It Would Have Been Better If Brexit Hadn’t Happened, Admits Rachel Reeves

Rachel Reeves admitted that she wishes Brexit had never happened as she began her new drive to bring the UK closer to the European Union again.

The Chancellor said she voted Remain a decade ago and would do so again, and regrets the fact that her side did not win.

She claimed she did not want another referendum, saying it would be divisive.

However, critics claim her new policy of making much of the economy follow strict Brussels rules again will bring Britain back into the EU by the back door.

Ms Reeves, who visited Spain on Wednesday as her charm offensive with European leaders got underway, said in an interview with The Economist: ‘I believe that closer alignment, better trade relations with the EU is in our national interest.’

She again mentioned disputed research which claims Britain’s departure from the EU caused an 8 per cent ‘hit’ to GDP and went on: ‘At a time when we are looking for stronger growth, improvements in living standards, lower prices in the shops, it would be foolish to just carry on as we are in terms of our relationship with the EU.’

Ms Reeves said ‘good progress’ has already been made under Labour’s reset of relations with Brussels, including agreements on food standards and energy trading, as well as the UK rejoining the Erasmus student exchange programme.

She will now consider sectors of the economy – likely to include chemicals, the car industry and financial services – where the UK could once more align with EU regulations in order to gain more access to the single market.

As she first announced in a major address on Tuesday, she believes divergence from Brussels rules should be the ‘exception, not the norm’.

‘Alignment means being able to trade more freely with our biggest trading partners and our nearest neighbours and our closest allies,’ she told The Economist.

‘I have fired the starting gun on where we want to go next, and that is closer alignment.’

Told that many voters want the Government to go further and rejoin the EU, she replied: ‘We voted as a country to leave almost ten years ago. I voted Remain, I campaigned for Remain, if we went back ten years in time, I would vote exactly the same way again.

‘But we have to move on. And that period in June 2016 was an incredibly divisive time for our country.

‘People might like to turn back the clock and might like their answer to have been different, but I do think re-running a referendum would not be in our national interest, I think it would be divisive.’

Pressed on the matter, she said: ‘If we could go back in time, I would have voted again to Remain, I wish we had voted to Remain.

‘But we can’t go back in time, we are in the world as it is, not the world as we might like it to be.’

Brexit was more of a failure than a victory, and tons of people who voted not to remain have voiced disappointment.

We might wish that it never happened, but I also wish that Labour, Starmer, Rayner and Reeves had never happened, and we must remember that the government is not our friend.

When we voted for Brexit to remain or not to remain, our government at the time never expected it to go the way that it did, and it has caused a catastrophe for the UK, and it has caused enormous and profound damage to the UK economy, and because of this Britain has ended up with mass immigration instead of the promise to take control.

‘NHS hospital secretly sedated me and wouldn’t let me leave my bed for a week’

A dementia patient who went to the hospital after a fall has told how he was secretly sedated and prevented from getting out of bed for a week.

Andy Woodhead, 69, has told his account as part of the first-ever national review of an NHS “culture of containment” where dementia patients are prevented from leaving their beds, sometimes for weeks. Retired lawyer Andy was diagnosed with vascular dementia 11 years ago, but lives independently at home with his partner in the Vale of Glamorgan in South Wales.

Describing his hospital admission last summer, Andy told the Mirror: “I had fallen outside the house. I actually passed out, so I couldn’t break my fall, so I actually went down onto my head and face, and it was a mess.

“I was taken in on a stretcher, then they put me on to a bed and put the sides up. I wasn’t allowed out of bed for the whole week that I was in the hospital. I was only allowed to use disposable bottles for urine. There was no TV, nothing. All I could do was watch people walking past my cubicle.”

While initially in A&E, he says an “out of control” drunk woman came into his cubicle and had to be restrained by staff who wrestled with her on the floor. Andy was then admitted to an acute ward and says he “slept the whole time I was there”.

Andy said, “They kept bringing me my medication in the little white plastic containers. I said, ‘this is more medication than I normally take. What are you giving me?’ The nurse said, ‘Oh, I’ll go and find out, and I’ll come back to you.” But they never did. I only had one meal in all the days that I was there. I told them I hadn’t eaten today, and they just said: ‘That’s because you’re sleeping all the time’. They weren’t very nice about it.

