Several articles removed after fact checkers discovered incorrect figures on hospital admissions for child malnutrition
31 Jul 2020 | Facts and news from Full Fact
View in your browser ([link removed])
** FACT CHECK
------------------------------------------------------------
** Full Fact scores four newspaper corrections
------------------------------------------------------------
Last week, Full Fact found serious errors in widely shared reports which claimed “more than 11,500 children [in England] have been admitted to hospital with malnutrition since 2015”.
Three of the NHS trusts quoted in news reports told Full Fact the numbers were wrong. An article in the Observer claimed that there had been 915 admissions for child malnutrition reported from the Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust alone.
The correct number was 33.
The statistics had been collated from Freedom of Information requests by Liberal Democrat leadership candidate Layla Moran.
Despite several requests, Full Fact did not receive comment from Ms Moran’s office until after publication of our fact check.
Of the 10 newspapers we contacted, five have either responded to say they will investigate the errors, or have removed their articles entirely.
Further problems with the data ([link removed])
Update from last week: ([link removed]) Full Fact has also now secured a correction from the Daily Mirror about a front-page story which incorrectly claimed that the average NHS worker does 11 hours overtime per week.
Good information matters. Can we count on your support today? ([link removed])
In the middle of a health pandemic, we all need trustworthy information to make safe choices. Can you help make sure our press are held accountable for their mistakes?
Since the pandemic outbreak, we've relied on our monthly supporters to help us call out errors and push for them to be corrected.
But we face an onslaught of inaccurate and misleading reporting - about the coronavirus and beyond. We need your immediate support to help stamp it out.
Just a few pounds a month makes a huge difference. You can help sustain expert, independent fact checking when it’s never been more needed.
If you agree that accurate reporting matters, can we count on your support today?
Yes, you can count on me ([link removed])
** FACT CHECK
------------------------------------------------------------
** Full Fact calls on the Prime Minister to correct the record on poverty ([link removed])
------------------------------------------------------------
The Office for Statistics Regulation (OSR) concluded that the Prime Minister has made several inaccurate claims on the government’s record on poverty in recent months, according to news reports.
They were:
* “There are 400,000 fewer children in poverty than there were in 2010.” ( ([link removed]) The Andrew Marr Show, BBC, 1 December 2019 ([link removed]) ) ([link removed])
* “Absolute poverty and relative poverty have both declined under this government”. (PMQs, 17 June 2020) ([link removed])
* "There are hundreds of thousands, I think 400,000, fewer families living in poverty now than there were in 2010" (PMQs, 17 June 2020) ([link removed])
* “There are 100,000 fewer children in absolute poverty and 500,000 fewer children falling below thresholds of low income and material deprivation.” (PMQs, 24 June 2020) ([link removed])
We urge the Prime Minister to ensure that the parliamentary record (Hansard) is corrected.
Full Fact recognises that the number of ways of measuring poverty means it’s all too easy for opponents to choose the numbers that best suit their argument.
We welcome the OSR’s commitment to a systemic review of the coherence of poverty statistics this autumn, and we will be submitting the evidence from our fact checks to show the level of confusion and the need for change.
We need better poverty stats ([link removed])
** FACT CHECK
------------------------------------------------------------
** Dominic Raab was wrong to say that employees forced to quarantine can’t be penalised ([link removed])
------------------------------------------------------------
On Saturday, the government announced that holidaymakers in Spain would be required by law to quarantine for 14 days after returning to the UK.
During an interview on Sky’s Sophy Ridge the following day, foreign secretary Dominic Raab repeatedly said that people cannot be “penalised” by their employer for doing so.
This is not correct. Employers may take action against workers, if they choose, including deducting pay, treating their self-isolation as unauthorised absence or even beginning disciplinary proceedings.
The Department for Transport said the government is “urging employers to be understanding of those returning from Spain who now will need to self-isolate”. However, there is no requirement for employers to do this.
Downing Street later told Full Fact that employees who need urgent support because of quarantine may be entitled to Employment Support Allowance (ESA) or Universal Credit, instead of sick pay.
What are your rights? ([link removed])
** FACT CHECK
------------------------------------------------------------
** Yes, actually there was resistance to the Blitz safety measures ([link removed])
------------------------------------------------------------
US actor Jason Alexander, of Seinfeld fame, claimed that no Londoners objected to blackout measures during the Blitz, as an analogous argument in favour of face masks.
The central claim is that there wasn’t any objection from Londoners to the preventative methods brought in during the Blitz, but this isn’t true. There are numerous examples of people complaining, objecting to, and even circumventing safety guidance during the Blitz.
Historian Robert Mackay says that early on in the war, the public felt blackout measures were the most inconvenient aspect of the war. The Centre for War, State, and Society at the University of Exeter notes that a significant cause of death early on in the Blitz was due to a failure to find shelter, with bodies pulled from the rubble indicating that casualties had been sleeping in upstairs rooms.
Assault, looting and pickpocketing occurred during the darkness. Generally, since the outbreak of Covid-19, historians have disputed the comparisons between the Blitz and the pandemic.
More on the "Blitz Spirit" ([link removed])
** FACT CHECK
------------------------------------------------------------
** Also this week...
------------------------------------------------------------
* Changes to government Covid-19 death data won’t make a big difference to the overall death count ([link removed])
* There is no indication that the coronavirus vaccine will be mandatory ([link removed])
* Misleading claims on pre-existing conditions and Covid-19 deaths go viral ([link removed])
* Surgical masks may offer some protection to the wearer from Covid-19 and may stop them from infecting others ([link removed])
* And you do not have to legally lower your mask for lip-readers ([link removed])
Read our latest fact checks ([link removed])
** Stop the spread of bad information ([link removed])
------------------------------------------------------------
Find these updates useful? We'd be incredibly grateful if you could share our fact checks and help more people access good information.
[link removed] Share ([link removed])
[link removed]: https%3A%2F%2Ffullfact.org%2Fhealth%2Fcoronavirus-quarantine-penalise-employees%2F Tweet ([link removed]: https%3A%2F%2Ffullfact.org%2Fhealth%2Fcoronavirus-quarantine-penalise-employees%2F)
[link removed] Forward ([link removed])
[link removed] Share ([link removed])
============================================================
Many thanks from the Full Fact team
** Follow us ([link removed])
** Follow us ([link removed])
** Donate ([link removed])
** Donate ([link removed])
** Like us ([link removed])
** Like us ([link removed])
** Follow us ([link removed])
** Follow us ([link removed])
You can ** find out how we’re funded here ([link removed])
.
Copyright © Full Fact 2020 - All rights reserved
A registered charity (no. 1158683) and a non-profit company (no. 6975984) limited by guarantee and registered in England and Wales.
Our mailing address is:
2 Carlton Gardens, London, SW1Y 5AA
We use Mailchimp to send you our emails and to see which articles are most popular. ** Read our privacy policy ([link removed])
or ** Mailchimp's privacy policy ([link removed])
** unsubscribe from this list ([link removed])
** update subscription preferences ([link removed])
