Rail and tube strikes confirmed as talks fail - BBC

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Rail and tube strikes will go ahead next week after talks failed to resolve a row over pay, jobs and conditions, union leaders have confirmed.

The Rail, Maritime and Transport union (RMT) said discussions with Network Rail, train operators and London Underground had failed.

The strike will cause disruption across England, Scotland and Wales.

The Department for Transport said it was disappointing and that strikes should "always be the last resort".

The action, which will involve thousands of workers, will take place across 13 train operators and Network Rail on Tuesday, Thursday and next Saturday, and there will be a London Underground strike on Tuesday.

Operators have said there will be knock-on effects on other days as well.

Network Rail, which owns and maintains the country's railways, said the union was "dismissing talks before we've even finished" with more discussions planned for Sunday.

A Network Rail spokesperson said it was "serious" about trying to find a solution and a compromise which gave people a "decent pay rise", but was also affordable for taxpayers and farepayers.

In a recent Q and A for members, the RMT said its position in all pay negotiations was for an above Retail Price Index (RPI) inflation pay rise.

RPI, a measure of inflation used to calculate the cost of living, was 11.1% as of April 2022 - up from 2.9% a year earlier. The union said it had recently secured an 8.4% rise workers on the London Underground.

As to whether pay rises should be backdated to compensate for pay freezes, the union said any rise "should reflect that members have not had a pay rise... and the drastic increase in the cost of living".

• When is the rail strike and which lines will be affected?
• Are UK travellers heading for a summer of misery?

RMT general secretary Mick Lynch said that "despite the best efforts of our negotiators" no viable settlements to the disputes had been created.

Mr Lynch blamed the government for cutting funding to the transport system - which he said amounted to £4bn - and said as a result companies were cutting benefits, making staff work longer, and making them poorer in retirement.

He said thousands of jobs were being cut across the rail networks and workers were facing below-inflation pay rises.

The RMT says there are proposals to cut 2,500 maintenance jobs on Network Rail, which the union said could "increase the possibility of trains flying off the tracks".

'No one wins'

Meanwhile, passengers have been warned by Network Rail not to travel on trains unless necessary during strikes next week, with about half of all rail lines closed.

A skeleton timetable on strike days will see about 20% of services running. For example, the last train to London from Edinburgh departs at 13:30 and, from Manchester, at 14:47.

The Rail Delivery Group said that "no one wins in the event of a strike" and said it would be working alongside Network Rail to keep as many services running as possible.

The group's chair Steve Montgomery said this week that taxpayers have supported the rail industry with "the equivalent of about £600 per household since Covid" adding that "passenger numbers are still only at around 75% of pre-pandemic levels".

A Department for Transport spokesperson said the government had committed £16bn to keeping the railways running during the pandemic, but warned the industry was still "on life support" and strikes could stop customers choosing rail travel in the future.

Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer he wanted all parties around the negotiating table "even at this late hour" as he did not want the strikes to go ahead.

"But, like the British public, I'm frustrated because the government is sitting it out, it's not lifting a finger to resolve these strikes," he said.

How are the rail strikes affecting you? Do you rely on trains? Are you having to make alternative travel arrangements? Will you miss an important event? Get in touch by emailing: haveyoursay@bbc.co.uk.

Please include a contact number if you are willing to speak to a BBC journalist. You can also get in touch in the following ways:

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2022-06-18 14:20:29Z
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Rail strikes are going ahead next week - here's what you need to know about disruptions - Sky News

The Rail, Maritime and Transport union (RMT) has confirmed that next week's rail and Tube strikes will go ahead. Here's what you need to know and how disruptions may affect your journey.

Only around half of Britain's rail network will be open on strike days, with very limited services running on lines, according to Network Rail.

When?

The strikes will take place on Tuesday 21, Thursday 23 and Saturday 25 June in a dispute over pay and redundancies.

The RMT and Unite unions are also taking part in industrial action which will affect the London Underground on Tuesday 21 June.

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Network Rail has warned that the strikes will cause six days of disruption because of the knock-on effect on services on the days in between.

How is each line affected?

More on Rail

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• Avanti West Coast

A "significantly reduced timetable" will be in place on the three days. Services from London Euston will run every hour to Manchester, Liverpool, Birmingham and Preston. North Wales, Shrewsbury, Blackpool and Edinburgh have no Avanti West Coast services on strike days. Trains will not be calling at Stockport, Macclesfield, Stoke-on-Trent or Runcorn, and these stations will be closed.

