MPs ask PM to reverse fracking ban
A letter to the PM, signed by 34 MPs and five peers, claims that pressing ahead with the fracking ban would play into the hands of the Kremlin, which they say wants to ‘stop us following this path to energy independence’. Energy company Cuadrilla is due to concrete over its two wells in Lancashire on 15 March, as ordered by the Oil and Gas Authority (OGA). The MPs’ letter to Mr Johnson stated, ‘We urge you to pause and review this decision. At a time of such geopolitical strife, we cannot refrain from actions that would improve the position of the UK and its allies. We have seen how a reliance on imported gas affects the responses of other countries during the initial stages of Russian aggression.’ OGA replied, ‘Fracking causes earthquakes, is hated by neighbourhoods, would take a decade to kick-start, and won’t lower the price’.
Special Educational Needs
Susan Liverman, the mother of a boy with autism, wants to change the way parents of children with suspected special education needs or disabilities (SEND) are treated when their children do not attend school. In a petition to education secretary Nadhim Zahawi, she says parents of children who have yet to have a diagnosis are particularly vulnerable to a fine or the threat of a fine unless they get their children back into education. She started the petition after her nine-year-old son Arthur was unable to go to school due to extreme anxiety and panic attacks. She said, ‘Last year, Arthur had an autistic breakdown. We didn't know what it was at the time as he hadn’t been diagnosed. He has now been diagnosed with autism and is recovering from that breakdown. I felt the treatment we had, and continue to have, was just not fit for purpose and had put more pressure on us as a family.’
Lord Barker resigns from oligarch-linked EN+
Former government energy minister, Lord Barker, has resigned as chairman of EN+, the aluminium giant founded by Russian oligarch Oleg Deripaska. The Conservative peer's resignation came as he faced pressure to cut ties with Russia. Mr Deripaska has close ties to Vladimir Putin and is now sanctioned by the UK. Lord Barker earned £3m in 2020 from EN+. Although he has resigned, he plans to restructure the business to distance the company from Russia. Mr Deripaska is one of the richest associates of Putin having billions from Russia's aluminium industries, and 45% ownership of EN+.
Anglican Communion supports fleeing refugees
The CofE's Diocese in Europe has joined forces with mission agency USPG to launch an emergency appeal to support Christian charities and churches carrying out humanitarian work both in Ukraine and in neighbouring countries. They have partners on the ground providing food, medicine, shelter, care for children and people internally displaced in Ukraine. With refugees they are supplying care at the border and beyond, including attention to those from Africa and Asia as well as Ukrainians who are fleeing the war. The archbishop of Tanzania has called on the UN to take urgent action to support over two million displaced people, particularly children, the elderly, and those most vulnerable. He has urged all member states to do what they can to support the UN in its vital work caring for those forced to flee.
