Monday More than a third of hospital trusts have failed to investigate unexpected deaths or incidences of serious harm on their wards, according to a report. Dr Foster, a private company that works with the NHS, found that at least 12 trusts underperformed on issues of patient safety and hygiene control. The Care Quality Commission, which regulates health and social care in England and Wales, was accused of being a toothless watchdog after scoring many of the same trusts highly for care in its own review.
About 200 prisoners, including murderers and sex offenders, have been released early by mistake since January 2005, figures from the Ministry of Justice showed. The number of prisoners released early in error has risen by 45 per cent since 2007 as overcrowding has impaired the Prison Service’s ability to cope.
Tuesday A new policy will offer a £500 reward for whistleblowers who inform on council housing cheats. John Healey, the Housing Minister, said that illegal sub-letting was rife in some inner city areas, with as many as one in 20 council homes being let to friends, family members or private tenants.
Every child should study at least five GCSEs in academic subjects, instead of the present two, a right-leaning think-tank has said. Some schools steered students towards easier subjects to boost league table results, a report published by Reform and launched by Michael Gove, the Shadow Schools Secretary, argued. The report also questioned the tendency to divide children between academic and vocational study and criticised GCSEs for being too easy compared with their French, US and German exam equivalents.
Wednesday The police plan to monitor serial rapists using counter-terrorism techniques, including undercover surveillance and mobile phone taps. Commander Simon Foy, one of the leaders of the Sapphire squad, the Metropolitan Police’s new rape investigation squad, said: “It’s about surveillance, intelligence relating to the use of mobile phones. We may get into the interception, all sorts of stuff — undercover work. We are seeking to up our game.”
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The Prime Minister is expected to push plans for a referendum on changing Britain’s voting system through Parliament before the next election. It is proposed to change the first-past-the-post system to one in which candidates would need to secure 50 per cent support from voters who would rank them in order of preference on ballot papers.
Thursday An assessment of care homes in England found that 10,000 elderly and frail people are living in squalid conditions and receiving inadequate care. The Care Quality Commission has threatened to close 400 homes unless they are improved immediately.
As the Government announced proposals to overhaul policing, Jan Berry, its adviser on cutting bureaucracy, announced that there were continued problems with attempts to cut red tape and make efficiency savings. She also said that it was impossible to answer with absolute certainty whether officers were spending more time on patrol than they were two years ago.