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In the News
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HO: Every parent’s worst nightmare - A new dedicated team of experts from the Child Exploitation and Online Protection (CEOP) centre will strengthen & lead the UK's ability to respond to missing children, Home Office Minister James Brokenshire announced last week. Speaking on International Missing Children's Day, the minister outlined that CEOP will (from 1 July 2011) take the national lead for missing children's services.
The new team will lead the national response working in partnership with police forces, non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and the wider child protection community. They will also provide preventative support through the provision of educational tools, products & training to children and professionals, as well as direct operational support to local forces.
CQC: We have been here before - The Care Quality Commission (CQC) has published the first 12 reports from an inspection programme which examines whether elderly people receive essential standards of care in 100 NHS hospitals throughout England.
The programme focuses on whether people are treated with dignity & respect, and whether they get food & drink that meets their needs. Further inspection reports will be published at regular intervals over the course of the summer, with a national report to follow in the autumn.
These first 12 inspection reports identify 3 hospitals as failing to meet the essential standards required by law; Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust, The Ipswich Hospital NHS Trust and Royal Free Hampstead NHS Trust.
Less serious concerns were identified in a further 3 hospitals, with the remaining 6 found to be meeting essential standards. All the hospitals where concerns have been identified must now tell the regulator how & when they will improve. The 3 hospitals failing to meet essential standards could face enforcement action by the regulator if improvements aren’t made.
Whilst the reports document many examples of people being treated with respect and given personalised, attentive care, some tell a bleak story of people not being helped to eat & drink, with their care needs not assessed and their dignity not respected.
DFID: Trying to avoid a repeat of post-invasion Iraq - The first ever international Stabilisation Response Team has arrived in Libya, International Development Secretary, Andrew Mitchell, has confirmed. The team of 11 stabilisation experts will assess what help the National Transitional Council (NTC) and the rest of Libya will need in the period ahead of a political settlement, with a view to supporting the UN’s post conflict planning.
The ISRT will help inform a co-ordinated international response to interim stabilisation needs in the country. The team includes experts in areas such as economics, infrastructure, essential public services, security & justice systems and politics. The core team will be provided by Britain and will also include representatives from international partners including Italy & Denmark, with others set to join in the coming weeks including the EU.
The team is deployed by the Stabilisation Unit, the Government's centre of expertise & best practice in stabilisation. It works to help prevent further violence, protect people and promote democratic political processes.
BIS: 10 years and still talking - A Trade Experts Group set up by the UK, Germany, Turkey & Indonesia has published its final report – ‘World Trade and the Doha Round’. The report argues that the Doha Round will die unless global political leaders demonstrate their commitment in the coming months.
The report argues that the failure of the Doha Round would not only impact on trade, but also on economic confidence, and more widely on stability & global governance. They call specifically on the US & China to help progress the deadlocked negotiations and ‘argue that the concessions that need to be made are relatively small in size and involve limited political pain’.
The report states that open trade promotes the economic growth that has helped lift hundreds of millions of people out of poverty since the Second World War and continues to play a key role today. The authors argue that a resolution would deliver a boost of £110bn per year to the global economy.
EU News: National budgets are being slashed while member countries are being ordered to fund €bns of loans to support a euro in crisis – Is this any way to make the EU more popular with UK voters? - The budget structure must clearly reflect the EU 2020 sustainable growth strategy, say MEPs, who also advocate new income sources for the budget, and call for an end to all rebates, exceptions and corrective mechanisms.
Freezing future budgets at the 2013 level - as demanded by some Member States – ‘is not a viable option’, said the committee. MEPs call for an increase of at least 5% over the 2013 level for the next long-term budget, known as the Multi-annual Financial Framework (MFF). If Member States disagree, then committee members challenge them to say which policy priorities should be dropped.
The Commission is to present a proposal on own resources on 29 June 2011, the same day as it presents its draft for the future MFF.
Press release & links ~ Related PR
Industry News: Sweeter Prices for the Public Sector - Public sector organisations get sweeter prices on their electricals when purchasing through Public sector at Comet.
Our Public sector discount card offers a saving of 10% on all of Comets 7,500+ products. What’s more, multiple cards can be ordered ensuring that every department of your organisation benefits from the savings.
This year Public sector at Comet will be exhibiting on stand E24 at the Public Procurement Show 2011, ExCel, London on the 14th and 15th June. Why not pay us a visit and have some candyfloss on us? You can register for your discount card there and then, ensuring your organisation gets the best prices straight away.
Click here To find out more.
Please note that previously published newsletters can be accessed from the Newsletter Archive
General News
STFC: Exactly 100 years ago, in May 1911, the New Zealand born scientist, Ernest Rutherford, published a paper in which he explained a puzzling experiment that had been carried out in Manchester 2 years earlier. It took him that long to work out what was going on.
The paper, in which Rutherford introduces the atomic nucleus, changed our world forever. Today, everyone learns about that famous experiment: the one with the alpha particles & the gold leaf. It showed for the very first time that atoms, the tiny building blocks of everything in the Universe, have internal structure that we can see. You can see a recreation of Rutherford's experiment as part of STFC's Backstage Science project.
MoD: The ship that will fulfil HMS Endurance's role as an interim Antarctic patrol vessel entered Portsmouth Naval Base for the first time on Monday 23 May 2011. The ice-breaker MV Polarbjorn - to be named HMS Protector - has been leased on a 3-year contract from Norwegian company GC Rieber Shipping and has just had an intensive 10-day refit in Odense, Denmark.
