thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-07-27--Strictly Come Dancing 2020: From Coronavirus Changes To Line-Up Rumours, Here's Everything We Know

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While 2020 has undoubtedly been a year of doom and gloom, the autumn is set to get an injection of sparkle with the return of Strictly Come Dancing.
The future of the BBC ballroom competition in the Covid era looked uncertain for a while, but in June, bosses finally confirmed it would be going ahead in order to bring us all some much-needed light relief.
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However, there will be a number of notable changes when the show returns, as it navigates the creative challenges the pandemic has presented.
With that in mind, here’s everything we know so far about this year’s series...
BBC
It’s getting a shorter run
The show is going ahead with a shorter run, compared to the usual 13 weeks.
A BBC spokesperson has said: “To ensure we deliver the high standards audiences know and love, and in light of the ongoing considerations around Covid-19, this year’s series of Strictly will have a slightly shorter run than usual.”
Usually, the show airs a launch show in early September, where the celebrities are paired up with their professional partners, before they then have two weeks to train together ahead of the competition starting in full.
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While no dates have been confirmed, it is looking like the show will not begin until 24 October, running for nine weeks until 19 December.
The pros will be quarantining together so they can record group routines
Back in June, the BBC revealed it was “considering isolating the dancers and key production members” together in a hotel for two weeks so they could then record a batch of group dances. This would be done in a small studio with skeleton crew to then be aired across the series.
The group dances will be pre-recorded BBC
After the group routines are in the can, The Sun has reported that the pros will then be asked to self-isolate at home before they meet their celebrity partners and form support bubbles.
During a recent interview on Lorraine, pro dancer Oti Mabuse confirmed the cast had been asked to self-isolate, saying: “We’ve had to adjust and adapt in these interesting times.
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“We will all be quarantining because I think for most productions and most shows health safety is the most important thing. So we will be taking care of ourselves and all the pros will be quarantining to make sure we’re all fit and healthy to do the show.”
There’s still a big question mark over the studio audience
One of the biggest changes to the series could see the live audience locked out of the ballroom for the first time in Strictly history, due to social distancing rules.
The BBC’s entertainment boss Kate Phillips said that “inevitably things are going to change” on the show, noting how RuPaul’s Drag Race still works well without a live audience.
Speaking at the virtual Edinburgh TV Festival earlier this year, she said: [Drag Race] is a big shiny floor talent competition with all sorts of catwalks, singing, dancing, impressions – it never has an audience.
“The audience is the four judges and I don’t think it suffers from that at all. I think it is a brilliant show.”
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However, tabloid reports have since claimed that a smaller audience made up of different households and support bubbles could happen, with the groups sat at a social distance from one another.
Internationally, Australia aired three episodes of its most recent series of Dancing With The Stars without one (although it did end its run a week earlier than originally planned), while Germany’s Let’s Dance – where Motsi Mabuse also serves as a judge – also went ahead with no audience.
One judge might not be returning
Long-standing judge Bruno Tonioli has thrown his involvement in the new series into doubt because of his commitment to the US version, which he judges at the same time each year.
Usually, Bruno jets back and forth from London to LA each week, but it is unlikely he will be able to do so this year due to coronavirus travel restrictions in the US.
Bruno Tonioli PA
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Speaking to The Sun in June, Bruno said his role was unclear, revealing: “Under normal circumstances I take a deep breath and do the travel. I love the show and love to do it and normally I’m destroyed by Christmas, but this year is different for everyone. Under the current restrictions they just won’t allow it. I don’t know what’s going to happen.”
Cheryl Tweedy’s name was linked to his judges’ seat, but various reports have since claimed she will not replace Bruno.
Instead, it is believed that Craig Revel Horwood, Shirley Ballas and Motsi Mabuse will judge the show as a trio.
The Christmas special is reportedly off
Aston Merrygold and Janette Manrara won the 2018 special BBC
With the huge challenges facing the production of the normal Strictly series, the Daily Star suggested that the usual Christmas special – which sees contestants from previous years return to compete – is just too much extra work for just one episode.
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The BBC has yet to confirm this, but if it is the case, it will be the first time in the show’s 16-year history that a festive special has not aired on Christmas Day.
There could be a number of other changes too
Charlotte Moore, the BBC’s director of content, did confirm to The Times (£) earlier this year that bosses were considering various other safeguarding measures, including testing participants’ temperatures and installing glass divides inside the studio “so that people feel even more protected”.
We’re saying goodbye to some pros
This year has seen some high-profile departures from the professional line-up, with Kevin Clifton and AJ Pritchard both leaving the show.
Kevin Clifton SIPA USA/PA Images
Kevin announced his exit back in March after seven years on the show, revealing he was set to star in a production of Strictly Ballroom, which has since been postponed due to the pandemic.
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AJ was originally announced as one of the pros returning for 2020, but he later said he would not be taking part, revealing he was pursuing a career in presenting with brother Curtis Pritchard.
AJ Pritchard SIPA USA/PA Images
It has been reported Kevin and AJ will not be replaced, while it remains unclear whether Gorka and Graziano will receive celebrity partners this year, after sitting out the competition in 2019.
But our hosts should be staying the same
Claudia Winkleman and Tess Daly BBC / Guy Levy
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While nothing has been confirmed, it is widely expected Tess Daly and Claudia Winkleman will front the series once again.
And there’s plenty of big names who have been linked to the series
Maya Jama, Iain Stirling, RuPaul and Tamzin Outhwaite Shutterstock
As ever, the BBC is keeping the names of this year’s famous contestants under wraps until closer to the launch date.
However, there’s still plenty of big names who have been linked to the show in the press.
It has also been suggested Made In Chelsea star Jamie Laing will also be invited back to participate, after he was forced to withdraw from last year’s competition having injured himself during the filming of the launch show.
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Jamie Laing SIPA USA/PA Images
Reports have also suggested 2020 will finally be the year the show includes its first same-sex pairing, after Dancing On Ice made TV history with Ian ‘H’ Watkins and Matt Evers’ partnership earlier this year.
Check out a more in depth look at the line-up rumours here.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-07-27--Boris Johnson Attacks Twitter And Instagram Failure To Remove Wiley's Anti-Semitic Posts

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Boris Johnson has condemned both Twitter and Instagram for failing to act quickly enough to remove anti-Semitic posts by grime star Wiley.
As No.10 warned that it was determined to introduce new laws protecting users of all social media platforms, the prime minister’s spokesperson said he wanted big tech firms to go “much further and faster” in removing hateful content.
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Wiley, who has half a million followers on Twitter, has been suspended for seven days following a stream of rambling, abusive tweets that targeted Jewish people.
Twitter is being subjected to a two-day boycott by leading politicians and commentators in protest at its failure to suspend the grime artist more swiftly and for not booting him off the platform completely.
Home secretary Priti Patel has now written to Twitter and Instagram demanding answers on why a string of hateful posts were allowed to remain in place for hours and in some cases days.
“The PM would echo the comments of the home secretary yesterday,” the spokesperson said. “We expect a full response.”
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“Anti-Semitic posts from Wiley are abhorrent...This material should not have been able to remain on Twitter and Instagram for so long.
“Social media companies need to go much further and faster in removing hateful content such as this. The message is clear: Twitter needs to do better on this.”
The anti-Semitic content posted by Wiley, whose real name is Richard Cowie, is also being investigated by the Metropolitan Police, with a spokesperson saying that the “relevant material is being assessed”.
Among the abuse posted were suggestions that Jews should be shot, that a mixed race Jewish woman was “not Black” and retweets of messages from Holocaust deniers.
File phot of grime artist Wiley. PA
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The spokesperson explained that the PM had decided not to join the boycott of Twitter because “it’s important to that during the pandemic that we continue to communicate important public health messages”.
“But at the same time we have set out very clearly that Twitter’s performance has not been good enough in response to the anti-Semitic comments made by Wiley and it needs to do much better.”
No.10 warned that it was currently consulting on much tougher measures to police big tech firms with new ‘online harms’ legislation.
“What we are seeking to do is deliver the most comprehensive regime to tackling online harms anywhere in the world,” the spokesperson said, adding a full government response would now take place “this autumn”.
“This will be followed by new laws which place duty of care on online platforms to ensure they keep their users safe.”
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Using the hashtag #NoSafeSpaceForJewHate, campaigners have accused Twitter of “ignoring anti-Semitism” after offensive remarks on Wiley’s account were still visible 12 hours after they were first posted.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-07-27--First Confirmed Coronavirus Case In A UK Pet – As Cat Contracts Virus

A file image of a cat. This is not the animal that was diagnosed with coronavirus. Aleksandr Zubkov via Getty Images
The first case of Covid-19 in a UK pet has been confirmed after a cat in England caught the virus from its owners.
The UK’s chief veterinary officer revealed on the government’s website that the infection was confirmed following tests at the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) laboratory in Weybridge on Wednesday.
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The cat and its owners have since made a full recovery and there was no transmission to other animals or people in the household. The symptoms detected in the cat were “nasal discharge and shortness of breath”.
Although it represents the first confirmed case of an animal infection with the coronavirus strain in the UK, there is no evidence to suggest that the animal was involved in transmission of the disease to its owners, the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs said.
There is also no evidence that pets or other domestic animals are able to transmit the virus to humans.
Other countries have reported cases of pets contracting the virus, including China, US, France, Spain, Italy and Hong Kong.
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Chief veterinary officer Christine Middlemiss said: “Tests conducted by the Animal and Plant Health Agency have confirmed that the virus responsible for Covid-19 has been detected in a pet cat in England.
“This is a very rare event with infected animals detected to date only showing mild clinical signs and recovering within in a few days.
“There is no evidence to suggest that pets directly transmit the virus to humans. We will continue to monitor this situation closely and will update our guidance to pet owners should the situation change.”
Yvonne Doyle, medical dsirector at Public Health England, said: “This is the first case of a domestic cat testing positive for Covid-19 in the UK but should not be a cause for alarm.
“The investigation into this case suggest that the infection was spread from humans to animal, and not the other way round. At this time, there is no evidence that pets can transmit the disease to humans.
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“In line with the general advice on fighting coronavirus, you should wash your hands regularly, including before and after contact with animals.
“The pet cat was initially diagnosed by a private vet with feline herpes virus, a common cat respiratory infection, but the sample was also tested for SARS-CoV-2 as part of a research programme.
“Follow-up samples tested at the APHA laboratory in Weybridge confirmed the cat was also co-infected with SARS-CoV2 which is the virus known to cause Covid-19 in humans.”


