A government minister accused of organising a smear campaign against journalists has quit.

Josh Simons announced his resignation as a Cabinet Office minister after it emerged he had been cleared by Sir Laurie Magnus, the government’s ethics adviser, of breaching the ministerial code.

In a post on X, he said: “The Independent Advisor on Ministerial Standards has cleared me of breaching the ministerial code.

“But with regret, remaining in office has become a distraction, so I have resigned from government.”

Keir Starmer asked Sir Laurie to investigate claims that the Labour Together think-tank ordered a smear campaign against journalists when it was run by Simons.

The organisation commissioned an investigation by PR consultancy Apco Worldwide into the “backgrounds and motivations” of reporters who had written stories about it.

That investigation examined “sourcing, funding and origins” of a November 2023 Sunday Times report into Labour Together’s funding, after it failed to declare £730,000 of donations between 2017 and 2020.

Its findings – which included false allegations about Sunday Times’ journalists Gabriel Pogrund and Harry Yorke – were then shared informally with Labour figures.

Simons has consistently denied any wrongdoing.

In a letter setting out his findings to the PM, Sir Laurie said: “I see no basis for advising you of any breach of the Ministerial Code by Mr Simons, but you will wish to consider, in the light of this distraction and potential reputational damage, whether he continues to hold your confidence as a member of your government.”

In his resignation letter to Starmer, Simons said what had happened to Gabriel Pogrund was “a disgrace”.

He added: “I welcome that Sir Laurie Magnus has cleared me of breaching the Ministerial Code.

“It was important to me to complete this process to prove that I behaved with integrity and that my public statements have been truthful and honest.

“Nonetheless, it is clear that my remaining in office has now become a distraction from this government’s important work. For that reason, and with sadness and regret, I offer my resignation. It has been an honour to serve this great country.”

The PM said in his letter: “I understand that, to avoid any ongoing distraction from delivering the government’s mission, you have taken the difficult decision to step aside.

“I respect that decision, and I look forward to continuing to work with you in driving forward the Government’s priorities

A friend of Simons said: “The investigation found that Josh never sought to smear and investigate newspaper reporters.

“He has done the responsible thing to resign to end the distraction, putting the interests of the party first.”

A senior Labour source said Simons was “a good man who has been stitched up completely”.

But shadow Cabinet Office minister Alex Burghart said Starmer “should have sacked him last week”.

He posted on X: “It was clear as day that he had done wrong. Labour waited to refer the case to the Independent Adviser to delay judgement until after the by-election (fat lot of good that did) Need full investigation into Labour Together now.”

Do you remember the great slug influx of 2024? In the words of the iconic Gemma Collins: “It’s hell in there, it’s horror. You have to be a certain type of person to survive.” It was gruesome. I stepped on a slug IN MY HOME in my BARE FEET.

The Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) shares on their website: “Mild, wet weather across the winter, spring and summer resulted in the highest number of calls to the RHS advisory service since records began in the 70s.

“13% of all enquiries to the entomology team related to slugs and snails. This is thought to be as a result of slugs being active earlier, increased breeding and more persistent activity with the absence of any prolonged warm, dry spells forcing them back underground.”

I’ll tell you something, none of my plants survived that summer.

Writing for The Conversation, Christopher Terrell Nield, a Lecturer in Chemistry and Forensic Science at Nottingham Trent University advises: “Although flooding can kill overwintering eggs and adults, a mild wet winter will have reduced slug mortality. It may also affect slug predators… Flooding also creates lots of ready food for slugs from plants that have died in the water, a potential slug fest as it dries in spring.

“With a global temperature above 1.4°C, compared to pre-industrial levels, the Met Office predicts a warm 2026. In addition, the UK government’s Environment Agency predicted a drought in 2026, before the winter’s heavy rainfall.”

He shares that, thankfully, our upcoming conditions point towards increased slug populations but probably not as bad as 2024.

Was anything as bad as that?

The RHS has a guide to preventing slugs with some of the tips including:

• Choose plants that are less palatable to slugs and snails, such as woody plants, those with thick or waxy leaves and some herbaceous plants known to be less appealing to them
• Torchlight searches can be carried out on mild evenings, especially when the weather is damp, hand-picking slugs and snails into a container. They can then be placed in another part of your garden, such as the compost
  heap or areas with less vulnerable plants, or left out for predators to take
• Water in the early morning rather than the evening as evening watering provide ideal conditions for them to move around at night

Good luck and happy gardening this year!

