The film, made by Steven Toozer, charts the experiences of Rick Canty, a resident of Barry, who began his protest in 2006 in response to a long-running house and land dispute with a builder.

Mr Canty stayed on his roof for two years, only coming down in 2008 after being removed.

Mr Toozer said: “One of the main reasons I wanted to make this film was to give Rick a voice.

“Rick told me he was heavily censored by the media, they wouldn’t show/print what he had to say.

“I wanted to make a film allowing Rick to have his say.

“I wanted to let him speak and tell his story.

“From returning to the roof after jail, to being attacked, I wanted to show the continuous courage he had through it all.

“He wasn’t just fighting for himself but also in the name of his late mother.

“Rick inspired me, and I hope my film will show people the strength and courage he had.”

In 1994, the dispute went to court.

Mr Canty won the case and was awarded costs as well as ownership of the house and land, but said he never received the money.

Years later a bankruptcy order was issued against him and his late mother, and he faced eviction from his home.

Mr Canty claimed the bankruptcy was illegal, as he was still owed the original court-awarded costs.

Mr Toozer first met Mr Canty during his roof protest in 2007, later filming further interviews in 2009 during another protest outside Cardiff Civil Justice Centre.

Following Mr Canty’s death in 2023, Mr Toozer gathered his footage and produced a 30-minute film.

A screening of the film is being held at Penarth Pier Pavilion on 11th October.

Anyone interested in attending the screening is asked to contact Mr Toozer at steventoozer@googlemail.com.

On Tuesday morning, farmer Peter Hatley logged on to his computer at 10am. England’s 2026 sustainable farming incentive (SFI) was opening for applicants and, after three bad harvests, the money would be a lifeline.

But Hatley, who runs a 240-hectare family farm in Cambridgeshire, was faced with repeated error messages. He called the government’s helpline, which he says acknowledged there were problems with the scheme, but says by the time the problem was fixed, the money had gone.

“We tried our utmost. We were fully prepared; everything was checked and triple-checked and through no fault of our own we were denied this opportunity. I’m shell-shocked,” he says.

By 4pm on Tuesday, just six hours after it launched, the SFI had run out of money after a rush some compared with “the scramble for Oasis tickets”.

SFI is part of a package of payments that replaced the EU’s common agricultural policy, paying farmers to look after nature, soil and other public goods, rather than simply for farming and owning land. Figures suggest that up to 10,000 farmers with funding agreements that will expire in March 2027 either chose not to apply or could not apply.

Historically, Hatley says his farm could weather a level of uncertainty with confidence that, if he had one bad harvest, the next would probably be good. But in the face of the rapidly changing climate, this is no longer a given.

“In 2024 we had extreme rain, in 2025 a lack of rain caused depressed yields and then this year, I mean, it’s 25C at the end of September. We’re at breaking point. We can’t ride this storm,” he says.

Farmers across the country are reporting a devastating outlook, with crop-destroying heat and drought, and soaring fertiliser costs tied to the war in Iran piling pressure on what has already been a challenging few years.

Hatley has spent years slowly diversifying his farm and creating space for nature but says without the SFI funding he has no choice but to reverse this.

“I will undo all the hard work over the last 20 years and move to a mono crop with maize. It’s not a threat, it’s what I will do for my family. It will break our hearts but my children come first. I’m just thankful my father is not here to see it,” he says.

“The skylarks, the lapwings, they’ll go. I’ll have to put more cows on my grass so the bugs and the dragonflies will suffer. If I said this to anybody else, it would sound like blackmail, but it’s not; it’s a business fact. How do I explain to the bank manager that I can’t afford to pay my mortgage this month because I put wood pigeons and birds of prey first?”

Martin Lines, chief executive of the Nature Friendly Farming Network, said the speed at which the funding ran out showed the “desperation” many farmers were experiencing.

Mat Cole, an uplands farmer in the south of England, could not log in to the scheme as it launched because he was busy at market day. But as soon as he could, he rushed home and by noon was ready to apply. After spending a few hours preparing his application, he submitted it at 3.50pm, only to be greeted by an error message.

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“I then understood they had run out of money,” he said. “I thought I probably had a week or so to apply.”

Like Peter, he has been left in an uncertain situation, not knowing if he can continue with the environmental improvements he has been making on his farm.

