The 40th anniversary in October this year of the passing of the UK Abortion Act is certain to be marked by attempts to reopen the debate about lowering the upper limit for legal terminations. In a special report in this week’s BMJ, journalist Jonathan Gornall examines current arguments for reform.

Thousands of Wirral people who depend on social services funding will suffer because of “savage” cuts of over £4m, according to a councillor. Amid ever-growing demands on the service, there are fresh fears for the borough’s future as the cash-strapped council is forced to concentrate resources on those with the most severe needs.

Sex offenders could be forced to register their e-mail addresses to prevent them approaching children on the internet, the government says. Home Secretary John Reid said he was also considering making paedophiles add their chatroom names to their other details on the Sex Offenders Register.

{mosimage}The move comes a day after three men were jailed for using a chatroom to plot the rape of two young girls. The announcement coincides with European Safer Internet Day. With as many as two-thirds of British teenagers now using social networking sites such as MySpace, many parents, teachers and politicians fear this opens up new dangers for children. The Safer Internet campaign will see websites and child safety experts discuss ways of safeguarding children from online threats.

The Sex Offenders Register contains the details of all those convicted of a sexual crime in England and Wales. Figures from the Home Office for 2005/06 showed there were nearly 30,000 registered sex offenders in England and Wales.

Academics claim data is being manipulated to help NHS hospitals meet the Government’s target that no one should wait more than four hours to be seen in A&E, it has been reported.

A major expansion of the services offered by GPs was announced by the Health Secretary Patricia Hewitt yesterday, but without any increase in their pay. Family doctors will be encouraged to set up one-stop shops where they work alongside consultants, offering minor surgery such as cataract and hernia operations.

A Sheffield Hallam University professor has warned that more emphasis must be placed on the emotional needs of youngsters to halt the growing number of youngsters with serious mental health disorders.

Not enough is being done to assess sight conditions within elderly care structures, according to an adviser from Eye Health Alliance. Heather Marshall said that while she was pleased to see the issue of optometry come up in the latest report from the DoH, the government could be doing more to prevent cerebral diseases caused by poor sight by getting at the root of the cause earlier.

Figures released by the British Association for Adoption & Fostering reveal the Adoption Register for England and Wales is helping to match more children with adoptive families. The register matches children who tend to wait longer for adoption with approved adoptive families outside their geographical area.

More than 600 new sheltered homes are to be built as part of a revolutionary scheme to dramatically change elderly care in Hertfordshire. Carers will double up as wardens at the new flats for frail older people, who currently have no option but to move into a residential home when they face problems living independently.

Local authorities are obliged to provide specialist education – either locally or in the private sector – for children deemed to have “special educational needs” or SEN. But obtaining the required statement of SEN for their child can be a lengthy and exasperating process for parents.