In The News

The beauty industry has found a new audience: children. And it is using other children online – so-called “child skinfluencers” – to promote all kinds of skincare products.

Research by The Guardian’s consumer affairs reporter Sarah Marsh found teenage girls on TikTok, as well as Instagram and YouTube, showing their skincare routines, some having become “ambassadors” for major brands.

Some will be using products from a new and lucrative market segment – skincare produced for children – others might be demonstrating to other 10 or 12 year-olds the anti-ageing powers of retinols and strong serums.

As the phenomenon grows, dermatologists are expressing concern about harsh chemicals damaging delicate young skin, but parents and guardians are also worried that children are being convinced that their skin needs something it almost certainly does not, with all the implications for self-esteem and body image that carries.

And there are concerns at official level with the Italian Competition Authority (AGCM) investigating two beauty brands over the use of young influencers to market skincare to children.

So where is this all going? And how damaging is this form of marketing, to the young girls who are served it daily on one their social feeds, and the children involved in its marketing?

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Andrew McNair, with research by Ellen Clusker.
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Newly-elected Labour MP Andy Burnham has made no secret of his ambitions to become the next UK prime minister.

Now, it looks as though his time has come.

Keir Starmer’s announcement on Monday morning that he is to step down as prime minister paves the way for a leadership contest in the Labour Party, with the leadership of the country the automatic prize.

Starmer has said he would stay on until September but unless a strong candidate emerges to go up against Burnham, the new occupant of Number 10 Downing Street could be named as early as mid-July.

Where did it go so wrong for Starmer and so right for Burnham? His nickname is the King of the North, but he’s also been called Captain Flipflop, so what does Burnham stand for?

And why is Britain’s political system so unstable that the country is now facing into its seventh prime minister in just 10 years.

Irish Times London editor Mark Paul was at Downing Street on Monday as Starmer stood at the much-used podium, bowed to the inevitable and made his sometimes emotional announcement.

He explains what led to this moment and what will happen next.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan.
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The former DUP leader Jeffrey Donaldson has been found guilty of all 18 child sex abuse charges against him, including rape. His wife Eleanor was also found by the jury to have aided and abetted him, but she was not convicted due to inability to stand trial.

The outcome of the trial hinged on whether the jury believed Donaldson or his two victims. Freya McClements explains how the jurors may have been convinced of Donaldson's guilt, what happened when the verdict was delivered and how religion, faith and forgiveness were major themes of the case.

Plus, Mark Hennessy looks back on Donaldson's rise and fall and how his conviction could affect the DUP and unionism more broadly.
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A new landmark study followed 4,000 primary school children, tracking everything from their education attainment to their wellbeing as they progressed through the school system.

The Children’s School Lives study tracked the children from 2019 to 2023. As it coincided with the Covid lockdown years, it revealed a wealth of data, some of it seriously troubling and challenging for policymakers.

The longitudinal study was commissioned by the National Council for Curriculum and Assessment (NCCA) and conducted by the UCD School of Education.
Irish Times education correspondent Niamh Towey delved into the details.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Declan Conlon.
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Late on a quiet Sunday night in May, gardaí in Limerick arrived on the scene of what they expected would be a routine call-out to a road traffic incident.

Instead they were met with an extraordinary scene.

In one of the damaged cars they found a dead man on the back seat. He was wearing a balaclava and there was a loaded pistol at his feet. The driver of the anonymous looking Seat Leon had escaped, leaving his phone behind.

The Garda quickly established that the dead man was a Swedish hitman and the pair were in Limerick for a contract killing. They were just minutes from their victim.

But who was the target? Has there been a resurgence in the deadly feuding that blighted Limerick for years? Where is the hitman who fled the scene and why has the manhunt for him been so muted?

Irish Times crime and security editor Conor Lally reports on the latest in this most unusual case.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by John Casey.
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