BURSTIn today’s newsletter: With NHS England set to double its budgeted spending on ADHD services this year, the system is at breaking point – patients are being failed and private providers are cleaning up
Good morning. Hundreds of thousands of people are seeking attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) diagnoses in England – but the system designed to help them has turned into a fragmented marketplace that is costing the NHS far more than planned. A Guardian investigation has found services are on track to overspend their budgets by £164m this year.
The months-long investigation found growing demand is being pushed into an under-regulated – and highly profitable – private sector that, in some cases, is leaving patients dangerously unsupported. It has also landed in the middle of a rancorous political debate about whether ADHD is being overdiagnosed – an argument that ignores the very real struggles that are driving people to seek help in the first place.
Iran | China has threatened to retaliate against Donald Trump after the US president said he would impose 25% tariffs on countries that trade with Iran
UK politics | A vast new Chinese embassy complex in east London is almost certain to be formally approved next week despite worries about security risks and the effect on Hong Kong and Uyghur exiles in the capital.
Pollution | High-profile studies reporting the presence of microplastics throughout the human body have been thrown into doubt by scientists who say the discoveries are probably the result of contamination and false positives.
Social media | Keir Starmer has told MPs that he is open to the idea of an Australian-style ban on social media for young people after becoming concerned about the amount of time children and teenagers are spending on their phones
Asylum | A Palestinian citizen of Israel has been granted asylum in the UK on the basis of a “well-founded fear of persecution”, despite a former home secretary’s personal interference in the case to try to block the claim.
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