Although we’ve come a long way as a culture in destigmatising therapy, there are still many lingering myths and misunderstandings that shape how people think about the process.

From incorrect beliefs about how therapy is “supposed” to work to misguided assumptions about what it means to seek mental health treatment in the first place, these misconceptions can keep people from pursuing this helpful option – or leave them disappointed when it doesn’t unfold the way they imagined.

Below, mental health professionals break down some common misconceptions about therapy and what the experience is actually like.

“A persistent misconception is that going to therapy means something is wrong with you, or that you are weak,” Dr. Sue Varma, a psychiatrist and author of “Practical Optimism,” told HuffPost.

She – like most mental health professionals – doesn’t see it that way, however.

“It takes courage to reflect honestly on your life, your patterns and your relationships,” Varma said. “In my experience, the people who do that work are some of the bravest people I know.”

Another common misconception is that you should only seek therapy in times of extreme distress or a spiral.

“Many people come through my door for the first time immediately following a loss or major life disruption like a breakup,” said psychotherapist Meg Gitlin. “This is OK and is often a motivating factor for seeking help. However, there are people who come to therapy when they have ‘hit rock bottom’ emotionally and then disappear when things are good until the next fire.”

Although people can seek therapy intermittently or to address short-term issues, Gitlin finds the most successful therapy experiences are not defined solely by catastrophic events.

“My experience as a therapist tells me that while therapy can feel particularly helpful during crisis management, people are actually able to understand and process much more when things are going well for them,” she said. “I would encourage people to stick with therapy when things calm down, and they can approach their issues from a thoughtful non-alarmist stance.”

“Another misconception is that therapy always has to involve dramatic breakthroughs,” Varma said. “Sometimes the work is quieter. Simply bringing problems into the open, gaining insight, increasing awareness and trusting your own intelligence to manage challenges more effectively can be deeply meaningful.”

She noted that a core goal of therapy is to build flexibility in how you think, relate to others and respond to stress. The process can help you understand different people’s perspectives, strengthen self-compassion and empathy, and learn healthier ways to cope with difficulties, express emotions and deepen relationships.

“Finding out how to improve our mental state and reduce our suffering is a process,” said therapist Nina Tomkiewicz.

“Life is made up of small moments, so ‘small wins’ are the necessary building blocks of ‘big change.’ I always love celebrating small wins with my clients – I think this is something we just aren’t taught to do in this society. We see big, sweeping accomplishments celebrated in the media, and we think that’s how our life should go.”

But what’s more important are the small moments when you start to feel like you get it and see improvements that show what you’re doing is working.

“Many clients believe that if they begin taking medication, their problems will be resolved,” said Jill Lamar, a licensed professional counsellor with Thriveworks.

“Yes, medication in certain circumstances can be a helpful part of treatment, and often those clients feel better with it. But evidence shows that medication plus talk therapy is the combination that provides the best chance of success.”

She noted that therapists want to see their clients feel better, and medication can be a great partner in treatment.

“Talk therapy provides an opportunity to discover and change destructive attitudes and behaviours that drive the negative feelings, and can provide resolution as opposed to merely changing one’s brain chemistry,” Lamar said.

“It takes time for a person to learn how to best use the therapy space,” Tomkiewicz said. “Especially if you’ve never been to see a therapist before, you shouldn’t expect to know exactly what to do or how to be or what to share.”

She emphasised that people make lots of mistakes and take time to figure things out at the beginning of their therapy journeys.

“In the beginning, it’s OK to make mistakes and figure things out,” Tomkiewicz said. “I’ve worked with clients before who came to our initial sessions without knowing what to talk about or where to begin. But over time, they became more aware of the exact topics they wanted to bring into the therapy space to review and change.”

Over time, she added, people often become more empowered with their change process – noticing problems during the week, taking the steps they can and then bringing the rest to sessions to figure it out with their therapist.

“We also need to give ourselves the grace to practice figuring out how to be satisfied with our therapy sessions,” Tomkiewicz said.

Varma similarly advised against rushing the therapy process or giving up too quickly.