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-07-27--Politicians, Celebrities And Journalists Boycott Twitter Over Handling Of Anti-Semitism

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Influential actors, journalists, politicians and celebrities have started a 48-hour boycott of Twitter to protest its handling of anti-Semitic tweets from the account of grime artist Wiley.
Using the hashtag #NoSafeSpaceForJewHate, campaigners have accused Twitter of “ignoring anti-Semitism” after offensive remarks on Wiley’s account were still visible 12 hours after they were first posted.
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Among those ditching the social media platform from 9am on Monday were Countdown’s Rachel Riley, singer Jessie Ware, Reverend Richard Coles and journalist James O’Brien.
Britain’s Chief Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis said he would take part in the protest, having already written to bosses at Twitter and Facebook to tell them: “Your inaction amounts to complicity.”
Grime artist Wiley ASSOCIATED PRESS
The JC will observe tomorrow's 48 hour @Twitter walk out.
We want to send the message to @jack that there must be #NoSafeSpaceForJewHate
By refusing to take serious action against Jew hate, Twitter enables & promotes racism. It must get its house in order. Please join us pic.twitter.com/iNJzfyl9iu — The Jewish Chronicle (@JewishChron) July 26, 2020
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A number of MPs from across parliament have also joined the boycott, including Labour’s David Lammy and Jess Phillips, Tory MP Chris Clarkson and Lib Dem leadership hopeful Layla Moran.
On Sunday, home secretary Priti Patel revealed she had written to Twitter and Instagram demanding a “full explanation” about why “abhorrent” anti-Semitic posts were allowed to remain online for so long.
The antisemitic posts from Wiley are abhorrent.
They should not have been able to remain on Twitter and Instagram for so long and I have asked them for a full explanation.
Social media companies must act much faster to remove such appalling hatred from their platforms. — Priti Patel (@pritipatel) July 26, 2020
Wiley, whose real name is Richard Cowie, has been given a seven day ban from both Twitter and Instagram, PA Media reported, while some posts have been deleted from his accounts.
Twitter has yet to respond to HuffPost UK’s requests for comment. However, the social media platform has previously said that “abuse and harassment” have “no place” on its service and that it takes enforcement action over accounts which violate its rules addressing hateful conduct.
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The Met Police is also investigating the anti-Semitic posts, with a spokesperson saying that the “relevant material is being assessed”.
The Campaign Against Anti-Semitism has called on the Cabinet Office to strip 41-year-old Wiley, who is an MBE, of the honour he was given in 2018.
We have written to the Chairman of @CabinetOfficeUK’s Honours Forfeiture Committee to ask that @WileyCEO be stripped of his MBE. This is a simple case and should not take a long time to decide. Rulings are not usually made public but, in the public interest, this one should be. pic.twitter.com/nWtvTBosUI — Campaign Against Antisemitism (@antisemitism) July 26, 2020


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-07-27--This Morning Travel Expert Criticised Over 'Irresponsible' Advice On New Spain Quarantine Rules

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This Morning’s travel expert has been criticised over “irresponsible” information given to viewers on how to get around self-isolating if you are returning to the UK from Spain.
Over the weekend, the government announced new quarantine rules that force British people visiting Spain into a two-week self-isolation period upon their return home, due to a spike in coronavirus cases there.
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On Monday, the ITV daytime show hosted a segment with travel expert Simon Calder on the changes, in which he outlined a loophole by where travellers could “leave the country again” upon returning to the UK to “reduce the two weeks of quarantine”.
Ruth Langsford and Eamonn Holmes with This Morning travel expert Simon Calder ITV/Shutterstock
After a caller – Emily, who is currently on holiday in Spain – phoned into the show asking what she should do about another upcoming holiday to France which would be impacted by her quarantine period, Simon said: “Not only can you go to France, arguably you should do.
“A lot of people in Spain will think let’s come back and we’ll go into France, some will think we’ll come back through France. That doesn’t excuse you from quarantine but it does mean that rather than being in quarantine stuck at home, not able to go out, not even able to walk the dog, you’re somewhere lovely in France...
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“Leaving the country is fine. You just say I would love to quarantine for 14 days, but in a week’s time I’m going to France, so I’ll be off then, see you later.”
While Simon insisted that he “did not write the rules” when challenged by presenters Eamonn Holmes and Ruth Langsford, he was criticised online for explaining how travellers could get round them.
Its a bit irresponsible of @itv to give people ideas on avoiding quarantine on #thismorning. This isn't a game, it's literally life or death for some people! — Fi 🌊⛱🌊🍦🌊 (@Fibutton) July 27, 2020
Cannot believe the travel advisor on #ITV #thismorning advised ppl to go to France instead of stay quarantined at home on their return from Spain to UK ffs how irresponsible... — Misty eyed Kiya 🇬🇧🇪🇺🌹 (@xKiyax) July 27, 2020
Irresponsible @SimonCalder on @thismorning actively giving out advice on how people can exploit loopholes on government advice to avoid quarantine when returning from abroad. #publichealth is everyone’s responsibility! #COVID19 #thismorning — Dr Michelle Bellingham (@Dr_M_Bellingham) July 27, 2020
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Did anyone else just hear the absolutely appalling travel advice on @thismorning? Effectively advising people how to avoid 2 week quarantine rules & telling someone to travel to France a week after returning from Spain. This is a pandemic, @itv you should be ashamed #thismorning — Laura Townsend (@NoryTownsend) July 27, 2020
This is one of the most astonishingly stupid pieces of television I can remember. Dangerous advice from their ‘expert’, it’s essentially how to get around the rules. The UK is insane. #thismorning #itv @thismorning pic.twitter.com/KYK0WaQT0A — Craig Speer (@Craig_Speer) July 27, 2020
I am appalled that @thismorning are spreading advice about how to avoid the 2 week quarantine rule after returning from Spain. THIS IS HOW THE VIRUS SPREADS. STOP SPREADING THIS INFORMATION!!!!!!!!!! #thismorning — Jessica Grimmel (@JessicaGrimmel) July 27, 2020
Can't believe what I just heard on @thismorning how can you allow advice on how to avoid a quarantine that has been put in place to keep us all safe!? So irresponsible!! Please help me understand how this is okay!? #thismorning — A M Y (@AimoKP) July 27, 2020
#thismorning @ITV disgusting advice from Simon on exploiting loopholes in Spanish / U.K. quarantine rules. How unprofessional and reckless. — Mr Grumps (@realmrgrumps) July 27, 2020
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#ThisMorning Stop with the "loopholes " that's exactly how we had the situation with Cummings and others, taking the piss.
Its simple, come back, stay at home and self isolate for 14 days end of. — Blossom (@Dc7073Bloss) July 27, 2020
So irresponsible of #ThisMorning to be actively sharing ways to take advantage of the guideline loopholes. — Amy Andrews (@AmyJAndrews) July 27, 2020
@thismorning #thismorning omg what irresponsible tv reporting telling people to come home the go to the airport and go to other parts of Europe let’s just spread this all over again, Simon Calder you should be ashamed😡😡😡 — elaine_bale (@elainebale2) July 27, 2020
Imagine on #ThisMorning a lady is being told to not fully quarantine when she gets back from Spain and just go to another country. So we’ll all just reinfect everyone shall we by not quarantining and travelling round the world🙄🤔 — Dani Toyn (@_danitoyn) July 27, 2020
@thismorning why is Simon encouraging people to spread the virus between different countries? Idiotic #ThisMorning — LUCY (@lucyjones____) July 27, 2020
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The idea was also rejected by the caller, who said: “My kids are in Majorca and in a logical sense, if one of them picks up the virus or I pick it up here and we get back together at home – I’m assuming we should be self-isolating separately – but if we go on a holiday to France, surely we are potentially infecting others, and that for me is irresponsible.”
Later during the segment, presenters Eamonn and Ruth tried to provide some more clarity to viewers.
Eamonn said: “We are trying to get an update on this quarantine situation whereby us reading the Department for Transport website, we believe you come into the country and you’ve got to quarantine if you’ve been in Spain for 14 days, at the address at which you are registered.”
As Simon directed them to Public Health Coronavirus Protection Rules 2020 website, Ruth then added: “It’s a grey area. I think as a programme we have to go with government advice, which is if you are coming back from Spain you have to stay in quarantine for 14 days.”
A This Morning spokesperson also echoed Ruth’s statement when contacted by HuffPost UK for comment on criticism of the segment.
The Department for Transport’s website quotes advice from the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO), which states that people “will still need to self-isolate when returning from anywhere in Spain as well as the Canary and Balearic Islands because self-isolation arrangements are put in place on the basis of risk to the as a whole”.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-07-27--Firms Could Slash Sugar And Salt From Products To Keep 'BOGOF' Discounts, Health Minister Says

