By Joe Mellor, Deputy Editor One might expect an enlightened Scandinavian country to have banned tobacco but not so; the Central Asian country of Turkmenistan has actually taken the revolutionary step. In a country where life expectancy is just 65 years, it could be seen as a positive policy decision....
By Joe Mellor, Deputy Editor Jeremy Corbyn has taken a tough stance against businesses who pay dividends to shareholders, but don't pay their workers the living wage at the same time. He said a Labour Government could ban companies carrying out this practice, if they were elected to form a...
By Joe Mellor, Deputy Editor Before I begin I have a confession to make, I love this part of the world – North Cornwall. I am also half Cornish, not that you would tell by my rough Geordie accent. My mother was born in Port Isaac (the village the TV...
By Mark Turnbull The Florence Gastropub in Herne Hill is a great place for diners and drinkers alike to visit. Owned by the well-regarded Metropolitan Pub Company, its website suggests that “The Flo” is great for its craft beers. It is, but tonight we were as interested in its food....
By Amy Sharpe Like most people, I spend most Mondays feeling desperate for a detox – cursing myself for sloshing too many vinos and overdosing on cheese at the weekend. So I couldn’t have been happier rolling up to the Reynold’s Retreat in Sevenoaks, Kent, to sample one of their...
By Rose Taylor A hospital in Nepal that has barely emerged from the ravages of last April’s earthquake is struggling to stay open because of the continuing fuel shortage caused by a trade blockade. Operations have been cancelled at Anandaban Leprosy Hospital as have outreach clinics held in remote villages...
The government pay a lot of people we will never know the names of to devise plots and schemes to solve the nation’s educational problems. The role of these people appears to be to come up with new stuff. Not to thoroughly research which practices are currently in place to...
By Joe Mellor, Deputy Editor Building work has already begun on a new refugee camp in northern France, which should accommodate 2,500 people, currently living in squalor at an ad hoc site in Grande Synthe, near Dunkirk Médecins Sans Frontières/Doctors Without Borders (MSF) the medical humanitarian organisation have been given...
By Joe Mellor, Deputy Editor Tragically Alan Rickman,one of Britain's if not the world's favourite actors, has sadly passed away aged 69 of cancer. He was known for many works including roles in Harry Potter, Die hard and Robin Hood Prince of Thieves, however he was also known for "serious"...