“I encourage people to read a therapist’s bio, see whether their approach resonates and check whether they specialise in what you are actually seeking help for – whether that is couples or family work, anxiety, depression, OCD, substance use, eating disorders or another concern,” Varma said.

“It is also completely appropriate to ask therapists questions about their training and approach, and to use the first one or two sessions simply to see if the fit feels right.”

“Another misconception about therapy is that most of the work will be surrounding a client’s childhood,” Gitlin said. “While it’s important to me to obtain and consider a complete oral history about a client’s upbringing, I think therapy is just as effectively focused on the present and future of the client.”

While exploring early experiences can be meaningful, many therapists stress that the work doesn’t stop there.

“This means talking about what things would look like presently if the client was able to make some changes,” Gitlin said. “I also think it’s important to cultivate hope about the future, and take specific measurable steps to get the client there.”

“Sometimes therapy is viewed idealistically, as something that is going to solve all their problems,” said Caitlyn Oscarson, a licensed marriage and family therapist. “Therapy is all about noticing what’s not working, discovering the common themes and making small steps toward new patterns.”

Tori-Lyn Mills, a licensed professional counsellor with Thriveworks, advised against viewing therapy as a way to find a simple or quick “fix” for your mental health and relationship struggles.

“While some issues can be addressed through solution-focused therapy to ‘fix’ a problem, many people come to therapy for things that need to be healed,” she said. “The misconception is that the therapist or therapy is going to ‘fix’ something that actually needs to be acknowledged and/or explored for healing, or the idea that there is an external remedy when the work is really internal and requires practice.”

Varma similarly emphasised that simply showing up to therapy is not going to “fix” or magically change your life.

“I see this often in couples therapy, where partners come in hoping the therapist will ‘fix’ the other person,” she said. “Each person is focused on what their partner needs to change, rather than on their own role and responsibility. Therapy requires agency. Growth comes from taking accountability and actively practicing new ways of thinking, communicating and responding.”

“A misconception is that the therapist is the primary agent of change rather than the client,” Mills said. “Therapy offers the opportunity to develop a different relationship with yourself. Sharing expectations, thoughts and beliefs you have about therapy with your therapist can help to foster openness, allowing you to approach the process with both an open mind and open heart, and get the most out of your sessions.”

Clients can get more out of therapy by sharing specifics about what success and progress would look like and if they recognise any actionable steps that could help reach those goals.

“Therapy is a place where you should feel collaboratively involved in the process,” Tomkiewicz said. “If you and your therapist are diving deep into one topic, but you realize that there is actually a bigger, more important topic that is surfacing, it’s important to say something and request to shift the conversation.”

Of course, the therapist plays an active role in the process as well. But sharing feedback with them can help foster a good connection and empower the client.

“Remember: You are the expert on your life, not your therapist,” Tomkiewicz said. “They are experts in the domain of mental health, psychology, healthy communication, but they do not know what stirs your soul – you do. You should feel like you can be more of yourself in the therapy room.”

Lamar believes a big misconception about therapy is “that all the work and healing will happen in their sessions.” She explained that people tend to be creatures of habit with deeply ingrained attitudes or behaviours that contribute to uncomfortable experiences and feelings.

“A common phrase therapists employ is, ‘It gets worse before it gets better,’” Lamar said. “Breaking these habits can be very hard. Though a therapist will point them out and hold clients accountable in session, the real work happens after the client leaves.”

That’s why it’s useful to think about therapy in between sessions, paying attention to emotions and events that impact you, and how you might apply what you’re learning.

“I often compare therapy to working out with a trainer,” Gitlin said. “The trainer can teach you exercises but in order to strengthen these muscles, you actually have to do them regularly. Especially if these exercises target muscles that aren’t often used, it will feel really difficult or even impossible at first.”

With practice, however, your muscles get stronger the exercises become easier. The same logic can apply to practicing healthier communication patterns.

“People may not have been taught certain skills growing up because better options weren’t prioritised or modelled for them,” Gitlin said. “However, they may have identified in therapy that it’s something they want to work on. That’s where the real work comes in ― identifying and implementing a plan are the best way to maximise the benefits of therapy.”

Some therapists give homework assignments as part of treatment. That might involve taking note of triggering situations, behaviours, intrusive thoughts or responses to events during the week. Or even writing personal essays. Or implementing healthier habits.

