Daily roundup 3 February: Taxi licensing, education cuts, and child detention

Efforts to protect children from criminals operating as taxi drivers to commit sex offences are being hindered by new restrictions on background checks, the Local Government Association has warned. The organisation said police forces across the country are no longer providing information to councils on criminal investigations involving prospective taxi drivers because of a dispute between the Home Office and police on whether it is lawful.


The budget for English schools will face a 10 per cent cut if the Conservatives win the general election, Prime Minister David Cameron has revealed. The Guardian reports that schools would have to pay five per cent more to fund national insurance contributions and rising teacher pensions. However, economists believe Cameron’s admissions would see further cuts in real terms.


Three children were detained at an immigration centre in Oxfordshire despite a government commitment to end the practice, the HM Inspectorate of Prisons has found. The BBC reports that an inspection of Campsfield House found that in two cases it took too long to carry out an age assessment and in one the detention had been authorised despite records showing that the detainee was under-18.


Eating disorders among young women are being fuelled by a trend for taking “selfies” to document weight loss, a leading expert has warned. The Daily Mail reports that Dr Alex Yellowlees, medical director and consultant psychiatrist at the Priory Group, believes “competitive selfie dieting” is causing psychological pressure that can lead to anorexia and other illnesses.


MPs are set to debate whether the creation of IVF babies with DNA from three different people should be legalised. Sky News reports that the method would mean women could have children without passing on serious and incurable diseases. But those opposing the move have questioned the technique’s safety and have warned that allowing it could lead to the creation of “designer babies”.


Fresh complaints against South Yorkshire Police are being investigated in relation to the Rotherham abuse scandal. The Sheffield Star reports that the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) is looking into a further 20 individual complaints relating to the way the force acted. The IPCC is already in the process of investigating 10 officers.