Customers with existing tickets for travel from Tuesday to Sunday can claim a full refund with further sales suspended to "help reduce disruption and overcrowding".

It will operate fewer than a third of normal services between 7.30am and 6.30pm.

This will include two trains per hour from London Fenchurch Street to Shoeburyness via Laindon, and the same frequency from London Fenchurch Street to Pitsea via Rainham. No trains will run via Ockendon or Chafford Hundred.

• East Midlands Railway

Services will operate between 7.30am and 6.30pm, with no direct trains between Luton and London St Pancras on Saturday and Sunday. Just one train per hour will run in each direction on most routes.

• West Midlands Railway

A number of services will not be running during the week. Strike days will see a "very limited service", as will Wednesday and Friday.

• Great Northern

No more than two trains per hour will run between King's Cross to Ely, Cambridge, Peterborough, Welwyn Garden City and Stevenage via Hertford North. On strike days, the last trains will finish in the afternoon.

Around 38% of its usual trains will be running, which are likely to be very busy. The last train from London King's Cross to Edinburgh is at 2pm, while the final service to Leeds will depart at 3.05pm. The last train from Edinburgh to London is at 12.30pm, with the final departure from Leeds at 3.45pm.

Just two trains per hour between London Euston and Northampton, and one per hour between Birmingham New Street and Northampton. No trains will operate between London Euston and Crewe.

• Great Western Railway

A number of services will not be running on strike days, including all those in Cornwall and Devon and on South Wales main line, Heart of Wessex line, Severn Beach line, North Cotswolds line and South Cotswolds line. On Saturday, Greenford branch line services will not run. There will be an "extremely limited service" on other routes, which will operate between 7.30am and 6.30pm.

• Greater Anglia

A very reduced service on London routes will be running, with no regional or branch lines trains and no rail replacement buses. No more than two trains per hour will run into the capital, starting from 7.30am and finishing by 6.30pm.

Services will not be operating on most routes, with a "very limited" number of trains on the few running lines, including those from Leeds.

• South Western Railway

A "severely limited service" will run between 7.15am and 6.30pm on strike days, and only on some routes. This includes only four trains per hour between London Waterloo and Woking, and two per hour between London Waterloo and Basingstoke.

• Southeastern

Most stations and routes will be closed and a "severely reduced" service will run on strike days. Where trains are not running, people will be unable to travel.

Many stations and routes will be closed, with just two trains running per hour from London Bridge and London Victoria to southeast London and the coast. Services will run on the Brighton Mainline to London Bridge and London Victoria, with additional trains from Tattenham Corner, Epsom Downs, Sutton and West Croydon, via Crystal Palace.

• Gatwick Express

No service on strike days. A Sunday service will run on the days after the strikes, beginning after 7.15am and finishing early.

• Heathrow Express

Services will be "significantly affected" during the week, with a half hourly service operating between 7.30am and 6.30pm on strike days.

• Stansted Express

A reduced frequency will be in place, with later first trains and earlier last trains. There will be two trains an hour, with no services running from Stansted Airport to Norwich and Cambridge.

• Thameslink

Generally two trains per hour will run both north and south. There will be far fewer trains than normal on strike days, with nothing running between London St Pancras and London Bridge.

• TransPennine Express

Most services will see a "significant reduction" of trains. Yarm, Scarborough, Seamer, Malton, Selby, Brough and Hull stations will be completely closed with no services calling there on strike days. There will also be significant disruption on Wednesday and Friday.

No trains will run north of Glasgow or Edinburgh on strike days. Just two trains per hour will run between the cities via Falkirk. They will operate between 7.30am and 6.30pm.

• CrossCountry

No services will run from Birmingham New Street to Bristol Temple Meads, Cardiff Central, Peterborough, Cambridge or Stansted Airport across the three days. A "very limited service" is to run between Bristol Parkway and Plymouth and Birmingham New Street and Newcastle and Edinburgh Waverley. Just one train per hour is to run between Birmingham New Street and Manchester Piccadilly, Leicester, Leeds and York and Reading. It warned of the possibility of last minute changes to the timetable.

There will be "some disruption" to services throughout the week, but as many as possible will run.

• Merseyrail

There will be no train services and no rail replacement buses on strike days.