The vessel - painted in the same distinctive red & white livery as her predecessor ice patrol ships - entered Portsmouth as MV Protector under the Norwegian flag. She will be officially named HMS Protector on 1 June 2011 and will be commissioned into the Royal Navy fleet on 23 June 2011.
She will deploy on the Navy's Antarctic task in November 2011, serving in the region for the 2011-12 austral summer. Meanwhile, the long-term future of Endurance will be considered.
PCS: More than 250,000 civil & public servants in PCS started voting last week in a national strike ballot over cuts to pensions, jobs & pay. The ballot closes on 15 June 2011, with the first action possible later that month.
PCS: Members of PCS in the Forestry Commission reacted angrily to news that one in four of their jobs will be cut. The union says that the FC management is acting in bad faith by announcing such draconian cuts 3 months ahead of the independent panel's interim report and 11 months ahead of the final report.
MoD: An American & British Service personnel task force that will share experience & best practice to support wounded, injured & sick personnel will be established following last week’s meeting between US President Barack Obama and Prime Minister David Cameron.
The task force will also share experiences on how best to support transition to civilian life for those leaving the Services and how to support Service personnel, veterans & their families, in particular linking them to local communities.
DfT: Following major reforms to the Blue Badge scheme announced earlier this year, 7 major supermarket chains have now given their support for the Government’s drive to eradicate Blue Badge abuse. Responding to the concerns of disability groups, Local Transport Minister, Norman Baker, wrote to all major supermarkets urging them to do what they could to enforce the scheme on their premises.
So far Aldi, Marks & Spencer, Morrisons, Sainsbury’s, Tesco, Waitrose and Lidl have all responded positively saying that drivers found abusing designated disabled bays will be issued with parking charge notices in some circumstances, alongside other measures including car park patrols, leafleting of vehicles and requests over in-store tannoys.
DCMS: If you missed out on the chance to apply for tickets to next summer's Olympics or want to get a flavour of what London 2012 will be like, this could be your chance. The London Organising Committee of the Olympic Games and Paralympic Games (LOCOG) has announced that tickets for some of its first test events this summer are on sale to the public.
The events, which will be known as the London Prepares series, include the first competitive sports to take place on the Olympic Park and will feature top athletes from around the world. Tickets are on sale through Ticketmaster priced at between £5 & £35 and will be sold on a first come, first served basis.
Newswire – HPA: The Health Protection Agency (HPA) is aware that Germany is currently experiencing a large outbreak of haemolytic uraemic syndrome (HUS), which is a serious complication from verocytotoxin-producing E. coli (VTEC) infection that requires hospitalisation. Since the second week of May, there have been reports of approximately 214 cases of HUS and 2 people are reported to have died.
The outbreak is mainly affecting adults - almost 70% of who are female. The cases are occurring mainly in northern Germany, but there are also reports from southern & eastern Germany. England has so far seen 2 cases in German nationals with compatible symptoms. Other European countries have also seen cases of HUS and bloody diarrhoea among returning travellers.
The German authorities believe that a food source of infection is likely and early studies implicate raw tomatoes, cucumbers & lettuce. Although it is not clear whether one or more of these food items are associated with the outbreak, as a precaution they are advising people in Germany against eating raw tomatoes, cucumbers & lettuce, especially in the north of the country, until further notice.
FSA: The Food Standards Agency has been notified that Channell’s Norfolk Preserves Ltd is re-labelling its Sticky Rib Sauce and Barbecue Sauce products because they contain allergens that are not mentioned on the labels. The sauces are sold in the East Anglia region only.
MoD: A new gardening project to help provide therapy for Service personnel undergoing rehabilitation at the Defence Medical Rehabilitation Centre at Headley Court was launched last week. The idea is that the newly-refurbished greenhouse & allotment area will challenge patients with complex polytraumatic injuries and encourage them to overcome the challenges of working at different heights, standing on varying slopes & surfaces, as well as lifting & moving objects.
The gardening tasks also provide cognitive therapy for troops, with evidence suggesting that being in an outdoor environment reduces stress which can lead to improved concentration and encourage people to think through their problems or concerns.
The gardening project is the brainchild of Major Peter Le Feuvre who enlisted the help of the Queen Elizabeth Foundation, which provides intensive vocational rehabilitation for unemployed, disabled adults experiencing multiple barriers to work.
Policy Statements and Initiatives
BIS: The latest measures to help simplify development consents, by cutting red tape & creating a more open & competitive planning system, have been set out in the Government’s progress update to the Penfold Review.
The update, an important action from the Growth Review, details the progress since the Government’s response to the independent review published in November 2010.
DfE: Despite having undertaken training to achieve equivalent teacher training qualifications, qualified teachers from America, Canada, Australia & New Zealand still have to undertake further training & assessment before they are deemed ready to teach in schools in this country.
Michael Gove has recently announced that the Government intends to make changes so that teachers trained in these countries will be able to teach in our schools automatically. The proposed changes are subject to a statutory consultation (later in 2011) and could come into effect from early 2012. Ministers have also commissioned further research to see if the same changes could be applied to teachers from any other countries in future.
DCMS: The Government has unveiled new Big Society plans to make it easier & more attractive to give time & money to good causes. The Giving White Paper seeks to renew Britain’s culture of philanthropy by working with charities & businesses to support new ways for people to contribute.
It builds on other work to support philanthropy including changes to the tax system announced in the budget 2011, worth an estimated £600m to charities over the next 4 years.
