16/04/2024 05:30
The Guardian
In today’s newsletter: Government-funded care was extended to younger children this month, but a study that looked at international examples says the system needs a wholesale overhaul• Sign up here for our daily newsletter, First EditionGood morning. If you want to make a toddler’s parents furious – and they’re always on a pretty short fuse, let’s be honest – ask them how much of their salary they’re spending on childcare. The cost and quality of provision is one of the most persistent questions of our time: it matters for working parents trying to make ends meet, but it is also important for society generally because a child’s early years have an impact on them for the rest of their lives.While the government has recently increased the provision of free hours for working parents, there are huge concerns that, because those places are not fully funded, the move could result in a shortage of places and a spike in fees for the hours people have to pay for themselves.Middle East | Israel’s top general has said it will respond to Iran’s missile and drone attack, but it remains unclear what form that response will take and whether it will be so forceful it could tip a worsening spiral of violence into a full-scale regional war. US officials said some form of counter to Iran’s attack was almost inevitable, but they were still hoping it would be a limited counterstrike and not aimed at Iranian territory. Rishi Sunak has urged Israel to show restraint. In the occupied West Bank, Israeli settlers have killed two Palestinians, according to Palestinian officials.Home Office | Dozens of Home Office staff are under criminal investigation over allegations including immigration crime, fraud and drug offences, the Guardian has learned.Education | Multi-academy trusts (Mats) in England have significantly higher annual turnover of classroom teachers at secondary level than schools maintained by local authorities. Research has found that turnover at Mats stands at 19.5% on average compared with 14.4% at the median local authority.Immigration and asylum | MPs have voted through plans to forcibly send asylum seekers to Rwanda if they arrive in the UK via small boats. Rishi Sunak’s flagship deportation bill is expected to pass into law at some point this week after further criticism and amendment in the Lords.Environment | The UK government has been accused of double counting £500m of overseas aid as climate finance in an attempt to meet its commitments under the Paris agreement. Money for humanitarian work in Afghanistan, Yemen and Somalia is being classified as climate finance, according to Carbon Brief. Continue reading...
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