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Food companies and supermarkets could slash sugar, fat and salt from their products to comply with planned government curbs on junk food discounts and TV advertising, a health minister has suggested.
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Helen Whately said that the new anti-obesity strategy could mirror some of the impacts of the sugar tax on drinks, which successfully forced firms to make their products more healthy.
Although a similar “junk food tax” is not among the package of proposals set out on Monday, the move to outlaw so-called “buy one, get one free” (known as “BOGOF”) promotions of foods with high sugar and salt content could have a similar effect, she said.
Asked directly if the government was considering a food tax, Whately told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: “We certainly learned from the effectiveness of that particular measure. What we saw with the sugary drinks levy was widespread reformulation of products.
Health minister Helen Whately Mike Kemp via Getty Images
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“What we will also see with the policies we are bringing in is businesses will be responsible.
“And we may well see for instance some of the ingredients of food changing in order to make them healthier.”
The ban on discount deals is part of a new government strategy for tackling the UK’s £20bn-a-year obesity crisis, along with the prohibition of junk food adverts before 9pm and new calorie counts on menus in restaurants.
The NHS says one in four adults and one in five children are classed as very overweight. According to OECD data, the UK’s obesity levels have risen 92% since the 1990s.
Boris Johnson, who unveiled a new Twitter video of himself talking about losing weight, said the plans would help “reduce our health risks and protect ourselves against coronavirus”.
Losing weight is hard but with some small changes we can all feel fitter and healthier.
If we all do our bit, we can reduce our health risks and protect ourselves against coronavirus – as well as taking pressure off the NHS.
Our Better Health Strategy https://t.co/WdazXhuhRN pic.twitter.com/KZhW8p17FJ — Boris Johnson #StayAlert (@BorisJohnson) July 27, 2020
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Government sources told HuffPost UK that Whately’s remarks were part of a wider drive to use the new curbs to get manufacturers to make their products more healthy and not just to help consumers with more information.
“If the companies decide they want to keep these deals or to keep advertising and the way to do that is to cut the sugar and salt in their food, then everyone wins,” they said.
“Reformulation of sugary drinks worked really well with the levy. People said it didn’t raise much money, but that was a mark of its success. Manufacturers cutting sugar was the explicit aim of the policy.”
The prime minister and health secretary Matt Hancock have pointed to growing evidence of a link between obesity and an increased risk from Covid-19.
Department of Health and Social Care statistics showed nearly 8% of critically ill patients in intensive care units with the virus have been morbidly obese, compared with 2.9% of the general population.
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Under the new strategy, the curbs would hit “high fat, sugar and salt” (HFSS) foods, as defined by Public Health England’s “nutrient profiling”.
George Osborne’s sugar levy, which came into force in April 2018, forced firms to pay a rate of 24p per litre of drink if a drink contains eight grams of sugar per 100 millilitres and 18p per litre if it contains between five and eight grams of sugar per 100 millilitres.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-07-27--Woman Lists The Microaggressions She And Black Husband Encounter Regularly

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Toward the end of June, weeks into ongoing protests against police brutality and systemic racism, Pamela Chandler felt compelled to vent to her husband, Walter.
The couple live in the small town of West Carrollton, Ohio, with their toddler, Jasmine. Scrolling through Facebook that evening, Pamela, who’s white and whose husband is Black, was disheartened to see so many people misinterpreting the protests and what the Black Lives Matter movement is really about.
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“I jumped offline and started complaining to Walter that I was frustrated that so many people just didn’t get it,” she told HuffPost. “I grew up in a small town that leans conservative. They are wonderful people but not always well informed on issues that plague minorities.”
Walter and Pamela, who’ve been together seven years, wondered if there was a way to change that.
“We ended up sitting down together and came up with a quick list of just some of the everyday things we encounter that a lot of people just aren’t aware of,” Pamela said.
The list, which they say only scratches the surface of their experiences, ended up opening the eyes of not only their Facebook friends, but countless others. The post quickly went viral on the social media site, with more than 128,000 shares and 125,000 reactions.
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“We’ve received thousands of messages from around the world of people sharing the exact same stories,” she said. “It resonated because this is a familiar story.”
Pamela, who blogs at The Chandler Family Crew, wrote in the post about how even simple tasks like driving somewhere are overly complicated by race: “I have to drive basically anytime we are leaving the Dayton area,” she writes. “We don’t talk about it each time, we just both know that if we are leaving our general ‘safe’ area and heading to smaller-town Ohio roads, I’m the one driving.”
Walter told HuffPost the pair like to joke that it’s because Pamela is a better driver. But, he added, “I’m actually a better driver, I just fit the description and get pulled over a lot more.”
Pamela also wrote in the post about how her husband has to double-up on the friendliness wherever he goes, to put white people at ease: “My husband goes out of his way to be nice and talk to EVERYONE. Not because he’s a people person, but because he has learned that a 6’5 Black man intimidates people and so he overcompensates by being overly friendly so people won’t be afraid of him.”
Courtesy of Pamela Chandler Pamela and Walter Chandler, here with their daughter Jasmine, have gotten a huge response to a Facebook post about their experiences as a mixed-race couple. The family lives in Ohio.
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Pamela took note of the side-eye she and Walter get from older people when going out to dinner: “If we go to Bob Evans (or any restaurant that caters to ‘seniors’) too early, we are met with a lot of stares,” she wrote. “The old racists eat between 4-5pm.”
They’ve felt the disdain, too, from their neighbours, who initially didn’t believe the pair could be homeowners: “None of our neighbours thought we owned our home, multiple neighbours stopped my father and asked him if he was the new landlord for us,” Pamela posted. “Because of course, the old white man must have purchased the home. Not only do we own our home, it’s fully paid off, we have no mortgage and we paid for it BY OURSELVES.”
The list goes on and on, ending with a caveat: Pamela said she didn’t want to shame her Facebook friends or make them feel bad for the family, she simply wanted to give “a small glimpse into the intentional and unintentional racism that happens everywhere, all the time.”
Walter’s lived experiences speak to that. One of the more sobering details from the list is how he has to stay by his daughter’s side while on the playground; otherwise, he gets stares and people wonder what the “big black man” is doing on the park bench.
That’s an issue when he goes nearly anywhere with his young daughter without his wife, he told HuffPost: People look at him as though he’s a threat to his own child.
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“Jaz is much lighter than me and when Pam isn’t with us it’s like people can’t fathom that she’s my child,” he said. “Many times when Jaz and I are at a store or at the playground, people will stop her and ask if she’s OK and where her parents are. I’m always right next to her, but they stop and ask anyway.”
Thankfully, he said, “Right now she’s still young enough that she’s clueless, but soon enough we will have to have these harder conversations with her.”
Courtesy of Pamela Chandler Pamela wrote about how her husband has to stay near their daughter at the park so people won't stare him down or question why he's there.
Walter, who moved to Ohio from New York City after meeting Pamela online — he retweeted one of her tweets and they ended up talking through DMs all night — is used to most of these experiences. (Though he shared that raising a biracial daughter has brought new challenges.) It’s taken some getting used to for Pamela.
She told HuffPost that growing up in a small town, she was “absolutely aware” that racism was alive and well in the US, but “definitely thought of it as more violent in your face racism.”
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“I thought it was the kind of racism you can openly fight and condemn,” she said. “Instead, when I started dating Walter I became aware of the subtle racism ― the side of racism that can be denied by most white people.”
She elaborated, “It’s racism that’s sometimes hard to call out, like grown men calling my husband ‘boy,’ friends and neighbours being shocked that my husband was ‘so nice’ or ‘so gentle.’ Implying that black men were not typically ‘nice’ or ‘gentle.’ Or being followed in stores and asked to show receipts constantly.”
Once at a restaurant, Walter said, a few senior women stopped his wife and told her she was “going against God” by marrying outside her race.
“Interactions like that really shook Pam because she was not as accustomed to such a response but I usually let them roll off my back,” he said. “I’ve had a lifetime of dealing with people like that so I try to not let it phase me.”
But as they both know now, blatant racism and microaggressions start to add up; many of the incidents are subtle, but when considered collectively, it’s exhausting, Pamela said.
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Photo courtesy of Pamela Chandler When the Chandlers, seen here when their daughter was baby, first started dating, Walter was prepared for subtle racist responses. For Pamela, the reactions came as a surprise.
With the post being so widely shared, Pamela said she hopes people reading it recognise the couple’s story is not exclusive to their corner of Ohio.
“We want white people to understand that this is happening everywhere, even in the most progressive neighbourhoods,” she said.
Some white people, she added, have written comments to the post saying, “Move here, that doesn’t happen here,” only to have a person of colour from the same city write, “Thank you for sharing, this is my life story, this happens to me all the time.”
“So I think, if anything, white people need to start having these tough conversations in their own cities with their own neighbours,” she said. “They need to be aware that it’s happening so they can be part of the solution.”


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-07-27--The Funniest Tweets From Parents This Week

My favorite part of summer is when my kids ask for the sprinkler and then I turn on the sprinkler and then they cry hysterically if they get wet from the sprinkler and then they yell at me to turn the sprinkler back on after I turn it off


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-07-27--Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox And Lisa Kudrow Reunite To Send Important US Election Message

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Friends don’t let friends skip elections – that was the message to the US public from Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox and Lisa Kudrow on Sunday.
The former Friends co-stars reunited to encourage people to register to vote in the upcoming US election in posts they shared on Instagram.
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The trio – who played Rachel Green, Monica Geller and Phoebe Buffay on the hit sitcom – appeared in pictures and videos together for the first time since lockdown measures were enforced in the US earlier this year.
Lisa posted a snap with the caption “Friends don’t let friends skip elections”, telling her followers to tag their pals in the comments so they would be reminded to check they are registered.
Courteney also uploaded a video of them with the same tag line.
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Jennifer also shared a picture of her Friends character looking shocked on her Instagram Stories, with the caption: “When you realise there are only 100 days until election day.”
Jennifer Aniston posted this on her Instagram Story Instagram
The US will take to the polls on 3 November, the outcome of which will decide whether current president Donald Trump will get a second term, or whether another candidate will be elected.
Jennifer, Courteney and Lisa were due to reunite with their male co-stars Matt LeBlanc, David Schwimmer and Matthew Perry earlier this year to film a TV special celebrating 25 years of Friends.
However, the retrospective was pushed back due to the coronavirus pandemic, with David recently suggesting the cast could potentially now come together in August to shoot it.
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During an appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, David promised the special would feature “surprise bits” and said: “It’s supposed to happen maybe in August, the middle of August, but honestly we’re going to wait and see another week or two if we all determine it’s really safe enough to do. And if not, then we’ll wait until it’s safe.”


