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Spectator
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Spectator
When did double-barrelled surnames stop being posh?
When the lead singer of Bob Vylan's name was revealed, it caused a fair amount of amusement. This anti-establishment musician who hit the headlines after ranting about the Israel at Glastonbury is actually called…Pascal Robinson-Foster. 'A posh double-barrel name is perhaps not the best handle for a self-styled Rasta radical. So he goes by the name Bobbie Vylan instead,' wrote veteran broadcaster Andrew Neil. But while it's vaguely amusing that Vylan's real name is rather less 'rock-n'roll' than his stage act suggests, Neil got one thing wrong: the era of double-barrelled surnames signifying poshness is over. Once upon a time, hyphenated surnames were a way of aristocrats displaying their social cachet. The upper class is full of Parker-Bowleses and Spencer-Churchills. The list of current earls in the Peerage of England includes a Chetwynd-Talbot, a Hastings-Bass, a Fiennes-Clinton, and an Ashley-Cooper. When, in 1964, the fourteenth Earl of Home faced the fourteenth Mr Wilson, it can't have been lost on the electorate that the former was a Douglas-Hume. It is no accident that the poshest pupil at Hogwarts in the Harry Potter books is named Justin Finch-Fletchley. But times have changed, and now double-barrelled surnames can be more of a disadvantage than an advantage. Double-barrelled names have more recently reared their head as a political liability. When Annunziata Rees-Mogg, Jacob's sister and sometime Brexit Party MEP, embarked upon her political career, then-Tory leader David Cameron famously advised her to change her name to Nancy (also, curiously, the name of his own daughter: yes, the one he left at a pub). Less well-known is that Cameron also reportedly told her to drop the Rees; Nancy Mogg might have been the future, once. Under Cameron's leadership, there were reports that other Tory candidates were told to go single barrel: thus Simon Radford-Kirby became Simon Kirby, and candidate Scott Seaman-Digby became Scott Digby. But while politicians were dropping the hyphens from their names, the same wasn't true in other fields. In football, there has been a crop of stars with double-barrelled names, including Trent Alexander-Arnold, James Ward-Prowse, Emile Smith Rowe, and Dominic Calvert-Lewin. It is a sign of the times that, whereas the men's and women's England football squads contain between them five double-barrelled names, Britain's Olympic equestrian team – surely the poshest sport – has none. There are proportionately far more double-barrelled surnames in elite football than rowing. All this reflects a wider trend. In 2017, it was reported that 11 per cent of couples now take on a double-barrelled name on marriage. It is difficult to work out what's driving this change. Is it that double-barrelled names are more common in mixed-race families (like Bobby Vylan's own), because both sides wish to preserve their cultural heritage? The shifting politics of double-barrelled names might also reflect an increase in single-parent families, or other deviations from the traditional norms of the nuclear family; single mothers quite understandably want to share a name with their children. Double-barrelled surnames can also carry some advantages. Aside from appearing to promote equality between the sexes, they also make people more distinctive, lowering the risk of confusion. Hence the full-back Kyle Walker-Peters, who plays for Southampton, is not the right-back Kyle Walker, who recently signed for Burnley. Names can still be signals of social class, with all that this implies: there is every difference, in the Shire of JRR Tolkien's The Hobbit, between the humble Bagginses and their snooty Sackville-Baggins cousins. But one should not be deceived by appearances: Ainsley Maitland-Niles could have been an excellent Victorian high court judge. In fact, he used to play for Arsenal.