• Chiltern Railways

On Tuesday, services will be unable to call at stations operated by London Underground.

Across the three days no trains will run north of Banbury, to Oxford, or to Aylesbury via Amersham. One train an hour each way will run to Banbury, Aylesbury via High Wycombe and between Aylesbury and Amersham (except Tuesday).The service will start from around 7.30am, with morning trains not arriving in London until after 9am. The final train from the capital will leave at 4.45pm.

• Caledonian Sleeper

All departures are cancelled between Monday and Friday.

• Grand Central

In most cases just three trains in each direction will be running on strike days. Although there is a full timetable planned on the other days, some services have been cancelled or will start later.

• Transport for Wales

On Tuesday and Thursday a reduced service will run between Radyr and Treherbert, Aberdare and Merthyr Tydfil, with replacement bus services between Radyr and Cardiff Central. There will be a reduced service between Radyr and Treherbert, Aberdare and Pontypridd, with replacement buses in operation between Radyr and Cardiff Central on Saturday. All other services will be suspended.

Hull Trains has announced that its planned strike has been called off after "reaching an agreement" with Aslef, adding that talks are continuing.

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2022-06-18 09:50:40Z
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Lord Geidt gives more details on why he quit as Boris Johnson's ethics adviser - Sky News

Lord Geidt has gone into more detail about why he quit, giving a more robust account of why he resigned as Boris Johnson's ethics adviser.

In a letter to Constitutional Affairs Select Committee Chair William Wragg, Lord Geidt said he "could not be party to advising on potential law breaking".

He admitted his resignation letter may have been too cautious.

Writing to Mr Wragg, Lord Geidt clarified that focus on steel tariffs as a reason for his departure by others is a "distraction".

"Since my letter of resignation was made public yesterday, there has been some confusion about the precise cause of my decision," he said.

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"My letter has been interpreted to suggest that an important issue of principle was limited to some narrow and technical consideration of steel tariffs.

"The cautious language of my letter may have failed adequately to explain the far wider scope of my objection."

More on Boris Johnson

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Lord Geidt continued: "Emphasis on the steel tariffs question is a distraction.

"It was simply one example of what might yet constitute deliberate breaches by the United Kingdom of its obligations under international law, given the government's widely publicised openness to this."

He concluded by saying that "conscious of my own obligations under the Seven Principles of Public Life (including integrity), I could not be a party to advising on any potential law-breaking".

Lord Geidt unexpectedly resigned on Wednesday evening in a letter to the prime minister.

Prior to standing down, Lord Geidt had earlier this week admitted that he had considered resigning over Mr Johnson's response to his partygate fine for breaking COVID-19 rules.

Explaining why he was leaving, Lord Geidt told the prime minister he believed "by a very small margin" that it was possible "to continue credibly as independent adviser" after partygate.

In the letter, Lord Geidt said he had been asked this week to offer a view on "measures which risk a deliberate and purposeful breach of the ministerial code".

"This request has placed me in an impossible and odious position," he said.

"The idea that a prime minister might to any degree be in the business of deliberately breaching his own code is an affront."

Read more:
Lord Geidt and Boris Johnson's letters in full

Image: In Lord Geidt's resignation letter to the PM he said he had been asked 'to offer a view on "measures which risk a deliberate and purposeful breach of the ministerial code'

Lord Geidt said that even an intention to breach the ministerial code deliberately "would be to suspend the provisions of the code to suit a political end".

He added: "This would make a mockery not only of respect for the code but licence the suspension of its provisions in governing the conduct of Her Majesty's ministers.

"I can have no part in this."

Mr Johnson said in response that the letter "came as a surprise" after the adviser told him on Monday that he was happy to stay on until the end of the year.

Following Lord Geidt's departure, Mr Johnson said he will "carefully consider" whether to hire a new ethics adviser.

Lord Geidt's departure came after his predecessor Sir Alex Allan resigned in 2020. That was described by Labour as a "badge of shame" for the government.

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2022-06-17 18:59:26Z
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WikiLeaks' founder Assange vows to fight extradition from UK to United States - Reuters UK

• UK's Patel approves extradition request
• Assange has 14 days to appeal
• Assange's wife says dark day for press freedom
• Australia says case has dragged on too long

LONDON, June 17 (Reuters) - The wife of Julian Assange vowed to fight using every possible legal avenue after British Home Secretary Priti Patel on Friday approved the WikiLeaks' founder's extradition to the United States to face criminal charges.