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-07-27--Trump Says He'll Skip Yankees Pitch Because Of His 'Strong Focus On The China Virus'

Donald Trump announced Sunday that he won’t throw out the first pitch at a New York Yankees game with the Boston Red Sox after all because he’ll be too busy addressing what he called the “China virus” — meaning Covid-19.
It was only a few days ago — Thursday — that Trump said he would throw out the ceremonial pitch at Yankee Stadium in New York City on August 15.
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The turnabout came a day after Yankees players Giancarlo Stanton and Aaron Hicks took a knee during the national anthem before a game at Washington’s Nationals Park in solidarity with the Black Lives Matter movement.
The men said they plan to do so all season. Trump called athletes who took a knee in the past as a protest against racism and police brutality “sons of bitches.”
Trump revealed his change of heart, citing his demanding schedule, in a tweet after a weekend of golfing at his New Jersey course.
“Because of my strong focus on the China virus, including scheduled meetings on Vaccines, our economy and much else, I won’t be able to be in New York to throw out the opening pitch for the @Yankees on August 15,” he tweeted. “We will make it later in the season,” he added.
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Because of my strong focus on the China Virus, including scheduled meetings on Vaccines, our economy and much else, I won’t be able to be in New York to throw out the opening pitch for the @Yankees on August 15th. We will make it later in the season! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 26, 2020
Trump has been harshly criticised for his racist Covid-19 misnomer “China virus” as a bid to demonise the Chinese for a disease that he has failed to contain in the US. He has also referred to Covid-19 as the “kung flu,” a phrase his own White House counsellor, Kellyanne Conway, has called “highly offensive.”
President Trump talks about the many names of Coronavirus, including “Kung Flu”. pic.twitter.com/m0aQLfpNuT — Benny (@bennyjohnson) June 21, 2020
Trump’s approval rating fell to a record low 32% for how he’s handling Covid-19, according to a poll by The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research released Sunday
Infectious disease expert Anthony Fauci threw out the first ceremonial pitch on the opening day of Major League Baseball’s abbreviated season last Thursday at Nationals Park. The throw was so atrocious that observers joked that he was trying to flatten the curve of spiking coronavirus cases.
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Trump recently blasted Fauci, the head of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, as an “alarmist” over his warnings as COVID-19 cases in the nation skyrocket. Fauci later responded, “I consider myself more a realist than an alarmist.”


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-07-27--'Sense Of Panic' As 1.8m Holidaymakers Faced With Spain Quarantine Rules

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Some 1.8m holidaymakers are facing uncertainty amid new government quarantine rules that force British people visiting Spain into a two-week self-isolation period upon their return home.
Ministers have stood by their shock decision, announced on Saturday evening, to once again introduce a 14-day self-isolation period for British holidaymakers returning home after visiting Spain.
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Coinciding with what would, in normal times, have been the first week of the six-week summer break, the announcement plunged would-be holidaymakers – and those already abroad – into uncertainty.
Close to 1.8 million holidays are likely to have been thrown into chaos by the move, according to travel company The PC Agency, which analysed the number of seats booked on flights leaving the UK for Spain between July 26 and August 31.
Labour’s shadow home secretary Nick Thomas-Symonds said the abrupt introduction of the new rules “created a sense of panic and loss of control”, the BBC reported.
As well as impacting families, many of whom would have booked trips months before the pandemic struck to mark the end of the school year, there are concerns for the thousands of people who now may not be able to work for a fortnight after their holiday.
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The government is asking employers to be “understanding” of workers who need to self-isolate, but there are no guarantees employees will be allowed to work from home.
Thomas-Symonds added: “The government should have proper contingency plans to support people coming home where there is no guarantee their employers will allow them 14 days of work flexibility.
“And it is high time that a sector-specific deal for aviation is introduced as quarantine measures continue to affect the travel industry.”
Speaking to BBC Radio 4′s Today programme on Monday morning the shadow home secretary also urged the government to introduce “smarter measures” at the border as opposed to a blanket quarantine policy for those returning from Spain.
Passengers arriving to Gatwick Airport from Spain on Sunday morning expressed their frustration at the change to travel quarantine rules.
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Those disembarking from a flight from Barcelona that landed shortly before 9am now face two weeks of self-isolation.
Jill Witte, 53, arriving back in the country with her two daughters and husband, said the quarantine rule changes would “massively” inconvenience the family.
“We were shocked, it didn’t look like that was coming, otherwise we wouldn’t have gone,” she said.
Another 24-year-old traveller from Surrey, who only gave her name as Hannah, said the rule change would affect family plans and her work.
“We were supposed to return work at the beginning of August, so I’m now going to have to stay away again for another week,” she said.
Self-employed roofer Malcolm Bembridge told of his frustration at the news he would have to quarantine for two weeks after his one-week holiday in Spain because he “needs to go back to work”.
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He flew home to Birmingham from Almeria on Sunday and said he had ordered a Covid test.
He told the PA news agency: “If I do the test and it comes back negative, then does that mean I can resume work or do I need to self isolate?”
He said he was hoping to employ someone to do the work he had scheduled but was frustrated at the money he would lose because of the need to self-isolate.
“It is bad timing because most people travel this time of year with kids as schools break up,” he said.
“Why don’t the government do testing at the airports?”
There are fears more European holidays could be thrown into disarray during “uncertainty” this summer, with The Telegraph reporting that officials in both France and Germany have warned of possible new lockdowns as parts of Europe braced for a second wave of Covid-19 infections.
French health authorities said at the weekend that the country’s R-rate was up to 1.3 and that daily new infections on Friday had risen to 1,130 – indicators resembling those seen in May, when France was coming out of its strict two-month lockdown.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-07-27--US Couple Wears Nazi Face Masks To Walmart After State Mask Mandate

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Walmart temporarily banned a couple after the pair wore swastika face masks into a Minnesota store in what they claimed was a political statement in the wake of a statewide mask mandate.
Disturbing video taken Saturday inside the Walmart in Marshall one day after the state’s coronavirus mask rule went into effect showed the man and woman checking out at a register as the woman made obscene hand gestures while wearing the red and black Nazi symbol.
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“You cannot be an American and wear that mask. You cannot,” someone behind the camera told her. “We literally had a war about this.”
This couple wore Nazi flags around their faces inside a Walmart in Marshall, MN to protest the statewide mask mandate that took effect today. I confirmed with a store manager. Video was posted to FB by Raphaela Mueller pic.twitter.com/t3v96PKh25 — Max Nesterak (@maxnesterak) July 25, 2020
The unidentified woman is heard telling other shoppers, “I’m not a Nazi,” when confronted about her attire. She instead claimed that she was only wearing the symbol of hate as a political statement.
“If you vote for [Joe] Biden, you’re going to be in Nazi Germany. That’s what it’s going to be like,” she said, referring to the former vice president’s White House run. “Socialism is going to happen here in America.”
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Another photo posted to Facebook appeared to show the woman at one point extending her left arm out as if to give a Nazi salute.
Officers with the Marshall Police Department responded to a disturbance call at the store around noon. They issued a notice of trespass to the couple, who were identified only as a man, 59, and a woman, 64. They left without further incident, local station KARE-11 reported.
Shopper Raphaela Mueller, who posted the couple’s photo and video to Facebook, said she was born and raised in Germany. She said seeing the symbol, which is illegal in her home country because of the atrocities associated with it, left her physically unwell.
“It’s been shown that, biologically, trauma passes down through the generations in your DNA,” she told the Minneapolis Star Tribune. “My immediate physical reaction was nausea and wanting to cry, so I can’t imagine what that must feel like for other people who lost family members in the Holocaust.”
A Walmart spokesperson called the shoppers’ behaviour unacceptable in a statement to HuffPost Sunday and added that the couple will not be allowed to return to Walmart stores for at least one year.
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“We strive to provide a safe and comfortable shopping environment for all our customers and will not tolerate any form of discrimination or harassment in any aspect of our business,” the statement said.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-07-27--Kate Garraway ‘Shaken’ After ‘Utterly Terrifying’ Ordeal That Saw Her Car Tyre Blow Out On Motorway

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Kate Garraway has been left “shaken” after a terrifying ordeal that saw her car tyre blow out on a motorway.
The Good Morning Britain presenter recalled the “utterly terrifying” incident, which occurred during the first family outing without her husband, Derek Draper, who has been in hospital since March after contracting coronavirus.
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Kate thanked Kent Police on Instagram for coming to the rescue while she was left stranded in high-speed traffic, accompanied by a picture of the badly damaged Volvo.
Officers came and towed the vehicle to safety because there was no hard shoulder on the motorway.
The AA control centre realised that the presenter and her family were in a highly dangerous location and called the police. They provided recovery for her vehicle and a taxi and have left her a personal message.
Kate wrote: “Thanks to our amazing saviours Liz & Mark from @kentpoliceuk who rescued me after a full tyre blow out on the motorway!!! Never had one before – utterly terrifying.
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“Managed to keep control of car but couldn’t get off motorway as no hard shoulder & when the AA said they couldn’t come for an hour, then rang after half an hour to say might still be an hour had no choice but to call the police.
“They were so brilliant and got us to safety and we are now on way home in taxi, shaken but safe, tow truck on way to car. It’s first time have taken kids out without Derek too, but we are safe.”
Kate Garraway Ken McKay/ITV/Shutterstock
Edmund King, AA president, said: “Immediately that our AA control centre realised that Kate Garraway and her family were in a highly dangerous location on a motorway without hard shoulder, we called the police.
“This is always an emergency situation and our standard procedure on ‘smart’ motorways or slip roads without hard shoulders.
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“This shows the dangers of breaking down in a live lane and why we have campaigned vigorously for more emergency refuge areas on smart motorways.
“We are delighted the police did a great job to move them off the motorway and Kate and her family are fine.
“We have been in contact with her and provided recovery for her vehicle and a taxi. I have also left a personal message to see if there is anything else we can do.
“This frightening incident shows the importance of hard shoulders or adequate emergency refuge areas and is also a good reminder for all drivers to check the pressure and condition of their tyres.”
The incident comes after Kate revealed nurses told her that her husband looked “focused and engaged” when they put GMB on for him.
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thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-07-27--Coronavirus: What Will Happen When The Eviction Ban Is Lifted?

