Review of the Papers, Monday 16 July

Government  

• Metronet, the company charged with a £17bn upgrade of the London underground network, faces administration after its request for emergency funding was rejected today. The Metronet board will hold an emergency meeting this morning to consider the next steps for the company. It is facing an overspend bill of £2bn and needed the extra £550m in taxpayer's money to convince its lenders to release urgently needed cash. With its shareholders no longer obliged to put in more money, the company could be rendered insolvent unless a rescue package can be put together. The £17bn Public Private Partnership to overhaul the London tube network is a flagship Gordon Brown policy - driven through during the prime minister's tenure as chancellor. http://business.guardian.co.uk/story/0,,2127404,00.html
• The Government's strategy for reducing waste in landfill sites has been called "half-hearted and likely to fail" by a committee of MPs. Fortnightly rubbish collections are unsuitable for many areas and there is no proof they increase recycling, a report by the all-party communities and local government select committee claims. Its report says plans to charge householders who fail to recycle £30 a year are too timid and too complicated and a reward of up to £30 for "good" households is too low to encourage mass recycling. The committee, chaired by the Labour MP Dr Phyllis Starkey, says: "It is hard to see why any council will want to set up a complicated charging scheme that earns it no money and risks public disapproval." http://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/main.jhtml;jsessionid=2DXEOND4A4AJNQFIQMGCFFWAVCBQUIV0?xml=/earth/2007/07/16/earecycle116.xml 
• The number of patients suffering from serious allergic conditions has risen by more than a quarter in four years, but there is a serious shortage of specialists to treat them. Experts call upon the Government today to take immediate steps to combat the "massive epidemic" of severe allergic conditions, which can be fatal in the worst cases. A report submitted to the Department of Health of data from GPs' surgeries shows that by 2005 an estimated 12.2 million people in England had been diagnosed with an allergy-related illness such as asthma, eczema, allergic rhinitis, peanut allergy or anaphylaxis, the most severe form of allergic reaction. http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life-and-style/health/article2080610.ece
• The Government said yesterday that it wanted to build even more council homes as part of its ambitious housing plans. Yvette Cooper, the housing minister, has called for all new blocks of flats to contain a mix of social housing as well as privately owned apartments. Gordon Brown has already caused a stir among environmentalists by saying that he wants a further three million new homes to be built by 2020. Many critics believe the new housing will be built on green belt and rural land. Yesterday, Miss Cooper said councils would need to work in partnership with housing associations and private developers to create more mixed communities. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/07/16/nhomes116.xml
• Morale among nurses has reached an all-time low, according to a survey that paints a picture of a profession in crisis. A poll of 9,000 nurses found that despite the Government pouring billions of pounds into the health service many still feel overworked, undervalued and fear for their futures. More than half - 55 per cent - said they were too busy to deliver the level of care they would like, and almost a third - 30 per cent - said they would quit the profession if they could. Only 34 per cent said they believed nursing offered a secure job for years to come, compared with 71 per cent only two years ago. The dramatic decline in morale was also reflected by the proportion of nurses who feared redundancy - 36 per cent compared with seven per cent in 2005. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/07/16/nnurse116.xml
• The Government has given warning that wild birds migrating to Britain over the next few weeks may be carrying the H5N1 strain of avian flu. Debby Reynolds, the Chief Veterinary Officer, is ready to order birds to be kept indoors if farms are deemed to be at risk. A risk assessment published by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs states that the highest risk is from birds that have passed through the Czech Republic, Germany and France. Last month there were three outbreaks of the flu strain in the Czech Republic, and three cases in southern Germany. There was also an outbreak in France this month and experts expect more cases. http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life-and-style/health/article2080596.ece