“We’ve engaged with these schemes to try and improve our environment. We’ve used the money to improve hedgerows, grasslands and water quality. To have the drawbridges pulled up like that, it’s just shambolic,” he says.

The last few years have presented farmers with a number of financial challenges, on top of dealing with a changing climate. Brexit meant losing access to the basic payment scheme (BPS) through the common agricultural policy; the BPS is being phased out, however, and replaced by a complex system of funds for environmental management, which seem much more likely to run out or be unexpectedly wound up for the year. This comes as basic costs for fuel and inputs are also soaring, thanks to global conflict.

The National Farmers’ Union is calling on the government to commit now to the 2027 SFI scheme.

“For food-producing businesses already questioning whether they can survive the year ahead, this clarity is critical,” said Robyn Munt, the union’s vice-president.

Farming Minister Stephen Morgan said: “Farmers will receive almost a third of a billion pounds each year for three years under new SFI26 agreements. That’s nearly a billion pounds invested in resilient farming.
“Previously a quarter of funding headed to just 4% of farms making claims. That’s why this government developed a fairer system to reach more farmers by capping applications at £100,000 and ensured small farms and those new to environmental land management schemes were prioritised. “I know some farmers who wanted to join SFI26 will be deeply disappointed not to have secured an agreement during Window 2, particularly given the challenges the sector has faced this year. I have heard those concerns and am determined to work closely with farmers as we learn lessons from this year and shape SFI27, including exploring alternatives to a first-come, first-served application process.”

According to our traffic monitoring service INRIX, Eureka Place in Ebbw Vale is closed in both directions. This is due to a building fire from Tredegar Road to Bethcar Street. However, they report that traffic is coping well.

Gwent Police have also posted on Facebook asking people to avoid the area.

They said: “Emergency services are currently dealing with a fire on Church Street, Ebbw Vale and Eureka Place, Ebbw Vale.

“South Wales Fire and Rescue Service are at the scene.

“If you live locally, please ensure all doors and windows are closed.

“Diversions are in place to ensure your safety. Please find an alternative route for your journey.”

Discovered by fossil hunter Jonathan Bow on Lavernock Beach, the find turned out to be part of a rare fossil jaw containing developing teeth.

The specimen is now helping researchers uncover new details about fish that lived more than 200 million years ago.

Cindy Howells, curator of geology at Amgueddfa Cymru, said: “Many teeth from Saurichthys were once mistaken for those of an amphibian, and that misunderstanding continued well into the 20th century.

“This lovely little jaw caused great confusion when it was first found as it bore no resemblance to any known species.”

The two fish had previously been thought to be the same species (Image: Amgueddfa Cymru)

For generations, fossil teeth found in rocks around the Bristol Channel have been difficult to identify. Some early scientists even believed they belonged to giant amphibians rather than fish, due to their unusual shape.

Researchers from Amgueddfa Cymru, the University of Bristol, and the State Museum of Natural History Stuttgart worked together to study the fossil.

Their research revealed that fossils previously grouped under one name actually belonged to two different species of fish from the Late Triassic period.

Jacob Quinn, lead researcher, said: “These rocks were formed during storms more than 200 million years ago, so it is remarkable that such a delicate fossil survived.

“Although British Triassic fossils have been studied for over 200 years, this is the first bone from Saurichthys ever found in these rocks.”

The discovery has led to the publication of a scientific paper sharing the team’s findings.

Professor Mike Benton, a co-author, said: “This delicate fossilised jaw has now been compared with specimens in museum collections across Britain and Europe to provide clear evidence that fossils originally thought to belong to the same fish actually came from two separate species.”

The fossil was sent to the University of Bristol for further study.

Dr David Whiteside, another co-author, said: “These predators lived in a shallow tropical sea filled with small limestone islands.

“Saurichthys was probably a fast and agile hunter, while Birgeria was larger and more powerful, likely feeding on a wider variety of prey.”

What the fish may have looked like (Image: Amgueddfa Cymru)

Dr Sam Cooper, also a co-author, said: “These fish have a remarkably complicated history.

“It’s amazing that a single fossil, found by Jonathan Bow during a spring tide, has helped clear up nearly 200 years of confusion.”