“I said, ‘Well, I’m diabetic, I have to eat.’ So they agreed to go and find me a sandwich, but I was made to feel like it was my fault because I was asleep. Looking back, I was clearly being sedated. My visitors came to see me, and I slept through most of the visits. It was all a bit of a blur, really.”

The landmark review by the University of West London looked at how dementia patients are cared for during an urgent or unplanned hospital admission, such as after a fall or when suffering a sudden illness or injury.

Such admissions of dementia patients make up between 25 per cent and 50 per cent of all acute hospital admissions. The 18-month study observed nine acute wards across six NHS hospital trusts selected to be representative of the country as a whole. A total of 168 patients and medical staff members agreed to participate in over 1,000 detailed interviews.

The report said that if dementia patients try to leave the bed forcibly or push a member of staff, they can be labelled “aggressive in their medical notes. This can lead to social care packages being withdrawn, meaning they may never be able to return to living independently at home or resume their care home residence.

Andy said he could understand why agitated patients confined to their beds throughout their hospital stay could become aggressive and try to leave. He said, “I didn’t understand why I was being confined to bed. If patients feel like they’ve been kidnapped or they’re being imprisoned because of the way in which they’re being subtly restrained, I can fully appreciate that it adds to their agitation, which could make them ‘aggressive’.

Andy is a Dementia UK Ambassador and goes into hospitals to teach staff how to handle dementia patients, working tirelessly to challenge the myths and stigma surrounding the condition. He insists NHS staff are generally doing their best in difficult circumstances. He said, “There’s a fine line between safety and restraint. I call it subtle restraint. I mean, clearly, they don’t want me falling out of bed.

“But if you have dementia, lack of social interaction is likely to make the condition worsen. It is vital. Without it, people can become non-verbal. They become afraid and extremely lonely because they feel like they’re a nuisance.

When I teach medical people about handling people with dementia, I say ‘talk to them’. They often say ‘we haven’t got time to talk to them’ and I say ‘well, if you talk to them, you’ll have more time because they’ll be better patients’. They’ll know you and feel safe and secure.”

Andy, who has just become a grandfather, added: “It was amazing meeting my granddaughter. I cried. It brought back memories of when my son was born. I never thought I would live to see a grandchild. I thought my dementia would have progressed so much that either I wouldn’t know who she was, or I would have died by now.

“It is possible to live well with dementia. There are so many myths about the speed of its progression. There are over 100 different types of dementia. It can be a journey that’s 20 years long or three years long. When I got my diagnosis, I just thought I would be unable to function normally within about six months. Nobody ever explained anything.”

Failing NHS England has put patients at risk at nearly every level for years, presently bombarding the NHS with cheaper, lower-qualified staff with online digital patient fobbing off systems, and triage systems rejecting or delaying patient referrals, et cetera, while NHS England leaders continue to get far too much money, plus pension salaries.

Sadly, inadequate treatment of dementia patients is extremely common, both in the home and in hospitals.

Someone I know had a fall and ended up in the hospital. She was there for a week or so. They said that they needed the bed space, and they needed to send her to a care home, which she did not want, but her care package had not been arranged yet, and they just shuffled her off to the care home regardless of what she wanted. Luckily, her daughter, who does not live nearby, managed to sort things out and got her home literally just before Christmas.

All of this is quite heartless, and it frequently causes someone to feel terrified and alone. It’s just one big fit-up, and I’m sure they’ll want to fit me up for saying it.

This is why a lot of elderly people who enter the hospital never leave.

I have seen this first-hand. Overburdened wards with not enough staff. An elderly lady with dementia and only one leg came to my ward (I was also a patient). She kept trying to get out of the bed, they catheterised her, sedated her so she couldn’t move, and at one point I was asked if I could keep an eye on her and press my buzzer if she tried to move, and sleepy elderly relatives in a hospital bed can be effortlessly explained away with them saying that it is lack of stimuli, so nobody would know if they were being medicated to almost fatal levels.

