Each week, Ben Hopkinson looks back at a serious, crazy, and happy news story from the past week.
Serious News
Various London councils have been targeted in what was believed cyber-attacks at the beginning of the week.
IT systems and services had been affected within The Royal Borough of Kensington & Chelsea (RBKC), Hackney, Westminster, and Hammersmith & Fulham councils.
While it was difficult for residents to contact Westminster Council, Hackney raised their cyber security threat to “critical”.
The Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) asked the Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, about the issue – who was unaware of the events on Tuesday.
However, City Hall are trying to learn from the previous attacks on TfL, Marks & Spencer and Heathrow Airport, as Khan says: “We are trying to encourage councils to have better resilience but the reality is, I'm afraid, those who breach protections are going to try more and more ways to get into those systems. We're going to make sure we're resilient, that means making sure we have the right safeguards in place”.
Crazy News
Another An officer was called to what was classed as a “small, bully type dog” turned out to not be a live animal, but in fact a toy reindeer.
A little early for the festive period, a spokesperson for Derbyshire Police says that he was “resting after a test flight over the [Derbyshire] Dales area”, adding that they gave Santa’s helper some “stern words about being seen in the middle of November” and let him off.
Happy News
A The Mayor of London has celebrated dishing out 100 million free school meals from the scheme first introduced by Sadiq Khan in 2023.
Each child has been given an average of 435 lunches, saving families £500 per child each year.
The arrangement was supposed to be temporary, as it was being paid for by “one-off funding from additional business rates income”, later becoming extended.
The Mayor celebrated the milestone by visiting Shoreditch Park Primary School in Hackney, with a speech saying: “These healthy meals are ensuring children don't go hungry at school, making them ready to learn and giving them the energy to make the most of everything the school day offers, while also taking the financial pressure off their families. I know from personal experience what a difference these meals make, so to be able to ensure that hundreds of thousands of children are receiving them across London every single day brings huge personal pride”.
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