From a hospital bed in Arlington, Texas, Wael Tarabishi asked for only one thing: the return of his father. His father, Maher Tarabishi, had been detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement in late October during a routine check-in. He was Wael’s full-time carer and the person on whom his daily survival depended. Wael described the fear of losing him as “real and immediate”. Wael died on 23 January 2026 after more than a month in hospital. His story stays with me not because it is uniquely shocking, but because it exposes something deeply troubling about how modern immigration enforcement systems operate — and who they harm when compassion is stripped from decision-making. A system that doesn’t see dependency Wael lived with Pompe disease, a rare and progressive condition affectin...

Apple is currently testing a new feature called Notification Forwarding as part of the iOS 26.3 beta. On the surface, it looks like a small system-level change. In reality, it points to a potentially significant shift in how iPhones interact with third-party wearables. The setting is already visible in iOS 26.3 betas globally. Apple has said the feature exists to meet EU regulatory requirements, and current evidence suggests it is intended to be enabled first within the European Union once iOS 26.3 is publicly released — which is expected towards the end of January or early February. For users in the UK, and elsewhere, that distinction matters. Why iOS 26.3 Notification Forwarding exists Notification Forwarding is closely linked to the EU’s Digital Markets Act (DMA). The legislation requir...

Flu season has arrived early. BBC News reports a sharp rise in infections, prompting ministers and public health officials to issue their annual directive: get vaccinated now. Hospitals are already bracing for a gruelling winter, and the message to the vulnerable is urgent. Yet while the rhetoric is clear, the reality for those of us who cannot leave home is anything but. This winter, securing a flu or Covid vaccine as a housebound patient with muscular dystrophy has become a battle—one that has revealed not just a breakdown in local systems, but a troubling lack of national transparency. A broken system for housebound flu vaccines I am a registered patient at Victoria Medical Centre in Westminster, central London. Because I am housebound during the colder months, my vaccinations have alwa...

The Autumn Budget delivered many of the usual headlines — duties rising on cigarettes and alcohol, eye-catching giveaways, and a handful of announcements clearly shaped for the early evening news. But beneath all that theatre came something far more damaging: the confirmation of significant Motability cuts, changes that strike at the heart of independence for thousands of disabled people. The government has confirmed that a range of so-called “luxury” vehicles will be removed from the Motability Scheme. On paper, it sounds minor. In reality, the move dismantles part of one of the UK’s most successful and respected social-policy achievements of the last half-century. Why the Motability cuts really matter The government is selling these restrictions under two banners: fiscal responsibility a...

They say every picture tells a story. In this old family photo from the 1990s, I’m sitting outside our home in rural Wales with my brother Ian and sister Lyn. My brother Alan isn’t in the photo. Behind us stand three Chrysler Voyagers — wheelchair-accessible Motability vehicles that gave us the freedom to live, work, and stay connected with the world. All four of us were born with muscular dystrophy, a severe muscle-wasting condition that gradually weakens the body. Those cars weren’t symbols of luxury — they were symbols of independence. For over three decades, the Motability scheme has enabled around 815,000 disabled people to exchange their mobility allowance — such as the enhanced rate of PIP — for a leased car, scooter or powered wheelchair. Now, with Chancellor Rachel Reeves reported...