UK government u-turns, Black mums at risk and remembering Danielle Scott-Haughton
Plus: tenants threaten legal action over hot homes
Dearest readers,
We’re starting the year with a mix of relief, reckoning and remembrance. This week brings signs of progress in London, from a fall in homicide rates to policy U-turns that would have disproportionately harmed Black communities.
There’s also space for good news and celebration, including cultural wins and family reunifications.
But there’s no escaping the harder truths. We examine the fallout from resurfaced comments by Nigel Farage on workplace discrimination, the deeply troubling rise in maternal deaths with Black women bearing the greatest risk and mounting anger from tenants living in dangerously overheated homes.
We also pause to honour lives and legacies.
This edition pays tribute to Claudette Colvin, whose courage helped dismantle segregation in the US and to Danielle Scott-Haughton, a supporter of Black Current News, whose belief in Black creatives left an indelible mark on the scene. May she rest in peace.
Good news
Number of homicides in London falls to lowest in over a decade, says Met Police
UK government U-turns on mandatory digital ID cards for workers. This policy would’ve disproportionately affected Black communities. Research shows that 48% of Black people in Britain don’t hold common forms of photo ID, such as a full driving licence
Labour announces plan to allow new fathers earlier access to paternity leave
Abandoned baby Elsa to be adopted and regularly see two siblings
Streaming of Barrel Children: The Families Windrush Left Behind has been extended due to popular demand! Watch here - Black Current News subscribers are entitled to a 10% discount
Outcry over unearthed comments of Nigel Farage saying employers should be allowed to discriminate
Anti-racism groups and trade unions have condemned comments by Nigel Farage suggesting employers should be allowed to discriminate against non-British job applicants.
The Reform UK leader was filmed in a 2015 documentary describing it as “ludicrous” that employers could not select staff based on nationality and arguing that race equality laws should be scrapped. Speaking this week, he said he stood by the remarks and had no intention of retracting them.
Growing numbers of mothers are dying during pregnancy - with Black women at high risk
The number of women dying during pregnancy or shortly after childbirth in the UK is increasing, according to newly released figures, placing the government off course to meet its pledge to halve maternal deaths by 2025.
The data highlights stark inequalities. Between 2022 and 2024, women from Black ethnic backgrounds were three times more likely to die than white women, despite previous indications that the gap had begun to narrow.
RIP Claudette Colvin
Claudette Colvin, whose refusal to give up her bus seat helped dismantle racial segregation in the United States, has died at the age of 86.
Colvin was just 15 when she was arrested in Montgomery, Alabama, in 1955 after defying segregation laws.
Her protest came nine months before Rosa Parks’s more widely known act of resistance, which triggered the Montgomery bus boycott and ultimately led to a Supreme Court ruling against segregated public transport.
Tributes paid to BBC commissioning editor Danielle Scott-Haughton
Tributes have poured in following the death of Danielle Scott-Haughton, a respected commissioning editor, writer and producer who influenced a generation of Black British creatives.
Colleagues, peers and friends have praised her commitment to audiences, noting that she consistently used her position to back projects and voices often overlooked within the industry.
Tenants threaten legal action over hot homes
Tenants in south-east London say they may pursue legal action against their housing association over extreme heat in their homes.
Residents of Canada Court and Clifton Lodge in Woolwich claim their flats become uninhabitable during summer months, with indoor temperatures reportedly reaching as high as 43C. They argue the buildings are not fit for purpose and pose a serious risk to health.
What else we’re reading
Revealed: Newborn baby faces homelessness after deadly mould risk
Actor Stephen Graham, who’s mixed race, won a Golden Globe Award
Baroness Lawrence ‘more determined than ever’ to hold Daily Mail to account
People with healthy BMI using AI to get hold of weight-loss jabs
Zahawi accused of ‘begging’ for Tory peerage before Reform defection
Man admits racist abuse of footballer Jess Carter
Joshua Johnson-Hector: family left devastated by fatal attack outside bar
White supremacist dating site profiles linked to Tory and Reform councillors
Got a news tip or story idea? Submit it via this form. Reader feedback and corrections are welcomed separately here.