Authorities confirm 46 cases and warn disruption could last weeks as firms are hit by cancellations before holidayCases of an illness caused by a microscopic parasite in a Devon harbour town could continue for a further two weeks, experts said, with businesses predicting thousands of pounds of losses as school half-term approaches.The comments came...

Telling patients I can’t get their life-saving medication is awful. The government must act to prevent a real tragedyMike Hewitson owns a pharmacy in west DorsetFor the past 16 years, I have run a small community pharmacy in rural west Dorset. My business is older than me – the little yellow-brick building I own is about to turn 235. Right now, I am...

Mindfulness is said to help everything from anxiety to overeating. But how does it work? Experts separate fact from fiction FALSE “Mindfulness is the opposite of ‘emptying the mind’; it is fully immersing the mind in precisely what you are doing,” says neuroscientist TJ Power. “If you were eating a banana mindfully, 100% of your awareness would be focused...

My own traumatic experience shows why we must push back against those who try to chip away at our freedom of choiceAs the criminal justice bill stumbles through parliament this week – beset by delays and controversies, and picking up amendments as it goes – another woman, Sophie Harvey, is on trial for an alleged illegal abortion, after taking pills...

Andy Evans was injecting his own clotting protein at three, and was 13 when he found it had given him HIV. Now he campaigns for fellow survivors – and the truth about the contamination scandalThe children of the contaminated blood scandal | Today in FocusAndy Evans was 13 when his mum took him for an unexpected drive in the countryside. “I thought:...

Exclusive: Royal College of GPs says constitution guarantee would just pile on pressure given loss of 1,000 practices in past 10 yearsSeven in 10 people want to be able to see a GP urgently within 24 hours, research by the NHS’s patient watchdog has found.Almost three-quarters (71%) of voters in England support automatic access to a family doctor within...