What happened
Keir Starmer’s national inquiry into grooming gangs has been thrown into further disarray after Jim Gamble, the sole remaining contender to chair it, withdrew his application. Gamble, a former senior police officer and child protection chief, said the selection process had become “toxic” and driven by “vested interests”. His decision follows the resignations of four survivors from the inquiry’s liaison panel, who accused the government of trying to expand its scope for political purposes.

Who said what
Gamble cited a “lack of confidence” in him among survivors, acknowledging that some objected to his police background. Survivor Fiona Goddard urged Starmer to meet victims directly, insisting that the inquiry should be led by a politically neutral judge, not a former police officer.

What next?
In Parliament, Starmer announced that Baroness Louise Casey would join as an adviser, pledging that the inquiry’s focus “will not be diluted”. It is now down to Starmer to “ensure that the grooming gangs inquiry does not fail”, said The Times’s editorial board in its leading article. “The PM showed mettle in prosecuting the perpetrators – now he must act to dispel the pervading sense that Labour would prefer this problem to quietly go away.”

What happened
Researchers have released the first ever rankings for antidepressants, revealing major differences between them – with the side effects on weight, heart rate and blood pressure varying most notably. About eight million people in the UK take the drugs, with 92.6 million antidepressants prescribed in 2024/25.

Who said what
“Even modest changes” between each antidepressant “could have a big effect across the whole population”, Professor Oliver Howes told the BBC. The changes in body weight – up to two kilograms either way – heart rate and blood pressure are “worrying”, especially considering that the study only looked at the first eight weeks of treatment, said science editor Sarah Knapton in The Telegraph.

Being aware of these side effects “is essential to support shared decision-making about the risks and benefits of treatment with antidepressants”, Professor Azeem Majeed of Imperial College London told The Standard.

What next?
The researchers are developing a free online tool to help doctors and patients choose the right drug. However, this would “require a significant change in culture within the NHS”, said the BBC.

A new report into the 1944 Thiaroye massacre of African infantrymen by French soldiers in Senegal has found that the shooting over a pay dispute was “premeditated”, said France 24. Substantial evidence surrounding the attack was covered up by the French authorities in the months and years afterwards, the report concluded.

The events at Thiaroye make it “one of the worst massacres during French colonial rule”, said Le Monde. Its effects are still felt and mark a point of tension in relations between the two countries.

“Questions remain” about the number, identities and burial locations of the soldiers who were killed, with modern estimates of the deaths 10 times higher than the official figure of 35 recorded at the time, said Le Monde.

About 1,300 West African troops who had been liberated from German captivity were brought to the Thiaroye camp and subsequently demanded equal treatment and overdue pay promised by France. When the payments failed to materialise, tensions rose. Days later, French forces opened fire on the unarmed men, accusing them of mutiny – a claim that historians now dispute.

The 301-page report, submitted to Senegalese President Bassirou Diomaye Faye last week, “urges France to formally apologise to the riflemen’s families and communities”, said France 24.

Despite praising President Emmanuel Macron’s “courage” for acknowledging the massacre, and believing that “relations remain very good” between the nations, in July the Senegalese president welcomed the removal of French troops from his country, said Le Monde. “What country can have foreign troops on its soil and still claim independence?” he asked in an interview last year.