Connect with us

Published

on

A two-year pilot scheme is being launched to increase access to weight loss drugs and cut NHS waiting lists – as Rishi Sunak said the new treatments could be a “game-changer”.

Ministers hope the £40m programme using drugs like semaglutide – also known as Wegovy – will help crack down on obesity, reduce pressure on the health service and save money in the long term.

Semaglutide “suppresses appetite by mimicking the hormone glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1), which is released after eating”, according to the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE).

This makes people feel full, reducing the amount of food they consume.

It was announced earlier this year that it would be available on the NHS.

NICE advised that semaglutide should only be available through specialist clinics, which tend to be based in hospitals.

Ministers want to use some of the £40m to research whether these weight management services could rather be provided through GPs, in the community or digitally in order to reach more people.

It is administered through weekly injection, and the government says it “can help adults living with obesity lose over 15% of their body weight when prescribed alongside diet, physical activity and behavioural support”.

The prime minister said: “Obesity puts huge pressure on the NHS.

“Using the latest drugs to support people to lose weight will be a game-changer by helping to tackle dangerous obesity-related health conditions such as high blood pressure, diabetes and cancer – reducing pressure on hospitals, supporting people to live healthier and longer lives, and helping to deliver on my priority to cut NHS waiting lists.”

Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player

New weight loss drug – how does it work?

Read more:
The weight loss injections taking TikTok by storm
Next wave of weight loss jabs could be coming – without the nausea

According to the government, obesity-related conditions cost the NHS £6.5bn a year, and in the 2019/2020 period, there were more than a million NHS hospital admissions where obesity was a factor.

Boots has already indicated plans to provide the jab from its pharmacies, and private clinics are also advertising appointments to help people get the drugs once they become available.

NICE also recommended that semaglutide be used for people with a body mass index of at least 35 (roughly 18 and a half stone at 6ft tall) who also have a weight-related condition like diabetes or high blood pressure.

The drug has previously been approved in America, and celebrities like Elon Musk have spoken about using it.

Nausea, vomiting and diarrhoea are among the side effects of semalglutide, and there is also an increased risk of gallstones, kidney failure, pancreatitis and thyroid cancer.

Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player

Weight loss jab in high demand

There have previously been warnings that Novo Nordisk, the company that makes the Wegovy jab, may not be able to meet the demands of increased NHS prescriptions.

In smaller doses, semaglutide is used to treat diabetes – and doctors were worried that some people might lose out due to supply chain disruption.

NHS medical director Professor Sir Stephen Powis said: “Pharmaceutical treatments offer a new way of helping people with obesity gain a healthier weight and this new pilot will help determine if these medicines can be used safely and effectively in non-hospital settings as well as a range of other interventions we have in place.”

Continue Reading

World

‘NATO Santa’ shot down over Moscow in apparent Russian propaganda video

Published

on

By

'NATO Santa' shot down over Moscow in apparent Russian propaganda video

Father Christmas, driving a sleigh filled with NATO-branded rockets, is shot out of the sky above Moscow in an apparent new piece of Russian propaganda.

“Good, we don’t need anything foreign in our skies,” says a second Santa in Russian, sitting in what appears to be a control room.

Ukraine Centre for Countering Disinformation shared the video, saying that Russia’s “paranoia about the ‘NATO threat’ has reached new heights”.

Follow latest: Russia’s aviation watchdog comments on Azerbaijani Airlines crash

Still from apparent Russian propaganda showing Santa over Moscow
Image:
Still from apparent Russian propaganda showing Santa over Moscow

Ukrainian journalist Illia Ponomarenko reported that it was released after the Azerbaijani Airlines plane crashed in Kazakhstan on Christmas Day – amid speculation it was shot down by Russian air defences.

Sky News has not yet been able to verify the timing of the video’s release, which appeared on pro-Russian social media channels and not from an official source.

Read more:
Starmer condemns Russian strikes on Ukraine
Protests in Slovakia after PM meets with Putin

The video begins with Santa, dressed in red, flying in a sleigh above the Russian capital, saying: “Ho, ho, ho! Hi Russians, here are your presents! Happy New Year!”

