Also shout out @matildakdavies.bsky.social for changing my life by showing me the Datawrapper flag country codes (and CONCATENATE). It's changed my life and I've gone flag mad.

Kendall has promised to make the Access to Work scheme “fit for the future” - but it seems unlikely that that will include putting more money into it

As Stanforth said: "I love my job. I love working. But I need the support to be able to do so."

(8/8)

www.thetimes.com/uk/society/a...

I also spoke to the incredible Kate Stanforth, who called the renewal process "soul-destroying" and has had to make cuts in her business because her support was slashed

More on her story here: x.com/KateStanfort...

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While the largest increases in spend are for people with mental health conditions and learning disabilities, most expenditure goes on grants for deaf and blind people

@rnib.bsky.social says many blind/partially sighted people are "falling out of the workforce because of the delays"

(6/)

In February there were 62,000 applications outstanding

The scheme now costs £258 million, more than double the £124 million in 2015-16

The waiting times for the scheme are now actually preventing many disabled people from entering or staying in the workforce

(5/)

Everyone I spoke to for this piece said the scheme is "incredible, when it works", but at the moment, it's not working

FOIs to DWP found some people are waiting >9.5 months for a decision and many who have had support for years are suddenly getting it cut

(4/)

The scheme - often called the “best kept secret in UK policy” - has existed since 1994 to provide assistance for disabled people to get or retain employment, such as a powered wheelchair or accessible transport to work

There are now >67,000 receiving support through it

(3/)

The number of people not working because of long-term sickness shot up during Covid

Liz Kendall, the work and pensions secretary, announced £5 billion in welfare cuts last week to 'get Britain working' - but relatively little was said about Access to Work

(2/)

On Miliband quote. Thinking Miliband succeeding is a bad thing suggests some strategists in Labour are stuck in 1997. Even leaving aside Labour’s new left flank challenge. Climate change is no longer the liberal lefty issue of 1997 . Voters across board think a priority

Read the full story here, or in today's @thetimes.com

www.thetimes.com/uk/society/a...

These higher prices often don't benefit farmers

Governments set long-term fixed prices for cocoa which are supposed to protect farmers when prices are low but have, conversely, prevented them benefiting from the huge increases

This has led to smuggling of cocoa to neighbouring countries

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This affects smaller, artisan chocolatiers more than larger manufacturers like Cadbury and Nestlé

Smaller brands say they have been badly affected because they often use a higher % of cocoa, have shorter-term contracts with farmers and have often paid above the commodity price already

(4/)

The result? The price on the Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) rose from $4,000 a tonne in January to $12,000 in April and was still over $10,000 last week

(3/)

The price of cocoa beans has more than doubled in the past year

Ghana and the Côte d’Ivoire jointly account for two thirds of the world’s cocoa bean production

Both saw extreme rainfall last December, which caused the plants to rot with black pod disease, followed by a drought in February

(2/)