Coronavirus: What Will Happen When The Eviction Ban Is Lifted?
A ban on tenancy evictions was announced in March as households across the country faced economic uncertainty at the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic. Following a three month extension in June, that ban is set to be lifted on August 23 which homeless charity Shelter says threatens 230,000 renters with a ‘Covid eviction’. Here we speak with Shelter chief executive Polly Neate about what tenants should do if they have fallen behind with their rent. We also hear from Jeanny Priebe, a single mum facing eviction after being furloughed at the start of the pandemic.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-07-27--US Senator Calls Slavery Nation's 'Necessary Evil' In Shocking Interview

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Controversial US senator Tom Cotton called slavery the nation’s “necessary evil” in a new interview published Sunday.
Cotton told the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette that slavery was the evil ”upon which the union was built.”
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He made the stunning comment while discussing how slavery should be taught in schools.
“We have to study the history of slavery and its role and impact on the development of our country because otherwise, we can’t understand our country,” Cotton said. “As the Founding Fathers said, it was the necessary evil upon which the union was built.”
Cotton also noted that the “union was built in a way, as Lincoln said, to put slavery on the course to its ultimate extinction.”
Instead of portraying America as “an irredeemably corrupt, rotten and racist country,” the nation should be viewed “as an imperfect and flawed land, but the greatest and noblest country in the history of mankind,” he added.
Cotton delved into his twisted view of the history of slavery as he discussed his bill — the Saving American History Act of 2020 — that would cut off federal professional development funds from any school district that teaches a curriculum linked to the 1619 Project.
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The 1619 Project — which refers to the year slaves were brought from Africa to colonial America — was a series of pieces by writers for the New York Times Magazine that examines the American history of slavery and its critical role in the nation’s founding.
Nikole Hannah-Jones, a Pulitzer Prize-winning Times reporter and director of the 1619 Project, blasted Cotton’s comments justifying slavery, “where it was legal to rape, torture and sell human beings for profit.” It’s “hard to imagine what cannot be justified if it is a means to an end,” she added.
If chattel slavery — heritable, generational, permanent, race-based slavery where it was legal to rape, torture, and sell human beings for profit — were a “necessary evil” as @TomCottonAR says, it’s hard to imagine what cannot be justified if it is a means to an end. https://t.co/yScNxPq6ds — Ida Bae Wells (@nhannahjones) July 26, 2020
Cotton shot back in a tweet — retweeted by Donald Trump — that his comments were not “justifying or endorsing slavery” because he claimed to be merely “describing the views of the Founders.”
More lies from the debunked 1619 Project.
Describing the *views of the Founders* and how they put the evil institution on a path to extinction, a point frequently made by Lincoln, is not endorsing or justifying slavery.
No surprise that the 1619 Project can't get facts right. https://t.co/nLsb73X3Gi — Tom Cotton (@TomCottonAR) July 26, 2020
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Were the Founders right or wrong, @TomCottonAR, when they called slavery a “necessary evil upon which the Union was built”? Because either you agree with their assessment of slavery as necessary or you admit they were lying and it was just an evil and dishonorable choice. Which? https://t.co/22c94wWhni — Ida Bae Wells (@nhannahjones) July 26, 2020
Actual historian and scholar of slavery. https://t.co/ebRhR5PYIO https://t.co/FTSXYY6Lg1 — Ida Bae Wells (@nhannahjones) July 26, 2020
In his interview with the Gazette, Cotton criticised the 1619 Project as “left-wing propaganda,” and “factually, historically flawed.”
“Even a penny is too much to go to the 1619 Project in our public schools,” Cotton said. “The New York Times should not be teaching American history to our kids.”
If “local, left-wing school boards want to fill their children’s heads with anti-American rot, that’s their regrettable choice,” said Cotton. “But they ought not to benefit from federal tax dollars to teach America’s children to hate America.”
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thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-07-27--Charlize Theron Recalls 'Unfair' Treatment On The Italian Job, Shades Mark Wahlberg

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Mark Wahlberg might need to pencil in some extra gym time in his famously unhinged daily schedule if he wants to keep up with Charlize Theron.
The Old Guard star has cemented herself as one of the foremost action stars around, but she long had to prove that she could run faster, kick harder and drive better than her male co-stars.
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Take for instance, the 2003 remake of The Italian Job, for which Theron recently revealed she was scheduled to train for six weeks longer than her male co-stars, including Wahlberg, Jason Statham and Edward Norton.
Mark Wahlberg and Charlize Theron promoting "The Italian Job." Rune Hellestad - Corbis via Getty Images
“There was a real pressure to pull off those stunts with the actors. … There was a very unfair process that went with that,” Theron said in a Comic-Con at Home career retrospective.
“I was the only woman with a bunch of guys, and I remember vividly getting the schedule in our preproduction, and they had scheduled me for six weeks more car training than any of the guys. It was just so insulting.”
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The discrepancy in their preproduction schedules “put a real fire under my ass,” Theron said, which made seeing her male co-stars struggle on-set that much more gratifying.
“I was, like, ‘All right, you guys want to play this game, let’s go,’” she recalled. “I made it a point to out-drive all of those guys. I vividly remember Mark Wahlberg, halfway through one of our training sessions, pulling over and throwing up because he was so nauseous from doing 360s.”
The heist thriller’s most memorable action set-pieces feature the cast as they drive a fleet of Mini Coopers through various global locations. Theron recalled being particularly proud of maneuvering the vehicle for one stunt in “a reverse 360 or maybe 180 in a warehouse with props everywhere.”
“I did that stunt completely on my own,” she said. “It was a huge moment for feeling, like, ‘Yeah, we can do all this stuff, and women are so unfairly thought of or treated in genre.’”
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The experience filming The Italian Job helped Theron come to terms with the “misconception around women” in action films, propelling her to seek out and create roles in big-budget projects such as Aeon Flux, Mad Max: Fury Road and Atomic Blonde in order to upset the norm.
“When I started my action career, it was so important to sell the authenticity of, ‘Yes, I can fight, and I can take this guy down, and I can survive this,’” Theron said. “There was such a level of wanting to prove that to audiences who for years said, ‘No, a woman could never fight a guy that size.’”
With the recent record-shattering release of Netflix’s The Old Guard, Theron has no plans to slow down anytime soon. She has already expressed interest in reprising her role in a sequel to the Gina Prince-Bythewood-directed film and recently teased that an Atomic Blonde follow-up is in development.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-07-27--Euthanasia Rates For Dogs 'Could Rise By 25% In Lockdown Fallout'

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Euthanasia rates for dogs could increase by up to 25% in the next year as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, an animal welfare charity has warned.
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The UK could see as many as 40,000 more stray or abandoned dogs, as families who took on so-called ‘pandemic puppies’ face new difficulties as the country emerges out of lockdown.
The charity Dogs Trust is predicting tens of thousands of dogs could be impacted by the crisis and face behavioural problems, abandonment and be put to sleep.
Pet purchases have surged since the beginning of lockdown, with Google searches for “buy a puppy” increasing by 166%, according to data from Propellernet.
Owen Sharp, chief executive of Dogs Trust, said in the aftermath of the 2008 financial crisis, the number of stray and abandoned dogs went up by 25.6% the following year.
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Bobby and Terry were both found abandoned during the coronavirus lockdown. The charity estimates we could see up to 40,000 more stray or abandoned dogs next year. HuffPost UK
“The 2008 economic crisis was the last time we saw a recession on a level that experts are saying we may see on the back of coronavirus,” he told HuffPost UK. “The number of dogs we took in went up and so did the demand for animal welfare.
“There were different reasons people couldn’t cope with their dogs: some couldn’t afford them, some people might have had to move to different accommodation in order to change jobs, their working hours could have changed. There was a catalogue of issues.”
He warned the number could be even higher this time around. “A 25% [increase in euthanasia rates] could be an underestimation,” he said.
“We don’t know the current dog population – there are a lot more dogs around, particularly puppies – so that number could be a lot bigger.”
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A 25% increase in euthanasia rates next year would mean more than 1,800 dogs in local authority shelters could be put down unnecessarily.
Dogs who had been adopted while under lockdown could have a “strong chance” of showing behavioural issues in the coming months – the biggest reason people give up dogs for rehoming.
Shar Peis Sasha and Nelson were found tied up on a local golf course nearly a month ago, and have started to settle into life at Dogs Trust. HuffPost UK
Animals who have become accustomed to being with the family throughout lockdown could suffer from separation anxiety once people return to work or school, becoming withdrawn, hyperexcited or destructive.
They might also not be as well socialised as people hope and may exhibit behavioural problems once places become more crowded.
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There are also concerns over how dogs will react to seeing so many people wearing face masks. “We’ve heard stories about dogs who have become quite anxious about masks,” Sharp said.
His charity has launched an urgent fundraising appeal to help care for dogs who might need rehoming as a result of the crisis. It is also urging people to get in touch if they are struggling to cope with caring for their dog.
“In these extraordinary times we know that circumstances can change in a heartbeat,” Sharp said.
“The sad reality is that in times of financial hardship many people struggle to cope with looking after their pets, and the number of abandoned dogs has gone up. We saw this in 2008, and we’re extremely concerned that history could repeat itself in the coming months.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-07-27--Make Pasta From Scratch With The Kids Using This Homemade Recipe

