One mum's eight-year fight to change the law finally gains traction
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“I want parents listened to so that no one else has to go through this. You know, years and years of trying to get help for your disabled child.”
That’s what Fiona Laskaris told me when I first met her to talk about what had happened to her autistic son Christopher and her battle to change the law around mental capacity. Now it seems she finally is being listened to, with the government this week telling me that they are now going to look at changing the law.
Hello, I’m Romilly Weeks, ITV News Political Correspondent. Mental capacity is a complicated topic which is perhaps why it has been largely unreported. But what happened to Christopher Laskaris was horrifying and told with searing clarity and powerful emotion by his mother.
Aged just 24, he had been murdered by a convicted criminal, who was exploiting him, after his mother had been dismissed for years when she asked for the assessment which would have established that he was not able to live alone and unsupported.
The reaction to our report was swift. Other families called or emailed to say that what had happened to Fiona was their story, too. That they were also battling to get mental capacity assessments for vulnerable relatives - and being dismissed by authorities. That the consequences had been catastrophic.
The political reaction was surprisingly swift, too. Sir Ed Davey raised the issue at Prime Minister’s Questions.
Fiona - after being fobbed off for eight years - was invited to meet the care minister. He promised her that the government will now consider her amendment to mental health legislation going through Parliament.
There will be another meeting next week. We will be there. Thanks for reading and you can watch my report on ITVX here.
King leads the nation to mark VE Day
The King echoed the words of his grandfather in a televised speech to mark VE Day, honouring those who brought peace to Europe 80 years ago.
Charles delivered his speech at the VE Day concert on Horse Guards Parade at 9pm on Thursday - the exact time King George VI spoke to the nation in a radio broadcast on May 8 1945, to mark the end of the Second World War in Europe.
ITV News teams across the nation brought comprehensive coverage of the day including:
Exclusive: ‘I was abducted and my baby kidnapped’ under British-Irish scheme
Since last year, ITV News’ Social Affairs Correspondent Sarah Corker has been digging into the forced adoption scandal.
Hundreds of people have contacted us to tell their heartbreaking stories of discovering they had been torn from their birth mother’s arms or mums reliving seeing their cherished children whisked away by the authorities.
In the latest twist, Sarah has travelled to Dublin to speak to victims of a forced repatriation scheme run by British and Irish Catholic Church and state organisations for decades - watch the harrowing result on ITVX.
Read more here: Still no justice over British-Irish forced adoptions
Peston: Why the tariff deal with the US really matters
The UK’s tariff deal with the US matters hugely for two reasons., says ITV News Political Editor Robert Peston.
It will be a template for further such deals with bigger manufacturing nations and areas like Japan and the European Union.
Second, it can only be judged against the yardstick of how far the UK has been forced to grant the US better terms of trade in response to the American president’s gangsterish bullying.
Our political team pick apart the aftermath in a Talking Politics special.
Don’t forget, you can catch up with the Talking Politics USA Q&A on YouTube and our regular weekly look at Westminster with Talking Politics here. And our latest Talking Politics Q&A is on ITVX.
Who is the new American Pope - and how American is he?
Pope Leo XIV might be America’s first Pontiff but there are some on the right of American politics who are not celebrating his elevation, writes ITV News US Correspondent Dan Rivers.
As Cardinal Robert Prevost he’s been critical in the past of both Donald Trump and vice-president JD Vance.
Trump whisperer Laura Loomer labelled Pope Leo “anti-Trump, anti-mega, pro-open borders and a total Marxist, like Pope Francis”.
Watch our Robert Prevost profile on ITVX.
How Bradford quietly marks the 'forgotten football disaster' 40 years on
On 11 May 1985, 56 fans died in a fire at Bradford City's Valley Parade stadium.
Whenever anyone says the word "Hillsborough", even now, it evokes feelings of despair and sympathy. But Valley Parade? For most football fans it's just a stadium. For those with no interest in the game, it probably means nothing at all.
ITV Calendar sports reporter Chris Dawkes spoke to many of those who were there… and John Helm and Tony Delahunty were commentating that day and they’ve recalled what unfolded before them for ITVX.
Bye-bye brown bananas?
It’s the perennial problem - once peeled your banana begins to brown, writes ITV News Science Correspondent Martin Stew.
And you're left with an unappetising mush, more likely bound for the bin than a fruit salad.
At Tropic’s lab in Norfolk they’re promising a scientific solution.
Watch Martin’s report from the lab on our YouTube channel.
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Digital coercion: How my ‘sweet’ partner made my life hell
‘Sarah’ thought it was lovely her partner was taking such an interest in her life.
But he would frequently turn up in places she was, which he would claim was coincidental. He also knew information about her that she had only told close friends.
He’d managed to get into her iCloud, and logging on through his own phone, he tracked her every move.
Sarah spoke to ITV News Border about her experiences…
Mum discovers child has rare condition after Googling 'bushy eyebrows'
"From around six months, I knew there was something not right with her because she wasn't able to do tummy time, she had low muscle tone, and she was sensitive to light.”
Pamela Ives says she began searching online for facial features similar to those of her daughter, Sophia and identified MPS (Mucopolysaccharidosis), a symptom of Hurler Syndrome.
"[Google] said there's a one in 100,000 chance of your child having this syndrome. But I just knew that she had it from that point,” she told ITV News Calendar’s Amelia Beckett.
You can see Pamela and Sophie’s remarkable story on ITVX.
What’s coming up…
Sunday May 11: Memorial service to mark the 40th anniversary of the Bradford City fire disaster, in which 56 football fans lost their lives
Monday May 12: Royal College of Nursing annual conference, Liverpool, including debates on corridor care, violence against nursing staff and A&E waits
Monday May 12: Covid Inquiry resumes, focusing on test, trace and isolate measures
Tuesday May 13: The RHS Chelsea Flower Show opens to members before the general public on Thursday
And finally… taking on an epic triathlon and world's longest climb
As if tackling Mt Everest isn’t challenging enough, former Royal Marine Mitch Hutchcraft will have pushed himself to the limit before he begins.
By the time he reaches the summit, Mitch will have swum, cycled and hiked 13,000km.
He spoke to ITV News Anglia about the challenge ahead…