The fossil will go on display at National Museum Cardiff later this year.

Ms Howells said: “Being able to share this incredible discovery with the public will capture people’s imagination and hopefully inspire the next generation of fossil hunters to explore the amazing finds that can be discovered along Wales’ coastline.”

At least three counties in Florida have declared states of emergency over a mosquito-borne illness that is rapidly spreading. 

Hillsborough, Pasco and Pinellas counties declared local states of emergency to try and control the spread of the mosquito population as dengue fever cases continue to rise. 

Hillsborough County issued the emergency Thursday and Bonnie Wise, the county administrator, signed the executive order to go into effect on Friday.

Pasco County issued its state of emergency on Wednesday and Pinellas County commissioners decided to declare its emergency in a meeting on Thursday. 

A local state of emergency can be in effect for seven days unless officials rescind it or extend it.  

According to the CDC, Florida has reported 392 cases, including 183 locally acquired cases. Last year, Florida saw 72 local cases and 445 internationally acquired cases. 

The Florida Department of Health reports 160 dengue fever cases in Hillsborough County, seven in Pinellas County and two in Pasco County. Thirty-eight new local cases were recorded in just the last week.

Dengue is often called ‘breakbone fever’ because patients who get sick with the virus typically develop a sudden high fever along with a pounding headache, pain behind the eyes and deep aches in the muscles, joints and bones.

The US is seeing an increase in dengue fever cases, including locally acquired cases. There have been 484 travel-associated cases and 184 locally acquired ones in the contiguous US, including those in Florida and one in Virginia.

A CDC report from earlier this year showed there was a 359 percent rise in average annual dengue cases in the US in 2024 compared to the 2010-2023 annual average.

In 2024, the most recent data available in the report, a record 3,798 dengue fever cases were reported, an increase from the average of 828. Among the cases, 97 percent were travel-associated and the remaining three percent – 105 cases – were locally acquired.

Among all the patients, 36 percent were hospitalized and three percent of cases were severe. There were six deaths.

Dengue spreads through the bite of infected Aedes mosquitoes, mainly Aedes aegypti, a species commonly found in Florida.

These mosquitoes thrive in warm cities and can breed in as little as a bottle capful of standing water. 

Dengue fever often causes an asymptomatic infection, but in some patients it can trigger life-threatening internal bleeding, respiratory distress and heart failure.

It can also lead to shock and organ failure, especially of the liver, brain and heart.

Health officials say about 40 to 80 percent of people infected with dengue fever do not develop any symptoms, but if symptoms do develop, they appear abruptly about five to seven days after infection. 

Warning signs include a fever above 100F (38C), severe headache, pain behind the eyes, bone, joint or muscle pain, and bleeding in the gums.

Some patients also develop redness of the skin on the face within the first 24 to 48 hours of symptoms emerging.

In severe cases, patients may also suffer from severe abdominal pain, persistent vomiting and lethargy.

Patients may also develop dengue shock syndrome, a condition where severe bleeding leads to a rapid drop in blood pressure and causes the body to go into shock.

Children under five, adults over 65 and pregnant women are considered to be most at risk from the virus.

Dengue was virtually eradicated from the US in the 1970s, but sporadic outbreaks have been recorded since, particularly in warmer states, including Florida and California. Most cases recorded in the US are linked to international travel.

There is no specific cure for dengue fever and treatment consists of supportive care and therapies to manage symptoms and complications.

Doctors recommend patients with mild symptoms drink plenty of fluids and take Tylenol to ease pain.

In severe cases, patients may be admitted to the hospital for supportive care, an IV, blood pressure monitoring and a transfusion to replace lost blood.

To protect against dengue fever, there is a three-dose vaccine available, which is recommended for children aged nine to 16 years. It slashes the risk of a symptomatic infection by about 80 percent.

You could get money as part of a multibillion-pound case against Apple. An Apple spokesperson has said that ‘these claims are unfounded’

Some iCloud customers could be in line for compensation as part of a legal claim. If it succeeds, individuals may receive around £77, and Which? estimates that around 40 million UK iPhone and iPad users could be eligible for a share of the multibillion-pound case against Apple.

