The Know Daily - Wednesday 29th March 2023

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A “zippy” new bus route has been proposed by Transport for London which would make it easier to travel between outer London boroughs, including Harrow, Walthamstow, Croydon and Heathrow. The Superloop would be made up of express limited-stop bus routes, ensuring quicker journey times and connecting key stations, town centres and schools. Does this sound like the suburban solution you’ve been dreaming about? Share your views on TfL’s proposed scheme here.

📝 Surrogacy under the spotlight

A government-commissioned review into surrogacy in Britain has said that the intended parents of a child born to a surrogate mother should get legal parenthood from the point of birth.

Tell me more.
In a joint report published today, the Law Commission of England and Wales and the Scottish Law Commission have recommended an overhaul of the existing surrogacy law, which dates back nearly 40 years.

Under the suggested reforms, the surrogate - defined by Sky News as “the woman who carries the baby” - would be able to withdraw her consent for up to six weeks after the birth. However, even if she withdrew her consent, she would still have to apply for a parental order to obtain legal parental status instead of the intended parents.

What’s the situation now?
In most cases, the couple who will raise the child must wait at least six weeks to become legal parents. Until a parental order is granted, the surrogate (and her spouse or civil partner) are seen as the legal parents of the child. This means that the intended parents cannot make any decisions on behalf of the child, including in regard to medical treatment.

Are there any other recommendations?
The commission also wants to stop “commercial surrogacy” - where carriers are paid for surrogacy - as it can lead to exploitation. The report concluded that payments for insurance and medical costs should be allowed, but not general living expenses.

The report also recommended creating a new surrogacy register, which would give children who are born through surrogacy the opportunity to trace their origins when they are older.

What else?
The proposed reforms are intended to encourage surrogacy in the UK and not abroad, with the commission warning that exploitation risks can be "considerably higher than in domestic arrangements".

It’s now up to the government to consider whether the commission’s recommendations should become law.

🌍 Should the UK provide climate visas?

A think tank has urged the government to create new climate visas which would allow victims of natural disasters to seek refuge in the UK.

Tell me more.
In a new report, the centre-right think tank Onward has called on the government to provide a safe and legal route to the UK for people fleeing environmental disasters. It argues that this would reduce pressure on border security amid an anticipated increase in global migration caused by the climate crisis. “We cannot allow climate-related migration to become the defining crisis of the 21st century,” said co-author Ted Christie-Miller.

The UN has reported that an average of 21.5 million people were displaced each year between 2008-2016 as a result of sudden extreme weather events. Hundreds of millions more are expected to be forced to relocate over the next 30 years.

What else did the report suggest?
The Forced to Move report also proposed a scheme which would see people in vulnerable countries trained in sustainability skills. They could then either stay to help their country adapt to climate change, or move to the UK and contribute to the government’s target of hitting net-zero carbon emissions by 2050.

The report also called for private parties to invest more in climate adaptation in developing countries. This could be anything from diversifying crop choices to elevating streets to deal with rising sea levels, and would hopefully limit the number of people forced to leave their homes as a result of extreme weather.

Is there public support for these proposals?
Polling carried out by the think tank suggests that a climate visa scheme would not find widespread support among the public. Only 29% of people agreed that the UK has a moral obligation to host people displaced by the climate crisis, while 41% did not.

However, Onward found that 46% of the public backed greater funding for climate adaptation - a topic which is likely to be a main focus of this year’s Cop28 meeting in Dubai.

🇳🇱 Brits “stay away”: Amsterdam has launched a new campaign targeted at British men aged between 18 and 35 urging them to “stay away”, as part of efforts to clean up the city’s raunchy reputation.

🥀 Paul O’Grady: The ​​presenter and comedian, who rose to fame with his drag queen persona Lily Savage, died “unexpectedly but peacefully” last night. He was 67.

🏥 Cervical cancer drug: Women in England with incurable forms of cervical cancer will be offered a new immunotherapy drug called pembrolizumab - the first new treatment available on the NHS in about 15 years.

👩‍💼 Work representation: The world’s biggest spirits maker, Diageo, has appointed Debra Crew as chief executive - making her one of just nine women leading FTSE 100 companies.

👑 Charles portrait: The first commissioned portrait of King Charles III has been released - artist Alastair Barford said his oil painting aimed to capture a “personal and intimate” image of the monarch.

Trivia answer: The photos of Pope Francis are fakes - the images are AI-generated, leaving many social media users in a serious state of confusion.

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