Winnipeg Free Press
09-07-2025
- Business
- Winnipeg Free Press
Auditor general to review MPI's failed Project Nova
The province's auditor general has agreed to take a deep dive into Manitoba Public Insurance's technology infrastructure boondoggle Project Nova. Auditor general Tyson Shtykalo was asked last month by NDP Finance Minister Adrien Sala to investigate the now-scuttled project, which was originally estimated to cost $107 million but by the time MPI terminated it in March had grown to an estimated price tag of $435 million — of which $165 million had already been spent. Satvir Jatana, MPI president and CEO, said in a statement on Wednesday: 'We have recently received news that the auditor general has accepted the request and will be moving forward with the audit. We are committed to working alongside the auditor and his team to complete this work.' MIKAELA MACKENZIE / FREE PRESS FILES The province's auditor general has agreed to investigate Manitoba Public Insurance's Project Nova. Shtykalo could not be reached for comment. In May, the Consumers' Association of Canada (Manitoba) wrote to the auditor general asking for such an audit. The letter said it was needed 'to prevent repetition of past mistakes by MPI and other public institutions and to complement the Public Utilities Board's protection of Manitobans' interests in setting auto insurance rates.' Last month, Sala wrote to the auditor general, saying an internal government review had found a number of 'concerns' about MPI's management of Nova. 'A review, by Treasury Board secretariat, identified concerns about the selection of the software and the system integrator, terms of the vendor contract and irregularities in contract practices,' Sala wrote. 'In addition, MPI is expected to continue paying software licences that will not be used in the future years.' Project Nova was announced in 2020 by the then-Tory government as a major computer upgrade by the Crown auto insurer, enabling both its Autopac and commercial customers to go online to renew or amend insurance policies and driver's licences. As well, the system was to be designed to speed up processing of damage claims by linking together MPI and repair shops. Then-MPI CEO Eric Herbelin said at the time it would cost $107 million and be implemented within three years. Sundays Kevin Rollason's Sunday newsletter honouring and remembering lives well-lived in Manitoba. Two years later, the estimated cost of the project had ballooned to $290 million and the implementation time was pushed to five years. By 2023, Herbelin had been fired by the MPI board after an internal performance review. His replacement, Jatana, later not only terminated all future Nova work (because the total estimated cost was now $435 million) but in early 2025 also said MPI was temporarily disabling part of what it had already implemented — the computer program used for special risk-extension (SRE) renewals and new policies for commercial customers — while going back to a former paper-based system. 'Despite our significant investments in time and resources, especially in recent months, to move this work forward, we have not seen the improvements that we anticipated,' Jatana said in an email sent in April to staff members which was obtained by the Free Press. 'It has become clear that attempting to fix the system while working in it is not in the best interests of our teams, our broker partners or our SRE customers.' Kevin RollasonReporter Kevin Rollason is a general assignment reporter at the Free Press. He graduated from Western University with a Masters of Journalism in 1985 and worked at the Winnipeg Sun until 1988, when he joined the Free Press. He has served as the Free Press's city hall and law courts reporter and has won several awards, including a National Newspaper Award. Read more about Kevin. Every piece of reporting Kevin produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print — part of the Free Press's tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press's history and mandate, and learn how our newsroom operates. Our newsroom depends on a growing audience of readers to power our journalism. If you are not a paid reader, please consider becoming a subscriber. Our newsroom depends on its audience of readers to power our journalism. Thank you for your support.