In an updated article published this summer, after news that the court granted Which? its “Collective Proceedings Order”, the consumer champions said it believes ‘Apple has breached UK competition law by failing to provide a choice of cloud storage providers, and steering customers towards its iCloud service by not clearly informing them of alternatives and how those could be used on an iOS device’.

Acting on behalf of UK consumers, Which? has been granted its ‘Collective Proceedings Order’ (CPO). This means it has permission to proceed with the claim. Which? adds that this ‘marks the end of this first stage of the claim process and the next stage will involve Apple filing its defence’.

When approached for a comment about what Which? had written, an Apple spokesperson told the Mirror: “These claims are unfounded. We work hard to make iCloud a great experience, but no customer is required to use it and customers in the UK have plenty of alternatives to choose from.”

Which? also stressed in its article that “Apple has said it rejects any suggestion that its iCloud practices are anticompetitive and will vigorously defend the legal claim.”

What the iCloud claim means for you

Which? is seeking damages on behalf of all affected consumers. That means if you used iCloud services between November 8 2018 and June 8 2026, you could be eligible for compensation if the claim is successful.

The comparison experts state: “Working alongside a team of external experts, Which? has estimated that Apple could owe UK consumers around £77 per person.”

The consumer champions are “urging Apple to do the right thing and settle this claim without the need for litigation by offering consumers their money back and opening up iOS to allow users a real choice of cloud provider.”

Are you eligible?

Which? explains: “Anyone who used iCloud services at any time between November 8 2018 and June 8 2026 and was living in the UK on June 8 2026 will be automatically included as a class member unless they actively choose to opt out of the claim. Anyone who first obtained iCloud services after 8 June 2026 will not be included in the class.”

If you opt out, you won’t get any compensation, even if Which? wins the case. If you weren’t living in the UK on June 8, 2026 but you used iCloud between November 8, 2018 and June 8, 2026, you can choose to opt in to the claim.

You have until October 8

Consumers must tell Which? by October 8, 2026 if they want to opt out – or to opt in if they weren’t living in the UK on June 8 2026.

People can do this by using one of the options listed on the claim website cloudclaim.co.uk. You can find out more about the collective claim and if you could be eligible for a payout at cloudclaim.co.uk

Which? condluded in its article: “This action is vital to obtain redress for consumers and to send a clear message to powerful companies like Apple: Which? is prepared to take action if they engage in harmful practices.”

Four men and one woman have been jailed for a total of 81 years for preying on vulnerable girls

A gang of four men and one women who sexually exploited three teenage girls in has been sentenced to a combined total of 81 years behind bars. A judge said they thought their victims were “easy prey”.

Their victims were aged just 14, 15, and 16 when the gang identified them, groomed them with drugs and alcohol and took advantage of them. The ringleader, Mustafa Iqbal, has now been jailed for 35 years after being convicted of 21 offences including four rapes. A judge told him he possessed an “apparently uncontrollable” and “voracious” sexual appetite.

One of his associates – Sarah Gray – “sold her soul” to him in exchange for cocaine, allowing him to rape one of the victims at her home. The remaining gang members were Mohamed Arshad, Jaswinder Singh and Ziaullah Badshah.

The four men inflicted severe psychological damage upon the three victims. After a trial, they were were convicted last month of offences relating to the exploitation and abuse of three teenage girls in Rhyl and the surrounding area between April 2022 and March 2024, reports North Wales Live.

Jurors heard during the four-month trial at Caernarfon Crown Court how they plied the children with alcohol and drugs before raping and assaulting them. Owen Edwards KC, prosecuting, said Iqbal had come across two girls wandering the streets of Rhyl while under the influence of cannabis in March 2022.

He brought them back to his home and alerted his two associates, Arshad and Badshah. The girls claimed they were 17 and 16, however one later revealed their true ages to be 15 and 14. The girls were offered cannabis during a spin the bottle game that involved kissing. The abuse quickly developed.

Further contact took place and police launched an investigation in 2022, though no further action was taken against the defendants at that point.

After jailing Iqbal and his co-defendants, Judge Simon Mills said he meant no criticism of North Wales Police, but there should be “reflection”.

He said: “There should be some reflection – hindsight is a wonderful thing – on the failure to take action. There should be some consideration as to whether any more could have been done to protect these children. I’m not being critical because hindsight is a wonderful thing and there was more evidence that came to light subsequently.”