A Stranger Stabbed An Elderly Woman With Scissors

Officers were summoned to reports of a woman being attacked with scissors outside a private property in Chatham at 2.07 pm on Saturday.

Paramedics found the woman, in her 80s, with ‘injuries consistent with stab wounds’, Kent Police said.

The woman was taken to a London hospital for further treatment. Her injuries are not thought to be life-changing or threatening.

A man was also reportedly assaulted by the suspect, who was unfamiliar to the victims.

The alleged attacker was found and arrested at 2.31 pm.

Orlando Foster, 25, has been charged with wounding with intent, causing actual bodily harm and making threats with a bladed weapon in public.

The British national, of Jeffery Street, Gillingham, was remanded in custody until his first appearance at Medway Magistrates’ Court on Monday, 16 March.

Officers believe the alleged attack was an isolated incident.

I like the way they always say ‘alleged’. It either happened or it didn’t! And don’t you just love the way it’s described as a ‘British national’ as opposed to an actual nationality.

Meningitis Outbreak Threatens London

Health officials are attempting to prevent the meningitis outbreak from spreading beyond Kent after confirming the strain, which has killed two students and left 11 gravely sick, is group B.

The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) said some cases of meningitis have been confirmed as MenB, and it will confirm other cases ‘when we have the full results’.

MenB is the UK’s most common cause of meningococcal meningitis, but regular vaccination against the strain for babies and young children only started in 2015.

This means the current generation of teenagers and students are not protected, and were instead offered vaccinations against other strains when they were aged 13 or 14.

Experts speculate that young people exchanging vapes at a nightclub may have accelerated the spread of the disease across schools and the University of Kent in Canterbury.

Two girls who were said to have attended Club Chemistry and were sharing vapes were reported to have developed suspected cases of meningitis.

While many of the university’s students come from Kent, thousands more are from London and may have mixed at parties before going to see their families on Mother’s Day. Some will also likely be travelling home for the Easter holidays later this month.

There have already been reports of a suspected case in London involving a 24-year-old woman who had been admitted to hospital, according to her brother Josh Risby, who said she was not a student in Canterbury and had not been to the nightclub.

Mr Risby, 26, who was in Canterbury to receive antibiotics, told Kent Online: ‘The slight concern for us is that I’m not a student here, my girlfriend’s not a student here, my sister’s not a student here, and she’s come down potentially with meningitis.

‘So where’s that come from? So we called 111 and said to them, “You know, this is what’s happened, what do you advise?” And they sent us up here to come and get the antibiotic basically. My sister’s up in London most of the time, living in London, working up there. I don’t have any contact with anybody at the university.’

It comes as health officials work to curb the deadly meningitis outbreak, tracing and treating thousands of potential contacts as reports of suspected cases spread.

The emergency response has seen 2,000 students receive preventative antibiotics in Canterbury after the invasive strain of the disease swept through the city.

Get your teenagers immunised right now, since meningitis is a terrible disease that may cause deafness and death.

If you have flu-like symptoms, a blistering headache and are unable to bend your neck, you must go to the hospital immediately.

Sadly, the Meningitis jab is only given to babies, so by the time they go to university, it has worn off, and they would need another booster to top it up.

The cost of the meningitis jab in the UK varies by provider:

Superdrug: £330 for a full MenB vaccination course (two to three doses). 
Boots: £220 for the MenB vaccination. 
Asda: £179.76 for the MenB vaccine. 
Private pharmacies: Prices can start from £55 for the MenACWY jab
These prices reflect the cost of the vaccine, which is essential for protection against meningitis.

However, the MenACWY vaccine is given to teenagers in the UK. It’s generally offered to teenagers in school when they are 13 or 14, and it’s also available to those up to the age of 25 who have missed the vaccination. The vaccine protects against four strains of meningococcal bacteria, which are common causes of meningitis.

And if it spreads from sharing vapes, then surely it spreads from kissing too, which is more likely in a venue packed with students.

Without showing any symptoms, a person might have the virus in their throat or nose and unknowingly transfer it to others.

