New: Matthew Swindells, who privately urged colleagues to add more patient data into a Palantir-built platform at the same time as he was being paid to advise the US technology company, is stepping down from the health service. www.ft.com/content/3d1d...

A lobbyist who worked directly for Peter Mandelson, on the Palantir board, and on the board of *four* NHS trusts. Lobbying the NHS to hand over even more patient data to Palantir. This absolutely stinks. Get Palantir out of the NHS. Sign my petition: you.38degrees.org.uk/petitions/st...

SCOOP: A senior NHS official privately urged colleagues to add more patient data into a Palantir-built platform at the same time as he was being paid to advise the US technology company. as.ft.com/r/ab744740-5...

Is maternity care in the UK broken? This chart provides a good example of how throwing money at an NHS problem is not guaranteed to fix it. Both NHS culture and policy are other factors at play. Well done to FT’s Laura Hughes for shining a light on this. 👏 #wato @laurahughesft.bsky.social

If you want to be scandalised, listen to @laurahughesft.bsky.social's Toxic Legacy podcast, which describes some of the harm being suffered and the failure of institutions to take it seriously. Thanks to her covering the letter, and keeping the story alive.

For women, giving birth In England is becoming riskier. Maternal deaths in the UK have increased since the pandemic and are now higher than they have been for more than a decade. as.ft.com/r/a4fc58ff-6...

SCOOP: University College London has agreed to pay £21mn to settle a lawsuit brought by students over Covid disruption, a watershed move that is set to put pressure on other institutions to compensate graduates. as.ft.com/r/50cd12f9-3...

This is v important piece on UK maternal care by @laurahughesft.bsky.social but makes for difficult reading My wife encountered this with our second child, thankfully everything ended up OK but there were a series of very dangerous mistakes made as.ft.com/r/24e63817-d...

Maternity care is broken. Who can fix it? - by @laurahughesft.bsky.social giftarticle.ft.com/giftarticle/...

We couldn’t have made Toxic Legacy without the generosity and courage of the families, academics and experts who spoke to us. Honoured to be shortlisted for News Podcast of the Year at the British Press Award. 🎧Full series here: podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/u...

Millions of women in England only have access to one round of IVF on NHS, writes @laurahughesft.bsky.social giftarticle.ft.com/giftarticle/...

The rise of the ‘National Health State’ - fascinating stuff from @laurahughesft.bsky.social and @amyborrett.ft.com. Calls to mind teachers bringing in food, toiletries and clothes for pupils, albeit on a less institutionalised basis. (Source: www.ft.com/content/cb76...)

The head of England’s drinking water watchdog has called for domestic fittings to be tested for lead as a mandatory part of homebuyers’ reports, after a @financialtimes.com investigation revealed millions of people may be unknowingly exposed to the toxic metal. as.ft.com/r/56e04bf8-f...

This is potentially huge. The UK is launching its first screening study for lead poisoning, targeting hidden exposure in children and laying the groundwork for nationwide testing. www.ft.com/content/f2bb...

The UK government is reconsidering whether to routinely test children for lead exposure following a two-year @financialtimes.com investigation that revealed millions may be unknowingly at risk from the toxic metal. 🎧Full series here: podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/u...

Over the moon to get this review. 🙏 🌙 observer.co.uk/culture/audi...

Thirty years ago, horses died and a girl’s gums turned green in West Wales. The cause? Lead poisoning. Now, it’s happening again. Episode 1 of Untold: Toxic Legacy is out now. 🎧 podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/s...

You might be living with lead poisoning and not know it: the toxin is often invisible to the eye, but wreaks havoc on our bodies once we're exposed. @laurahughesft.bsky.social uncovers a lead poisoning epidemic in Toxic Legacy, a new season of our Untold podcast: on.ft.com/3WU8YS8

Lead is leaching into the environment and lurking in our homes. It's in soil, in water, in food, in our housing. And it's poisoning people. The first episode of Untold: Toxic Legacy launches October 22. Trailer here: open.spotify.com/episode/6M4H...

This means the absolute world to me. Very grateful to sources and academics who are STILL helping me uncover the legacy of lead in our environment, as well as the impact it’s having on our health. Feel very lucky (as always) to work at the @financialtimes.com and with such brilliant editors. 🙏

New: The government wants a technological revolution in healthcare. But from paper notes to inconsistent data sharing and dozens of IT systems, digitising the NHS will not be easy. W/ @laurahughesft.bsky.social @upyorkshire.ft.com @carolinenevitt.bsky.social @emmalewis.ft.com 👉 on.ft.com/4dqrVDG

Thank you @privateeyenews.bsky.social for giving me such a great platform to discuss how lead from abandoned mines, old pipes and paint in our houses, could be poisoning hundreds of thousands of children a year here in the UK. open.spotify.com/episode/4nBh...

🎧 Listen to the full interview with Laura on today’s episode of the Page 94 podcast. In feeds now. audioboom.com/posts/871891...

Well this was an eye opener, a big dose of morning doom but I cannot believe #leadpoisoning is not being talked about Great research and reporting from @laurahughesft.bsky.social @privateeyenews.bsky.social youtube.com/watch?v=y-nh...

What a ridiculous honour to just make this list, given both the origin of the award and the calibre of journalism it’s recognised over the years… 🙏 @privateeyenews.bsky.social #PaulFootAward

From the carer’s allowance scandal to an investigation into British universities’ harsh measures against pro-Palestinian protests on campus... The shortlist for the 2025 Paul Foot Award for Investigative Journalism has been announced! Shortlist: www.private-eye.co.uk/paul-foot-aw...