Powys County Times
04-07-2025
- Business
- Powys County Times
Home Office unaware how many might have overstayed skilled worker visa, MPs warn
The Government has failed to gather 'basic information' such as whether people leave the UK after their visas expire or how many might have stayed to work illegally, the chairman of a cross-party committee of MPs said. The Public Accounts Committee (PAC), which examines the value for money of Government projects, said the Home Office had not analysed exit checks since the skilled worker visa route was introduced in 2020 under the Conservatives. Some 1.18 million people applied to come to the UK on this route – to attract skilled workers in the wake of Brexit – between its launch in December of that year and the end of 2024. Around 630,000 of those were dependants of the main visa applicant. But the PAC said there is both a lack of knowledge around what people do when their visas expire and that the expansion of the route in 2022 to attract staff for the struggling social care sector led to the exploitation of some migrant workers. Its report said there was 'widespread evidence of workers suffering debt bondage, working excessive hours and exploitative conditions', but adds there is 'no reliable data on the extent of abuses'. It noted that the fact a person's right to remain in the UK is dependent on their employer under the sponsorship model means migrant workers are 'vulnerable to exploitation'. Figures published earlier this year suggested thousands of care workers have come to the UK in recent years under sponsors whose licences were later revoked, in estimates suggesting the scale of exploitation in the system. The Home Office said more than 470 sponsor licences in the care sector had been revoked between July 2022 and December 2024 in a crackdown on abuse and exploitation. More than 39,000 workers were associated with those sponsors since October 2020, the department said. In its report, published on Friday, the PAC said: 'The cross-government response to tackling the exploitation of migrant workers has been insufficient and, within this, the Home Office's response has been slow and ineffective.' It also noted a lack of information around what happens to people when their visas expire, stating that the Home Office had said the only way it can tell if people are still in the country is to match its own data with airline passenger information. The report said: 'The Home Office has not analysed exit checks since the route was introduced and does not know what proportion of people return to their home country after their visa has expired, and how many may be working illegally in the United Kingdom.' Committee chairman Sir Geoffrey Clifton-Brown said while the then-Tory government had 'moved swiftly to open up the visa system to help the social care system cope during the pandemic', the speed and volume of applications 'came at a painfully high cost – to the safety of workers from the depredations of labour market abuses, and the integrity of the system from people not following the rules'. He added: 'There has long been mounting evidence of serious issues with the system, laid bare once again in our inquiry. 'And yet basic information, such as how many people on skilled worker visas have been modern slavery victims, and whether people leave the UK after their visas expire, seems to still not have been gathered by Government.' Earlier this week legislation to end the recruitment of care workers from abroad was introduced to Parliament as part of a raft of immigration reforms. The move has sparked concerns from the adult social care sector, with the GMB union describing the decision as 'potentially catastrophic' due to the reliance on migrant workers, with some 130,000 vacancies across England. The Home Office believes there are 40,000 potential members of staff originally brought over by 'rogue' providers who could work in the sector while UK staff are trained up. Sir Geoffrey warned that unless there is 'effective cross-government working, there is a risk that these changes will exacerbate challenges for the care sector'. He said the Government must 'develop a deeper understanding of the role that immigration plays in sector workforce strategies, as well as how domestic workforce plans will help address skills shortages', warning that it 'no longer has the excuse of the global crisis caused by the pandemic if it operates this system on the fly, and without due care'. Adis Sehic, policy manager at charity the Work Rights Centre, said the report 'unequivocally finds that the sponsorship system is making migrant workers vulnerable to exploitation because it ties workers to employers' and that the Home Office had 'simply relied on sponsors' goodwill to comply with immigration rules'. He added: 'This report is yet more damning evidence that the principle of sponsorship, which ties migrant workers in the UK to their employer, is inherently unsafe for workers and, in our view, breaches their human rights. 'Structural reform of the sponsorship system must urgently be undertaken if this Government is to meaningfully uphold its commitments relating to employment and human rights.' Among its recommendations, the PAC said the Home Office should work with relevant government bodies to 'establish an agreed response to tackling exploitation risks and consequences' and identify what data is needed, including 'how to better understand what happens to people at the end of their visa and the effectiveness of checks on sponsoring organisations'. It said a clear method must be set out on assessing what happens when visas end, 'specifically what measures are in place or will be put in place to record when people leave the country'. A Home Office spokesperson said: 'This report affirms again that the previous government's decision five years ago to relax visa controls on skilled workers helped to drive an unprecedented increase in the UK's level of net migration, with almost one million people coming here in 2023. 'We have rolled up our sleeves to fix the broken immigration system, suspending the highest total of skilled worker sponsor licences since records began in 2012, raising the skilled worker threshold back to degree level and ending overseas recruitment to the care sector. 'With our immigration White Paper we will deliver lower net migration, higher skills, backing British workers and repairing the public's trust.'