We may never know how it started, but I’m sure that it wasn’t done on purpose.

Grenfell Tower’s Haunting Wall That Held Trapped Victims’ Handprints Is Destroyed – Despite Families’ Plea

A wall that showed the handprints of Grenfell Tower victims who were trapped in the building as the fire raged has been destroyed.

Families of the 72 people who died in the 2017 fire in North Kensington, west London, made the unsettling discovery of the wall, between the 12th and 14th floors, during pre-demolition visits to the building in July last year.

A powerful photo of the stairwell shows the area totally blackened with smoke – and marked with prints of all different sizes.

The victims’ families had urged the Government to keep these parts of the building from being demolished. 

But they were preparing to take Housing Secretary Steve Reed to court over the demolition after claims that Angela Rayner promised the wall would not be destroyed when she ran the department. 

Relatives have said the Government went back on its promise.

The fierce fire ripped through the 24-storey social housing block in North Kensington, west London, on June 14, 2017, killing 72 people.

The tragedy sparked national outrage, as highly flammable exterior cladding was found to have caused the rapid spread of flames from an electrical fault.

The Grenfell Inquiry began in earnest in September 2017, with the final report issued in February 2025, before demolition began that September.

Another part of the tower has also been destroyed, on the stairwell between the 17th and 18th floor, where the words Allahu Akbar – which means ‘God is Greater’ – were written.  

An official said no sections above the ninth floor could be kept, citing concerns about the sensitivity of the upper levels and the lives lost.

Both the handprints and the inscription are located above this level.

The Arabic writing has already been destroyed – but grieving families are now fighting to preserve the handprints.

Damel Carayol, who lost members of his family in the fire, told The Telegraph: ‘The obvious thing is that these inscriptions and handprints are relics, reminiscent of hieroglyphics and remains from traumatic historical happenings.

‘The meanings and symbolisms of whoever made them would have been their last hopeful messages to the living world, as they felt for sure that their time had come. And these messages to us speak for everyone whose lives were taken at Grenfell.’

He added that the ‘disregard’ for the victims and their families was ‘inhumane’.

I’m not sure why anybody would want to preserve this – it feels rather macabre and creepy, but different people mourn in different ways.

It’s also time to rebuild because homes are desperately needed, so new homes should be built, but please, not another tower block for this to happen again – that would be a tragedy waiting to happen. What’s more, there should be a memorial nearby so that people don’t forget the disaster that did happen – it’s the least thing they could do for the people who died that day.

I wouldn’t say it’s ghoulish to keep a memory, far from it, because if it were thought of as ghoulish, then perhaps the Tower of London should be ripped down or Hampton Court Palace, although some might say that’s a ridiculous comparison.

A Boss Ordered To Pay Irish Bookkeeper £23,000

A boss who went viral after being ordered to pay more than £23,500 for repeatedly calling an Irish worker a ‘potato’ says he believed it was ‘workplace banter’ but admits he got it ‘badly wrong’.

Mick Atkins, 56, says he has been unable to sleep as his construction firm’s 24-hour hotline was bombarded with calls after a tribunal ruled he racially harassed bookkeeper Bernadette Hayes, and he has even been sent death threats.

He was ordered to pay Ms Hayes, who was born in Portadown, Northern Ireland, thousands in compensation after a tribunal ruled he had called her a ‘potato’, ‘Paddy’ and ‘pikey’.

Ms Hayes said the remarks left her feeling ‘small, insecure, violated and extremely anxious’, adding that she came to dread going into work at building contractor West Leeds Civils.

Now Mr Atkins says he wants to publicly apologise for what he had thought was harmless ‘playful banter’ and admitted the case had been a ‘hard lesson to learn’.

He said: ‘I genuinely thought it was workplace banter. I can see now I got that badly wrong.

‘What I thought was messing about was clearly not taken that way, and I am sorry for the distress it caused Bernie.

‘These were comments which I thought were just back-and-forth playful banter with someone I had worked with for two years and whom I considered to be a friend.’

Mr Atkins, a father-of-three from Bradford, West Yorkshire, said he had since been subjected to abusive messages and threats online.