Assange is wanted by U.S. authorities on 18 counts, including a spying charge, relating to WikiLeaks' release of vast troves of confidential U.S. military records and diplomatic cables which Washington said had put lives in danger.

His supporters say he is an anti-establishment hero who has been victimised because he exposed U.S. wrongdoing in conflicts in Afghanistan and Iraq, and that his prosecution is a politically motivated assault on journalism and free speech.

His wife Stella said Assange would appeal after the Home Office said his extradition had been approved as British courts had concluded it would not be unjust or an abuse of process.

"We're going to fight this. We're going to use every appeal avenue," Stella Assange told reporters, calling the decision a "travesty". "I'm going to spend every waking hour fighting for Julian until he is free, until justice is served."

Originally, a British judge ruled Assange, 50, should not be deported, saying his mental health meant he would be at risk of suicide if convicted and held in a maximum security prison.

But this was overturned on an appeal after the United States gave a package of assurances, including a pledge he could be transferred to Australia to serve any sentence.

The Home Office said the courts had not found that extradition would be incompatible with his human rights, including his right to a fair trial and to freedom of expression, and that he would be treated appropriately.

The Australian-born Assange has been involved in a legal fight in Britain for more than a decade and it could now go on for many more months.

He has 14 days to appeal to London's High Court, which must give its approval for a challenge, and he could ultimately seek to take his case to the United Kingdom Supreme Court and the European Court of Human Rights.

'CHILLING MESSAGE'

"We're not at the end of the road here," Stella Assange said, calling Patel's decision "a dark day for press freedom and for British democracy".

Nick Vamos, the former head of extradition at Britain's Crown Prosecution Service, said verdicts were regularly overturned by the High Court. Assange would be able to claim again it was politically motivated and use new evidence, such as his allegations the CIA had plotted to assassinate him.

The CIA has declined to comment on his claims.

"I think he might get some traction," Vamos told Reuters.

WikiLeaks first came to prominence when it published a U.S. military video in 2010 showing a 2007 attack by Apache helicopters in Baghdad that killed a dozen people, including two Reuters news staff.

It then released hundreds of thousands of secret classified files and diplomatic cables in what was the largest security breach of its kind in U.S. military history.

U.S. prosecutors and Western security officials regard Assange as a reckless enemy of the state whose actions imperilled the lives of agents named in the leaked material.

He and his supporters argue that he is being punished for embarrassing those in power and faces 175 years in prison if found guilty, although the U.S. lawyers have said it would be more like four to six years.

"Allowing Julian Assange to be extradited to the U.S. would put him at great risk and sends a chilling message to journalists the world over," said Agnes Callamard, Amnesty International's secretary general.

The Australian government said it would continue to tell London and Washington that the case had "dragged on for too long and should be brought to a close".

The legal saga began at the end of 2010 when Sweden sought Assange's extradition from Britain over allegations of sex crimes. When he lost that case in 2012, he fled to the Ecuadorean embassy in London, where he spent seven years.

When he was finally dragged out in April 2019, he was jailed for breaching British bail conditions although the Swedish case against him had been dropped. He has been fighting extradition to the United States since June 2019 and remains in jail.

During his time in the Ecuadorian embassy he fathered two children with his now wife, who he married in Belmarsh high-security prison in London in March at a ceremony attended by just four guests, two official witnesses and two guards. read more

Additional reporting by Kirtsy Needham in Sydney; Editing by Kate Holton and Alison Williams

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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2022-06-17 13:03:00Z
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Gatwick cuts summer flights after staff shortages - BBC

EPA

Gatwick Airport is reducing the number of flights during the peak summer period due to staff shortages.

The number of daily flights will be cut to 825 in July and 850 in August, down from 900 in previous years.

It comes after the government and regulators wrote to airlines telling them to ensure their summer timetables were "deliverable".

Tens of thousands of passengers have been hit by cancellations and delays at UK airports in recent weeks.

Gatwick said it had taken the decision to temporarily reduce flights following a review of its operations, to help passengers "experience a more reliable and better standard of service".

• Why are so many flights being cancelled?

Stewart Wingate, the airport's chief executive, said that during the week of the Queen's Platinum Jubilee celebrations a number of companies operating at the airport had struggled because of staff shortages.