“Better communication takes practice and commitment,” Lamar said. “Learning how to de-escalate an emotionally heightened situation and setting boundaries can be scary, but they’re often necessary in many relationships. Most of this work is done outside the therapist’s office.”

“I think a misconception we have about healing in this culture in general is the belief that once we are ‘healed,’ we will find certainty in life,” Tomkiewicz said. “I think many of us enter the self-improvement space believing that we will eliminate suffering if we just follow a step-by-step guide, and that our lives will just get more predictable and secure – and thus better – if we just do our homework.”

But the reality is that life is inherently uncertain, and leaning how to exist in that uncertainty is what improves our experience.

“It’s learning how to make meaning out of our lives in a way that feels life-giving rather than life-destroying,” Tomkiewicz said, emphasising that this is a highly individual journey that changes over time.

“Therapy can be so helpful because it offers healing within the very human experience of interconnectedness, of having your more vulnerable parts held and reflected back to you by another person,” she added.

“It’s a really beautiful process, but one that does not result in life being more predictable, in bad things never happening, and in you having all the answers.”

It’s almost time to roll out the red carpet for the 2026 Brit Awards, with some of the biggest musicians on the planet up for the night’s top awards.

Fresh from their respective victories at the Grammys earlier this month, Olivia Dean and Lola Young are going into this year’s Brits with the most nominations, racking up an impressive five each.

Just behind them is Mercury Prize winner Sam Fender, with four nods in total, with Wolf Alice, Lily Allen and Dave also in the running for the night’s top prizes.

Meanwhile, international nominees include Bruno Mars, Sabrina Carpenter, Taylor Swift and Lady Gaga.

Here’s the full list of all of this year’s nominees…

British Album Of The Year

Dave – The Boy Who Played The Harp

Lily Allen – West End Girl

Olivia Dean – The Art Of Love

Sam Fender – People Watching

Wolf Alice – The Clearing

Calvin Harris and Clementine Douglas – Blessings

Chrystal and Notion – The Days

Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande – Defying Gravity

Fred Again.., Skepta and Plaqueboymax – Victory Lap

Lewis Capaldi – Survive

Myles Smith – Nice To Meet You

Olivia Dean – Man I Need

Raye – Where Is My Husband!

Sam Fender and Olivia Dean – Rein Me In

Skye Newman – Family Matters

British Artist Of The Year

British Group Of The Year

British Breakthrough Artist

British Alternative/Rock Act

Calvin Harris and Clementine Douglas

Fred Again.., Skepta, Plaqueboymax

British Hip-Hop/Rap/Grime Act

International Song Of The Year

Chappell Roan – Pink Pony Club

Disco Lines and Tinashe – No Broke Boys

Gigi Perez – Sailor Song

Gracie Abrams – That’s So True

Lady Gaga and Bruno Mars – Die With A Smile

Ravyn Lenae – Love Me Not

Rosé and Bruno Mars – Apt.

Sabrina Carpenter – Manchild

Taylor Swift – The Fate Of Ophelia

International Artist Of The Year

International Group Of The Year

In the run-up to the ceremony, it was revealed that Jacob Alon had beaten Rose Gray and Sienna Spiro to the Critics’ Choice prize, which honours emerging British talent.

Last year, the award went to singer-songwriter Myles Smith, with other past recipients including Adele, Florence + The Machine, Sam Smith, Sam Fender, Jorja Smith and The Last Dinner Party.

Meanwhile, PinkPantheress has made history as the first woman to be awarded Producer Of The Year, while Noel Gallagher has been named Songwriter Of The Year, in a controversial move considering he hasn’t actually released new music in the last year.

The Outstanding Contribution prize is going to Mark Ronson this year, while Ozzy Osbourne is to be posthumously bestowed with a Lifetime Achievement recognition.

The 2026 Brit Awards will take place at Manchester’s Co-op Live Arena on Saturday 28 February.

It’s a tough time to be an author.

The era of spending an evening with a book for company is long gone, as reading competes for our attention with TV, radio, podcasts, TikTok, YouTube, Instagram, X, PlayStation, Xbox, films, streaming, virtual reality, audiobooks, Substack, magazines and more…

Many aren’t even picking up a book now and again. According to The Reading Agency, half of adults don’t regularly read, and research from the National Literacy Trust shows only a third of 8 to 18 year olds say they enjoy reading for pleasure – hardly reassuring for the industry.