He said: ‘I’ve been getting calls day and night from withheld numbers. I’ve had to delete my social media.

‘One woman screamed down the phone that I should hang my head in shame. Another asked me, “What are you playing at?”

‘There was one Irish guy who said, “Me and the boys are over next week – we’re going to pay you a visit.”

‘They’ve got hold of the company’s 24-hour phone number and have been ringing every ten minutes.

‘Some of the messages have been vile. I’ve had people calling me all sorts, and there have been threats made. It’s frightening, to be honest.

‘This is the first time in my life that I’m thinking of just wrapping up and calling it a day.

‘It’s been awful. I accept that I shouldn’t have said those things, but I don’t feel that I deserve to get death threats.

‘Even my daughter has been getting stick.

‘I know people may say that’s nothing compared to what Bernie went through, and maybe that’s fair, but it has made me take a hard look at myself.’

The tribunal heard Ms Hayes began working for the civil engineering contractor in 2021 as an office and finance manager.

This was undoubtedly innocuous repartee, but we are not allowed harmless joshing anymore – it’s all doom and gloom, although I must admit I would have been insulted being called a ‘pikey’, but clearly it was only meant in fun.

I myself would have been sentenced to death back in the day with my banter and wit. Now, if you want to have a little banter with the boys, you have to do it from home, not out in the public eye, because someone out there will undoubtedly say that you’ve insulted them and take you to court.

Banter is part of socialising, but socialising is a thing of the past now with all this woke stuff, and now all people see are pound signs and a chance to make some money.

But we must pause to take into account someone’s emotions. Before making any type of joke, I always consider my surroundings since, let’s be honest, not everyone has a sense of humour, and it can occasionally make the recipient feel unhappy or uneasy. What may be hilarious to one person may not be humorous to another.

There Has Been An Outbreak Of Meningitis

A meningitis outbreak said to be linked to a nightclub has killed two young people and left 11 others seriously ill.

The victims, who have not been named, are believed to be aged between 17 and 21.

One was identified as a sixth-form student at Queen Elizabeth’s Grammar School in neighbouring Faversham, while the other was verified as a student at the University of Kent.

Most hospitalised patients are of the same age and are thought to be students at the school.

A friend of two people fighting the deadly infection – one of whom is in a coma – has told the Daily Mail they began to exhibit symptoms after going to Club Chemistry in Canterbury on Friday, March 6. 

With a capacity of 1,600 and three floors, student-favourite Club Chemistry is probably a hotbed for the deadly infection.

The woman revealed that her friends had attended the venue as part of a birthday celebration, but within days of the night out, several members of the group began to feel increasingly unwell.

She told the Daily Mail: ‘My pal went out for her birthday with her partner and a few friends. The plan was to go clubbing and have a nice time, as teenagers do.

‘She simply wanted a nice evening with her friends for her birthday, but after attending Club Chemistry, came out really ill in the coming days, which ended with some in hospital.’

The woman said her friend experienced meningitis symptoms such as paleness, sickness and tiredness before attending A&E this weekend, where a lumbar puncture procedure confirmed she had contracted meningitis.

She added another man who had gone to Club Chemistry is currently in a coma because of the infection, while one more was displaying symptoms.

It comes as more than 30,000 students and staff have been alerted by the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA), alerting them to remain vigilant against symptoms.

The UKHSA said it was arranging antibiotics for some students in the Canterbury area following the outbreak.

On Sunday, the university urged anyone who believes they have come into contact with those who have contracted meningitis and have not been contacted by the UKHSA to attend the Senate university building between 9 am and 4 pm on Monday.

Experts described the number and severity of cases as ‘very rare’ and ‘extremely concerning’.

Trevor Reid of charity Meningitis Now said: ‘This is not the type of level of cases we have heard of for many, many years.

‘It is very rare that we would see anything like this, and we are extremely concerned.’

Sadly, outbreaks of meningitis among university students are extremely common, and more literature about this on boards around the universities should be present with signs and symptoms.