"By taking decisive action now, we aim to help the ground handlers - and also our airlines - to better match their flying programmes with their available resources," he said.

EasyJet said it was "aware" of the capacity cap announced by Gatwick Airport and is "reviewing the details" to assess how it will affect the airline's operation.

It said: "We expect to be able to re-accommodate the majority of customers should their flight be affected by the cap.

"We recognise the need for Gatwick Airport to do this... so all airlines can provide reliable services for their customers."

Travel correspondent Simon Calder told the BBC the "whole industry is stretched" - especially ground handlers and the airlines.

"This is all about avoiding the scenes of chaos at airports and actually making sure that say 95% of people are travelling", the Independent correspondent said.

"Of course that's unfair on the 5% who aren't", he said, adding that air rights ensures passengers have "an absolute right" to travel on the day their flight was scheduled if there are any available seats on any airlines.

Gatwick Airport wants to have a "sensible summer" said Mr Calder, who said the "capping" of flights should enable this.

Reuters

Julia Lo Bue-Said from Advantage Travel Partnership said people need "advance warning" if flights are cancelled.

Despite the "vast majority" of flights being able to depart, passengers need "certainty", the CEO of the UK's largest independent travel agent group said.

Referring to previous travel disruption at UK airports this year, she told BBC Radio 4's Today programme: "This looks like a pragmatic solution to try and avoid some of that."

More than 150 flights across the UK were cancelled during the week of the Platinum Jubilee, as many people tried to take advantage of the four-day weekend to travel.

Airlines also suffered severe disruption during spikes in demand at the half-term school holiday and during Easter, prompting apologies from companies such as British Airways, TUI and EasyJet.

Business minister Paul Scully suggested one solution to the airport chaos could be for staff to work longer hours if they want to.

He told Sky News he was "not talking about going out forcing people to do anything", but "it's just that those people who can work longer - that want to work longer - can do".

"We want to work really closely with the airports and the airlines to make sure that they are doing everything they can and see what more we can do."

Gatwick said it had recruited 400 new staff to help passengers pass through security checks this summer and more new recruits would start in the coming weeks.

But the airport's review found that many companies based at the airport still had a severe lack of staff and if the issue was not addressed, passengers could experience queues delays and cancellations.

The aviation industry made thousands of employees redundant during the pandemic and many have yet to be replaced, despite a spike in demand for travel.

Following a wave of cancellations and delays at airports, the Department of Transport and the Civil Aviation Authority wrote to airlines telling them to review their schedules and to cancel flights that could not be delivered "at the earliest possibility".

Are you concerned about your summer holiday? You can get in touch by emailing haveyoursay@bbc.co.uk.

Please include a contact number if you are willing to speak to a BBC journalist. You can also get in touch in the following ways:

• WhatsApp: +44 7756 165803
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If you are reading this page and can't see the form you will need to visit the mobile version of the BBC website to submit your question or comment or you can email us at HaveYourSay@bbc.co.uk. Please include your name, age and location with any submission.

• SPEEDY MEALS: Tasty 10-minute recipes you can rustle up in no time
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2022-06-17 08:47:44Z
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Leicestershire company fined £2m and co-owners jailed after yard workers drown in tanker full of pig feed - Sky News

The co-owners of a food waste recycling company have been jailed and the firm fined £2million after two employees drowned in a road haulage tanker full of semi-liquid pig feed.

Nathan Walker, 19, died after climbing into the tanker and getting into trouble at Greenfeeds Ltd in Normanton, Leicestershire, on 22 December, 2016 - 15 days before his first child, a son, was born.

Fellow yard worker Gavin Rawson, 35, lost his life after bravely jumping in to rescue the teenager 'with no thought for his own safety', Leicester Crown Court heard.

Co-owner Gillian Leivers, 60, was jailed for 13 years while her husband, Ian Leivers, 59, was handed 20 months behind bars.

Gillian Leivers showed a "blatant disregard for a high risk of death" while in charge of staff at the company, which had no safe method of working, no training, no risk assessments and no records relating to the cleaning of the inside of its tankers.

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Workers expressed concerns about potential dangers but were ignored.

The company - which produced bio-fuel and pig feed from recycled materials but is now in liquidation - was convicted of corporate manslaughter following a six-week trial at the court.

Gillian Leivers, from Newark, Northamptonshire, was also found guilty of a separate health and safety offence and banned from being a company director for 15 years during a sentencing hearing on Thursday.

