Father of Molly Russell among campaigners and charity workers on New Year Honours list
The father of Molly Russell, the teenager who took her own life after viewing harmful material, has been given an MBE in the New Year Honours.
Ian Russell is among hundreds of activists, campaigners, and charity workers being recognised by the King in this year’s honours list.
He has been recognised for services to child online safety.
On what Molly would have made of his MBE, he said: “Molly was quite content to get on stage and take part in school plays, but she was a quiet person, she didn’t like the limelight, so I think she would have found this a bit strange.
“But because she was such a caring person I think she would have been tremendously proud of being able to help people who may be struggling with their mental health and may be beginning to have thoughts about suicide.
“If she thought she could help those people live long and stay strong, she’d be very proud indeed.”
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Last month, the foundation he set up in his daughter’s memory called for an end to algorithms being able to push out harmful content online.
He said: “The longer tech companies fail to address the preventable harm they cause, the more inexcusable it becomes.
“Six years after Molly died, this must now be seen as a fundamental systemic failure that will continue to cost young lives.
“Just as Molly was overwhelmed by the volume of the dangerous content that bombarded her, we’ve found evidence of algorithms pushing out harmful content to literally millions of young people.
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Read more: What is the honours system and what are the perks?
Elsewhere, this year’s youngest recipient of an honour is nine-year-old Tony Hudgell, who will get a British Empire Medal (BEM) for services to the prevention of child abuse, while the oldest is 97-year-old Jill Gladwell, who becomes an MBE for services to the Royal British Legion.
Tony also becomes the youngest person on record ever to feature in the New Year Honours.
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Boy who was abused as a baby makes honours list
He was so badly abused when he was just 41 days old that both his legs had to be amputated.
The attack by both his birth parents caused multiple fractures, organ failure, toxic shock and sepsis.
They were jailed for 10 years.
Tony Hudgell
Also honoured is Hetti Barkworth-Nanton, whose best friend was beaten to death by her husband, and gets a CBE for services to people affected by domestic abuse and homicide after she co-founded the Joanna Simpson Foundation
She is also the chair of domestic abuse charity Refuge.
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2022: Boy tortured by parents helps change cruelty law
Ms Barkworth-Nanton said she was “deeply moved and overwhelmed” by the honour, adding it is a “testament to those many individuals who dedicate themselves to this cause, survivors of domestic abuse who bravely tell their story, and the family and friends who support them”.
Also recognised is Michelle Southern, the founder of Street Paws, a charity that provides free veterinary care for pets belonging to homeless people – she gets an OBE – while Rizwan Javed will be given an MBE, for his work on the Elizabeth Line helping save vulnerable people’s lives.
Travis Frain was visited in hospital in 2017 by the then-Prince Charles
Travis Frain, who survived the 2017 Westminster Bridge terrorist attack, will be made an OBE for his work combatting radicalism.
He said he is “immensely proud and humbled” by the OBE, which he hopes may “shine a light” on the dedication of thousands of people around the country trying to counter violence and extremism.
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said: “The New Year’s Honours List recognises the exceptional achievements of people across the country and those who have shown the highest commitment to selflessness and compassion.
“To all honourees, you are the pride of this country and an inspiration to us all.”
Anyone feeling emotionally distressed or suicidal can call Samaritans for help on 116 123 or email jo@samaritans.org in the UK. In the US, call the Samaritans branch in your area or 1 (800) 273-TALK.
UK
Teenager living in ‘continuous pain’ after surgeon Dr Yaser Jabbar carried out ‘inappropriate’ operations
A 15-year-old boy who was operated on twice by a now unlicensed Great Ormond Street surgeon is living with “continuous” pain.
Finias Sandu has been told by an independent review the procedures he underwent on both his legs were “unacceptable” and “inappropriate” for his age.
The teenager from Essex was born with a condition that causes curved bones in his legs.
Aged seven, a reconstructive procedure was carried out on Finias’s left leg, lengthening the limb by 3.5cm.
A few years later, the same operation was carried out on his right leg which involved wearing an invasive and heavy metal frame for months.
He has now been told by independent experts these procedures should not have taken place and concerns have been raised over a lack of imaging being taken prior to the operations.
Yaser Jabbar rescinded his UK medical licence last year. Pic: LinkedIn
His doctor at London’s prestigious Great Ormond Street Hospital was former consultant orthopaedic surgeon Yaser Jabbar. Sky News has spoken to others he treated.
