Anja Heilmann

While the mainstream discussions are depressingly about *how* best to remove and stop immigrants, it’s a revolutionary act nowadays to say that immigration is actually a positive thing and an essential component of a thriving country, so please join me in doing so!

Corporal punishment carries ‘multiple risks’ to children’s health, says WHO An estimated 1.2bn children are subject to this ‘harmful practice’ each year, affecting physical and mental wellbeing, report finds

www.theguardian.com/global-devel...

Most parents believe physical punishment of children crosses the line We’re calling on the government to change the law to end physical punishment once and for all

www.nspcc.org.uk/about-us/new...

The World Health Assembly, adolescent health, and the pace of innovation - The Lancet Voice Richard, Jessamy, and Gavin reflect on developments at the 78th World Health Assembly, including the passage of the pandemic agreement and shifting dynamics in global health leadership. What's next fo...

What's next for @who.int without US engagement?

In a new podcast episode, Lancet editors reflect on developments at #WHA78, including the pandemic agreement and shifting dynamics in global health leadership.

Listen now 👉 tinyurl.com/7xrhu3rm #LancetVoice

Today Lords will debate an amendment to the Children’s Wellbeing Bill to end physical punishment in England.

We encourage peers to support this crucial amendment to give every child full protection in law from assault.

It’s time to #EndPhysicalPunishment.

My island of strangers: a poem | Michael Rosen The prime minister warns that immigration could turn Britain into an ‘island of strangers’. Author and poet Michael Rosen responds

www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

Bravo Tanja and thank you for writing this.

Slightly amended so I can fit this here: I am writing to you as an immigrant who chose to make the UK my home. As someone who is now also a British citizen. And as a German-born historian who understands where the complete normalisation of the far right can end. I write to say: For shame! I first came to the UK in the 1990s for a visit with my grandmother. Objectively, much was backwards here. No mixer taps in the bathroom; awful ‘bread’; and strings had to be pulled to switch on lights. But however I felt about this, my own string had been pulled: I loved this Cool Britannia. It was quite possibly then that I decided that the UK was to be my home. When I arrived to settle here permanently, I made a choice: to contribute my skills, my knowledge—all I have to offer—to this country rather than another one. I am deeply disgusted by your comment today that immigration has done ‘incalculable damage’ to the country. This is the language of the far right. It is insulting, hateful & will fuel xenophobia. And it is just wrong. Migration is a normal part of the human existence. None of us would be where we are without it. Open your fridge and you will see migration. Immigrants help make the UK tick every single day, whether we clean toilets in our hospitals or provide care for the elderly; whether we empty our bins or carry out cancer research. We are mothers, sons-in-law, aunts and uncles, friends, neighbours and colleagues. I ask you not tell me that you do not mean me. I know that you do not—at least not primarily—mean a white woman from Europe who has a PhD. But who do you mean? And, much more importantly, who do you think those racists who were engaged in riots on our streets last summer think you mean? Anti-immigration narratives have defined UK policymaking for the best part of two decades. And fundamentally so. They were the key driver in delivering Brexit, for example, and, as such, have directly limited the rights and opportunities of British citizens.

This obsessive focus on immigration as the ‘problem’—that is the real problem. And it is consistently delivering poor outcomes for the UK. Instead of tackling this, you are choosing to consolidate it, sowing divisions along the way. You may point me to polling and tell me that this is what voters want. Do they? I am not surprised at all that over 50% of voters might say they want to see immigration reduced if that is the question they are being asked. What we need to know is what they would answer to the question: “Would you like to see immigration reduced? What this would mean for you and your local community is XYZ.” That is not how surveys can ask questions, but governments absolutely can choose to make policy using such a more informed position. Prime Minister, you continue to talk a lot about making the tough choices. But let’s be clear: setting immigrants up as the ‘other’, as a scapegoat—describing us as a threat ‘pulling the country apart’, a ‘squalid chapter’, a risk that might make the UK an ‘island of strangers’—these are not tough choices at all. These are the easy choices. They are the choices that populists make who have no solutions to the real problems a country faces. What I would like to know, Prime Minister, is what you will do when your policies lead to the implosion of the UK’s Higher Education sector. What you will tell communities when they can no longer provide any care for the elderly. The policies you announced today will not solve anything at all. They will have exclusively negative impacts. For those immediately affected; for our communities; and for our economy. Being pro-immigration—it is progressive, yes, but the much more crucial point is that it is also the most pro-UK policy approach that any politician in the country can pursue. And you are choosing to do the opposite. This, Prime Minister, is the real damage—and it will be very calculable indeed. Tanja Bueltmann

My letter to the Prime Minister. #immigration

"The bill is the first child centred draft legislation in over a decade, and this opportunity must not be lost."

Amend the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill to protect children from assault, @drandrewrowland.bsky.social
www.bmj.com/content/388/...

