My big journalism project this year was co-editing ‘Ring of steel’ for MATTER, on police use of ANPR, published in August. It is now available to read for free on Medium, where you can also read further commentary by me on the subject. In ‘Ring of steel’, writer James Bridle explored the subject widely, partly through drawing on the wealth of material released by Devon and Cornwall Police in its successful defence of secrecy over the location of its 45 automatic numberplate recognition cameras. The main points had first appeared in the Guardian news article I co-wrote in August 2012, but the MATTER article allowed the evidence to be explored fully. Continue reading “2013: ANPR, Scotland’s IT, NHS whistleblowers, ID cards… and Thatcher”
Category: Articles
Duty of candour: a fear of whistleblowing still pervades the NHS
Whistleblowers have been promised changes to support them but many people still worry about speaking out
Last week, Guardian Healthcare Professionals Network focused on how the NHS deals with complaints. Dr Nick Clements of the Medical Protection Society noted that doctors are more likely than ever to receive complaints, and put at least some of the blame on ‘production’ targets for healthcare. Richard Vize, and Dr Suzanne Shale and Murray Anderson-Wallace, wrote about workplace culture, and how that can welcome or repel complaints. Richard Vize concluded:
NHS services which welcome complaints, discuss them with an open mind and embrace them as an opportunity to secure a better experience for patients are likely to be confident, trusting organisations that value their staff and patients. Ultimately it is about distributing power – enabling those who both give and receive care to make the system better. Continue reading “Duty of candour: a fear of whistleblowing still pervades the NHS”
How much big firms get from government; what to do if you’re TUPE-ed
I’ve had two more features published by the Register. The first uses Freedom of Information and open data to analyse which IT suppliers earn what from government, while the second provides a guide to what to expect if you’re exiting, courtesy of the Transfer of Undertakings (Protection of Employment) Regulations 2006, better known as TUPE. Continue reading “How much big firms get from government; what to do if you’re TUPE-ed”
ID cards are dead but ‘your papers please’ lives on: for the Register
One of the great fears of those who campaigned against ID cards in Britain was that, as soon as the cards were in place, officialdom would start inventing reasons to demand to see them – the ‘your papers please’ problem, that a police officer or official in a country with ID cards demands to see your papers just to show who’s boss. To quote Richard Littlejohn, writing in the Sun in 1994 and quoted by Matthew Engel in the Guardian (and how often does that happen?): Continue reading “ID cards are dead but ‘your papers please’ lives on: for the Register”
Crisis helplines move online; why Bletchley Park couldn’t happen now
Guardian Voluntary Sector Network has published my piece on crisis helplines moving from telephone to online: the NSPCC’s ChildLine now handles half of its contacts online, the Samaritans receives 18% of contacts through text messages and emails and BB Group, which runs advice services for young people, is entirely digital.
The Samaritans, which has just turned 60 – see also this BBC News report, which covers its use of new channels – finds that those asking it for support through SMS or email are more likely to have suicidal feelings (almost half, compared to one in six of those calling). Elaine Chambers of ChildLine said the NSPCC helpline sees something similar, although it depends on the individual:
There is some evidence that the more high-risk things come to us online, because it can be easier to express yourself about the really difficult things in your life online. Continue reading “Crisis helplines move online; why Bletchley Park couldn’t happen now”