DCMS: The Government has yesterday announced that it is launching a review of film policy. Former Culture Secretary, Chris Smith, will chair an 8-strong panel of industry experts including Oscar-winning actor & writer Julian Fellowes.
The panel will look across the UK film industry considering development & production, distribution & exhibition, and inward investment. The review aims to identify the best ways to support successful business models that allow the UK film industry to contribute to economic growth, nurture talent and engage with UK audiences. It is expected to report its findings later this year.
ScotGov: Offshore wind will deliver a whole new industry and a bright future for Scotland, new Energy Minister Fergus Ewing said recently on his first engagement. An offshore wind portal was launched last week to showcase what Scotland can offer indigenous industry and new investors.
DFID: Prime Minister Cameron and President Obama recently made a joint commitment to changing the lives of the 1.2bn poor people in the world today and accelerating progress towards the Millennium Development Goals by 2015.
During wide ranging talks they agreed to work together to bring peace & stability to fragile states such as Sudan and Afghanistan. They also agreed to put mechanisms in place to ensure international aid is spent more effectively & accountably.
ScotGov: In his first major policy speech to the Parliament since being re-elected as First Minister, Mr Salmond said the new Government has an 'ambitious agenda' focusing on Scotland having control of her own destiny and a new partnership - the Social Wage - between politicians, public services and people to create the social and economic circumstances to allow Scots to meet their ambitions.
Consultations
DfE: The Department for Education has announced plans for significant reductions in the bureaucracy that controls how schools manage teacher performance and deal with poorly performing teachers (consultation closes 16 August 2011). The proposed changes will make it easier for schools to manage teachers and deal effectively with the small number of poorly performing teachers.
DH: Improving vaccine uptake rates for at-risk groups and keeping a reserve of flu vaccine to ensure a reliable & safe supply are among measures set out in the first seasonal flu plan published by the Health Secretary, Andrew Lansley, last week for consultation together with a consultation reviewing the procurement of seasonal vaccine (closes 17 August 2011).
The aim of the plan is to learn from the experiences of last year’s flu season and prevent the vaccine shortages that arose in some surgeries due to localised surges in demand. The plan also includes a new emphasis on planning for different scenarios according to the nature & scale of illness to help minimise the health impacts of seasonal flu. It sets out a co-ordinated & evidence based approach to planning for the next flu season.
DfE: Education Secretary, Michael Gove MP, has launched a consultation (closes on Friday 19 August 2011) to make the school admissions process simpler, fairer & more transparent for all parents. Together the 2 current codes stretch to more than 130 pages and impose more than 600 mandatory requirements on admissions authorities (local authorities, governing bodies or Academy Trusts).
The process is complex, confusing, costly & unfair. The current Admissions Code and Appeals Code undermine parental choice. The proposed changes would see 2 new codes created containing around half as many requirements. Following the consultation period, the draft codes will be laid before parliament. The new codes will not affect the next admissions round (for entry in September 2012) but will take effect for the September 2013 intake.
Deloitte: Deloitte, the business advisory firm, has opened its annual survey of UK entrepreneurs for its report: ‘Entrepreneurship UK: 2011/12’. Now in its fourth year, Entrepreneurship UK has become a leading report reflecting the current attitudes, performance & objectives of entrepreneurs and their businesses.
The survey is open until the end of July 2011 and takes just 10 minutes to complete. The results, which will be analysed by Deloitte and the London Business School, will be published in late summer. Each entrepreneur participating in the survey will receive a copy of the ‘Entrepreneurship UK: 2011/12’ report.
EU News: Last week the European Commission published its report on ‘progress achieved in the Common Fisheries Policy over the last few years and its suggestions for fishing opportunities in EU waters in 2012’. The document sets out how the Commission intends to act on the scientific advice it receives about the state of fish stocks when proposing catch limits and quotas for next year.
The latest figures show that the state of fish stocks in European waters is slowly improving, but sufficient scientific data is still missing for the majority of the stocks, mainly due to inadequate reporting by Member States. The Commission will therefore be using a new method for setting fishing limits, notably cutting levels where insufficient data exist.
The Commission's ideas will now be the object of a wide consultation (closes on1 September 2011) and input will feed into its proposals for fishing opportunities for next year which will be adopted in the autumn.
Guidance Notes and Best Practice Guides
NICE: A new NICE guideline aims to help GPs provide quick, cost-effective treatment to improve the lives of millions of people experiencing common mental health disorders. Common mental health disorders can affect up to 15% of the population at any one time. They account for 1 in 5 of all work days lost and cost UK employers £25bn each year.
Common mental health disorders include depression, generalised anxiety disorder, panic disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and social anxiety disorder. This new NICE guideline, on the identification of & pathways to care for common mental health disorders, focuses on primary care.
NICE: The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) last week issued final guidance recommending naftidrofuryl oxalate as an option for the treatment of people who have intermittent claudication caused by peripheral arterial disease and for whom vasodilator therapy is considered appropriate after taking into account other treatment options.
WAG: Plans to help local authorities and transport providers work with the Welsh Government to protect communities from noise pollution have been published. Organisations will use 2 documents to identify areas for possible mitigation work to reduce noise and specific areas for protection against increases in noise.
DH: With summer on the horizon, this year’s Heatwave Plan has been launched by Health Secretary, Andrew Lansley. The annual plan, first published in 2004, is updated each year to provide health & social care services with emergency planning & preparedness guidance in the event of a heatwave.
It operates from 1 June to 15 September and is based on information provided by the Met Office. The Met Office can trigger 1 of 4 alert levels according to ‘threshold temperatures’ that range from the late 20s or early 30s depending on the region. In summer 2010, the highest recorded temperature was 31.7 degrees Celsius on 9 July in Gravesend, Kent.