Meningitis symptoms in students can include sudden high fever, stiff neck, severe headaches, nausea or vomiting, and confusion, and it requires immediate medical attention. It can also manifest sensitivity to light, drowsiness or trouble waking and sometimes a skin rash. By rolling a glass over the rash, if it doesn’t fade, then the odds are it is meningitis, and prompt medical attention is required.

When at the hospital, do not take no for an answer because meningitis is fatal if not treated accordingly.

This story should have been a frontline headliner.

If there is any possible chance that a person has meningitis, it needs to be contained extremely quickly and should be taken extremely seriously, not brushed aside, because meningitis can be contagious, depending on the cause, whether it is bacterial or viral. Viral forms are usually contagious.

Watchdog Rules Will Change How Millions Of UK Shoppers Pay At Tills Next Week

In a significant change to how you pay at the register, the contactless limit for card payments may soon be lifted.

The financial regulator confirmed it could “remove the £100 contactless limit” to allow customers “greater flexibility” when making payments. The contactless card payment limit has been extended several times over the years. It was raised to £20 in 2012, then to £30 in 2015, before going up to £100 in October 2021.

There is usually no limit to the number of contactless transactions you can make in a day; however, you may be requested to enter your PIN if you make a lot of purchases.

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) confirmed it would be looking into contactless payments after the Government asked what steps the regulator could take to help support economic growth.

The FCA also confirmed it could soon ease mortgage rules to allow more first-time buyers to get on the property ladder. Under existing rules, lenders are limited in how many large mortgages they can approve. There is a cap that means no more than 15 per cent of a lender’s mortgage book can compromise loans for properties costing more than 4.5 times the buyer’s annual salary.

But this could soon be adjusted to allow people to borrow larger sums. This could be good for people on lower wages, provided they can afford their repayments.

Another change reportedly being considered is to affordability rules that test whether borrowers can still keep up with repayments if interest rates suddenly increase.

Rental payments may also soon be included as part of your borrowing, rather than focusing just on your income, reports The Times. Rightmove mortgage expert Matt Smith said: “It is really encouraging that the market regulators are now considering what a review of mortgage affordability could look like.

“Regulatory change is what we’ve been calling for, as that is what is needed to truly impact home-mover affordability, particularly for first-time buyers. We’ve seen some innovative products and schemes announced by lenders to try and do their bit to support home-buyers, but they need support from both the government and regulators to really drive more options for people.”

However, Richard Donnell, executive director of research at Zoopla, warned: “The big question is whether current rules go too far, but there is a risk for consumers and the government in how far this might go. Finding the balance is not easy and is compounded by the huge north-south divide in affordability.”

There are not many places now that take cash, unless it’s the smaller shops like hairdressers, barbershops and nail places. A lot of small cafes will not take cash either, but in larger stores, they won’t take anything but card transactions. At one time, cash was king, but now people are having to leave their items because the card machine was down, and I’ve seen people walk away sheepishly, looking rather mortified.

Is this a good idea? No, of course not, because crooks will love it when they’ve cloned or stolen your bank card with no spend limit on it. Thieves will be rubbing their hands together now.

A Champion Racehorse Is Killed And Served To Unwitting Diners At A Council-Run Soup Kitchen

A champion racehorse was destroyed and served to unwitting diners at a council-run soup kitchen, sparking public anger.

The four-year-old racehorse, called Smart Latch, had been retired with an injury but finished up being served at a soup kitchen in southern Turkey, in the Yenshir district in the Mersin province.

A resident discovered a strange object in his portion of kavurma – a traditional Turkish fried meat dish – while eating at the municipal soup kitchen last month, local media said on Thursday.

Agriculture ministry investigators found out that this was Smart Latch’s microchip – a thoroughbred mare which had won first-place finishes at the hippodrome in the nearby city of Adana and two other career wins.

The food the chip had been discovered in was examined on February 4, and investigators realised it was definitely horse meat on that day and the previous day’s batch of kavurma.

They destroyed 213 kilogrammes of kavurma made at the soup kitchen.

In Turkey, it is forbidden to kill horses for meat, particularly registered racehorses, which are usually rehomed or safeguarded.

Details only emerged this week after almost a month had gone by since the chip was discovered in the food.

