“Our transport system is a crock of s***. We have made such a dog's dinner of transport in this country.” These are the words of John Whitelegg, a transport lecturer and deputy chair of the Local Government Association's regeneration and transport board. “York is as good as it gets in England,” he tells Local Transport Today (June 27). Why is it so terrible? Well, we are at the mercy of civil servants in the Department for Transport who want to “keep a lid on expenditure, keep as much power as possible in the centre and stop the buggers in local government getting more power”, he claims. Whitelegg wants to gee up councillors by taking them on study trips to see best practice in mainland Europe.

As the NHS celebrates its 60th anniversary, nurse experts speculate on how nursing might look in 2068, in Nursing Standard (July 2). Grim predictions include a flu pandemic in 2018, an increased birth rate and the emergence of new sexually transmitted diseases. The good news is that we could see a reversal of the obesity epidemic in 2028 but in a cruel twist, we'll have run out of oil by 2048. Newfangled technology could lead to “nursebots” being programmed and farmed out to help patients to recover from illnesses.

Universities are well placed to lead on sustainability and climate change with their wealth of researchers and academics who understand more and more about the way the planet works. The People & Planet Green League, published for the first time last year, ranks universities according to their environmental performance. In a year, 86 universities have cut their carbon emissions per head, Times Higher Education (July 3) reports. As well as generating cash savings, cutting carbon emissions can also boost a university's environmental credentials, which may lead to an increase in applicants.

It's hard for police officers to comprehend honour violence, but all forces need to know how to respond to these crimes, Police Professional (July 3) reports. Stephen Allen, commander of Westminster for the Metropolitan Police, says there are still forces who believe that “it doesn't happen here”. In his experience, there isn't a single force area that isn't affected. He emphasises that honour killings and forced marriages aren't just Muslim issues or South Asian issues. “Forced marriage was still a practice in this country until not so long ago ... so please don't let it be your force's attitude that it ‘doesn't happen here'.”

Code of conduct for managers

How best to prevent poorly performing leaders from moving to other NHS organisations

BACKGROUND

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• Designs for a better future

• Councils take aim at teenagers

• What worked for me

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When it comes to making people think, the Government has a job on its hands. It is the only advertiser in the UK that aims to get people to stop, as well as to start or continue doing something, reports Campaign (July 4). Public health and safety campaigns have to encourage people to change behaviour when often there doesn't appear to be much in it for them, because the benefit is something that is invisible. “We see things they'll never see, you and I are gonna live forever,” Oasis sang on their album Definitely Maybe. When it comes to public health and safety campaigns, one of the biggest challenges is that people feel immune to risks. For people to change their behaviour, they must first and foremost feel susceptible to threat.

Media monitor

Hands up, you're nicked. Police officers may have to be more restrained when restraining prisoners, thanks to a growing shortage of handcuffs, The Times (June 30) reports. Hiatt & Company, which makes handcuffs for most of Britain's police forces, is to close. The firm, which has been making cuffs, leg irons and manacles, for more than 200 years, will shut its workshop in Birmingham within days. “I'm thinking of looking on eBay if I can't get any cuffs in the next day or two,” says one police procurement official. At least he didn't say Ann Summers.

From shortages to short answers: a pupil who simply wrote “f*** off” on an English GCSE exam paper was awarded 7.5 per cent, the Daily Mirror (July 1) reports. “It does show some very basic skills, conveying meaning and some spelling,” says Peter Buckroyd, the chief examiner of the

Assessment and Qualifications Alliance, who marked the paper. Adding an exclamation mark to the expletive would have taken the score to 11 per cent for demonstrating proper punctuation, he adds.

From bad to bizarre language: the word on the street is Ponglish, a hybrid of English and Polish, thanks to an influx of migrants, The Sun (July 4) reports. Our Eastern European cousins refer to “szoping” instead of shopping, go for a “drinkowac” at their local pub, while London-based Poles take the “tuba” to avoid the “trafik”.

Overhearing conversations is one thing. But if you're guilty of not paying library fines, check that your phone hasn't been tapped. Norfolk County Council spent £82,358 hiring private investigators to track down people who failed to bring back their library books, among other offences, the Daily Mail (July 3) reports.

It seems that the heavy hand of the law will stop at nothing to bring offenders to justice. Keith Hirst, 54, spent a night in prison accused of dropping an apple core, The Daily Telegraph (July 2) reports. Prosecutors eventually dropped the case after an investigation that cost £5,000.

HEADLINE OF THE WEEK
More than just a trip down Felony Lane

Writing your memoirs while in prison can help your rehabilitation, in Inside Time (July)

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