Annual Reports
FSA: The Food Standards Agency has published its 'Annual Report of Incidents 2010'. The report includes case studies of some of the 1,505 incidents they handled during 2010 and which contributed to their overall strategic objective of safer food for the nation. The report also outlines future challenges, such as working to ensure food at the 2012 London Olympics & Paralympics venues is safe to eat.
General Reports and Other Publications
DCMS: The Government has published the results of independent research on digital radio. This includes research by Intertek into the energy consumption of radios, which shows that products are becoming more energy efficient. Also published is research into consumer behaviour and the public's willingness to pay for digital radios.
PC&PE: The Business, Innovation and Skills Committee has recently published its sixth Report of Session 2010–12, Is Kraft working for Cadbury? (HC 871), which considers undertakings given by Kraft to the Committee in the previous Parliament.
PC&PE: The House of Lords EU Sub-Committee on Home Affairs said that the European Commission’s plans for implementing the EU's Internal Security Strategy could raise standards among Member States and enhance the EU's security as a whole.
The committee says that the 5 objectives covered by the Commission's proposals are sensible, practical & achievable. Of these, improving cyber-security is most urgent. The committee says more funding will be needed for the Commission’s proposed new Cybercrime Centre, and that Europol should take responsibility for the Centre rather than establishing a separate agency.
PC&PE: There is a convincing case for reducing the corporation tax rate in Northern Ireland, not least so it can better compete with the Republic of Ireland, concludes the Northern Ireland Affairs Committee in a report published last week.
The committee’s report uses 12.5% as a benchmark for the lower rate of corporation tax, but suggests that on the basis that the decision is devolved to the Northern Ireland executive it may, in due course, choose a lower rate.
PC&PE: The Public Accounts Committee has released a report on Departmental Business Plans which map out how cuts recommended from the 2010 Spending Review will be made. The Business Plans also contain key indicators of input & impact which the Government intends should provide high level accountability to Parliament and others for overall departmental performance.
The Plans will also be a source of information for Parliament as they underpin the allocation of resources within departments and the subsequent accountability for the use of those resources. The management of the full range of departmental activity, however, will require more detailed operational planning & information.
HEFCE: HEFCE's support for strategically important & vulnerable subjects (SIVS) has enabled courses in these subjects to be sustained, has built research capacity and provided value for money, according to an evaluation published last week.
The evaluation report indicates that the programme of support contributed strongly to sustaining provision in SIVS, which include chemistry, physics, engineering & maths, as well as modern languages and quantitative social sciences. Without HEFCE-funded SIVS interventions it is unlikely that provision would have been sustained to the same extent.
NAO: The Mortgage Rescue Scheme, launched in January 2009 by the Department for Communities and Local Government, in 2 years achieved fewer than half of the rescues expected. The National Audit Office has reported that the Department directly helped 2,600 households avoid repossession & homelessness at a cost of in excess of £240m - but it originally expected to help 6,000 households for £205m.
The report concludes that the Department did not adequately test the assumptions underpinning the Scheme’s business case, and that it could have acted earlier to improve value for money.
Newswire – TUC: Disabled people were ‘urged to continue their resistance to the government spending cuts which are hitting every aspect of their lives’ at the TUC's annual disability conference last week. A new TUC briefing - Disabled people fighting the cuts - issued to coincide with the conference ‘reveals the true impact of the government's spending cuts on disabled people, and encourages unions and disabled people to fight back’.
IfG: Frequent reshuffles ‘damage the quality of government’ according to a new report from the Institute for Government. In The Challenge of Being a Minister, the Institute finds that in the UK most ministers get just over 2 years to prove themselves in a job before being moved on. Many ministers & civil servants interviewed for the report said a high turnover rate is damaging to ministerial effectiveness.
IPCC: Leicestershire Police’s error in not identifying Fiona Pilkington and her children as a vulnerable family lay at the core of their failure to provide a cohesive & effective approach to the anti-social behaviour the family suffered, an Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) investigation published last week has found. The 180-page investigation report by the IPCC contains 92 findings on interaction police had with the family and on force procedures & systems.
PC&PE: The Commons Science and Technology Committee has published its report on the UK Centre for Medical Research & Innovation and says it ‘agrees with, and commends, the scientific vision for the centre but expresses reservations about the project's location’.
It says the case for the centre's central London location near St Pancras station was not overwhelming and it could have been sited elsewhere. While the decision over location cannot be reversed, the committee urges the centre to develop plans and put in place measures so that those outside the South-East are part of the project and obtain maximum benefit.
PC&PE: The Commons Public Accounts Committee has published a report which, on the basis of evidence from HM Treasury and the Department of Health, examines the cost of public service pensions and the impact of the 2007-08 changes.
The Rt Hon Margaret Hodge MP, Chair of the Committee of Public Accounts, said: "Government projections of the future cost of public service pensions suggest that the changes made in 2007-2008 will stabilise costs at around 1% of GDP, thereby bringing substantial savings to the taxpayer”.
The Treasury expects the majority of savings to come from cost sharing & capping, a reform designed to ensure that employees bear a greater share of future costs. However, implementation has been deferred because of the Treasury’s discount rate review, and remains on hold while the Government consults on the recommendations put forward by the Hutton Commission.
As soon as possible after the consultation, the Treasury needs to publish its timetable for implementing this mechanism or an alternative scheme, as well as the expected savings.