In November 2023, Iqbal encountered another girl aged 16. Iqbal “made his sexual interest in her obvious” and she called him a “nonce”. Yet within days she had entered into a relationship in which she exchanged sex for cocaine. Mr Edwards said: “She was in effect a sex slave.”

An adult acquainted with her alerted the authorities. Iqbal was arrested on 17 January 2024, with police discovering he was in possession of a sex toy and a weapon — a noxious gas canister, the court heard.

In February 2024, Iqbal received a warning to cease all contact with the 16 year old girl. Despite this, he changed his phone, vehicle and address, relocating his subsequent sexual encounters with her to either Sarah Gray’s home in Gronant or his own property.

On one occasion, Iqbal restrained the girl with handcuffs and raped her “forcefully”, Mr Edwards told the court. Subsequently, Sarah Gray laundered the bedding to destroy forensic evidence. However, the girl alerted police and provided them with underwear containing DNA which she had preserved following Iqbal’s final rape of her.

Police apprehended all the defendants on 7 August 2025 and discovered Iqbal had been in contact with another girl, aged 17.

Louisa Robertson, of the Crown Prosecution Service, said: “Iqbal, Arshad and Badshah sexually exploited these children using alcohol and drugs to coerce them.

“Singh and Gray were complicit in the exploitation of vulnerable girls. The victims of these shocking crimes showed great courage in speaking out against their abusers, and it is through their strength that we have brought all the offenders charged to justice.”

Iqbal and his associate Arshad, who was not involved in drug dealing, “revelled in the ease with which they could exploit” the first 15 year old girl.

One co-defendant complained Ziaullah Badshah was “getting more than his fair share of sexual activity (with her)”, Mr Edwards revealed.

Tim Naylor, representing Iqbal, said: “He is someone who wants to impress others. He wants to be liked – traits which have led him into poor decision making.”

A trained chef who “descended into drug dealing”, he has “some insight” into his crimes, said Mr Naylor. “He knows he will have to serve a considerable part of his life in prison. He will miss a large part of his children’s development.”

Graeme James, representing Arshad, told the court his client would not have become involved with the 15 year old had he been aware of her age, claiming he believed she was 17. However, the judge noted the jury had rejected Arshad’s account.

Simon Killeen, acting for Badshah, said a probation officer had described him as easily influenced and possessing his own vulnerabilities.

Duncan Bould, defending Singh, stated that his client acknowledges his association with the two girls was “inappropriate”, and that Singh accepted supplying them with cannabis.

“He is a lonely and socially isolated person” who had a “devastating commitment to alcohol”, the court was told.

Bould also highlighted that Singh has a “significant disability”, urging the judge to consider the difficulties he would face while incarcerated.

Gareth Bellis, defending Gray, argued she falls into a different category from her co-defendants. The Manchester grandmother had previously struggled with crack cocaine addiction.

She had travelled to North Wales in an attempt to escape both her drug dependency and exploitative relationships, but had “slipped back” into drug use, where she encountered Iqbal’s drug runner and subsequently Iqbal himself. Bellis described Gray as a “minion” of Iqbal.

His Honour Judge Simon Mills condemned the defendants in the strongest terms, stating that each male defendant had participated in trips to Manchester or London, targeting the 15 and 14 year old girls as “easy prey”, while further offences took place in North Wales.

Turning to Iqbal directly, the judge declared: “I have no doubt you are a dangerous offender (and) you pose a serious risk to young girls.”

Mustafa Iqbal, 43, of Trellewelyn Road, Rhyl, was found guilty of four counts of rape, three counts of conspiracy to require a person to perform compulsory labour, three counts of sexual assault, three counts of causing a person to engage in sexual activity without consent, two counts of conspiracy to traffic, conspiracy to supply cannabis to another, conspiracy to supply cocaine to another, supplying cannabis to another, arranging or facilitating the travel of another person with a view to exploitation, and breaching a slavery/trafficking risk order.

He was handed a 30-year custodial sentence for each offence of rape and trafficking for sexual exploitation. He must serve two thirds of his sentence before becoming eligible for parole, with concurrent sentences imposed for his remaining offences.

