
Water company blames increased demand in extreme heat, but customers want answers about lack of storage reservoirs
“Spitting, fuming, angry and powerless” is how Pat Prestage describes her emotions after a water outage that has affected thousands of homes in Kent during the heatwave.
On Wednesday, 8,000 South East Water customers in Whitstable lost water, with 14,000 more in Tankerton, Ashford, and its surrounding areas facing an intermittent supply or low pressure. South East Water’s incident manager, Matthew Dean, said on Thursday that 22,000 people had had water supply problems.
Continue reading...Four days before what would have been her 100th birthday, Hollywood legends look back on their friendships with a woman who, underneath the studio sheen, was warm, supportive and empathetic
You can judge a woman by the people she surrounds herself with. For the last few months I’ve been talking to the people Marilyn Monroe surrounded herself with, during her eventful 36 years on earth. Ostensibly and primarily, I was doing this to make a radio documentary, which begins on what would have been her 100th birthday. But I also had a secret secondary motive: I wanted to find out if – maybe in another life – Marilyn and I might have been friends.
The first thing to say about Monroe’s friends is that she had a lot of them. The fact that more than six decades have passed since her death, and it’s still possible to find enough living people to interview, tells you something. This is all the more surprising because MM (as she’s sometimes referred to in fan circles) seems far too much the archetypal, immortal screen goddess to do anything as ordinary as have mates. And while it’s possible to imagine her trailed by a harem of pathetically adoring men – like Tom Ewell’s character in The Seven Year Itch – her sex-symbol image means people find it harder to envisage her having real friendships with women.
Continue reading...The new and excoriating account of the dire prospects for UK young people is a call to action. It could be the Beveridge report for our time
The diagnosis is dire. Alan Milburn has published the first part of his forensic report on the lives and chances of young people, their fate after leaving school or college, the inadequacy of their health, education and pastoral care, and the reluctance of employers to hire them. This is a “moral crisis”, he says. There are now more than a million young people not in work, education or training (Neets), and Milburn expects that number to rise to 1.25 million without radical change. The government needs a “big idea”, he tells me. This should be it, “the spine, the purpose”.
Perhaps he was expected only to solve the particular problem of left-behind and lost Neets. What he has delivered instead is an excoriating overview of how badly this young generation is treated altogether. A sense of shock reverberates through every well-written page. Why have children and young people had such a low priority in resources and political concern, especially since 2010? There has been institutional neglect, loss of youth and careers services, chaotic non-communication or data exchange between dislocated silos, small schemes coming and going. Milburn describes a catastrophic failure: it needs a whole “system reset” and no more “tinkering”.
Continue reading...Whether you want a stick, a spray or a tinted cream, our expert’s favourite formulas can provide year-round sun protection
• The best face moisturisers for every budget
There’s nothing quite like the warmth of the sun on your face after a long, dreary winter. But before you bask in it, you should always apply an SPF. That’s especially true if you use vitamin C and retinol serums, which can increase your vulnerability to sun damage. If you’re not wearing an SPF every day, you might as well toss the rest of your skincare out of the window.
As well as the risk of sunburn, UV rays cause longer-lasting, deeper skin damage, resulting in age spots, pigmentation and premature ageing. But if the thought of slathering sticky sunscreens on your face every day makes you want to spend your life in perpetual shade, you’ve come to the right place.
Best face SPF overall:
Beauty of Joseon relief sun rice + probiotics
Best budget face SPF:
E45 Sensitive Sun face cream
Some Newcastle fans are pleased to cash in but the winger’s pedigree in the Champions League is unquestionable
José Mourinho was a man on a mission. Once the final whistle blew, he made a beeline for Anthony Gordon and not only embraced the England winger but whispered four words in his ear.
“You are too much,” was the message from Benfica’s manager after his side lost a Champions League match 3-0 at Newcastle last October. Gordon had scored one goal, created another and terrorised Mourinho’s defence in the course of the sort of performance that explains why Barcelona are paying £70m for his turbo-charged talent.
Continue reading...Teaching body positivity is one thing. Helping a child navigate social pressure – while preserving agency – is another
Hi Ugly,
My nine-year-old daughter has become aware that she has a moustache. (I’m a hairy Italian, this is her birthright.) It’s more noticeable than anything her friends have, and visible in pictures.
Why is this column called ‘Ask Ugly’?
How do I respond to my friends when they criticize their own weight and looks?
How should I be styling my pubic hair?
How do I deal with imperfection?
Continue reading...Alan Milburn warns of ‘lost generation’ after number of young people not in work or education rises to more than 1m
‘A record of failure’: what’s in first part of Milburn report?
Tell us: we would like to hear from young people in the UK about their job hunting experience
Britain risks a financial hit worth £125bn a year from a worsening crisis in youth worklessness after a rise in the number of young people not in employment or education to more than 1 million.
In a landmark government-backed report, Alan Milburn warned that Britain’s economy and the public finances were losing billions of pounds a year amid the growing risk of a “lost generation” of young people.
Continue reading...Speaking in West Bank settlement, Israeli president, who’s fighting for political survival before elections, says ‘we are squeezing Hamas’
Benjamin Netanyahu has said he has given orders to the Israeli army to seize control of 70% of the Gaza Strip in a move that threatens to torpedo an already fragile ceasefire and create catastrophic humanitarian conditions in the already devastated territory.
Under the US-brokered ceasefire in October, the Israeli army withdrew to a demarcation line which gave Israel direct control of 53% of the occupied territory. Since then, Israeli forces have steadily advanced their positions westward into the Hamas-controlled half of the strip, and declared an ever-expanded no man’s land west of that, within which they claim the right to decide who can enter and open fire on anyone perceived as a threat.
Continue reading...Labour’s Makerfield byelection candidate understood to have changed stance on no recourse to public funds policy
Andy Burnham has rolled back from his previous calls for ministers to scrap a restriction on immigrants claiming benefits as the Makerfield byelection places greater scrutiny on his policy positions.
As Greater Manchester mayor, Burnham has called several times for an end to the rule known as no recourse to public funds (NRPF), which since 1999 has prevented people moving to the UK getting access to benefits or public housing before they are granted settled status.
Continue reading...US president’s move comes as both sides try to prevent fresh ceasefire breaches scuppering a potential deal
Donald Trump has circulated a draft peace agreement for the war with Iran among allies including Israel as both sides try to prevent fresh breaches of the ceasefire escalating out of control and scuppering any deal.
In an attempt to speed up the negotiations, Pakistan’s foreign minister, Mohammad Ishaq Dar, will fly to Washington on Friday to meet his US counterpart, Marco Rubio.
Continue reading...