AC: The challenges faced by the country's 152 council highways authorities are the subject of a new Audit Commission report Going the Distance: Achieving better value for money in road maintenance. Between them, council highways authorities are responsible for 98% of the country's roads, spending a total of £2.3bn in 2009/10. Yet, in response to increasing financial pressure on councils, highways budgets are facing significant cuts.
The Commission has found that the cost of maintaining roads is now 5% higher than it was 10 years ago, in part due to inflation in road materials and construction costs.
NO: Local Government Ombudsman, Dr Jane Martin, has issued a report which is critical of the City of London’s adult social care team’s failure to pay agreed funding for respite care for over 4.5 years. ‘Mrs Rose’ has an advanced form of dementia and is completely dependent upon others for all aspects of her personal care & welfare. ‘Ms White’, her daughter, is in her seventies and has cared for her mother at home for over 13 years.
In 2005, the Council agreed to provide a direct payment for 30 hours per week of personal care for Mrs Rose. It agreed an additional carer’s respite payment to Ms White of £960 per month, to enable Ms White to have regular breaks from the demands of caring for her mother. Due to an administrative error, the Council never made any respite care payments to Ms White.
ESRC: Where you live, how old you are & whether you're male or female all affect your chances of giving up smoking. These are the findings of a study which suggests that while NHS stop smoking services are effective in supporting some smokers to quit there are significant differences in the longer term success rates for specific groups who are trying to give up smoking.
The study, commissioned by the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) and undertaken by the UK Centre for Tobacco Control Studies (UKCTCS), reviewed published studies from between 1990 & 2007 to establish success rates for the NHS smoking cessation services.
HO: The UK Border Agency has published a report on progress made by the asylum improvement project, which was set up to explore new ways to speed up the processing of asylum applications. The report outlines the progress we have made so far on 25 elements of the project and explains the next steps for asylum reform. It is too early to make a robust assessment of the impact of all 25 elements of the project, but the Home Office will do so over the coming months, as part of the next phase of asylum reform.
LSIS: The further education & skills sector can and should play a greater role in generating jobs and setting up businesses, a major new report suggests. The report, The Further Education and Skills Sector in 2020: A Social Productivity Approach, is published by the 2020 Public Sector Hub at the RSA and features interviews with over 30 stakeholders.
It was commissioned by the Learning and Skills Improvement Service (LSIS), the improvement body for the sector, to develop independent thinking on possible futures for further education & skills.
Newswire – RF: The living standards of people on low to middle incomes were already faltering prior to the recession, and it is no longer safe to assume they will rise when steady economic growth returns, according to new analysis by the independent think tank the Resolution Foundation. The major new report, Growth without gain?, reveals that even during the boom years, people on low to middle incomes were losing out.
PC&PE: The House of Lords Science and Technology Committee has reported its findings following an investigation into the use of public procurement as a tool to stimulate innovation. In 2009-10, public procurement was valued at over £236bn, approximately 15% of GDP.
Government is ‘the single largest customer’ in the UK. This magnitude of expenditure provides enormous potential to stimulate innovation & encourage economic growth – a potential which, according to the Committee, is not being realised.
Legislation / Legal
Newswire – ICO: Organisations & businesses that run websites aimed at UK consumers are being given up to 12 months to ‘get their house in order’ before enforcement of the new EU cookies law begins, Information Commissioner, Christopher Graham said last week.
EU Legislation, Initiatives, etc.
EU News: By proposing to enhance cooperation on migration, mobility & security, the Commission hopes to reinforce long term relations between the EU and the countries of North Africa. The proposed set of measures will help support the democratic & economic transition in the region, promote people to people contacts across the Mediterranean and contribute to more effectively preventing irregular migration. These elements will now be discussed by the European Council on 24 June 2011.
Due to the countries' geographic position, their importance as countries of origin or of transit of irregular migration towards the EU, as well as countries of destination for persons in need of international protection, the Commission proposes to offer the possibility of developing a Dialogue on Mobility, Migration and Security, first of all to Tunisia, Morocco and Egypt
EU News: Body scanning should be voluntary for passengers at EU airports, argued Parliament's Transport Committee last week. If scanners are used, health & fundamental rights must be safeguarded along with personal data, dignity & privacy. No body images should be seen and, for health reasons, no X-ray-based scanners should be allowed at EU airports, say MEPs. They also restate their view that the ban on carrying liquids on planes should be lifted by 2013.
The European Commission intends to propose new rules this summer that would add body scanners to the list of EU-authorised methods for screening passengers. Some Member States (the UK, the Netherlands, Germany, Italy, France & Finland), have already tested such scanners. Parliament will have a veto right over the new rules once they are drafted but at this stage MEPs are sending an advance signal of their wishes.
EU News: Motorists who speed, ignore red lights or drink & drive when in a country other than their own will be brought to book more easily, thanks to closer co-operation between European police forces and EU-wide enforcement of traffic rules, under plans approved last week by Parliament's Transport Committee.
Traffic police authorities will be able to pursue offenders in their home country by using the EUROCARIS data exchange system. Speeding, driving under the influence of drink or drugs, failure to wear seatbelts, illegal use of mobile phones, using bus lanes, not wearing helmets when riding a motorcycle and crossing red lights are among the offences covered by the legislation.
EU News: From 1 June 2011 onwards, all 143 nuclear power plants in the EU will be re-assessed using EU wide criteria. These are comprehensive tests as the Commission has called for which embrace both natural & man made hazards (i.e. effects of airplane crashes and terrorist attacks). The European Commission and the European Nuclear Safety Regulators' Group (ENSREG) agreed last week on the criteria covered and the way controls will be done.