Mohamed Usman Arshad, 36, of Clifton Grove, Rhyl, was found guilty of three counts of rape, two counts of conspiracy to traffic, two counts of conspiracy to require a person to perform compulsory labour, and supplying cannabis to another.

He received a 19-year sentence for trafficking and 12 years each for three counts of rape, to run concurrently, with further concurrent sentences for his remaining offences. Ziaullah Badshah, 25, of Brighton Road, Rhyl, was convicted of two counts of rape, two counts of conspiracy to traffic, two counts of conspiracy to require a person to perform compulsory labour and supplying cannabis to another.

He received a 17-year custodial sentence for trafficking, with additional concurrent sentences for the remaining offences.

Jaswinder Singh, 61, of River Street, Rhyl, was convicted of two counts of conspiracy to traffic and one count of supplying cannabis to another.

He was handed an eight-year prison term for trafficking, with concurrent sentences imposed for the other offences.

Sarah Gray, 53, of Llanasa Road, Gronant, also faced multiple charges relating to her involvement in the offending.

She was found guilty of perverting the course of justice, assisting an offender, conspiracy to supply cocaine to another and conspiracy to supply cannabis to another.

She was sentenced to seven years for a drugs offence and an additional year for perverting the course of justice, with concurrent sentences handed down for the remaining charges.

Outside court, senior investigating officer, Detective Chief Inspector Richard Sidney, of North Wales Police, said: “The conclusion of this case marks an important moment for the three victims, who have had to live with the consequences of what happened to them for a considerable period of time and continue to do so.

“The sentences imposed today reflect the gravity of the group’s offending and the very serious nature of the crimes committed against these young women.

“These investigations were complex and involved extensive work to understand what had happened, gather evidence, and ensure those responsible were brought before the court.

“I recognise that the criminal justice process can be incredibly difficult for victims of sexual exploitation, particularly when they are required to revisit traumatic experiences. The courage shown by the victims throughout these investigations and the trial that followed has been remarkable.

“I hope that today’s outcome provides them with some sense of justice and allows them to look towards the future with greater confidence.

“Our message to those who target children for sexual exploitation is clear: we will investigate, we will pursue the evidence, and we will work with our partners to hold offenders to account.

“I would also like to thank everyone involved in this investigation, including our specialist officers and staff, partner agencies and the prosecution team, whose work has been instrumental in securing these convictions and sentences.”

A leading psychiatrist has hailed ‘a major breakthrough’ in the treatment of attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) – after a drug was able to ease symptoms of the condition without the risks of standard medications.

Dr Michael Halassa, professor of psychiatry at Virginia Tech’s Fralin Biomedical Research Institute, said the medication, which showed promising results in early trials this week, could be as revolutionary for ADHD as Ozempic has been for obesity.

‘If the medication can address ADHD symptoms without the risks of existing drugs it would be a true game-changer,’ he added. ‘It’s a very exciting finding.’

The medication – known as ALKS 7290 – works by stimulating the brain’s orexin system, the network responsible for controlling wakefulness, motivation and attention.

Drugs that target the orexin system are already being investigated as treatments for certain sleep disorders.

But scientists believe stimulating the same system could also help patients with ADHD stay more alert and focused.

Early trial results, released last week, found the pioneering medication dramatically reduced symptoms of the disorder without causing any serious side effects.

After just two weeks of taking the daily drug, patients given the highest dose went from being rated as severely affected by ADHD to only mildly affected.

Improvements were seen in both inattention and hyperactivity.

Crucially, researchers also found no concerning changes in patients’ heart rate, blood pressure or heart readings during the trial.

This could prove an important advantage over stimulant medications – the current first-line drugs for ADHD, often known by brand names such as Ritalin and Adderall.

These drugs, while helpful for many people with the condition, can carry risks, say experts.

Stimulants work by increasing levels of chemicals in the brain involved in motivation and alertness, known as dopamine and noradrenaline.

Higher levels of these chemicals can improve attention – but can also activate the body’s fight-or-flight response.

As a result, the drugs can increase heart rate and blood pressure, with studies linking long-term cumulative use to a higher risk of hypertension, a leading cause of heart attacks and strokes.

Stimulant medications can also carry psychiatric risks, says Dr Halassa. 