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Cooking With Kids is our new weekly recipe series on getting creative in the kitchen with the family.
Making pasta from scratch might sound complicated, but once you realise how easy it is – you only need three ingredients – you’ll might never buy dried pasta again.
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Owner of Michelin-starred Pied a Terre restaurant in London, David Moore has shared his fail-safe recipe with HuffPost UK for our Cooking With Kids series – and if his Michelin star leave you doubting the simplicity of this recipe, know that his daughters have not just made pasta, but mastered it.
“This recipe is child’s play and can be done from start to finish by kids but does need some supervision for the rolling out and the boiling water,” he tells HuffPost UK, adding: “There is nothing more satisfying than making something with your own hands, especially when you start with basic ingredients like flour and eggs and you end-up with totally delicious fresh pasta.”
Don’t be afraid to roll your sleeves up and get messy with this one. You can use a pasta roller, if you have one, but a rolling pin works just fine – you just need some extra elbow grease.
“Kids can learn that pasta doesn’t grow on trees. If you take the time and effort to make something it’s totally worth it,” explains Moore. “They will also learn some discipline by following a recipe and patience because you have to let it rest as the pasta can’t be eaten straight away.”
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Homemade Pasta
Serves: 4 | Prep Time: 40 mins | Cook Time: 5 mins
David Moore David Moore's daughters making pasta
Ingredients:
300g 00 flour (plus 100g extra flour for dusting)
1 whole egg
8 to 10 large egg yolks
Splash of olive oil
Method:
1. Sieve the flour into the bowl. Make a well with the flour and crack in one whole egg, then begin kneading, slowly adding a few eggs yolks and a splash of olive oil. The flour will start looking like breadcrumbs and will come together as a dough as you add more yolks, go slowly with the egg yolks, don’t let it get slimy, but if it does add a little more flour.
2. The dough should be smooth when finished, remove from bowl, wrap in cling film, rest in the fridge for half an hour.
3. Have a large pan of water on the boil ready, with salt and olive oil.
4. Lightly flour the surface, and rolling pin, before rolling out the pasta. It should be about 3mm thick. Using a knife cut the sheet of dough into strips (6-9mm wide), then place directly into the boiling water, cook for about 1 minute.
5. To go with pasta, children like simple sauces the best. Try basil pesto, tomato sauce or cheese – the world’s your oyster!


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-07-27--Private Renters Handed Eviction Notices During Lockdown Despite Ban

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Renters are being served eviction notices despite the government’s promise to protect people from a wave of homelessness resulting from the coronavirus pandemic.
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Evictions have been banned since the start of lockdown, however landlords have continued to serve Section 21 notices throughout this period. The notices allow landlords to evict tenants without giving any reason – a so-called “no-fault eviction”.
The government has confirmed the ban on evictions will end on August 23. Last week it published new civil procedure rules for eviction proceedings, which will require landlords to submit a “reactivation notice” setting out a tenant’s circumstances, including whether the lockdown has impacted their ability to pay rent, or whether the tenant is vulnerable.
But as it stands, any private tenants in more than eight weeks of rent arrears will still be at the mercy of automatic evictions using Ground 8 of Section 8 of the Housing Act.
Housing experts are calling on the government to change this rule, arguing that as long as it stands the new regulations do not compel landlords to do anything at all, as judges will have no legal means to protect renters from Section 21 evictions or Section 8 evictions.
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Although government guidance has urged landlords to “show compassion”, many private tenants who are struggling financially as a direct result of coronavirus are now facing eviction and possible homelessness.
Jeanny, Phoebe and Jordan were all given Section 21 notices during lockdown and are soon facing eviction. HuffPost UK
One such example is small business owner Daniela and her musician partner James, of Liverpool. The couple have struggled financially during lockdown, as James’s freelance work has completely dried up with the closure of venues and cancellation of festivals.
With their incomes slashed by half, Daniela and James wrote to their letting agency in early March, saying they could not pay their rent in full and hoping they could receive an agreement.
Instead, they received some “completely inappropriate” “load of generic nonsense suggesting how to budget our money” and were told to contact their water, gas and electricity companies to ask for a “payment suspension”.
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After racking up four months of rent arrears and receiving emails that made them feel “incredibly humiliated”, a letter arrived with a Section 21 notice attached. The couple are now facing “further debt and potential homelessness”, while Daniela’s anxiety has affected her ability to work.
They also discovered their landlord has benefited from a mortgage holiday – while at the same time ignoring their pleas for leniency.
“We’re at a point where we have to choose if we’d like to pay rent or risk not being able to buy groceries,” Daniela told HuffPost UK. “I just don’t earn enough on my own to sustain both of us and pay all of our bills. This has obviously affected us mentally.”
Boris Johnson previously pledged to scrap Section 21 as part of last year’s Conservative election manifesto, but has so far failed to do so.
Last week Labour warned the country faced a “homelessness emergency” unless new legislation was introduced to prevent a wave of evictions.
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Thangam Debbonaire, shadow housing secretary, said the government’s mortgage relief policies have “helped property developers, second home-owners and landlords make money from housing”.
“But they are doing nothing to help thousands in rented accommodation, who may find themselves without anywhere to live later this year,” she said.
Jeanny Priebe: "I have no idea where we are going. I don’t even want to think about it because it makes me so sleepless and ill." HuffPost UK
Jeanny Priebe, 48, lives in Bournemouth with her three children. She was furloughed from her retail job at the start of the pandemic and is still unable to return.
She has endured difficulties with paying rent, and her landlord has asked the family to leave the home they have rented for four years by October 4. Her estate agency says that the property was previously a family home and the landlord now needs to “reassess the family situation”.
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“I’ve problems to sleep through the night, I wake up very often,” Jeanny told Huffpost UK. “The same with my children. My 19-year-old daughter is autistic. She struggles with any kind of changes and this has a massive impact on her.”
She added: “I have no idea where we are going. I don’t even want to think about it because it makes me so sleepless and ill. I don’t want to eat, I don’t want to do anything. It makes me upset. It makes my family upset. And because I am the only breadwinner in this family, I have to be fully aware of things that have to be there.”
The government’s decision to allow homeowners to have a mortgage payment holiday has meant some landlords have followed the advice to “show compassion” and offered some form of rent reduction or suspension.
Others, however, have been less than sympathetic. When academic researcher Jordan Osserman, 31, wrote on behalf of more than 100 private tenants of a block of flats in Stoke Newington, London, asking for 20% reduction in rent, the managing agent informed him the request was “unreasonable”.
Jordan Osserman: Agencies and landlords "should know there are consequences to this kind of behaviour". HuffPost UK
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“The response we received back was nasty and hostile,” he told HuffPost UK. “They told us to use the money you save on lunches, work travel and cancelled holidays on rent instead.”
On Tuesday, Jordan and his flatmates received an email informing them their tenancy would not be renewed, with a Section 21 notice attached.
“We are feeling incredibly distraught – but not surprised,” he said. “They just want us out.”
Ironically, he and his flatmates have been paying their rent in full throughout lockdown. “We haven’t missed a single payment.
“We drafted the letter to begin with just to help our neighbours, to help our community under these difficult circumstances. There were so many people talking about how difficult things were, and we wanted to contribute to a sense of community in the building and enable people to act collectively.”
Labour MP for Hackney North and Stoke Newington, Diane Abbott, said “no one should lose their home”.
“There should be no evictions during this crisis. There is a public health crisis and many are struggling with bills because of the economic crisis,” she told HuffPost UK.
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“No one should lose their home while this is happening, and these evictions should be stopped.”
Jordan, Daniela and James are all currently seeking legal advice to challenge the Section 21 notices they received from their letting agencies. However in many cases, private tenants can feel too overwhelmed and intimidated by the threat of eviction to fight back.
One renter, who preferred not be named, received their notice at the end of May informing them they only had one month to move out of their property in South Acton, London – the current rules are that a landlord must give a notice period of three months.
“It was a houseshare and it wasn’t convenient for everyone to move out,” they told HuffPost UK. “I lost nearly all my income [since lockdown] and two other housemates sharing a room had lost their work.”
They said they felt “strong-armed” by the agency, which was “reliant on us not knowing our rights or feeling too uncomfortable to protest”.
“It was very stressful,” they said. “To suddenly find the rug pulled from under my feet was miserable. I got headaches and insomnia, my appetite was affected, and honestly I didn’t realise how bad I felt in general until I moved out.
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“It was also pretty miserable because it felt sort of like I was a commodity – yes, there’s a deadly global pandemic, and yes, you’ve always paid your rent, and no, legally we shouldn’t even be serving this notice on you – but we are! So shove off!
“I wasn’t able to find anywhere for a long time. I’m on universal credit as a self-employed person with low income and I was openly discriminated against for that reason. An agency openly told me the landlord didn’t want me to rent if I was receiving any benefits. Other adverts just flat-out stated ‘No DSS’.
“I still feel insecure about renting now, because what if it happens again? It’s difficult to feel at home when I know that’s how landlords and letting agencies feel about me.”
Tenants campaign group Generation Rent said 45,000 people are at serious risk of homelessness this autumn. Kypros via Getty Images
On Wednesday the tenants campaign group Generation Rent urged Robert Jenrick to ensure no one who has lost income because of coronavirus will be evicted from their home.
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In an open letter to the housing secretary, the group’s director Alicia Kennedy said renters “urgently need reassurance that they will not lose their home”.
“Over half a million households are behind on their rent and people are terrified about losing their homes,” she said.
A separate study conducted by the homelessness charity Shelter found nearly 230,000 tenants across England are at risk of eviction, while Generation Rent said 45,000 are at serious risk of homelessness this autumn.
“Section 21 notices are immoral and the legal system is heavily weighted in the favour of landlords,” said actor and theatre producer Phoebe Kemp, who was served a Section 21 order after complaining about issues with the property that predated the lockdown.
“The one impacting us most at the moment is damp, which at its worst was causing mushrooms to grow out of my carpet,” Phoebe said.
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As a wheelchair user, Phoebe explains finding a home to rent is difficult even in the best of times: “It took us three months looking in non-pandemic times to find this place, so it seems like it will be impossible to find somewhere else now.”
Phoebe Kemp: “Section 21 notices are immoral." HuffPost UK
Phoebe says the situation has been “absolutely awful” and detrimental to their mental health: “I was already dealing with the fact that my future career is completely up in the air without this happening with my living situation as well.”
“We are going to see so many evictions when the freeze comes and homelessness is already a major issue in this country, with or without a pandemic.”
On Wednesday the housing minister suggested court action to evict tenants could be postponed if a landlord cannot demonstrate “good cause”.
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Speaking to MPs, Christopher Pincher said measures would be introduced to make it “very difficult” for landlords to bring applications to court in order to “support hard-pressed renters”.
Debbonaire said Johnson had “let down renters”.
“Choices and delays by this government mean hundreds of thousands of people risk losing their homes in the middle of a global pandemic,” she told HuffPost UK.
“The Tories promised to end unfair ‘no fault’ evictions, but needlessly delayed it until after the expected wave of evictions when the ban is lifted in August. We were promised that ‘no renter who has lost income due to coronavirus will be forced out of their home’.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-07-27--We Finally Bought Our First House. Then Coronavirus Took Our Jobs

