Daily News Summary
Monday, 18 May 2009
Main stories
Labour's `war on drugs' deemed a `costly flop'
According to a report by think tank the Centre for Policy Studies. DMail8, DTel10, DExp9.
The Eve Saville memorial lecture 2009 - Estimating drug harms: a risky business, will be presented by Professor David Nutt, see here for more details.
`Slowing economy blamed for increases in long-term sickness' - and lack of sleep
According to a survey of 697 organisations. FT4.
Another survey, conducted in five countries, points at the recession increasing work stress and loss of sleep. FT10
Prison violence 'on the increase'
Prison violence has risen by 31% in England and Wales, according to a report by the Howard League for Penal Reform. Mirr online
`Probation boss resigns as staff says the system is in "meltdown"'
David Scott, director of the London probation service, is leaving his post early `after an investigation revealed serious failings in his department'. Harry Fletcher, assistant secretary general of Napo, the probation officers' union, said the system was in "meltdown". DTel16
The Centre for Crime and Justice Studies report, `The Community Order and the Suspended Sentence Order Three Years On: The views and experiences of probation officers and offenders' can be downloaded here.
Police face legal challenge over G20 demo tactics
Protesters caught up in clashes at the G20 demonstrations may bring a judicial review of police tactics such as "kettling" to contain people and excessive use of force. Mirr online
`It's the gold bill'
According to the Sun, `cops get up to £52,000' a year overtime `as red tape soars'. `Overtime costs the 43 police forces in England and Wales £485 million annually'. Sun4
CCTV has `little effect on crime'
Home Office-funded research argues that the use of closed-circuit television in city and town centres and public housing estates `does not have a significant effect on crime'. Gdn6
Criminal investigations into MPs' expenses 'will take years'
According to Lord Falconer, `MPs who have abused the Commons expenses system will face criminal investigations that will last at least two years'. DTel online.
Meanwhile former standards watchdog Sir Alistair Graham claims that Jack Straw - then Leader of the Commons - blocked an investigation into MPs' expenses two years ago. DMail6
Other stories
`Plans for US-style community courts scrapped'
...because of `lack of cash'. `Virtual courts' are to be piloted, raising fears about limits on time to mount a defence. Times 16
Call for freeze of employment protection laws
The British Chambers of Commerce are calling for a `moratorium on any new employment law from the European Union in order to give companies the "freedom" to focus on survival in the global crisis'. FT2
Drug tests at work
`Employers are increasingly using drug testing to get rid of staff without having to make redundancy payouts, as a way of cutting costs during the recession', charity Release has pointed out. Gdn7
Complaints about payment protection insurance `triple in a year'
The Financial Ombudsman Service's report is to show a `public backlash' against the insurance, which is supposed to protect mortgage borrowers if they fall ill or lose their jobs. FT22
Recession and stabbings
Deputy Chief Constable Alf Hitchcock is worried that, although figures show a drop in stabbings, `in a recession police forces will get squeezed. The danger is losing officers from the streets, where ground has been gained.' Mirr6
Letters, comments and analysis
`Time to scrap old notions of capitalism'
`All indicators such as income inequality, intergenerational mobility, child well-being, and prison population' show that `the United States and the United Kingdom are among the worst performers of the developed countries', argues LSE's Robert Wade. FT12
`Citizen power and the end of the political class'
Readers' letters tackle `the great stink' of MPs' expenses: Times25, Gdn31 and DTel23
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These newspaper summaries are drawn up by staff at the Centre for Crime and Justice Studies. They are not intended to be comprehensive, or wholly uniform in their approach. Instead, they reflect our individual and collective perspectives on the day's coverage, including our judgements in terms of relevance to the Centre's concerns. On occasion, they also reflect the inevitable time constraints within which we work.
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