Studies have shown that stimulant drugs increase the risk of psychotic symptoms in some vulnerable patients. 

‘It’s an issue I encounter clinically myself,’ says Dr Halassa. ‘Many patients who have serious mental illness or psychosis also have an ADHD diagnosis as well, and often come in with a script for a stimulant.

‘The dilemma is, if you give them Adderall you can worsen their psychosis. And there are some reports that suggest long-term stimulant use can precipitate psychotic symptoms even in those with no previous history of psychosis.

‘This is a real problem. And I’m always interested in medication that can be an alternative for stimulants for this reason.’

Developed by pharmaceutical company Alkermes, ALKS 7290 works in a different – and entirely novel – way to improve attention.

While stimulants increase the activity of brain chemicals involved in attention and executive control, ALKS 7290 instead targets the brain’s wakefulness system.

It is part of a new class of drugs known as orexin agonists, which scientists have been investigating as treatments for rare sleep disorders such as narcolepsy.

Narcolepsy is a chronic neurological disorder that impairs the brain’s ability to control sleep and wake cycles.

But orexin also plays an important role in attention and cognition – leading scientists to investigate whether drugs targeting the system could help people with ADHD.

The latest results are the first clinical evidence that an orexin agonist could improve symptoms of the condition.

‘In general, there aren’t medications for ADHD with the same effect as stimulants that don’t have similar side effects,’ says Dr Halassa. 

‘It’s still early days, but the research seems to show that this new drug can keep people awake enough to stay on task. Essentially, it’s doing what stimulants do but without the abuse potential.

‘It’s giving patients more available options to choose from.’  

In the trial, 50 adults with ADHD were given either ALKS 7290 or a dummy drug for two weeks.

Those taking ALKS 7290 showed marked improvements in both inattention and hyperactivity, with the biggest benefits seen among those given the higher dose.

The drug was also generally well tolerated, with no serious side effects reported.

The most common problems included dizziness, insomnia, constipation and needing to urinate more frequently.

A larger trial involving more than 300 patients is now under way to establish whether the benefits seen in the initial study can be confirmed.

‘Orexin agonists may follow a similar path to Ozempic and other GLP-1 drugs – while originally developed for a different condition, diabetes, they’ve quickly become household names for treating obesity, and have now expanded into sleep apnoea, cardiovascular and kidney disease and even substance abuse,’ says Dr Halassa.

He added that the medication could be available within the next five years, if the success in earlier trials is repeated.  

Dr Barbara Sahakian, professor of clinical neuropsychology at the University of Cambridge, also welcomed the preliminary findings.

‘It would be very useful to have non-stimulant drugs for the treatment of ADHD since not everyone with a diagnosis of ADHD is treated effectively by stimulants and some people with ADHD cannot tolerate the side effects, such as headache, stomachache, and fast or irregular heartbeats,’ she said.

‘In addition, the typical stimulants have the risk of addiction. Therefore, the initial results with ALKS 7290 are of interest, and it will be important to see the efficacy of the drug in large-scale, randomised controlled clinical trials.

‘It would be very helpful to have a wider range of pharmacological treatment options for children and adults with ADHD.’

The findings come amid soaring demand for ADHD services in Britain.

A landmark government-commissioned review found earlier this year that referrals, waiting lists and recorded diagnoses have risen sharply – particularly since the pandemic.

Yet it found that the underlying prevalence of ADHD appears to have remained far more stable, raising questions about what is driving the surge in diagnoses.

Prescriptions for ADHD medication have also soared over the past decade.

A small uncrewed vessel has embarked on a lap around Antarctica and may not return for months.

The seven-metre craft, which looks like a large kayak in hi-vis orange, is expected to travel about 22,000km through inhospitable waters, propelled by powerful westerly winds and energy from the sun. The journey is seven times the distance between Sydney and Perth.

Along the way, it is expected to encounter massive waves, freezing temperatures, ferocious winds, and even the odd curious seal or albatross.

The mission? To collect data on carbon dioxide in the ocean and atmosphere, to help scientists better understand the role of ocean sinks.

Dr Elizabeth Shadwick, a principal research scientist at the CSIRO, said that after leaving Hobart the vessel would travel east towards New Zealand, “eventually scooching through the Drake Passage between the bottom of South America and Antarctica, then coming along past South Africa and back to us here, where we’ll pick it up.”