Leader Live
04-07-2025
- Business
- Leader Live
Home Office unaware how many might have overstayed skilled worker visa, MPs warn
The Public Accounts Committee (PAC), which examines the value for money of Government projects, said the Home Office had not analysed exit checks since the skilled worker visa route was introduced in 2020 under the Conservatives. Some 1.18 million people applied to come to the UK on this route – to attract skilled workers in the wake of Brexit – between its launch in December of that year and the end of 2024. Around 630,000 of those were dependants of the main visa applicant. But the PAC said there is both a lack of knowledge around what people do when their visas expire and that the expansion of the route in 2022 to attract staff for the struggling social care sector led to the exploitation of some migrant workers. Its report said there was 'widespread evidence of workers suffering debt bondage, working excessive hours and exploitative conditions', but adds there is 'no reliable data on the extent of abuses'. It noted that the fact a person's right to remain in the UK is dependent on their employer under the sponsorship model means migrant workers are 'vulnerable to exploitation'. Figures published earlier this year suggested thousands of care workers have come to the UK in recent years under sponsors whose licences were later revoked, in estimates suggesting the scale of exploitation in the system. The Home Office said more than 470 sponsor licences in the care sector had been revoked between July 2022 and December 2024 in a crackdown on abuse and exploitation. More than 39,000 workers were associated with those sponsors since October 2020, the department said. In its report, published on Friday, the PAC said: 'The cross-government response to tackling the exploitation of migrant workers has been insufficient and, within this, the Home Office's response has been slow and ineffective.' It also noted a lack of information around what happens to people when their visas expire, stating that the Home Office had said the only way it can tell if people are still in the country is to match its own data with airline passenger information. The report said: 'The Home Office has not analysed exit checks since the route was introduced and does not know what proportion of people return to their home country after their visa has expired, and how many may be working illegally in the United Kingdom.' Committee chairman Sir Geoffrey Clifton-Brown said while the then-Tory government had 'moved swiftly to open up the visa system to help the social care system cope during the pandemic', the speed and volume of applications 'came at a painfully high cost – to the safety of workers from the depredations of labour market abuses, and the integrity of the system from people not following the rules'. He added: 'There has long been mounting evidence of serious issues with the system, laid bare once again in our inquiry. 'And yet basic information, such as how many people on skilled worker visas have been modern slavery victims, and whether people leave the UK after their visas expire, seems to still not have been gathered by Government.' Earlier this week legislation to end the recruitment of care workers from abroad was introduced to Parliament as part of a raft of immigration reforms. The move has sparked concerns from the adult social care sector, with the GMB union describing the decision as 'potentially catastrophic' due to the reliance on migrant workers, with some 130,000 vacancies across England. The Home Office believes there are 40,000 potential members of staff originally brought over by 'rogue' providers who could work in the sector while UK staff are trained up. Sir Geoffrey warned that unless there is 'effective cross-government working, there is a risk that these changes will exacerbate challenges for the care sector'. He said the Government must 'develop a deeper understanding of the role that immigration plays in sector workforce strategies, as well as how domestic workforce plans will help address skills shortages', warning that it 'no longer has the excuse of the global crisis caused by the pandemic if it operates this system on the fly, and without due care'. Adis Sehic, policy manager at charity the Work Rights Centre, said the report 'unequivocally finds that the sponsorship system is making migrant workers vulnerable to exploitation because it ties workers to employers' and that the Home Office had 'simply relied on sponsors' goodwill to comply with immigration rules'. He added: 'This report is yet more damning evidence that the principle of sponsorship, which ties migrant workers in the UK to their employer, is inherently unsafe for workers and, in our view, breaches their human rights. 'Structural reform of the sponsorship system must urgently be undertaken if this Government is to meaningfully uphold its commitments relating to employment and human rights.' Among its recommendations, the PAC said the Home Office should work with relevant government bodies to 'establish an agreed response to tackling exploitation risks and consequences' and identify what data is needed, including 'how to better understand what happens to people at the end of their visa and the effectiveness of checks on sponsoring organisations'. It said a clear method must be set out on assessing what happens when visas end, 'specifically what measures are in place or will be put in place to record when people leave the country'. The Home Office has been contacted for comment.
