03 June 2011

Other UK News In Brief

Met Officers Found Not Guilty Of ABH

Four Metropolitan police officers have been acquitted of attacking Babar Ahmad, during a counter-terrorism operation on 2 December 2003. Police Constables Roderick James-Bowen, Mark Jones, Nigel Cowley and John Donohue were found not guilty of Actual Bodily Harm following a five week trial at Southwark Crown Court. During the trial the court heard evidence that did not support Babar Ahmad's account of events following his arrest on the day. Acting Commander Carl Bussey, head of the Met's Directorate of Professional Standards, said: "The issues that have arisen out of the arrest have now been ongoing for a long time and undoubtedly this will have been a difficult seven years for all involved. Given the result I will now ensure a misconduct review is conducted immediately so that the officers can be given a decision as soon as possible and this matter finally brought to a conclusion."

BMA Scotland Comment On 'Highly Critical' Health Review

The Chairman of the BMA’s Scottish General Practitioners Committee has spoken out on the Audit Scotland review of Community Health Partnerships (CHPs) published yesterday. Dr Dean Marshall said:   “This is a highly critical report which confirms our experience of the management and performance of these organisations. It is deeply disturbing that, with responsibility for such a significant sum of NHS funding (around £3 billion) and despite the many bureaucrats that work for these organisations, their financial management, strategy and governance is so poor. That a CHP cannot say how many staff it has working within its structure, or how much it has spent on administration costs, is beyond belief.  ” The BMA Chairman added: “GPs have turned their back on CHPs because they have become bureaucratic monoliths caught up in their own internal processes rather than influencing the planning, funding and development of local services to meet patient needs. They have also spectacularly failed to bridge the gap between health and social care, a challenge that must be met in order to care for our increasingly elderly population.   We welcome the recommendation to involve GPs in planning services for the local population and in decisions about how resources are used. It is my view that in order to achieve real engagement, these GPs should be truly representative of their peers.”   He concluded: “This report signals a need for the Scottish Government to conduct a complete review of the structure and function of CHPs. In order to be successful at improving joint working between primary and secondary care, and between health and social care, these organisations must be clinically-led and management supported. They cannot continue as they are.”

 Appeal Launched Over Firearms Incident In East London

Police are appealing for information following a firearms incident in east London. On Thursday, 2 June, around 10.45pm, officers were called to London Fields, following reports of gunshots fired. Upon arrival there was no trace of a victim. Officers were later informed that a 15-year-old boy had been admitted to an east London hospital with a gunshot wound across his forehead. His condition is described as non-life-threatening or life-changing. The incident is being investigated by the Trident North-East Shootings team.

(BMcN/GK)