At least a dozen NHS hospital trusts are technically bankrupt, with no chance of meeting a legal obligation to balance their books, a Guardian investigation has revealed. Data provided by the Department of Health under the Freedom of Information Act showed 103 hospital trusts across England expect to end the year with accumulated deficits of £1.6bn, caused by overspending since 2001.

The government is to tell the NHS in England it must achieve a £250m surplus next year. The service ended the last financial year £512m in deficit, but Health Secretary Patricia Hewitt has pledged to balance the books this year. However, the latest predictions are that there will be a £94m shortfall. The government will also set out new targets for tackling hospital infection and on meeting the 18-week target for waits from GP appointment to operation.

For the fifth year running, adult social care services in Hampshire have been given a two-star rating. Council chiefs said they were “delighted” to keep their two stars, despite growing financial difficulties. The council was judged to be “serving most people well with promising prospects for improvement”.

Ministers are planning to publish on the internet the names of absent parents who refuse to pay maintenance for their children. Work and Pensions Secretary John Hutton said he aimed to “come down like a ton of bricks” on absent parents. New enforcement powers to be outlined in a White Paper this week include the removal of passports, curfews and electronic tagging.

A “kite mark” standard is being planned by the home secretary to help protect children from internet paedophiles. John Reid told GMTV he planned a system of approved software so parents could feel assured their child was safe from paedophiles while online. He said the idea was to have a system which alerts parents if trigger phrases were used while their child was online.

Half of young people using cannabis suffer side effects such as paranoia and blackouts, a UK survey suggests. More than 80% of the 727 young people in their teens and early 20s polled by YoungMinds had tried the drug – the vast majority before they were 18.

{mosimage}The charity is calling for urgent research on the effects of cannabis on the developing teenage brain. It is releasing guidance for young people and professionals on the effects cannabis may have on mental health. Barbara Herts, YoungMinds chief executive, said: “Many young people are experimenting with cannabis from a young age. We are extremely concerned that there is still very little known about the effects of cannabis on the developing teenage brain and it is crucial that more studies are carried out in this area.”

Babies should not be left asleep in car seats unchecked because there is a risk they will stop breathing, warn experts. Problems arise because reflexes that keep the baby’s head upright and their breathing normal are still developing. The British Medical Journal study authors say modifying car safety seats so a baby’s head does not flop forward could help avoid the risk.

One in five people believe their partner drinks too much alcohol, according to a new survey. Twenty five per cent of those questioned also admitted to arguing when they drink with most claiming the cause of the row was “anything and everything”.

About 55% of anti-social behaviour orders have been breached, government spending watchdog the National Audit Office says. The Asbos were either breached by offenders committing more offences or by breaking the terms of the order. The NAO said 35% of Asbo holders breached the order on five or more occasions, but the average number of breaches was four per person.

{mosimage}Minister Tony McNulty said breaches did not mean Asbos were failing. The NAO found that one offender had breached an Asbo 25 times, and there was a “hard core” of people who carried on with anti-social behaviour no matter what measures were taken.

The watchdog looked at the impact of three of the most common interventions used to stop anti-social behaviour – warning letters, which cost £63 to administer, acceptable behaviour contracts (ABCs), and Asbos, which cost more than £3000.

Nurses caused a stir in Manchester when 100 health workers drove through city centre streets protesting against mental health care changes which they say will mean cuts. The vehicles were driven by occupational therapists, support workers, therapists and nurses working for Manchester Mental Health and Social Care Trust.