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SubscriptionsAuthor: David Hencke
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Sajid Javid Signs Off £1 Billion Private Health Windfall as MPs Sound Alarm
The Health and Social Care Secretary has agreed an ‘insurance policy’ with private providers, in breach of Treasury spending guidelines, reports David Hencke
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Building Back Botched
The Government’s housing and construction plans are failing to deliver the country’s housing needs, a new parliamentary report has found
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The Brexit Slump: UK-EU Trade Continues to Lag As New Regulations Loom
A new House of Lords report exposes the economic aftershocks of Brexit, highlights David Hencke
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Brexit Trade Deals Failing to Deliver a Dividend, Report Says
The reality of ‘Global Britain’ is failing to match the rhetoric, reports David Hencke
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Rattling the Money Tree: Government May Fail to Recover Billions in COVID Loans
The Government is inundated with fraud cases, a new report reveals. David Hencke has the details
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UK Government Denying Democracy and Ruling by Diktat, Senior Lords Say
David Hencke reports on two committees that condemn the shift of power away from Parliament to ministers through the use of ‘skeleton bills’ and statutory instruments
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The Great Rail Con: The Conservatives Have Betrayed Their Rail Promises for the Last Decade
David Hencke tracks the ways in which successive governments have watered-down their transport promises to the north and the midlands
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The Johnson Scandal is Far Sleazier than ‘Cash for Questions’
David Hencke, who broke the story of MPs tabling parliamentary questions on behalf of private interests in 1994, reflects on why Boris Johnson’s actions are a threat of a different kind to Britain’s political system
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Cheat Out to Help Out: Government Loses Nearly £6 Billion in Fraud Involving COVID Schemes
HMRC annual accounts reveal billions lost in fraud through the Treasury’s furlough payments and Rishi Sunak’s eating out scheme
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Government Quietly Cuts Commitment to Green Grants
David Hencke finds a hole in Rishi Sunak’s climate investment promises
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Diversity in Reverse: No ‘Levelling Up’ Evident in Public Appointments, Report Finds
In their representation of women and ethnic minority people, government bodies are moving in the wrong direction, reports David Hencke
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Conservative ‘Bonfire of Quangos’ Has Failed to Materialise, MPs Warn
The Government is appointing its favourite candidates to powerful external agencies without proper processes or monitoring, David Hencke reports
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Poorly Pooches Abandoned by Brexit
David Hencke reports on the national vets shortage, caused by the UK’s withdrawal from the EU, the Coronavirus crisis and a rise in the number of people buying pets
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A Royal Cover-Up: The Hidden Hand of Monarchy Blocking the Public’s Right to See Lord Mountbatten’s Diaries
David Hencke reports on the long-running battle of historian Andrew Lownie against the Government over the release of documents which were bought on behalf of the public for millions of pounds by Southampton University The hidden hand of the Royal Family is behind the Government’s determination to stop the publication of some of the diaries…
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Scathing Report On Afghanistan Reconstruction Paints a Picture of American Chaos and Waste
Findings by America’s Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction paint the country’s mission in Afghanistan in a very bad light, reports David Hencke
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Tens of Thousands of EU Citizens in UK could have Missed Out on Applying for Settled Status, Lords Warn
In a new report, peers also raise concerns about the lack of certificates issued to those who have obtained settled status – raising concerns about how this group can prove that they have a right to be in the country
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Boris Johnson Halts Update to Government Conduct ‘Bible’
The Cabinet Manual is 10 years out of date, yet the Prime Minister has shelved plans to refresh it, reports David Hencke
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Business Department Advisors Lobbied Government Bank Over Greensill Loans, Report Reveals
David Hencke reports on a new twist in the Greensill Capital lobbying saga uncovered by the independent public spending watchdog
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Retreat and Stalemate in the Phoney War Between the UK and the EU
David Hencke reports how sabre-rattling over sausages, fishing rights and data-sharing has generally ended in climbdowns or delays
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Hancock Plans to Hide his Health Data Grab From Parliamentary Scrutiny
The collection of medical information proposed by the Health and Social Care Secretary could have vast consequences, despite limited oversight, reports David Hencke
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Unaccountable Chaos: Scathing Lords Report Criticises Government COVID Response
Downing Street dodged Parliament and sowed confusion, a new House of Lords review has concluded
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Staff Burnout An ‘Extraordinarily Dangerous Risk’ to NHS and Social Care, MPs Warn
