-run French detention centres ‘shrouded in secrecy’ www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home...

"One child came into school a lot more excited than usual. He’d slept in a tent overnight, he told Booth and her staff; he was elated. Previously he, his parents and his two siblings had been sleeping on the streets." www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home...

Thank you @hollybancroft.bsky.social for shedding light on the experience our co-director Marzena Zukowska had flying home last month. This is not an isolated incident. A digital-only status means more and more people in the UK will have their rights denied: www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home...

A student in Manchester looking for accommodation was told that people from the “Indian subcontinent” would not be accepted because they “lie too much” and “practise deceit” in a shocking exchange that sheds light on racism in renting.

Eighty children died while living in temporary accommodation in England last year, figures reveal. Over the past five years, 74 children have died with temporary accommodation listed as a possible contributing factor. More detail here: independent.co.uk/news/uk/home...

How anti-migrant influencers are hijacking the debate over one town’s asylum hotel A piece on the debate around a new asylum hotel in Altrincham, near Manchester, and the misinformation already springing up around it 👇 www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home...

I've been looking at how the eVisa roll-out has been going so far. If you have any stories to share please get in touch at [email protected] www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home...

A doctor has admitted to inappropriately messaging a vulnerable teen who he met in a hospital, and later went on to have a sexual relationship with. Story on the case before the medical tribunal below: www.independent.co.uk/news/health/...

Women and their partners should be entitled to paid bereavement leave if they experience a miscarriage as part of new employment laws being brought in by the Labour government, MPs have urged. www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home...

🧵"Putting electronic tags on asylum seekers is ineffective and doesn’t stop people absconding from immigration bail, a government report has found." @hollybancroft.bsky.social on the GPS tagging scheme opens with clarity, and adds stories of people affected. www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home...

A coalition of charities, religious leaders, abuse survivors and others have written to the Home Secretary to push for action on recommendations from the Alexis Jay child sex abuse inquiry. www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home...

Hundreds of children’s care places are costing councils more than £10,000 a week per child. By @hollybancroft.bsky.social www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home...

More than 18,000 refugees were at risk of homelessness in the first nine months of 2024, @hollybancroft.bsky.social reports. There has been a surge in emergency accommodation requests from migrants, including unaccompanied children and young people. Read more: www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home...

Thank you @hollybancroft.bsky.social for coming to shadow me at court and for shining a spotlight on the often invisible experience for those facing housing possession at court.

I spent the day with Shelter's duty solicitor Ruth Camp at Watford county court earlier this month, seeing her help people who are facing eviction from their homes. You can read the piece here 👇

GPs halting transgender patients hormone treatment or refusing prescriptions Great coverage by @hollybancroft.bsky.social for @the-independent.com

New: Newly recognised refugees in Home Office hotels will be given more time to find accommodation and access support before eviction. From next week, the 'move-on' period for refugees is doubling from 28 to 56 days.

We spoke to dozens living in fear of their lives in Afghanistan or barely able to feed their families in Iran Unfortunately there may come a point where they can wait no longer @lhreports.bsky.social @the-independent.com @hollybancroft.bsky.social www.lighthousereports.com/investigatio...

Triples now in Iran told us they’ve been offered money to fight for Russia or Iranian-backed forces None we spoke to had taken up the offers, but some said that with Iran becoming increasingly hostile to Afghans, they may soon feel it's their only option www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home...

In Feb the MoD said it would review 2,000 cases of Afghan commandos who served in UK-funded units (the Triples) who'd been denied relocation 10 months on many have still heard nothing Now we've found some are being approached to fight for Russia in Ukraine www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home...

Pool champion Harriet Haynes speaks to @the-independent.com about her legal fight to see transgender inclusion in English Blackball Pool Federation's women's competitions. The landmark case will be heard in April next year. www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home...