The shortfall in British adoptions
The cost-of-living crisis has hurt children and prospective parents
If “Oliver Twist” were written today, it would be different in many ways. One of them might be the ending. In Charles Dickens’s novel, Oliver is adopted by Mr Brownlow, a benefactor, without any trouble. Today Mr Brownlow would go through a fine-grained background check. His mansion would be inspected for safety and he’d be strongly advised to volunteer with children. If he liked a pipe after dinner, he could end up being rejected for smoking.
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This article appeared in the Britain section of the print edition under the headline “Match postponed”
Britain
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From the October 26th 2024 edition
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Keir Starmer and Emmanuel Macron are forging a tight link
As Donald Trump threatens to leave Europe on its own
Britain’s government may be about to waste its best chance of success
A bill to unblock house building and boost growth looks far too timid
Paying teenagers to go to school was a bad idea
At least in Britain
Anybody in Britain can call themselves a therapist
That opens the door to abuse
Britain’s capital markets are waging a war on paper
Calls are growing to modernise the country’s shareholding system