Mr Jabbar also did not arrange for updated scans or for relevant X-rays to be conducted ahead of the procedures.
The surgeries have been found to have caused Finias “harm” and left him in constant pain.
“The pain is there every day, every day I’m continuously in pain,” he told Sky News.
“It’s not something really sharp, although it does get to a certain point where it hurts quite a lot, but it’s always there. It just doesn’t leave, it’s a companion to me, just always there.”
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Finias’s surgery pictures
Care of over 700 patients being assessed
Mr Jabbar rescinded his UK medical licence in January last year after working at Great Ormond Street between 2017 and 2022.
The care of his 700-plus patients is being assessed, with some facing corrective surgery, among them Finias.
“Trusting somebody is hard to do, knowing what they have done to me physically and emotionally, you know, it’s just too much to comprehend for me,” he said.
“It wasn’t something just physically, like my leg pain and everything else. It was emotionally, because I put my trust in that specific doctor. My parents and I don’t really understand the more scientific terms, we just went by what he said.”
Doctors refused to treat Finias because of his surgeries
Finias and his family relocated to their native Romania soon after the reconstructive frame was removed from his right leg in the summer of 2021.
The pain worsened and they sought advice from doctors in Romania, who refused to treat Finias because of the impact of his surgeries.
Dozens of families seeking legal claims
His mother Cornelia Sandu is “furious” and feels her trust in the hospital has been shattered. They are now among dozens of families seeking legal claims.
Cyrus Plaza from Hudgell Solicitors is representing the family. He said: “In cases where it has been identified that harm was caused, we want to see Great Ormond Street Hospital agreeing to pay interim payments of compensation for the children, so that if they need therapy or treatment now, they can access it.”
Finias is accessing therapy and mental health support as he prepares for corrective surgery later in the year.
A spokesperson for Great Ormond Street Hospital told Sky News: “We are deeply sorry to Finias and his family, and all the patients and families who have been impacted.
“We want every patient and family who comes to our hospital to feel safe and cared for. We will always discuss concerns families may have and, where they submit claims, we will work to ensure the legal process can be resolved as quickly as possible.”
Finias with his mother and sister
Service not ‘safe for patients’
Sky News has attempted to contact Mr Jabbar.
An external review into the wider orthopaedic department at the hospital began in September 2022.
It was commissioned after the Royal College of Surgeons warned the hospital’s lower limb reconstruction service was not “safe for patients or adequate to meet demand”.
The investigation is expected to be completed by the end of the year.
Sir Keir Starmer has said closer ties with the EU will be good for the UK’s jobs, bills and borders ahead of a summit where he could announce a deal with the bloc.
The government is set to host EU leaders in London on Monday as part of its efforts to “reset” relations post-Brexit.
A deal granting the UK access to a major EU defence fund could be on the table, according to reports – but disagreements over a youth mobility scheme and fishing rights could prove to be a stumbling block.
The prime minister has appeared to signal a youth mobility deal could be possible, telling The Times that while freedom of movement is a “red line”, youth mobility does not come under this.
His comment comes after Kaja Kallas, the EU’s high representative for foreign affairs, said on Friday work on a defence deal was progressing but “we’re not there yet”.
Sir Keir met European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen later that day while at a summit in Albania.
Ursula von der Leyen and Sir Keir had a brief meeting earlier this week. Pic: PA
If agreed, the deal will be the third in two weeks, following trade agreements with India and the US.
Sir Keir said: “First India, then the United States – in the last two weeks alone that’s jobs saved, faster growth and wages rising.
“More money in the pockets of British working people, achieved through striking deals not striking poses.
“Tomorrow, we take another step forward, with yet more benefits for the United Kingdom as the result of a strengthened partnership with the European Union.”
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Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch has said she is “worried” about what the PM might have negotiated.
Ms Badenoch – who has promised to rip up the deal with the EU if it breaches her red lines on Brexit – said: “Labour should have used this review of our EU trade deal to secure new wins for Britain, such as an EU-wide agreement on Brits using e-gates on the continent.
“Instead, it sounds like we’re giving away our fishing quotas, becoming a rule-taker from Brussels once again and getting free movement by the back door. This isn’t a reset, it’s a surrender.”
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