'It was obvious that the yard staff hated cleaning tankers internally'

Passing sentence, Mr Justice Fraser told her: "Your negligent conduct was both continued and repeated over a long period of time.

"It was obvious that the yard staff hated cleaning tankers internally, and made complaints to you about it, including requesting breathing apparatus that was not provided.

"You simply ignored these issues. You showed a blatant disregard for a very high risk of death resulting from your negligent conduct. I am also of the view that your behaviour was motivated by avoiding the cost of implementing proper safety measures."

Both men were pulled from the tanker after a saw was used to cut holes in the sides but they died at the scene of the tragedy.

A post-mortem concluded they died after drowning in the animal feed, having been overcome by toxic fumes and a lack of oxygen.

Image: The road haulage tanker where Nathan Walker and Gavin Rawson died

'Courageous decision cost Gavin his life'

Hailing Mr Rawson's courage, the judge said: ""He must have seen Nathan from the top hatch, and with no thought for his own safety, bravely entered the tanker in order to rescue him.

"That courageous decision cost Gavin his life. He suffered the same fate as Nathan almost immediately, becoming overcome by the gas and losing consciousness.

"The method that had been adopted at Greenfeeds for years, which the senior management knew and indeed approved, was simply climb in, clean the tanker; take your chances," the judge added.

Ian Leivers was found guilty of a Health and Safety at Work Act breach as a director of Greenfeeds Ltd.

Transport manager Stewart Brown, 69, from Mansfield, was sentenced to a year in prison, suspended for two years, for failing to take reasonable care for the health and safety of others.

Nathan 'so excited about becoming a dad'

Relatives of Mr Walker described him as "loving and affectionate", as well as a "family-oriented person" and "amazing big brother.

"Nathan was so excited about becoming a dad. He should have been here to see his son born. He should be here with his son now," his family said in a statement.

"The shock, horror and grief of hearing that our son had been killed will stay with us for the rest of our lives. The pain we feel in our hearts is still completely unbearable. Life will never be the same for us."

'He was our hero'

Meanwhile Mr Rawson's family paid tribute to their "much loved son, brother and uncle".

"Although it breaks our hearts, we are so proud of Gavin and what he did that day," they said.

"He did what he always did and went to help someone in need, despite the danger to himself.

"He was our hero and we will always remember him that way.

"We just wish we could hold him, hug him and tell him he is our hero. It is completely devastating to our entire family that we will never be able to do this."

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2022-06-16 19:30:57Z
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Gymnastics abuse: Whyte Review finds physical and emotional abuse issues were 'systemic' - BBC

Warning: This article contains some description of graphic injuries and abuse.

Issues of physical and emotional abuse within gymnastics in Britain were "systemic", an independent investigation has found.

The Whyte Review, co-commissioned by UK Sport and Sport England, was released on Thursday and found gymnast wellbeing and welfare "has not been at the centre of British Gymnastics' culture".

Athletes were made to train on injuries, punished for needing the toilet, sat on by coaches, shouted and sworn at and had their bags searched for food.

The review said the difficulties now facing British Gymnastics, the sport's national governing body, are "borne of inadequate practice and procedure", and reflect a culture which was the product of "the way in which people behaved and were allowed to behave".

There was a sense, it added, that British Gymnastics had "not only failed to prevent or limit such behaviours but had condoned some of them in the pursuit of national and international competitive success".

The former chief executive of British Gymnastics, Jane Allen, who retired in December 2020, was criticised in the report for a "lack of leadership" and an "organisational failure to appreciate the central importance of athlete welfare".

In a statement, she said she was "deeply sorry I didn't do more for everyone - especially the athletes - to feel supported, able to speak up and heard".

The Whyte Review was commissioned in 2020 following allegations of abuse and mistreatment within gymnastics in Britain.

UK Sport and Sport England said they "welcomed" the report and "accepted and endorsed" its recommendations - adding gymnastics' continued funding will "depend on its new leadership teams making significant changes to the sport" in the timeline set out in the Whyte Review.

British Gymnastics said it wanted to "wholeheartedly apologise" to gymnasts who had suffered and that it would "not shy away from doing what is needed".

In addition to her 17 recommendations, Anne Whyte QC said a sports ombudsman would be "an obvious step in the right direction".