South Wales Guardian
04-07-2025
- Business
- South Wales Guardian
Home Office unaware how many might have overstayed skilled worker visa, MPs warn
The Public Accounts Committee (PAC), which examines the value for money of Government projects, said the Home Office had not analysed exit checks since the skilled worker visa route was introduced in 2020 under the Conservatives. Some 1.18 million people applied to come to the UK on this route – to attract skilled workers in the wake of Brexit – between its launch in December of that year and the end of 2024. Around 630,000 of those were dependants of the main visa applicant. But the PAC said there is both a lack of knowledge around what people do when their visas expire and that the expansion of the route in 2022 to attract staff for the struggling social care sector led to the exploitation of some migrant workers. Its report said there was 'widespread evidence of workers suffering debt bondage, working excessive hours and exploitative conditions', but adds there is 'no reliable data on the extent of abuses'. It noted that the fact a person's right to remain in the UK is dependent on their employer under the sponsorship model means migrant workers are 'vulnerable to exploitation'. Figures published earlier this year suggested thousands of care workers have come to the UK in recent years under sponsors whose licences were later revoked, in estimates suggesting the scale of exploitation in the system. The Home Office said more than 470 sponsor licences in the care sector had been revoked between July 2022 and December 2024 in a crackdown on abuse and exploitation. More than 39,000 workers were associated with those sponsors since October 2020, the department said. In its report, published on Friday, the PAC said: 'The cross-government response to tackling the exploitation of migrant workers has been insufficient and, within this, the Home Office's response has been slow and ineffective.' It also noted a lack of information around what happens to people when their visas expire, stating that the Home Office had said the only way it can tell if people are still in the country is to match its own data with airline passenger information. The report said: 'The Home Office has not analysed exit checks since the route was introduced and does not know what proportion of people return to their home country after their visa has expired, and how many may be working illegally in the United Kingdom.' Committee chairman Sir Geoffrey Clifton-Brown said while the then-Tory government had 'moved swiftly to open up the visa system to help the social care system cope during the pandemic', the speed and volume of applications 'came at a painfully high cost – to the safety of workers from the depredations of labour market abuses, and the integrity of the system from people not following the rules'. He added: 'There has long been mounting evidence of serious issues with the system, laid bare once again in our inquiry. 'And yet basic information, such as how many people on skilled worker visas have been modern slavery victims, and whether people leave the UK after their visas expire, seems to still not have been gathered by Government.' Earlier this week legislation to end the recruitment of care workers from abroad was introduced to Parliament as part of a raft of immigration reforms. The move has sparked concerns from the adult social care sector, with the GMB union describing the decision as 'potentially catastrophic' due to the reliance on migrant workers, with some 130,000 vacancies across England. The Home Office believes there are 40,000 potential members of staff originally brought over by 'rogue' providers who could work in the sector while UK staff are trained up. Sir Geoffrey warned that unless there is 'effective cross-government working, there is a risk that these changes will exacerbate challenges for the care sector'. He said the Government must 'develop a deeper understanding of the role that immigration plays in sector workforce strategies, as well as how domestic workforce plans will help address skills shortages', warning that it 'no longer has the excuse of the global crisis caused by the pandemic if it operates this system on the fly, and without due care'. Adis Sehic, policy manager at charity the Work Rights Centre, said the report 'unequivocally finds that the sponsorship system is making migrant workers vulnerable to exploitation because it ties workers to employers' and that the Home Office had 'simply relied on sponsors' goodwill to comply with immigration rules'. He added: 'This report is yet more damning evidence that the principle of sponsorship, which ties migrant workers in the UK to their employer, is inherently unsafe for workers and, in our view, breaches their human rights. 'Structural reform of the sponsorship system must urgently be undertaken if this Government is to meaningfully uphold its commitments relating to employment and human rights.' Among its recommendations, the PAC said the Home Office should work with relevant government bodies to 'establish an agreed response to tackling exploitation risks and consequences' and identify what data is needed, including 'how to better understand what happens to people at the end of their visa and the effectiveness of checks on sponsoring organisations'. It said a clear method must be set out on assessing what happens when visas end, 'specifically what measures are in place or will be put in place to record when people leave the country'. The Home Office has been contacted for comment.
