May Bulman
The Independent
United Kingdom
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Recent articles by May:
Iraqi teenager 'found dead on coast of northern France'
A teenager’s body has been found on the northern coast of France after he apparently tried to cross to the UK on a dingy, according to reports. The Iraqi Kurd, aged 17, is said to have been discovered on a beach in Touquet on Monday morning. Another body, of a 22-year-old man, also Iraqi, was reportedly found close by on the same day. → Read More
Number of British modern slavery victims up 72% in a year, figures show
The number of British people identified as modern slavery victims has surged by 72 per cent in a year, according to figures, fuelling concerns about “county lines” drugs gangs and other forms of labour exploitation. An analysis of data by The Independent shows the number of UK nationals recorded as being potential victims of trafficking increased from 1,246 in 2017-18 to 2,143 → Read More
Council spending on B&Bs for homeless families up 780% in a decade, figures show
Campaigners warn families ‘paying ultimate price for successive governments’ failure to build social homes’ as figures show local authorities forced to spend £93.3m on emergency B&B stays last year → Read More
More than 500,000 EU nationals apply to stay in UK in single month amid ‘terror’ at prospect of no-deal Brexit
More than two million EU nationals and their family members have asked to remain in the UK after Brexit following a spike in applications which saw half a million people apply for settled status last month alone. → Read More
Home Office faces court challenge over allowing asylum seekers to be interrogated by countries from which they are trying to flee
The Home Office is to be challenged in court over its practice of inviting foreign government representatives to interview political asylum seekers after The Independent exposed the “corrupt” exercise. → Read More
‘Hidden homeless’: Families being permanently housed in office blocks to shift them from homelessness lists
“It’s a bit of a tight squeeze,” says Helen, 12, gesturing towards a small room where almost all of the floor space is taken up by two beds and a wardrobe. She has just started secondary school, and aside from the stress of making new friends, starting new classes and becoming a teenager, she is contending with the realities of living in a converted office block, which means → Read More
Prisoners disposing of human waste via cell windows due to 'degrading' sanitation system, finds report
Prisoners are disposing of human waste via cell windows due to “degrading and totally unsatisfactory” sanitary arrangements at a Surrey jail, inspectors have warned. Inmates were forced to press a bell and wait in a queue to use a toilet during the night, according to a report by the Independent Monitoring Board (IMB) about HMP Coldingley. → Read More
Youth services ‘decimated by 69 per cent’ in less than a decade amid surge in knife crime, figures show
Spending on youth services in England has been decimated by 69 per cent in a decade and is set to reach its lowest point in a generation next year, new figures show. → Read More
Scandal-hit G4S pulls out of running Brook House immigration centre to shift focus onto prisons
Scandal-hit private firm G4S has announced it will no longer run Brook House removal centre, in a move that will bring an end the company’s controversial involvement in the immigration and asylum sector. The security company said it would not bid to renew the contract to run Brook House or Tinsley House – a smaller neighbouring removal centre – when it expires next May because → Read More
Austerity and privatisation by consecutive governments led to Grenfell tragedy, says fire union
Austerity, deregulation and privatisation by consecutive governments bears ultimate responsibility for the Grenfell tragedy, the Fire Brigade’s Union (FBU) has said. In a document seen by The Independent, the union states that a “deep-seated culture of complacency” over fire safety by every government since Margaret Thatcher led to the disaster that killed 72 people in June → Read More
More than 8 million people in England living in unaffordable, insecure or unsuitable homes, report says
More than 8 million people across England are living in unaffordable, insecure or unsuitable homes, according to a report that captures for the first time the true scale of the housing crisis. The National Housing Federation said one in seven people – of all generations and in all parts of the country – were affected in some way, from being physically homeless, to living in → Read More
Questions over Boris Johnson’s relationship with ex-model ‘awarded £126,000 of public funds’
Boris Johnson is being urged to respond to “grave and serious” allegations that he failed to declare potential conflicts of interest over a close friendship with an American model turned technology entrepreneur. → Read More
‘It’s completely broken me down’: The identical twins who lost their identities to an NHS error
Exclusive: How an administrative mistake left two sisters with the same NHS number – depriving them of vital healthcare and trapping them in a bureaucratic maze with no exit → Read More
Gay couple win spontaneous applause in street for kiss in front of anti-LGBT+ protesters
A gay couple has received an outpouring of support after sharing a photograph of them kissing on front of a protest outside a production of The Rocky Horror Show, which celebrates LGBT+ culture. Joe Fergus, 24, from Mold in Flintshire, and Robert Brookes, 21, from Nottingham, were photographed outside Chester's Storyhouse theatre. Posting the image on Facebook, Mr Fergus said: → Read More
Food bank demand surges in areas where people have received universal credit for longest, figures show
Demand for food banks has surged in areas where families have been relying on the bungled universal credit system the longest, figures show. Regions that were first to switch to the controversial benefit two years ago have seen a rise in demand for emergency food packages of nearly 50 per cent, according to the Trussell Trust, the largest UK food bank provider. → Read More
‘Staggering’ Home Office disregard for innocent people saw thousands lose visas in cheating scandal, MPs say
The Home Office showed “staggering” disregard for innocent people during the visa scandal that saw more than 50,000 overseas students accused of cheating and cost taxpayers nearly £20m, MPs have said. → Read More
Nigerian man who died in detention centre ‘had been unwell for weeks but not seen by a doctor’
A Nigerian man who died in a British detention centre repeatedly said he felt unwell but was not seen by a medical professional, his family have claimed. Oscar Okwurime, 34, was discovered lying in his cell at the Harmondsworth removal centre by another detainee last week. The cause of his death is unknown but the Home Office said it was being investigated. → Read More
Homelessness among old people soars by 39%, official figures reveal
The number of older people falling into homelessness has surged in recent years as benefit cuts leave them struggling to make ends meet. Official data show there has been a 39 per cent rise in people over 60 approaching the authorities because they are in need of housing by local councils over the last five years, with the figure increasing from 1,800 in 2012-13 to 2,500 in → Read More
Brexit uncertainty could leave thousands of trafficking victims in exploitation as helpline loses funding
Brexit uncertainty could lead to the closure of the UK’s modern slavery helpline, leaving thousands of trafficking victims across the country in exploitative situations, campaigners have warned. Unseen, the charity that runs the helpline, said sustained political uncertainty and a tough economic period – created in large part by Brexit – had contributed to a drop in funding, → Read More
Prisoners are ‘unwell not evil’ and should be in hospital, says chief inspector of constabulary
Many prisoners are “unwell not evil” and should be in secure hospitals rather than behind bars, the chief inspector of constabulary has said as Boris Johnson announces a raft of measures to imprison more people and for longer periods of time. → Read More