THE number of Southampton children needing therapy has soared since the start of the pandemic. Data from NHS England shows that 20,815 mental health treatment sessions were delivered to under-18s by NHS services in the Southampton CCG area between April last year and January this year. This is 12.2 per cent more than in the same period 12 months before. The figures have been met with concern from Southampton MPs who say that this will no doubt put more pressure on stretched mental health teams across the city. The trend is reflected across England where the number of sessions delivered increased by 16.1 per cent to around 4 million.
Thirty-one Conservative MPs defied the whip to vote for a Lords amendment to the Fire Safety Bill that seeks to protect leaseholders from crippling costs.
Sir Bob Neill joined a major Commons rebellion as Conservative MPs urged the PM to compromise over who foots the bill for key fire safety improvements post-Grenfell. A total of 31 Tories, including the Bromley and Chislehurst MP, rebelled in a bid to support a change to the Fire Safety Bill aimed at protecting leaseholders and tenants from multi-billion-pound costs. The House of Lords had amended the Bill to prevent remedial costs for work, such as the removal of unsafe cladding from blocks of flats, being passed on to residents until a statutory support scheme is in place.
Northpoint tower residents