This apparent dwindling interest in reading is making it even more difficult for authors to capture public attention when competing with the stardust of a singer or the chaos of a reality TV contestant, but that’s not stopped some bucking the trend.

In a classic case of ‘if you can’t beat them, join them, outshine them, and catapult yourself to national stardom’, psychological thriller writer Harriet Tyce found fame competing on The Traitors, the biggest show on TV.

As Traitor Hunter-in-Chief, Tyce used her author’s eye for detail and powers of persuasion (she’s also a former barrister) to create some of the TV moments of the decade.

Aside from “impulsivity and ego,” she says the main reason she wanted to compete was because she’s a massive Traitors fan and thought it would be great fun.

“I love the show, I’m fascinated by the tropes. It’s a kind of whodunit, or rather who’s doing it. It’s the only way that you can live that kind of psychological thriller in real life without, God forbid, being involved in an actual murder mystery.

“The primary motivation came from wanting to take part. Anything else is a massive bonus.”

Tyce – spoiler alert – didn’t win The Traitors, but arguably walked away with a better prize: her book sales jumped 96% when the series aired. Her latest novel, Witch Trial, is released this week.

Despite completing the book before applying to enter the castle, it shares some eerily similar themes to the show. The thriller follows the case of two Edinburgh teenagers accused of killing their classmate using dark, ritualistic methods: a modern-day Scottish witch trial.

It’s largely told from the perspective of a jury member – part of a group of random people thrown together to solve a whodunit – which also feels Traitors-esque.

According to Tyce, it’s an “amazing coincidence,” which has helped draw more people to her novels.

“It’s unprecedented that book tours should sell out. Normally we have to cancel at least two or three events because they sold five tickets. Every author has been there, other than those who are huge.

“There are so many distractions on everyone’s time that it’s tough to cut through with books. I’ve been really lucky that my books have sold well and I’ve always had a level of interest around them, but I’ve never known anything like this.”

Appearing on primetime BBC One might seem like a no-brainer for an author, but Tyce says the decision was not risk free.

“If you’re writing books which are meant to be intelligent, articulate and show a level of general intelligence, and then you go on a programme and you show yourself up as being really not very bright and not very likeable, then you run quite a significant risk of alienating your readership. There were a lot of moments I thought ‘should I be doing this?’ My editor was quite concerned.”

She need not have worried. Tyce built herself a reputation as a witty, no-nonsense genius and a nationwide community of fans. She seems to be loving the ride, and the opportunity to fly the flag for authors who don’t always get the credit they deserve.

“We all do our best. The majority of [authors] are absolutely working themselves into the ground, from writing and editing the books, to marketing themselves online, to trying to build up a social media following, to feeding that social media following, to taking part in events and festivals.

“It’s not just about talent, because there are some very, very talented writers who get no attention at all, and some might argue there are some much less talented writers who get a huge amount of attention because they’re very good at marketing.

“A lot of us are people who like sitting in bed in pyjamas making things up, but we then have to go and be good at interviews and good at public speaking and good at content creation…”

She makes no apology for fuelling her recent success through TV, though:

“It definitely has given my name greater recognition, and it will have given this book greater recognition, but I don’t feel bad about that…Why shouldn’t somebody try and get on telly and see if they can see if they can get some of that attention? It was about time.”

Not every author has a shot at TV fame, but other platforms like TikTok are proving just as effective at giving them big breaks. #BookTok has received over 370 billion views and helped launch authors like Colleen Hoover and Frieda McFadden into bestsellers lists across the globe.

Another success story is Cassie Steward. A make-up artist with no social media experience, her self-published novel Number Thirty Two took off on TikTok after she started posting on the platform. The support she received enabled her to become a full-time writer.

“Somehow, TikTok worked its magic and some reviewers found my videos, bought the book and started shouting about it. It snowballed from there, I was getting tagged in hundreds of videos and the sales rocketed…I wrote the book as a passion project, knowing and accepting that most books never really make money, so I feel very lucky.

“I am still full time now, living off the earnings of one book that came out over two years ago.

“TikTok is an extremely powerful platform for writers and really community driven. It’s amazing how many strangers want to get behind you as a writer and also as a person.”

There might be less people reading, but there will always be an audience for a good book – as long as people know where to find it.