She hoped to see it again in seven to nine months.

The autonomous vehicle made by the US maritime company Saildrone was designed to withstand the intrepid voyage, with a heavy keel keeping it upright, a rudder to steer and a fixed solar sail poking above the surface. It would be remotely monitored by the company, who would check in regularly via satellite, and, if necessary, nudge it in the right direction.

“It’s already been bashed around pretty heavily,” Shadwick said. “It’s quite a robust little device. We saw some eight metres of waves just the day after we deployed it and a 35-knot wind.”

Measurements taken throughout its journey – including wind speed, atmospheric pressure, solar radiation, ocean temperature, salinity and chlorophyll, as well as carbon dioxide levels in the water and air – were expected to assist scientists in better understanding the role that oceans play in global heating.

“The ocean is doing all of us a great service by absorbing about a third of anthropogenic or human emissions every year,” Shadwick said, and the Southern Ocean, around Antarctica, played a significant role. “If we want to continue to rely on this ocean service of absorbing our human emissions, we need to understand how it might change in the future.”

Crewed research vessels that travelled between Hobart and Antarctica traversed only a limited patch of the ocean, she said. The autonomous craft would gather data over a greater distance and time, including crucial measurements during the polar winter.

The vessel is the first in a fleet of four. Others are planned to be launched at three-monthly intervals. They will be spread across the Southern, Pacific, Atlantic and Indian oceans, particularly during winter.

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The scientists will be able to access information in near real time via a mission portal, and once the vessels return to home base, all data and observations will undergo quality checks before they are made available for further research.

Dr Pep Canadell, a chief research scientist at the CSIRO, said for every tonne of carbon dioxide released by burning fossil fuels, about 500kg were removed by ocean and forest sinks. “This is like a 50% discount on climate change,” he said.

But the amount absorbed by the oceans could change due to multiple drivers: warming waters, westerly winds, melting ice, ocean acidification and the hole in the ozone layer. Observations would enable scientists to more accurately model these processes and understand how they could change in the future, he said.

The University of New South Wales professor Matthew England, who studies the role of ocean circulation in global climate but was not involved in the research project, said measuring how much the oceans absorbed and how that was changing was critical.

“We’ve obviously got a surge of emissions going into our atmosphere. Both the terrestrial vegetation on land and the oceans absorb a big chunk of that,” he said. “We need to track that carbon uptake and understand exactly how big the absorption is. If it starts to decline in a significant way, then it tells us that we have an even bigger problem of carbon emission reductions.”

The Southern Ocean was “inhospitable” with huge swells, gale force winds, sea ice and storms. “These are very tough measuring conditions for a research vessel.” So gathering data using an autonomous vehicle, without burning fuel, was “an incredible deployment of technology”, he said.

HMRC is urging those eligible to make a claim

HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) has issued a notice to all new parents, highlighting a way in which they may be entitled to receive extra cash.

The UK’s tax, payment and customs authority posted an update on X, formerly Twitter, on Friday, directed at those who have recently welcomed a new baby. The post highlights that new parents are eligible to claim Child Benefit, a supplementary payment made to parents or carers designed to assist with the costs of raising a child.

It reads: “Just had a baby? Congratulations! If you or your partner earn between £60,000 and £80,000, you can still claim Child Benefit. Our new digital service lets you pay the High Income Child Benefit Charge through your salary – no tax return needed.”

A claim for Child Benefit can be submitted 48 hours after registering the birth of your child, or once a child comes to live with you.

Child Benefit can be backdated by up to three months from the date the claim is submitted. Currently valued at £27.05 per week for the first child and £17.90 for any subsequent children, it can be claimed by those responsible for a child under 16, or under 20 should they remain in approved education or training.

Only one person can receive Child Benefit for a child, meaning you will need to determine whether it is more beneficial for you or your partner to make the claim. Whoever does so will accumulate National Insurance credits towards their state pension, which can plug gaps in your record if you are not working or do not earn sufficient wages to make National Insurance contributions.

Child Benefit is typically paid every four weeks on a Monday or Tuesday. If you are a single parent or receiving certain other benefits, such as Universal Credit, you may be able to have the payments made on a weekly basis instead.