The ministry said that the Mersin municipality soup kitchen had been ‘added to the list of unsafe products after testing showed it contained meat from a single-hoofed animal’ – a horse, donkey or mule.

‘We are in distress,’ owner of Smart Latch, Suat Topcu, said on Friday, adding that the horse had begun racing in 2024 but was retired after she broke her leg during her last race on October 14.

Throughout her short career, Smart Latch earned a sum of 1,125,000 Turkish Lira (£19,200) in prize money across her three victories.

Mr Topcu said he had arranged to have her donated to a riding club, using a local transporter he knew.

He said he did not know what had happened to Smart Latch until he was contacted by the agriculture ministry.

He was then fined 132,000 Turkish lira (£2,260) for not formally reporting the donation.

The racehorse owner said, ‘The fine is not important; what’s important is finding those who committed this cruelty.’

Investigators believe the horse ended up at the abattoir rather than the riding club.

They believe the horse’s meat was falsely labelled as ‘beef’ and then sold to the company that supplies the municipality’s soup kitchen.

Horsemeat can be sold legally, but pretending it’s beef is most definitely not permitted.

What it boils down to is this. People should know what they’re consuming. If they are okay with eating horse meat, then fantastic, but I believe that most people would not be okay with eating it. I would have no problem eating horse meat as long as it was destroyed humanely.

But this animal was deserving of better. Due to its injuries, the horse was retired and ought to have been transported to a sanctuary rather than a slaughterhouse, and besides, horse racing is cruel and unethical throughout.

Sadly, racehorse trainers care very little about their horses; it’s all about making money, and then they are put down when they are of very little use. Horse racing is cruel and should be prohibited, but it won’t happen because it’s a giant money-making enterprise.

A tranquil retirement is not a possibility for these animals, as they are a financial drain, so they are put down as soon as the publicity goes away, and I’m sure, in time, humans will go the same way.

A Stowaway Fox Is Taken In By New York Zoo After Travelling 3,000 Miles From The UK Aboard A Ship

A fox that survived a trip across the Atlantic on a vehicle transporter ship is being cared for in a zoo in New York.

A two-year-old male red fox was discovered by customs officers at the Port of New York and New Jersey on February 18, among the cargo of a vessel that had set sail from southern England two weeks prior.

Weighing about 11 pounds, he was taken in by the Bronx Zoo a day later, having ‘gone through a lot’, the zoo’s director of animal programmes said.

Keith Lovett added: ‘He seems to be settling in well.’ 

Cars were being transported across the Atlantic to the US East Coast on the ship that the fox had unintentionally boarded.

A long-term home for the mammal is expected to be found after he undergoes checks. But a spokeswoman for the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS), which runs the zoo, said he appears in good health. 

A statement released by the zoo read: ‘The Bronx Zoo regularly works with officials to help rescue wildlife that is illegally trafficked through nearby ports and airports.

‘In this case, the Bronx Zoo was able to help with the stowaway red fox found aboard a vessel entering a local port.

‘The fox is currently in the Animal Health Centre at the Bronx Zoo, where it is under the care of the zoo’s animal and veterinary teams. Initial examinations indicate that the fox appears to be in good condition.

‘Veterinarians are awaiting results from additional routine health screening.

‘Once the veterinary team determines that the fox is healthy, the zoo will work with wildlife experts to identify an appropriate long-term home for the animal.’

The spokeswoman said that red foxes are among the ‘most widespread carnivorous mammals in the world’ and are found across Europe, Asia, North America and parts of Africa.

A spokesman for ABP Southampton said, ‘The Port of Southampton handles everything from cars to containers to cruises, but even we were surprised to find a fox had booked itself a Transatlantic crossing.

‘Clearly it fancied swapping the Solent for the Staten Island Ferry, though next time we’d recommend it considers the Queen Mary 2, which offers the Southampton to New York route with considerably more comfort.’

Even the fox wanted to flee Starmer’s authoritarian Britain. Undoubtedly, it had been taking tips from how illegals have been crossing into the UK, but I’d sooner have one uninvited fox arrive than the thousands of uninvited boat people that we get.

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