EU News: In the last few years, technological change and, in particular, the growing importance of online activities, have completely changed the world in which Intellectual property rights (IPR) operate. The existing mix of European & national rules are no longer adapted and need to be modernised.
That is why the Commission has adopted a comprehensive strategy to revamp the legal framework in which IPR operate. The objective is to enable inventors, creators, users & consumers to adapt to the new circumstances and to enhance new business opportunities.
EU News: The EP Economics Committee last week voted to uphold the increased bank deposit protection limit of €100,000, but chose to allow Member States more leeway over how they design their schemes. The schemes must be fully funded within 15 years instead of the Commission's proposed 10, said MEPs, who also voted for payouts to be made within 5 working days rather than 7.
EU News: Catherine Ashton, EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy/Commission Vice-President and Štefan Füle, EU Commissioner for Enlargement and Neighbourhood Policy, last week launched a new European Neighbourhood Policy (ENP) – ‘confirming the EU’s determined and reinforced engagement with its neighbours’.
The proposal sets out the main priorities & directions of a revitalised ENP strategy which seeks to strengthen individual & regional relationships between the EU & countries in its neighbourhood through a ‘more funds for more reform’ approach - making more additional funds available, but with more mutual accountability.
EU News: The European Commission has, together with the UN Environment Programme, launched 2 major reports that call for a radical change in the way we use scarce resources. The first report shows the immense potential for increasing metal recycling rates. Only 18 metals are recycled more than 50%, and the majority do not even attain a 1% recycling rate.
The second report, first presented at the UN Sustainable Development Commission on 18 May 2011, underlines the need for a radical decoupling to avoid a global resource crunch by 2050, and provides science-based scenarios on future resource consumption.
EU News: A Europe-wide register aims to help Europeans actively engage in decisions affecting the environment. New online maps published last week by the European Commission and the European Environment Agency, in close cooperation with the Joint Research Centre, the Commission's in-house science service, allow citizens to pinpoint the main diffuse sources of air pollution, such as transport and aviation.
The new set of 32 maps shows where certain pollutants such as nitrogen oxides and particulate matter are released. It complements existing data on emissions from individual industrial plants from the European Pollutant Release and Transfer Register (E-PRTR).
EU News: Close to 85.8% of respondents to a recent public consultation on the future of LIFE+, the European Commission's environmental funding tool, consider that there is a need for a specific EU financial instrument for environment & climate action.
The results of these consultations will be factored in a combined impact assessment and ex-ante evaluation of a successor for LIFE+. The Commission intends to prepare a proposal for a future financial instrument for the environment and climate action by the end of 2011.
EU News: Last week, European Commission Vice President, Antonio Tajani, inaugurated a new network of Member States' SME Envoys at the SBA conference ‘Mobilising SMEs for the Future of Europe’ in Budapest. As SMEs are affected by policies originating in different government departments ranging from tax to financial and from regulatory to education, the SME envoys should help small businesses to concentrate on their core business to strive and create jobs.
EU News: Last week the European Commission published its report on ‘progress achieved in the Common Fisheries Policy over the last few years and its suggestions for fishing opportunities in EU waters in 2012’. The document sets out how the Commission intends to act on the scientific advice
it receives about the state of fish stocks when proposing catch limits and quotas for next year. The Commission's ideas will now be the object of a wide consultation (closes on1 September 2011) – See ‘Consultations’ section for more information.
Charity and Voluntary Sector
BHF: Last week was National Vegetarian Week and some of you might be considering some time-off from meat and eating more vegetarian alternatives like beans, lentils, tofu or nuts. The British Heart Foundation's senior dietician Victoria Taylor suggests 3 delicious and healthy vegetarian meals for you to enjoy.
While a heart healthy diet doesn’t need to exclude meat, this is the perfect time to take the chance to try some different, meat-free meals that not only taste good, but will also add some variety into your diet. To replace meat, try incorporating alternative sources of protein like beans, lentils and tofu. As well as providing fibre & protein, these foods contain essential minerals like iron and one portion a day counts towards your five a day.
AUK: New research shows that half of people over 60 have never had any contact with their local councillor, highlighting the huge challenge councillors face to reach out and make contact with older people. The good news is that the research also shows when they are in contact with councillors, older people are more likely than younger age groups to think councillors do a good job.
In a survey conducted by TNS on behalf of Age UK, 65% of older people said they were satisfied with the contact, compared to just 57% of 16-59 year olds. It also reveals more than 4 in 10 people over 60 believe that local councillors are working to improve the community in ways that will benefit older people.
DUK: Diabetes UK has launched a unique annuity comparison service aiming to give people with diabetes the very best deal on their pensions, without any need for a GP assessment. They are urging people approaching retirement to act now to find the best possible deal as retirement income from pension plans has slumped by a third in the last five years.
DUK: Diabetes UK, along with the British Heart Foundation, Children’s Food Campaign and Which?, has written to Secretary of State for Health, Andrew Lansley, calling for clear & easy-to-understand food labels to allow people to tell quickly & easily what’s in the food they’re buying.
The organisations have come together, ahead of an EU vote on 5 July 2011, to urge that UK representatives call strongly for mandatory front-of-pack (FOP) labelling which includes information on energy, fat, saturated fat, sugar & salt.
DCMS: The Government has unveiled new Big Society plans to make it easier & more attractive to give time and money to good causes. The Giving White Paper seeks to renew Britain’s culture of philanthropy by working with charities and businesses to support new ways for people to contribute – See ‘ Policy Statements & Initiatives’ section for more information.
