Homeless people removed from hotels during G7 ‘slept in tents’ - NationalWorld digital front page

At least six homeless people who were removed from hotels during the G7 leaders summit slept in tents as a result, a local Cornwall charity has claimed.

DISC Newquay, which offers support to homeless people across Cornwall, said that the organisation handed out six tents to people who were removed from their hotels to make way for paying guests ahead of the G7.

Cornwall Council confirmed that 130 homeless people were removed from hotels around a week before the G7 summit in St Ives.

DISC claims that the homeless people were removed because of block-bookings related to the G7, accusing Cornwall Council of failing to prepare for the summit.

Cornwall Council denies the removal of homeless people was related to the G7, saying that the situation arose because of “seasonal pressures.”

Meanwhile, NationalWorld analysis has revealed that one in 16 properties in Cornwall is registered either as vacant or as a second home.

Monique Collinsfrom DISC Newquay said Cornwall is in the midst of a “housing crisis,” and desperately needs “affordable housing for local people”.

Childcare providers closed fastest in rural areas during the pandemic

Exclusive analysis conducted by NationalWorld has revealed that rural areas in England lost early years childcare providers at more than twice the rate of urban areas during the first five months of the pandemic.

NationalWorld analysed Ofsted registration data to see the impact of the pandemic on early years providers, finding that more closed in rural areas than in urban areas.

The total number of early years providers in England fell by 1.1% in predominantly rural areas between March 2020 and August 2020, compared with a drop of 0.8% in urban areas with rural pockets, and a drop of 0.5% in predominantly urban areas.

Cornwall was the worst-affected rural area, losing over 3% of its early years provision at the start of the pandemic.

A rural Penzance nursery told NationalWorld that the early years sector had been “forgotten” by policymakers, accusing the government of failing to give adequate support to those struggling.

England and Scotland set for deciding group Euro matches

England and Scotland are both to play deciding group Euro matches in the coming week, with England to play the Czech Republic and Scotland to play Croatia on Tuesday June 22.

The games will likely decide both teams’ ability to qualify for the next stages of the tournament.