It then shows a missile blowing up the sleigh and cuts to the control room, where an alternative Father Christmas dressed in blue asks “Is that it?” and a man in uniform replies: “Yes, the target is destroyed.”

“Good, we don’t need anything foreign in our skies,” the Santa says in response.

Continue Reading

World

Eurostar passengers ‘trapped for hours’ in Channel Tunnel after train breaks down between London and Paris

Published

on

By

Eurostar passengers 'trapped for hours' in Channel Tunnel after train breaks down between London and Paris

Passengers on a Eurostar train from London to Paris say they were stuck for hours in the Channel Tunnel after a train broke down.

The 06.01am train left on time and was supposed to arrive at Paris Gare du Nord at 9.20am local time – but travellers were told they would get to Paris with a delay of about six hours.

Eurostar said on its live departures and arrivals page: “Due to a technical problem, your train cannot complete its journey. It will now terminate at Calais Frethun where you’ll be transferred onto another train to your destination.”

Lisa Levine posted on X: “What a mess. We were trapped for hours and hours in a tunnel. No idea of when we were go get out. Now transferred to another train and literally missing our entire day in Paris.

“Do better Eurostar. Communicate with your paying customers.”

Gaby Koppel, a television producer, told The Independent: “We stopped in the tunnel about an hour into the journey, so roughly 7am UK time.

“There were occasional loudspeaker announcements saying they did not know what the fault was.”

Read more from Sky News:
Reform membership overtakes Tories but numbers called ‘fake’
Get ready for ‘wet and windy’ New Year’s Eve – with some snow
Riots, escaped horses and thrown milkshake – 2024 in pictures

Alicia Peters, an operations supervisor, was on the train taking her daughter to Disneyland Paris.

She told The Independent: “Sitting for 2.5 hours on a stationary train with my eight-year-old daughter was very stressful.

“She was very worried as we heard a noise and then there was no power.

“It was very hot and we didn’t really know when we would be moving as they were unable to provide any timeframe.”

In a post on X the rail company said: “Service update: Train 9080 had a technical issue this morning.

“This train is now running at reduced speed to Calais where passengers will be transferred to another Eurostar train to continue their journey to Paris. Thank you for your understanding and our apologies for the delay.”

X users reported long queues on the motorway to the Channel Tunnel following the train breakdown.

Continue Reading

World

South Korea’s parliament impeaches acting president

Published

on

By

South Korea's parliament impeaches acting president

South Korea’s parliament has voted to impeach acting President Han Duck-soo.

The move could deepen a constitutional crisis triggered by a short-lived period of martial law declared by Mr Han’s predecessor, Yoon Suk Yeol.

After the vote on Friday, Mr Han said he will step aside to avoid more chaos.

The opposition brought impeachment proceedings against him over his refusal to immediately fill three places on South Korea’s Constitutional Court – where the former president is on trial.

Three justices had been approved by parliament – where the opposition Democratic Party has a majority – but Mr Han said he would not formally appoint them without bipartisan agreement.

South Korea’s constitution says that six justices on the nine-member Constitutional Court must agree to remove an impeached president, meaning the current justices must vote unanimously to remove Mr Yoon.

The court has said it can deliberate without the full nine-member bench.

Leader of the opposition Lee Jae-myung had vowed to go ahead with the impeachment, accusing Mr Han of “acting for insurrection”.

A man waves a South Korean flag at an anti-Yoon Suk Yeol protest.
Pic: AP
Image:
A man waves a South Korean flag at an anti-Yoon Suk Yeol protest. Pic: AP

Read more from Sky News:
Finland boards Russian-linked oil tanker
2024 in pictures

Now that Mr Han – who is also prime minister – has been impeached, his finance minister Choi Sang-mok is set to take over as acting president.

Politicians in the 300 parliament voted 192-0 to impeach him. Governing party politicians boycotted the vote.

Following the vote, Mr Han said he would respect the decision and will await a ruling from the Constitutional Court on the impeachment motion.

Mr Han will be stripped of the powers and duties of the president until the Constitutional Court decides whether to dismiss or reinstate him – the same as with Mr Yoon.

Continue Reading

Trending