Daily digest August 13 2015

Assisted dying would be ‘profoundly Christian and moral’ – former Archbishop of Canterbury

Former Archbishop of Canterbury Lord Carey is backing the Assisted Dying Bill as ‘profoundly Christian and moral’.

The bill, which will be debated next month in the House of Commons, will consider whether lethal drugs could be given to patients with fewer than six months to live if it was their ‘clear and settled intention.’

Lord Carey said: ‘There is nothing noble about excruciating pain and I think we need as a nation to give people the right to decide their own fate.’

Read more on the Daily Telegraph website

Men may never truly get over a relationship break-up, says study

Women suffer more than men in the short term after a relationship break-up - but the situation is reversed in the longer term.

Researchers made this conclusion after studying the mental health of almost 6,000 people across 96 countries.

Women reported higher levels of emotional investment and pain when a relationship finished but use the support of friends to come through. However, men are more competitive, and losing a woman can affect them for years. 

Lead researcher Craig Morris, a research associate from Binghamton University, said: ‘The man will likely feel the loss deeply and for a very long period of time as it sinks in that he must start competing all over again to replace what he has lost – or worse still, come to the realisation that the loss is irreplaceable.’

Read more on the Independent website

Call for smoking ban OUTSIDE pubs: Public Health wants 'exclusion zones' to be implemented around bars, restaurants, parks and schools

Public health experts are calling for a smoking ban outside bars and restaurants, and at school entrances.

The Royal Society for Public Health (RSPH) argues that such exclusion zones would set a good example for children and would encourage even more people to give up smoking.

Its chief executive Shirley Cramer said: ‘The introduction of a smoking exclusion zone around bars, restaurants and schools will further reduce the convenience of smoking, and we believe has the potential to move smokers to safer forms of nicotine, which could ultimately save many lives in the process.’

The RSPH also wants e-cigarettes to be renamed ‘nicotine sticks’ or ‘vapourisers’ so that it sounds like they have weaker links to tobacco.

Read more on Mail Online website