Business and Other Briefings
PC&PE: There is a convincing case for reducing the corporation tax rate in Northern Ireland, not least so it can better compete with the Republic of Ireland, concludes the Northern Ireland Affairs Committee in a report published last week – See ‘General Reports and Other Publications’ section for more information.
Industry News
Ofgem: Energy regulator Ofgem last week announced that 6 innovative projects are eligible to compete for a share of £64m in the second year of the £500m Low Carbon Networks (LCN) Fund. Ofgem set up the LCN Fund as part of the 2010-2015 electricity distribution price control.
It will encourage Britain’s electricity distribution network operators (DNOs) to develop projects that will help energy networks and energy consumers to make the crucial transition to a low carbon economy. The lessons learned from LCN Fund projects will be shared across the industry.
Ofgem: Green Energy Transmission (GET), a consortium comprising Equitix Ltd and AMP Capital Investors, together with Balfour Beatty Capital Limited has been selected by Ofgem EServe as the preferred bidder to own & operate the high voltage transmission link to the 500 MW Greater Gabbard offshore wind farm.
Forthcoming Event
NE: At a ‘one stop’ stand at Beef Expo 2011 at Newark Showground last week, farmers were able to get expert advice about Environmental Stewardship (ES) schemes from Natural England staff and meet representatives from other organisations at a single information point.
Natural England will be present alongside other agencies at several national farming events this year, where advisers will be happy to answer queries and provide information & advice. Visit us at:
Cereals: 16-17 June – Boothby Graffoe, nr Lincoln
Dairy and Livestock Show: 6-7 September – NEC Birmingham
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General News
STFC: Exactly 100 years ago, in May 1911, the New Zealand born scientist, Ernest Rutherford, published a paper in which he explained a puzzling experiment that had been carried out in Manchester two years earlier. It took him that long to work out what was going on.
The paper, in which
Rutherford introduces the atomic nucleus, changed our world forever. Today, everyone learns about that famous experiment: the one with the alpha particles and the gold leaf. It showed for the very first time that atoms, the tiny building blocks of everything in the Universe, have internal structure that we can see. You can see a recreation of
Rutherford 's experiment as part of STFC's Backstage Science project.
Press release & links
MoD: The ship that will fulfil HMS Endurance's role as an interim Antarctic patrol vessel entered Portsmouth Naval Base for the first time on Monday 23 May 2011. The ice-breaker MV Polarbjorn - to be named HMS Protector - has been leased on a 3-year contract from Norwegian company GC Rieber Shipping and has just had an intensive ten-day refit in Odense, Denmark.
The vessel - painted in the same distinctive red and white livery as her predecessor ice patrol ships - entered
Portsmouth as MV Protector under the Norwegian flag. She will be officially named HMS Protector on 1 June 2011 and will be commissioned into the Royal Navy fleet on 23 June 2011. She will deploy on the Navy's Antarctic task in November 2011, serving in the region for the 2011-12 austral summer. Meanwhile, the long-term future of Endurance will be considered.
Press release & links
PCS: More than a quarter of a million civil & public servants in PCS started voting last week in a national strike ballot over cuts to pensions, jobs & pay. The ballot closes on 15 June 2011, with the first action possible later that month
Press release & links
PCS: Members of PCS in the Forestry Commission reacted angrily to news that one in four of their jobs will be cut. The union says that the Forestry Commission management is acting in bad faith by announcing such draconian cuts 3 months ahead of the independent panel's interim report and 11 months ahead of the final report.
Press release & links
MoD: An American & British Service personnel task force which will share experience & best practice to support wounded, injured & sick personnel will be established following last week’s meeting between US President Barack Obama and Prime Minister David Cameron.
The task force will also share experiences on how best to support transition to civilian life for those leaving the Services and how to support Service personnel, veterans and their families, in particular linking them to local communities.
Press release & links
DfT: Following major reforms to the Blue Badge scheme announced earlier this year, 7 major supermarket chains have now given their support for the Government’s drive to eradicate Blue Badge abuse. Responding to the concerns of disability groups, Local Transport Minister Norman Baker wrote to all major supermarkets urging them to do what they could to enforce the scheme on their premises.
So far Aldi, Marks and Spencer, Morrisons, Sainsbury’s, Tesco, Waitrose and Lidl have all responded positively saying that drivers found abusing designated disabled bays will be issued with parking charge notices in some circumstances, alongside other measures including car park patrols, leafleting of vehicles and requests over in-store tannoys.
Press release & links
DCMS: If you missed out on the chance to apply for tickets to next summer's Olympics or want to get a flavour of what London 2012 will be like, this could be your chance. The London Organising Committee of the Olympic Games and Paralympic Games (LOCOG) has announced that tickets for some of its first test events this summer are on sale to the public.
The events, which will be known as the
London Prepares series, include the first competitive sports to take place on the Olympic Park and will feature top athletes from around the world. Tickets are on sale through Ticketmaster priced at between £5 & £35 and will be sold on a first come, first served basis.
Press release & links
Newswire – HPA: The Health Protection Agency (HPA) is aware that
is currently experiencing a large outbreak of haemolytic uraemic syndrome (HUS), which is a serious complication from verocytotoxin-producing E. coli (VTEC) infection that requires hospitalisation. Since the second week of May, there have been reports of approximately 214 cases of HUS and 2 people are reported to have died.
