NewsBytes

Both Houses of the UK Parliament have been recalled in a break from Easter recess to vote on granting the government control of British Steel, as emergency legislation paving the way for the company's nationalisation is debated. The rare Saturday sitting has been called by Prime Minister Keir Starmer in an attempt to block the company's Chinese owners, Jingye, from closing blast furnaces at its Scunthorpe plant in the Eastern Midlands region of England. The state takeover plans would see British taxpayer funds being utilised to provide materials to the steelworks as a transfer of ownership is finalised.  “The future of British Steel hangs in the balance – jobs, investment, growth. Our economic and national security are all on the line,” said Starmer, ahead of the special session in the House of Commons.

The Trump administration is drafting an executive order to enable the stockpiling of deep-sea metals to counter China's dominance in battery minerals and rare earth supply chains, the Financial Times reported, citing people familiar with the matter. Under the plans, the stockpile would "create large quantities ready and available on US territory to be used in the future", in case of a conflict with China that might constrain imports of metals and rare earths, the report added. Last week, China placed some rare earth elements under export restrictions as part of its response to President Donald Trump's tariff package, potentially cutting the US off from minerals vital to everything from smartphones to electric car batteries. The stockpile is being considered as part of a broader push to fast-track deep-sea mining applications under US law, and to create onshore processing capacity, the report added. China produces around 90% of the world's refined rare earths, a group of 17 elements used across the defense, electric vehicle, clean energy and electronics industries. The US imports most of its rare earths, and most come from China.

What causes schizophrenia? This severe mental illness, which affects over 20 million people worldwide and is characterised by recurrent hallucinations and delusions, often begins to emerge in the period from adolescence to early adulthood. It's a complex disorder that affects almost every area of life.

Current theories about why schizophrenia develops suggest it may be linked to changes in brain development during this critical period of emerging adulthood. Schizophrenia is also thought to be similar to conditions such as dyslexia, autism and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), which are neurodevelopmental but usually manifest in childhood.  However, research suggests that accelerated brain ageing could be another potential driver in the development of schizophrenia – and this can be measured using a simple blood test.

The United States will identify the cause of autism by September, Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said, setting a deadline for an answer that has eluded scientists for decades. Autism diagnoses in the United States have increased significantly since 2000, intensifying public concern. By 2020, the US autism rate in 8-year-olds was 1 in 36, or 2.77%, up from 2.27% in 2018 and 0.66% in 2000, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. "At your direction, we are going to know by September. We've launched a massive testing and research effort that's going to involve hundreds of scientists from around the world," Kennedy said at a meeting of President Donald Trump's cabinet.