She also stipulated that the British Gymnastics board publish details of its progress in complying with her recommendations at six, 12 and 24-month intervals, with the expectation that "most if not all of them" are implemented within two years.

In the report, Whyte said: "I hope that the findings in this report will allow the gymnast community to feel that the failures of the past have been publicly recognised and enable the sport to move forward and make positive changes."

She added: "I am confident that the sport of gymnastics is already undergoing change for the good."

What did the review find?

The review, which focused on the period from August 2008 to August 2020, received more than 400 submissions, including 133 from current and former gymnasts, and conducted 190 interviews.

Of those 400-plus submissions:

• More than 40% described physically abusive behaviour towards gymnasts by coaches, including physical chastisement, inappropriate training on injury, overstretching to the point of distress and withholding food, water and access to the toilet.
• More than 50% reported an element of emotional abuse by coaches, such as swearing, name calling, use of belittling language and gaslighting.
• Some 30 submissions included allegations of sexual abuse, such as sexual assault, sexual remarks, inappropriate touching and kissing as a punishment.
• More than 25% included reference to excessive weight management.

The review states the "vast majority" of reports about physically and emotionally abusive behaviour related to female gymnasts, and such behaviour was more prevalent at the elite end of the sport.

On weight management, it said "the tyranny of the scales was coach-led and quite unnecessary".

No individual coaches were named in the report, in which Whyte said the scale of emotional abuse was "far larger than British Gymnastics had appreciated".

During the 12-year period covered by the review - during which British Gymnastics received more than £38m in UK Sport funding - the governing body received approximately 3,800 complaints.

The review also pointed to the recruitment of coaches from, or from countries influenced by, the former Soviet Union, whose "technical skill and experience was sometimes accompanied by an attitude to the gymnast which was autocratic and dismissive and left athletes feeling like commodities".

What were some of the examples given of abuse?

Anecdotes from submissions include:

• One former elite gymnast described being made to stand on the beam for two hours because she was frightened to attempt a skill. Some gymnasts were strapped to bars for extended periods of time while others were made to climb the rope because they needed the toilet or exceeded a break time.
• One gymnast was deliberately dropped from equipment and dragged across the gym floor by their arms, while others were pressured to train on injuries, including broken bones.
• One gymnast recalls at the age of seven being sat on by a coach, while a parent reported two coaches at once pushing their child's legs down into a split. An international competitor recalled their coach sitting on a gymnast's back, forcing their hips into the floor and then lifting up their knee.
• Verbal comments made to gymnasts included that they were "a waste of space", "a joke" and "pathetic" - while in relation to excessive weight management, comments included "you look like a whale", "you look like you have a beer belly", and "your thighs are disgusting".
• Some coaches went to damaging length to control what gymnasts ate and weighed. Gymnasts had their weights publicly announced, were told to send photographs to prove they had lost weight, and had their lunch packs and bags searched for food. Gymnasts would hide food, including in ceiling tiles, and were told "not to eat grapes" because "they are the highest-fat fruit".
• As a result, a "significant" number of gymnasts developed dysfunctional relationships with food, weight and body image, and reports of purging were not uncommon in the submissions.

Whyte said the "unacceptable culture" described in the report "will not be fully eradicated until the national and international leadership within the sport publicly recognise its existence".

What are the recommendations?

Recommendations to British Gymnastics focus on four key areas: safeguarding and welfare, complaints handling, standards and educations, and governance and oversight.

The recommendations include:

• All club owners and managers should have mandatory safeguarding training, and high-performance gymnasts should have access to an independent disclosure service and dedicated welfare officer outside their club.
• British Gymnastics must have a fit-for-purpose case management system that covers number and nature of complaints, and must ensure all welfare-related complaints about employed coaches are independently investigated.
• The organisation should appoint a director of education and increase its direct contact with registered clubs.
• British Gymnastics must appoint independent board members with relevant expertise.

What have the governing bodies said?

A joint statement from UK Sport and Sport England said: "The gymnasts' experiences shared in this review are harrowing and distressing to read. No-one in sport should ever be subjected to such abuse.

"We want to publicly acknowledge and thank all of those who were courageous in coming forward. Your voices are heard. You have played a vital part in fundamentally shaping the future of gymnastics in Britain, to help make it safe and inclusive for future generations to come.

"Duty of care to athletes and participants is the responsibility of national governing bodies. British Gymnastics clearly fell short of this.

