News

A major hospital has come under fire after it emerged that nearly 90,000 outpatient appointments were cancelled in a single year. The Royal Cornwall Hospital, also known as Treliske, cancelled 87,546 outpatient appointments last year, equal to 240 every day. The hospital is one of three operating under The Royal Cornwall Hospital NHS Trust, which cancelled a total of 13 per cent of all outpatient appointments. The trust said they are working hard to "significantly improve" the figure, but the...

The time is now approaching to consider what contingencies may be needed, should no deal be reached on law enforcement and justice measures after we leave the European Union. The London Assembly Police and Crime Committee heard that if there is no confidence in the transitional arrangements by the new year, the Met will need to start considering what contingencies can be put in place. In its third Brexit Directive letter to the Mayor, the London Assembly urges him to...

An endangered breed of tiger is "clinging to survival" due to the destruction of its forest habitat, warns new research. Living only on the Indonesian island of Sumatra, the Sumatran tiger - officially listed as "Critically Endangered" - is the only surviving sub-species of 'Island tigers' which included the now-extinct Javan and Bali tiger. Conservationists say Sumatran tigers face "many challenges" to their continued existence in the wild, where they require a home range of 25,000 hectares (61,776 acres). These...

David Davis has been called to resign over lies about the Brexit impact assessments. The Brexit Secretary was today forced to admit that the government has not assessed the impact of Brexit for different sections of economy to the EU select committee. He said assessments across several industries were never carried out because "the range of different outcomes is too wide". But the revelations are in stark contrast to what he said in front of the same committee in December 2016. On...

David Davis's appearance in front of the Brexit select committee to explain the whereabouts of the impact assessments this morning is Monte Python's Cheese Shop Sketch without the music, social media observers have pointed out this morning. The Brexit secretary was forced to admit to the EU select committee that the government hasn't done any impact assessment of Brexit on particular sectors of the economy. Reeling off various industries such as automotive and financial services, he said: "The answer would be...

Traffic pollution in London is putting the health of unborn babies at risk, warns new research. And scientists say the situation will continue to deteriorate unless the capital's air quality is improved. Their study found that air pollution from road traffic is having a negative impact on babies’ well-being before they are even born. The findings, published by The BMJ, suggest that exposure to air pollution from road traffic in London during pregnancy is associated with an increased risk of...

Anti-racism campaign HOPE not hate yesterday delivered a 26,500 signature letter of protest to the US Ambassador, Woody Johnson, over US President Donald Trump's retweets of a British anti-Muslim hate group. Representing a broad swathe of disgust with Trump's actions, HOPE not hate deputy director Jemma Levene said that Britons had been outraged by the President's actions. "We want to let Mr Trump and US officials know, in no uncertain terms, that the people of Britain will not stand for...

The EU have created a blacklist of tax havens, which contain 17 names. Crucially for the UK, the main list excludes a number of British Overseas Territories such as the Cayman Island and Bermuda that were on a previous EU blacklist from June 2015. There is also a “grey” list of a further 47 countries who do not meet the EU tax standards but have pledged to change their rules to improve their tax arrangements. Bermuda, the Cayman Islands, the...

Train companies have announced largest ticket increase for five years, signalling a depressing start to the new year for struggling commuters. Fares for all journeys in 2018 show an average rise slightly below the 3.6% set by the government in August for regulated fares, which include season tickets. Rail operators said it showed the industry was attempting to keep down the cost of travel. It is unlikely that many passengers, dealing with the creaking rail service, will agree with their...