A new report by the Health and Social Care Committee reveals how staff shortages of doctors, nurses and other clinicians have been exacerbated by the Coronavirus crisis
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Priti Patel’s Interference is Jeopardising the Future of Independent Panels
David Hencke explains why the Home Secretary’s intervention in the Daniel Morgan Independent Panel report is so unprecedented and disturbing
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Child Offenders Spending 23 Hours a Day Locked in their Cells During Coronavirus Crisis
David Hencke reports on worrying developments in a longstanding issue: how the criminal justice system treats children and young people in offenders’ institutions
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UK’s Post-Brexit Mexican Trade Deal Left Obsolete
The EU-Mexico Agreement has thrown a spanner in the works, reports David Hencke
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Lords Raise ‘Grave Concerns’ about Brexit’s Impact on Family Law, Crime and Justice
UK law enforcement can no longer immediately access real-time data about persons and objects of interest, including wanted and missing persons
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UK in Brexit Limbo with EU Disputes Resolution Bodies Still Not Set Up, Say Lords
Twenty-five committees and five study groups to cover almost every conceivable area of interest between the EU and UK have still not been established
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Human Rights Watchdog Boss Quits Amid Lockdown Breach Allegations
Rebecca Hilsenrath appears to be the only senior figure in Whitehall to have resigned over an apparent violation of Coronavirus restrictions, David Hencke reports
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Pork Barrel Prosecution: Jenrick Faces Legal Challenge Over Tory Marginal Spending Splurge
David Hencke reports how the Government’s distribution of ‘levelling up’ funds is being contested by the Good Law Project for not being on the level
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Government Admits Defeat Over £23 Million NHS Data Contract for Controversial Firm Palantir
Lawyers acting for the NHS have conceded it cannot offer companies such as Palantir a long-term NHS role without consulting the public
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COVID-19 Healthcare Agency: the Mother of all Health Databases
David Hencke reports on the new biosecurity agency tasked to build the largest diagnostic network in British history
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Where’s Gove? Minister Accused of Being ‘Contemptuous’ by MPs After Committee Appearance Snub
The Cabinet Office Minister has been pilloried for failing to appear before a parliamentary committee that has been investigating the Government’s lockdown decisions
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‘Worst Education Secretary in a Generation’: Children Utterly Failed by Government’s Lack of COVID Contingency Planning, Report Finds
Nearly two-thirds of students classified as ‘disadvantaged’ received no help at all, in the form of mentors or laptops for online learning at home, the National Audit Office says
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Jenrick Pours a Billion in Public Money Into Conservative Marginals
The Communities Secretary is once again using the Towns Fund plan to shore up Tory seats – including £50 million to his own constituency, reports David Hencke
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‘Benefiting NHS Patients or Big Tech?’: Matt Hancock Faces New Legal Challenge Over NHS Palantir Contract
David Hencke reports on a judicial review of the US tech giant’s controversial deal involving personal medical data
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Government’s Planned Election Spending Limit Hike to Benefit Conservatives
The move, along with other changes such as a constituency boundary review for the 2024 General Election, is set to provide an advantage to the ruling party
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The Brexit Dividend: Gove Complacency as Trade Nightmares Strike the UK
David Hencke reports on the growing problems experienced by firms trading with the EU and the lack of help from the Vote Leave Government
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Brexit Bites the Falkland Islands’ Calamari
Local officials are considering breaking ranks with the UK Government and asking the EU for help, reports David Hencke
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Human Rights Watchdog Boss Accused of Double Lockdown Breach
More claims have emerged about a high-profile chief executive and her alleged breach of Coronavirus lockdown rules, reports David Hencke
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‘Too Complacent’: BBC’s Finances in Crisis As New Threats Loom
The broadcaster is being forced to compete with new, commercial projects with an ever-declining income, reports David Hencke
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One in a Thousand: UK Checks on International Travellers in Tatters
David Hencke reports on how only 9,000 out of nine million airline passengers were checked for quarantine over a five-month period last year
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Peter Thiel’s Tech Giant Palantir Extends its Reach into Local and National Government
David Hencke with more detail on the Government contract with Palantir and the involvement of the data science team behind the Vote Leave campaign
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Evidence of Fraudsters Claiming Billions in COVID Loans Passed to MPs
A new report by the Public Accounts Committee sheds light on the Government’s Bounce Back Loan Scheme, with applicants self-certifying and not subject to credit checks