"At this time, our intention is to continue to fund British Gymnastics, as we believe that withdrawing funding would not only prevent them from implementing the vital changes outlined in the report but also negatively impact on the support to and wellbeing of gymnasts now.

"However, we are clear that continued funding for British Gymnastics will depend on its new leadership team making significant changes to the sport, to the timelines set out in the report's recommendations."

British Gymnastics' chief executive Sarah Powell, who has been in the post since October, said gymnasts' experiences as detailed in the review were "not acceptable" and she found the report "emotional" reading.

She said it was a "watershed moment" for not just gymnastics, but safeguarding across all sports.

"Gymnastics will be different because of the bravery of the gymnasts who stood up," she said.

In a statement, she said: "British Gymnastics accepts all of the recommendations and key findings. We will not shy away from doing what is needed.

"I want to wholeheartedly apologise to the gymnasts who have suffered as a result of us not working to the standards we set ourselves. We are sorry."

She added: "Let me be clear; there is no place for abuse of any kind in our sport and coaching standards of the past will not be those of the future.

"We will build a new culture and ensure the gymnast's voice is at the heart of all we do. We will change gymnastics for the better."

Why was the review commissioned?

UK Sport and Sport England commissioned the independent review - led by Anne Whyte QC - in July 2020 after allegations of mistreatment in gymnastics. The review formally began the following month.

The review assessed whether:

• Gymnasts' wellbeing and welfare is (and has been) at the centre of the culture of British Gymnastics, its registered clubs and member coaches and if not, why not.
• Safeguarding concerns and complaints have been dealt with appropriately in the sport of gymnastics and if not, why not.
• Gymnasts, or their parents, carers or guardians, have felt unable to raise complaints with appropriate authorities and if so, why.

The review also investigated the "nature and volume of complaints received by British Gymnastics", the governing body's approach to resolving the complaints, and its culture and practices.

How did we get here?

The Whyte Review report did not mention individual coaches or athletes.

• July 2020: Nicole Pavier is among a number of gymnasts to make the first allegations of a "culture of fear" within the "mentally and emotionally abusive" sport of gymnastics.
• Olympians Becky and Ellie Downie say abusive behaviour in gymnastics training became "ingrained" and "completely normalised", while then-British Gymnastics chief executive Jane Allen says she is "appalled and ashamed" by the allegations.
• Olympic bronze medallist Amy Tinkler criticises British Gymnastics for the time it has taken to investigate a formal complaint she made in 2019.
• A helpline is launched by the NSPCC and British Athletes Commission to support gymnasts. It receives more than 120 calls in its first five weeks.
• August 2020: The Whyte Review is formally started.
• Pavier's former coach, Claire Barbieri, is suspended, while British Gymnastics' head national coach Amanda Reddin steps aside after allegations are made against her. Both denied the allegations made against them.
• Olympic bronze medallist Nile Wilson alleges gymnasts are "treated like pieces of meat".
• September 2020: Two further coaches - Helen Potter and Rory Weavers - are temporarily suspended pending investigation. Both denied the allegations made against them.
• October 2020: British Gymnastics chief executive Allen announces she will retire in December.
• November 2020: British Gymnastics sets up an independent complaints process to oversee allegations of mistreatment by athletes.
• February 2021: A group of 17 start legal action against British Gymnastics. A further 20 later join the group claim.
• June 2021: Sarah Powell is named British Gymnastics chief executive, and says she is "under no illusions about the scale of change needed" to improve the culture at the organisation.
• August 2021: British Gymnastics chairman Mike Darcey apologises to the gymnastics community for failing to act on allegations of mistreatment.
• April 2022: BBC Sport reveals leading coach Liz Kincaid was pulled from Great Britain's coaching squad just weeks before the Tokyo Olympics after a serious allegation was made against her. She denied wrongdoing.
• May 2022: National head coach Reddin steps down from her position with immediate effect. Previous claims against her were not upheld and her suspension was lifted, but another independent investigation is ongoing into "further historical complaints".
• June 2022: BBC Sport reveals ex-acrobatic gymnast Eloise Jotischky is the first to win a civil case against British Gymnastics for the abuse she experienced in the sport, with the organisation admitting full liability.
• The Whyte Review is published.

If you have been affected by issues raised in this article, there is information and support available on BBC Action Line.

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2022-06-16 15:00:04Z
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