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We’d done it.
Walking out of the estate agents, holding two keys in my hand, my fiancé and I had officially bought our first house. I’d always thought buying your own home was the pinnacle of true adulthood. And I won’t lie, it felt good – like I had finally got entry to a secret club. Little did I know, every plan I had for 2020 was about to start splintering away from me.
Like most couples, me and my fiancé had a life plan. We decided to get a dog first, buy a house, get married and then have children. By January this year, we had finally saved a 10% deposit, and we started stalking online for properties we loved. We found The One on the first day of searching, and made an offer after a few weeks of measuring every other property against it. The flurry of estate agents and solicitors kept us busy. It was exciting, I was lusting over beautiful homeware, and we had started packing our lives into boxes.
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Then the country went into lockdown one week before we were due to move, pushing back our house buying process by two months. In that time, I was working from home as a copywriter, hearing stories every day on the news of people being furloughed and, worse, losing their jobs. I was thankful that the company I worked for was doing well – in fact, business was booming. Job security didn’t cross my mind at all.
My sense of safety evaporated in early May. A video call with the CEO of the company changed everything: they wanted to relocate the company, and they were going to be making people redundant. Call it a gut feeling, but I knew, immediately, my name would be on that list.
“Even if I ended up redundant, we’d get by, right? A few weeks later, he returned home from work earlier than normal...”
Malte Mueller via Getty Images Couple reading books on sofa
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I tried not to panic. My boyfriend was still working for a telecommunications company as a repair technician and was designated a key worker. Even if I ended up redundant, we’d get by, right?
A few weeks later, he returned home from work one hour earlier than normal. “This is a nice surprise, what are you doing here?,” I remember asking. His answer was “sit down”. Now his company had decided to close their repair centre, and focus on others that had more footfall.
The rug had been firmly pulled from under us. We had a new mortgage, bills to pay, and everything we had been working hard for was at stake. The anger we felt consumed us. We’d done everything right, we both had good jobs, and had sacrificed a lot to be in this position. Yet this was the end result. It felt like we’d failed, before we had even made our first mortgage payment. We hadn’t seen this coming, it was out of our control. Now we had to race against time, before we lost the house we fell in love with. After a few crying fits and panic sessions, we calmed down. Rationally, we won’t be out of work for long, we told ourselves.
He didn’t have to go back to work, while I was still working from home, enduring a consultation process with no end date in sight. It sounds strange, but even though I didn’t have a new role yet, I felt I was in a better place than the thousands of furloughed workers in a constant state of limbo.
“I’ve realised I can no longer measure my worth from my job, from monetary success, or from any other preconceived notion of happiness.”
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As someone who likes to plan everything, I’ve found myself having to relinquish the reins, and for the first time in my life, not be in control. The truth? I’m okay with it. Going forward we’re doing everything we can to find new jobs, and turn what still feels like a stranger’s home into ours. It may take longer than we envisioned, but this life lesson will stay with me for a long time.
Most people measure their success from what they achieve in their life. But I’ve realised I can no longer measure my worth from my job, from monetary success, or from any other preconceived notion of happiness. I’m more than having a successful career, and I’m more than being part of the mortgage club.
Being made redundant can feel like you’re starting from scratch. But for both of us, we’re seeing it as a new opportunity that has given us a fresh dose of motivation. We’re drifting into an unknown future for the time being, but strangely, we’re excited about what will come next. And we’re taking comfort in the fact we’re just one family among millions trying to navigate this strange new world.
Rachel Giovanna Capper is a freelance writer. Follow her on Twitter at @rgi0c
Have a compelling personal story you want to tell? Find out what we’re looking for here, and pitch us on ukpersonal@huffpost.com


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-07-27--I Have An Eating Disorder You’ve Probably Never Heard Of

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Content warning: this article contains description of disordered eating
I’m a grown woman and I’ve never eaten sushi. I’ve never tasted avocado or grapefruit or chicken wings or pickles or yogurt and, not to rock your world, but I’ve never had a cup of coffee. In fact, the list of foods I’ve never eaten is far, far longer than the list of those I have.
For most of my life, I had no idea why the thought of eating many foods would make me gag. I knew I wasn’t a garden-variety picky eater, but until very recently, I wasn’t aware that there was a name for it.
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Now I know better. I have ARFID (avoidant/restrictive food intake disorder), an eating disorder that used to be called SED (selective eating disorder). In simple terms, it’s a food phobia in which swallowing certain foods, or even thinking of swallowing them, leads to undesirable outcomes like the throat involuntarily closing, retching and vomiting.
My eating disorder began when I was a child. My family would go out for Chinese food and I would only eat white rice. Slightly older, I graduated to egg rolls, but only the outside. I have vivid memories of my father scraping out the cabbage filling and handing me the empty shell.
I have a particularly traumatic memory of facing off with my father over some pan-fried liver. I was young, probably no more than six or seven. I was anaemic and my mother prepared the liver to help with my anaemia. But I refused to eat it.
ValentynVolkov via Getty Images "I can look at a food and know instantly, by the way my body reacts, whether or not it’s something I will be able to eat without gagging."
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As I sat across the table from my father, he told me, “We’re going to sit here until you eat this. And if you don’t eat it tonight, I’ll serve it to you for breakfast. And it will be cold.”
He eventually gave in, but my victory was not sweet. I had no way to explain what I was feeling at the time. I wasn’t a wilful child, but I knew I’d never be able to swallow the liver.
As I grew, more foods were added to my repertoire, but the list of foods I refused to eat was always longer.
Significantly longer.
Picky eating is common enough among children, but when I became a mother myself and I didn’t know anyone else like me, I started looking for answers. I contacted a university professor who conducted research on picky eating in children. He referred me to one of his graduate students who had done research on picky eating in adults.
“As I grew, more foods were added to my repertoire, but the list of foods I refused to eat was always longer. Significantly longer.”
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In her dissertation, I read about adults whose entire diet consisted of fewer than 10 foods. I knew I wasn’t a normal eater, but I wasn’t quite that restrictive. She also found statistically significant associations between her subjects and a range of neurological and psychological issues, such as autism and OCD, from which I did not suffer. Her dissertation was interesting, but it didn’t represent me or give me any insight into my own behaviour.
Then, a few years ago, I stumbled on a Facebook support group for picky eaters. I was astonished by what I discovered there. Not only were there other adults like me, there was a whole community of us. There was an actual name for the behaviour I thought was so idiosyncratic. Naming it was a great relief.
ARFID is a relatively recent addition to the DSM-V, the fifth edition of The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, which health care providers use to assist with diagnosis. However, since the vast majority of health care providers are not yet familiar with ARFID, patients are often unable to get a clinical diagnosis.
Once I found the Facebook support group, I knew for certain that my physical inability to swallow certain foods, and the anxious feeling I have around them, are proof positive that what I’ve long thought of as a quirky relationship with food has an actual diagnosis. I don’t need a clinician, who likely knows less about ARFID than I do, to confirm that. Decades of being faced with foods I can’t physically eat even if I want to are all the confirmation I need.
People with ARFID refer to foods they can eat comfortably as “safe foods.” My list of safe foods is more extensive than many others who suffer with this eating disorder, but that doesn’t mean I don’t experience an anxious dread when faced with the prospect of having to swallow many conventional foods.
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Every person with ARFID has their own individualised list of safe foods. As is common, but not universal, many of my safe foods are carbs, like pizza, pasta and white potatoes or calorie dense foods like nuts. That complicates efforts to maintain a healthy weight.
Other safe foods for me are idiosyncratic. For example, chicken breast is a safe food for me, but wings, legs or thighs are not. Yellow and orange peppers are safe, but not red. Dishes made with ground beef have a high chance of being safe, but steak or lamb chops are never safe foods for me. Most kinds of ice cream are not safe foods for me; only plain vanilla is always safe and only if it’s rock hard. Broccoli and onions are safe but mushrooms, asparagus, beets, tomatoes, olives and turnips all invoke the tightening of the throat.
If there’s a pattern to which foods are consistently safe for me, I’ve never been able to identify it. I can look at a food and know instantly, by the way my body reacts, whether or not it’s something I will be able to eat without gagging.
Over the past few decades, I’ve adapted to my quirky palate. I learned to cook and have introduced dozens of new foods into my repertoire of safe foods. But I’m still not a normal eater. And ARFID still interferes with my social life.
I’ve had significant relationships in which my limited palate has created tension, either because I’ve refused to try certain cuisines or specific foods or because I won’t eat at particular restaurants where there are no safe foods on the menu. When I do identify a safe food at a restaurant, I’ll usually order the same thing every time.
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My husband, whose palate is as wide as mine is narrow, is remarkably accepting and accommodating. On our honeymoon 23 years ago, we stepped into a takeout restaurant with a U-shaped buffet. Dozens of dishes were displayed. I quickly scanned the entire buffet. Finding no safe foods there, I turned to my new husband and said, simply, “Nah.”
Today, we laughingly refer to foods that are unsafe for me as “nah foods.” I consider it a big blessing that my children do not suffer from ARFID, since living with it can be something of a buzzkill.
“On our honeymoon 23 years ago, we stepped into a takeout restaurant with a U-shaped buffet. Dozens of dishes were displayed. I quickly scanned the entire buffet. Finding no safe foods there, I turned to my new husband and said, simply, 'Nah.'”
Close friends all know that I “eat weird.” Some friends make it a point to always have yellow peppers available whenever we’re invited over. Some will make dishes I’ve been known to eat in the past. If I feel close enough to someone, I will tell them specifically what they could make that I would be able to eat.
It’s still awkward with new friends and I’m not comfortable dwelling on it. I don’t mention ARFID. I usually just acknowledge that I eat weird or call myself a picky eater. Then I cross my fingers and hope they aren’t interested enough to ask any follow-up questions.
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Being invited to a meal at someone’s home for the first time remains a challenge. I’ve been to dinner parties where people comment uncomfortably on what I’m eating (or not eating) and I’ve been to meals where the only safe foods for me were, quite literally, bread and water.
Even though it’s a lot more work, I generally prefer to host than to be a guest because it avoids the predictable, albeit uncomfortable dance that ensues if I tell the host in advance that I’m a picky eater.
Host: Just tell me what you don’t eat and I’ll work around that.
Me: The list of foods I don’t eat is quite long. I’ll just bring my own food. I don’t want you to go to any trouble.
Host: I want to make something you’ll enjoy. I don’t want you to have to bring your own food.
Me: (feeling squeamish and embarrassed) OK, here are the foods I do eat, but I really don’t want to cause you extra work. (I then proceed to share a limited and very specific list of safe foods, hoping that the host is not rolling their eyes and wishing they had never invited me in the first place).
Although I don’t know how or why this food phobia started for me, there are a few things I do know. ARFID goes way beyond ordinary picky eating. And the majority of people with ARFID don’t just outgrow it.
The support group has been genuinely helpful. I am now aware there are clinical hypnotherapy treatments reported to be highly successful with adults like me. The treatment is an investment. I haven’t tried it yet, but neither have I ruled it out.
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Turns out, there might yet be sushi in my future.
Rivkah Lambert Adler is a freelance journalist, book reviewer and adult educator. This article first appeared on HuffPost Personal.
Have a compelling personal story you want to tell? Find out what we’re looking for here, and pitch us on ukpersonal@huffpost.com


