Your commercial news round-up: leaked LGBTQ+ guidance, missing submarine, migrant boats, marking boycott, interest rates

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Pride Month is still in full swing so we’re starting this week’s round-up off with details of the government’s leaked trans school guidance. The proposed guidance acts as a reminder that although Pride has been celebrated in the UK since 1972, the fight for LGBTQ+ equality is far from over. We then cover the missing Titanic submarine, a migrant ship disaster, marking boycotts at universities and interest rates. Build your commercial awareness with this latest round-up and have a safe, happy Pride. 

• The UK government is being urged to reconsider its new guidance for schools, concerning transgender and non-binary children, which was leaked earlier this week. The leaked guidance states that:
  • teachers must tell parents when a child is questioning their gender (even if the child objects);
  • teachers should refuse to recognise a child’s trans identity or correct pronouns without parental consultation and consent;
  • even with parental consent, the headteacher must consider the impact a child’s transition or change in pronouns could have on other pupils; 
  • teachers and students can refuse to use a child’s change in pronouns/name if they wish; and
  • children who elect to change their identity or pronouns will be banned from competitive sport.

Politicians, LGBTQ+ activists and advocacy groups have all warned the government that the proposed guidance will put children “at risk of harm”, with Labour MP Kate Osborne adding that LGBTQ+ rights have “gone backwards” under Rishi Sunak. Some have even gone as far as comparing the legislation to Section 28, the law that forbid the acceptance of homosexuality in schools. One Twitter user said: “This isn’t Section 28. It's worse. Section 28 didn't mandate that parents be informed if a 16-year-old said they were gay. It didn't say that straight students' wellbeing had to be considered in a school's decision to 'allow' students to be LGB.” While another stated: “If this had been enforced when I was a kid I'd be dead or incredibly psychologically f*cked up for life. The lingering remnants of Section 28 were bad enough, we don't need a new one for trans kids.”

Speaking on the drafted guidance Cleo Madeleine, communications officer at trans charity Gendered Intelligence, said: “Ultimately children shouldn’t be dragged into these political conversations, into these culture war issues, and it’s particularly dangerous to weaken schools’ power to protect young LGBT people from dangerous scenarios.” However, Madeleine also offered a reminder that, at current, this is only guidance and not a definite policy. 

• A colossal search and rescue mission is underway to recover a tourist submarine that went missing during a $250,000 (£195,000) tour of the Titanic’s wreckage. The submarine, owned by touring firm OceanGate, was lost within just two hours of its descent on Monday. At the time, John Mauger of the US Coast Guard said that they suspected the submarine had between 70 to 96 hours of oxygen remaining. Five people are on the tour, including 58-year-old British billionaire Hamish Harding, French diver and Titanic expert Paul-Henri Nargeolet, Pakistani businessman Shahzada Dawood and his 19-year-old son Suleman and CEO of OceanGate expeditions Stockton Rush. The situation is now critical, with rising concerns regarding the fact that the vessel is bolted from the outside with no GPS or radio, so if it somehow rose to the surface, rescuers may not find the ship in time to open the doors for those inside.
   
• An overcrowded fishing boat carrying approximately 750 migrants has sunk just off the southern coast of Greece throwing a spotlight on the world’s deadliest migratory crossing. Since 2014, it’s suspected that more than 21,000 people have died on this route as migrants attempt to reach Europe on dangerously overloaded and unseaworthy boats. The United Nations (UN) has said as many as 500 people are still missing, with 78 confirmed dead. Rescuers are continuing to search the area in which the boat capsized, with survivors stating there were approximately 100 children in the ship’s hold. Discrepancy has also arisen surrounding the Greek coastguard’s account of the shipwreck; the BBC reported that the fishing boat was stagnant for approximately seven hours before it capsized, however Greek authorities insist the boat wasn’t in need of rescue. The UN has called for an investigation to be launched into Greece’s handling of the disaster. 
   
• Students at The University of Edinburgh are due to graduate with blank pieces of paper due to a UK-wide marking boycott. The marking boycott is part of industrial action undertaken by members of the University and College Union (UCU) in 145 institutions across the UK to protest poor pay and working conditions. Students have accused the university of failing to negotiate with staff, stating that they strongly support striking staff but condemn the university’s overall handling of the situation. A university spokesperson for Edinburgh said students can mitigate the strike’s impact by requesting a completion of studies letter for prospective employers; however, students have expressed concerns over whether this will be “sufficient”. 
   
• The Bank of England (BoE) has raised interest rates again as they hit a 15-year high of 5%. The 0.5% rise came into effect at 12pm on Thursday 22 June and marks the 13th consecutive increase since December 2021. The move is an attempt by the BoE to slow inflation; the theory being that by making it more expensive to borrow money individuals will have to spend less, thus bringing down demand and slowing rising prices. From the year to May alone, prices have risen by 8.7% according to the Office for National Statistics, suggesting that the BoE’s previous 12 rises have had a limited impact on inflation. The UK’s inflation target is 2%.