UK Politics and NHS Update Amid Economic and Social Challenges
Health Secretary Wes Streeting has warned of a real risk of harm to patients if the planned five-day strike by resident doctors goes ahead next week, citing pressures on the NHS related to flu. Meanwhile, Downing Street described the British Medical Association (BMA) strike plans as astonishing and indicated that NHS plans may be cancelled as the government prepares for the worst.
Economic data from the Office for National Statistics revealed that the UK economy shrank by 0.1% in October, marking a three-month contraction. Despite this, Number 10 rejected claims that the UK is in recession.
In the House of Lords, about 1,100 amendments were planned for the Terminally Ill (End of Life) Bill. The Liberal Democrat leader Ed Davey urged the Lords to heed the House of Commons, while Labour MP Kim Leadbeater criticized the slow progress by the Lords.
Ed Davey also called for the establishment of a bespoke UK-EU customs union to boost economic growth following a tie in the Commons vote. This motion was passed with cross-party support, including backing from 13 Labour MPs.
Concerns over asylum seeker management were raised by a whistleblower who alleged that people are disappearing daily from asylum seeker hotels. Latest figures showed that 36,272 asylum seekers were living in hotels as of September.
The government announced a £3 billion funding allocation to support 50,000 additional special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) places in mainstream schools. The GMB union welcomed this investment but demanded further workforce funding and an end to level-one pay for teaching assistants.
In a political development, Reform UK claimed to be the UK's largest political party by membership, stating they have 268,702 members, surpassing Labour. Labour responded that their membership numbers are determined by annual reports and declined to provide running commentary. The Green Party claims to have over 180,000 members.