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-07-27--Flu Vaccine To Be Offered Free To 'Millions More' – Are GPs Ready?

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Flu vaccines will be given to millions more people this winter, the UK government has announced, in what it has called “the most comprehensive flu vaccination programme in the UK’s history”. But whether GPs and pharmacists are ready for the huge undertaking is another question altogether.
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A free flu vaccine will be made available to around 30 million people, including those on the shielded patient list and members of their households; all school year groups up to year 7; as well as pregnant women and those with pre-existing conditions.
Those aged 50 to 64 years-old will also be invited for a free jab later in the flu season, the government said, but GPs have expressed concerns they won’t have enough supply – or staff – to realistically implement the expansion, especially during a pandemic.
Dr Steve Kell, managing GP partner at Larwood Health Partnership, tells HuffPost UK: “GPs are facing a real challenge in winter with flu/Covid as well as financial and workforce uncertainty.
“Most have been told we can’t order more vaccines and practices are going to have to work out how to deliver vaccines safely.”
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Anna Drozdova via Getty Images
There are concerns that Covid-19 will present challenges to delivering the flu programme. GPs will need to take special measures to ensure all patients are safe when they go to get their vaccination – particularly those in at-risk groups.
They will also need to ensure there are enough vaccines to go around. Many GP surgeries had to order in flu vaccines back in January ready for this winter.
Dr Kell worries that GPs will now be scrabbling around to get sufficient stock in place ready for flu season, which can occur as early as October but tends to peak between December and March. “Everyone will be trying to find more,” he says.
If a Covid-19 vaccination is made available for use, delivery of this would also need to be factored in, the Royal College of General Practitioners (RCGP) said.
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Dr Maz Sangha, a GP at St Johns Medical Centre in Altrincham, says he is concerned about the planning that’s required for the increased numbers that need vaccinating, while also maintaining social distancing.
“Patients will want the vaccine as soon as possible and will not want to wait, especially if a second wave is occurring,” he says. “We have been told just this morning that for the new cohort – 50- to 64-year-olds – we will need to order vaccines from a central separate body, but no detail [as of yet].”
He is concerned that telling this group to wait for their vaccines until the at-risk patients have been vaccinated will be “hard to handle” and “cause stress” to patients and those working in primary care.
In general, the extended flu vaccination programme has been welcomed, particularly as the NHS needs all the support it can get due to the risk of a second peak of coronavirus cases – and to relieve winter pressures on A&E and emergency care.
While the vaccine can’t protect you against Covid-19, it’s thought if plenty of people have the flu jab this autumn, it will help the NHS cope better through the winter months, reducing flu cases and possibly even deaths.
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There were 15m people vaccinated in England during the last flu season, according to Public Health England (PHE).
Health secretary Matt Hancock said: “It’s mission critical that we pull out all the stops to get ready for winter, and the prime minister has already announced £3bn to protect the NHS.
“We are now taking another important step to help protect the wider public by giving the flu vaccination to more people than ever before. This will be the biggest flu vaccination programme in history, and will help protect our NHS as we head into winter.”
This year’s vaccination programme will occur in two stages: most at-risk groups will be prioritised first, and then people aged 50 to 64 will be invited for their free vaccine later on. The NHS will contact people directly, including information about where to go to get the vaccine. Dr Nikki Kanani, GP and NHS medical director for primary care, urged those eligible to take up the offer of the free vaccine when the time comes.
Dr Vanessa Saliba, head of flu at Public Health England (PHE), said: “By getting the jab, you can help protect yourself, your family and the NHS – it will help save lives.”
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While the extension to the flu programme is “sensible” as we prepare the NHS for a busy winter and potential second wave, Professor Martin Marshall, chair of the Royal College of GPs (RCGP) says the GPs who will be delivering the majority of vaccinations now need more detail about the practicalities of how it will work.
“Practices plan meticulously for the flu season every year to ensure the vaccination programme runs smoothly and as many people as possible get vaccinated – they will have made their orders at the beginning of the year and will need to amend these,” he says.
“We also need assurance that the government can guarantee adequate supply for everyone covered under the extension.”
The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) confirmed it has secured additional supply of flu vaccine in the expectation of increased uptake among at-risk groups and to meet demand from the programme’s expansion.
It said guidance has been issued to GPs and pharmacists to ask that they review their flu vaccines orders, so that those who are eligible can be vaccinated.
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Providers should use their own locally procured stock in the first instance, DHSC said, and further information on how to access the additional stock that it has ordered in will be issued in September.
Seqirus, one of the flu vaccine providers in the UK, told HuffPost UK it is “on track” to deliver on its commitment to supply flu vaccines for the upcoming season, “which is larger than last year’s supply and includes additional doses to meet the government’s initiative to make influenza vaccine available to more people than before”.
Sanofi Pasteur, another UK vaccine provider, said it “fully supports” the UK government’s announcement and has increased flu vaccine production to bring in “millions of additional doses this season”.
“The vaccination programme will be staggered throughout the season, which we strongly support, starting with those most vulnerable and later vaccinating extended populations to protect as many people as possible,” a spokesperson said.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-07-26--Prince William Praises British Football's 'Landmark' Mental Health Declaration

What does spot, speak, support and signpost mean?
1. Spot. Building an understanding of mental health to enabled people to spot the signs that they, a team-mate or colleague might be facing challenges and need particular help or support.
2. Speak. Promoting an environment where people feel more comfortable speaking about their mental health, and where speaking out is seen as a strength, rather than weakness.
3. Support. Encouraging players and staff to look after and improve their own mental health, just as they do their physical health, and providing them with the tools and support to do so.
4. Signpost. Knowing where help is available and making it clear how people can access support both within and outside of their organisation.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-07-26--Met Police Defends Officers Who Arrested 12-Year-Old Boy Over BB Gun

Police in hi-visibility jackets policing crowd control BrianAJackson via Getty Images
The Met police have defended officers who handcuffed and arrested a 12-year-old boy seen playing with a toy BB gun, believing it to be real.
Armed police with sniffer dogs stormed the home of Alice Agyepong and her son, Kai, in Camden, north London, on July 17 after a call from a member of the public claiming to have seen a Black male holding a firearm.
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The 12-year-old boy was led away in handcuffs and detained in a police vehicle, until he was eventually dearrested after officer established that the “firearm” was in fact a BB pellet gun that had been fitted with a blue slider to distinguish it from a real gun.
On Sunday Met commander Kyle Gordon, the force’s lead for firearms, defended the actions of the officers, saying they acted in line with training.
“There have been a number of well-publicised shootings in London in recent months where members of the public have been injured,” Gordon said.
“As the public would rightly expect, we take every report of a firearm seriously in order to protect our communities.
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“Officers attending reports such as this must treat them as genuine until they can verify whether or not an actual firearm is present.
“Based on the information at hand, the officers acted in line with their training and my expectations, enabling the incident to be concluded as quickly and safely as possible.”
He added he had watched the body-worn video footage of the incident and said he was “content” with the officers’ professionalism.
“The reporting member of the public was right to call us and we would encourage others who see similar weapons to do the same,” he said.
“We are committed to bearing down on violence and we rely on our communities to help us do this.”
Kai’s mother Alice said her son had “undoubtedly” been racially profiled and that her family felt “utterly violated” by the incident.
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“In my mind there was no question they were going to shoot us,” Agyepong told PA news agency.
“Their guns were drawn in such a way they were aiming their rifles at me and my kids.”
She said the Met had thrown “every single resource except a helicopter” and that armed officers, dog unit, two vans of ordinary officers and an ambulance had been at the scene of the incident.
She added that even after being shown the BB toy gun, officers continued to proceed with a full search of the premises that lasted more than an hour.
“It was very, very humiliating but more than that, for me and my kids it was terrifying,” Agyepong said.