👏 Huge congratulations to our brilliant Yanela Aravena Rivas @yanelaaravena.bsky.social who this week passed her PhD with no corrections! 🎓🥳🎉

Her thesis examined the impact of the Chilean governance system on sugar consumption in the country, and her examiners were extremely impressed by her work.

40 countries make first-ever joint statement on corporal punishment to the Human Rights Council.👏
🔗 endcorporalpunishment.org/first-hrc-jo...
#endcorporalpunishment
#riseuptoendchildabuse

The evidence is clear: physical punishment doesn't work, and is instead linked to poorer mental health, substance misuse, antisocial behaviour, and slower cognitive development.

It isn't punishment - it's abuse.

@rcpch.bsky.social @nspcc.bsky.social @barnardos.org.uk @childrenscomm.bsky.social

@nuffieldfoundation.org

Physical punishment harms children’s wellbeing – the time to act is now Physical punishment is the most common form of violence against children and a major concern from both children’s rights and public health perspectives. The United Nations Committee on the Ri…

The threat of violence to children should no longer be given legal cover. The time for change is now! childofourtimeblog.org.uk/2025/03/phys... @anjaheilmann.bsky.social @yvonne-kelly.bsky.social @nspcc.bsky.social @uclnews.bsky.social @ucl-dph.bsky.social @ucl.ac.uk @jessasatomp.bsky.social

Doctors back total ban on smacking children in England Smacking is legal in some cases in England and Northern Ireland, but is banned in Scotland and Wales.

Alongside @EllieChowns.bsky.social I have tabled an amendment to the Children’s Wellbeing Bill which would introduce equal protection from assault for children. As Prof Andrew Rowland says: "Now is the time for this Victorian-era punishment to go." www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

End the legal loophole for physically punishing children The Children's Wellbeing and Schools Bill is a vital piece of legislation that will help ensure all children get the best start in life, driving th...

“Our amendment is simple: children should have the same legal protections from assault as adults.”

Proud to work with Jess Asato MP on a joint op-ed advocating for the abolition of the 'reasonable punishment' defence.

Read our full piece here: www.politicshome.com/thehouse/art...

End the legal loophole for physically punishing children The Children's Wellbeing and Schools Bill is a vital piece of legislation that will help ensure all children get the best start in life, driving th...

Physical punishment is outdated and harmful.

It's time we change the law to get rid of the 'reasonable punishment' defence of assault and battery on children.

@elliechowns.bsky.social and I for @thehousemag.bsky.social 👇

www.politicshome.com/thehouse/art...

I have never seen anything as disgusting as that. Genuinely no words.

I will never forget the photo of Zelenskyy’s face after he saw Russia’s war crimes in Bucha in 2022. He seemed to age years in an afternoon. Watching him constantly cross the world asking for aid that should have been thrown at him is one of the deepest shames of our age.

Scotland & Wales have acted—England must not fall behind. We urge MPs to back the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill amendment to #EndPhysicalPunishment. (2/3)

MPs, experts & advocates met to push for a vital change: ending the legal defence that allows parents to use physical punishment on their children, also known as the “reasonable chastisement” defence, to ensure children in England have the same protection from assault. (1/3)

I know we all love a dose of hopium, especially now. But the take, which I see all across here, that the far right was defeated in Germany tonight because 80% of Germans voted for other parties is very misleading and unhelpful. Understanding this really matters. 🧵

As promised, here are the slides I shared with students to convince them to NOT use chatGPT and other artificial stupidity.

TL;DR? AI is evil, unsustainable and stupid, and I'd much rather they use their own brains, make their own mistakes, and actually learn something. 🪄

Newsletter CORE is a four-year research programme funded by the UK National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) to address the neglect of oral diseases in four middle-income countries:  Colombia, Kenya

The third newsletter for the CORE Programme is now out and can be accessed here - sway.cloud.microsoft/7F8Ov1FnXEdz...

Donald Trump stands at a podium with JD Vance behind

In a major blow to global health, the US administration has announced plans to withdraw from the World Health Organization @who.int.

@kentbuse.bsky.social and colleagues propose urgent actions for the international community to mitigate the damage
www.bmj.com/content/388/...

"The study provided consistent evidence that early childhood exposure to fluoride does not have effects on cognitive neurodevelopment."

“By the time you win,no one will know you were fighting at all”

Almost all public health initiatives #episky

Idiotic move, which will endanger US & global health

It will make America and the world more vulnerable to future health crises

As I previously said, “it is hard to think of an action more destructive to public health at home & abroad than the U.S. severing ties with the WHO” 🧵

Study finds fluoride in water does not affect brain development A University of Queensland study has found no link between exposure to water fluoridation as a young child and negative cognitive development.

www.uq.edu.au/news/article... Important #JDR paper from the UQ group bringing more evidence about safety of community water fluoridation.

Handy tool by @theo.io to find people you may have overlooked that people you follow are following
bsky-follow-finder.theo.io