Pisa results: what they tell us about reading standards in Welsh schools – and what they don’t
Alexey Fedorenko/Shutterstock School pupils in Wales are falling behind in reading according to the latest international data. The 2025 Programme for International Student Assessment (Pisa) is run by Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) and compares the educational skills of 15-year-olds around the world every three years. In 2025, 15-year-olds in Wales achieved an […]
UK plan to sanction Israel’s illegal West Bank settlements is a historic shift in tone and policy
The UK, which in 1917 issued the Balfour Declaration supporting the establishment of a national home for the Jewish people in Palestine, is now initiating a historic and consequential shift in its foreign policy. In response to the massive expansion of illegal settlements in the occupied West Bank and credible reports of increased violence by […]
What Patriot Platform tells us about how the far right in the UK is changing its tactics
Anti-migrant protests in Dover and Portsmouth may look like another manifestation of a familiar phenomenon. In recent years, the UK has seen repeated demonstrations and rioting over asylum hotels, small-boat crossings and immigration. This time though, the gatherings consisted of black-clad men in balaclavas, organised by a man who calls himself a devoted Christian. The […]
How ‘positive’ stress could improve the welfare of zoo animals
Pelicans have resided in St James’s Park, London for 360 years. But the current flock have been a summer sensation due to the first hatching of chicks in the park’s history. Pelican breeding in zoos is demanding for these birds, because the right environmental and social conditions need to come together. Rather than simply being […]
‘Peaceful’ Sweden once sought nuclear weapons. That legacy still shapes defence planning
Jeppe Gustafsson/Shutterstock For decades, Sweden has fostered a self-image as something of a world record-holder for peace, celebrating more than two centuries since it was last at war. But this record involves some creative accounting. The narrative, for example, excludes Sweden’s participation in modern-day military operations in Afghanistan and Libya. Nor has Swedish “peacefulness” been […]
The Anthropocene was rejected as a geological epoch – but the idea is still changing how we see the world
The Anthropocene became part of the zeitgeist after Nobel laureate Paul Crutzen launched the idea in 2000. This is the notion that a crescendo of human impacts has recently propelled the Earth out of the relatively stable climatic conditions of the Holocene epoch, during which human civilisation developed and flourished, to produce a new kind […]
The weight-loss drug divide: private prescribing is lowest where need is greatest
Caroline Ruda/Shutterstock For many people living with obesity, Wegovy and Mounjaro offer the possibility of substantial weight loss without surgery. Yet data from one private provider points to a troubling divide: prescription rates of these drugs in England are lowest in communities where obesity is most common. Wegovy contains semaglutide, which acts on the GLP-1 […]
The autonomy paradox: how more freedom at work can leave you feeling powerless
VH-studio/Shutterstock You may know the feeling. You’re supposed to have finished work for the day, but later, during your evening meal, you start mentally preparing for tomorrow’s meeting. Or just having a quick check of your emails while you half watch TV. You might not mean to, or even want to. It’s just something that […]
Why the government’s debt is growing – current public spending pressures explained
The UK has seen the cost of its bonds rise more quickly than other major economies. Westlight / Shutterstock Pressure to make cuts in public spending has intensified in recent weeks, with increased calls on Prime Minister Andy Burnham to find savings urgently. The need to reduce expenditure has become more pressing as the cost […]
Too hot to learn: how climate change hurts children’s chances from birth
Costea Andrea M/Shutterstock Children across Europe have returned to school after a summer of extreme heat. As the climate warms, one question is becoming harder to ignore: how can students learn when classrooms become dangerously hot? Extreme weather is likely to disrupt schooling more often in the years ahead. But climate change can influence a […]