What happened
Keir Starmer was warned that Peter Mandelson’s friendship with Jeffrey Epstein represented a “reputational risk” to the UK government before he appointed him as US ambassador, according to a tranche of newly released documents relating to the vetting process.

MPs voted to force the government to release the files “after questions over how the peer was vetted and what was known about his links” to the paedophile financier, said The i Paper.

Who said what
The files also reveal that Starmer’s then political private secretary Nin Pandit pressed the Foreign Office to proceed with the appointment “‘at pace’ so that Mandelson could be in the post before Trump’s inauguration”, according to the newspaper.

Another document “appears to show details of a fact-finding call” in which national security adviser Jonathan Powell described Mandelson’s vetting process as “unusual” and “rushed”, said Politico.

Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch said the revelations were evidence of the prime minister’s “shocking” judgement.

What next?
Further documents will be released once they have been examined and redacted in line with legal and national security requirements. Mandelson denies any wrongdoing.

What happened
Women who are not able to have hormone replacement therapy (HRT) will be offered a new drug to relieve hot flushes on the NHS. The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence authorised the use of fezolinetant, known by the brand name Veoza, on Wednesday.

Who said what
About 70% of women experience hot flushes during menopause, resulting in negative impacts on “quality of life, exercise, sleep and productivity”, but “for decades there have been few safe and effective treatment options”, said The Guardian. Veoza is an alternative to HRT, which is not recommended for some patients due to their clinical history.

Dr Sue Mann, national clinical director of women’s health for NHS England, said hot flushes “can affect every part of a woman’s life” and that the decision to make Veoza available on the NHS was “very welcome news”.

What next?
HRT will remain the first-line treatment option for menopause symptoms, but an estimated 500,000 women with conditions including high blood pressure and a history of certain types of cancer will be eligible to receive Veoza.

Social media’s “obsession with wellness and optimisation” has come for the “murky preconception period” – defined by sociologist Miranda Waggoner as the “zero trimester” – according to Wired.

A growing number of influencers, holistic health experts and even doctors are “posting content that speaks to the ‘trying to conceive’ demographic. Their message is simple, said Wired: “follow this wellness formula” and you will “set yourself up for the quickest conception, the easiest pregnancy and the healthiest child”.

Their recommendations range from drinking raw milk and avoiding nail polish to filtering the air you breathe, said The Cut. Some influencers are sharing meditation journeys to “lower cortisol six months before trying to conceive”, while others are testing their micronutrient levels and “embarking on 60-day pregnancy prep detoxes”.

Many people struggle to get pregnant, and some doctors agree that the standard medical advice to just wait and see is failing them. Yet claims “about the importance of trimester-zero strain credulity”, added The Cut. Listening to some of these influencers, it is “easy to come away thinking that if you struggle to get pregnant or have a difficult pregnancy, it’s your fault”.

There are many things that prospective mothers can do to “optimise underlying health in the preconception year that will make outcomes in pregnancy better”, obstetrics and fertility specialist Dr Natalie Clark Stentz told Wired. But evidence-backed advice – “maintain a normal BMI, stop smoking, pick a boring prenatal vitamin” – is “not sexy”. Any “buzzy, individual thing is likely sensational”, she said: whether that’s “Brazil nuts, organ meats or whatnot”.