The outbreak is mainly affecting adults - almost 70% of who are female. The cases are occurring mainly in northern , but there are also reports from southern and eastern
.
has so far seen two cases in German nationals with compatible symptoms. Other European countries have also seen cases of HUS and bloody diarrhoea among returning travellers.
The German authorities believe that a food source of infection is likely, and, early studies implicate raw tomatoes, cucumbers and lettuce. Although it is not clear whether one or more of these food items are associated with the outbreak, as a precaution they are advising people in Germany against eating raw tomatoes, cucumbers and lettuce, especially in the north of the country, until further notice.
Press release & links ~ FSA press release
FSA: The Food Standards Agency has been notified that Channell’s Norfolk Preserves Ltd is re-labelling its Sticky Rib Sauce and Barbecue Sauce products because they contain allergens that are not mentioned on the labels. The sauces are sold in the
region only.
Press release & links
MoD: A new gardening project to help provide therapy for Service personnel undergoing rehabilitation at the Defence Medical Rehabilitation Centre at Headley Court was launched last week. The idea is that the newly-refurbished greenhouse & allotment area will challenge patients with complex polytraumatic injuries and encourage them to overcome the challenges of working at different heights, standing on varying slopes and surfaces, as well as lifting and moving objects.
The gardening tasks also provide cognitive therapy for troops, with evidence suggesting that being in an outdoor environment reduces stress which can lead to improved concentration and encourage people to think through their problems or concerns.
The gardening project is the brainchild of Major Peter Le Feuvre who enlisted the help of the Queen Elizabeth Foundation which provides intensive vocational rehabilitation for unemployed, disabled adults experiencing multiple barriers to work.
Press release & links ~ Queen Elizabeth Foundation
Policy Statements and Initiatives
BIS: The latest measures to help simplify development consents, by cutting red tape & creating a more open & competitive planning system, have been set out in the Government’s progress update to the Penfold Review.
The update, an important action from the Growth Review, details the progress since the Government’s response to the independent review published in November 2010.
Press release ~ Penfold Review of non-planning consents
DfE: Despite having undertaken training to achieve equivalent teacher training qualifications, qualified teachers from America, Canada, Australia & New Zealand still have to undertake further training & assessment before they are deemed ready to teach in schools in this country.
Michael Gove has recently announced that the Government intends to make changes so that teachers trained in these countries will be able to teach in our schools automatically. The proposed changes are subject to a statutory consultation (later in 2011) and could come into effect from early 2012. Ministers have also commissioned further research to see if the same changes could be applied to teachers from any other countries in future.
Press release & links
DCMS: The Government has unveiled new Big Society plans to make it easier & more attractive to give time & money to good causes. The Giving White Paper seeks to renew
’s culture of philanthropy by working with charities & businesses to support new ways for people to contribute.
It builds on other work to support philanthropy including changes to the tax system announced in the budget 2011, worth an estimated £600m to charities over the next 4 years.
Press release & links
DCMS: The Government has yesterday announced that it is launching a review of film policy. Former Culture Secretary, Chris Smith, will chair an 8-strong panel of industry experts including Oscar-winning actor & writer Julian Fellowes.
The panel will look across the
film industry considering development & production, distribution & exhibition, and inward investment. The review aims to identify the best ways to support successful business models that allow the film industry to contribute to economic growth, nurture talent and engage with
audiences. It is expected to report its findings later this year.
Press release & links
ScotGov: Offshore wind will deliver a whole new industry and a bright future for
, new Energy Minister Fergus Ewing said recently on his first engagement. An offshore wind portal was launched last week to showcase what
can offer indigenous industry and new investors.
Press release & links
FID: Prime Minister Cameron and President Obama recently made a joint commitment to changing the lives of the 1.2bn poor people in the world today and accelerating progress towards the Millennium Development Goals by 2015.
During wide ranging talks they agreed to work together to bring peace & stability to fragile states such as and
. They also agreed to put mechanisms in place to ensure international aid is spent more effectively & accountably.
Press release & links
ScotGov: In his first major policy speech to the Parliament since being re-elected as First Minister, Mr Salmond said the new Government has an 'ambitious agenda' focusing on Scotland having control of her own destiny and a new partnership - the Social Wage - between politicians, public services and people to create the social and economic circumstances to allow Scots to meet their ambitions.
Press release ~ Read the First Minister's speech
Consultations
DfE: The Department for Education has announced plans for significant reductions in the bureaucracy that controls how schools manage teacher performance and deal with poorly performing teachers (consultation closes 16 August 2011). The proposed changes will make it easier for schools to manage teachers and deal effectively with the small number of poorly performing teachers.
Press release & links ~ Proposed changes to performance management & capability arrangements for teachers
DH: Improving vaccine uptake rates for at-risk groups and keeping a reserve of flu vaccine to ensure a reliable & safe supply are among measures set out in the first seasonal flu plan published by the Health Secretary, Andrew Lansley, last week for consultation together with a consultation reviewing the procurement of seasonal vaccine (closes 17 August 2011).
The aim of the plan is to learn from the experiences of last year’s flu season and prevent the vaccine shortages that arose in some surgeries due to localised surges in demand. The plan also includes a new emphasis on planning for different scenarios according to the nature & scale of illness to help minimise the health impacts of seasonal flu. It sets out a co-ordinated & evidence based approach to planning for the next flu season.
Press release & links ~ Consultation ~ Seasonal flu plan Winter 2011/12 ~ Related HPA PR
DfE: Education Secretary, Michael Gove MP, has launched a consultation (closes on Friday 19 August 2011) to make the school admissions process simpler, fairer & more transparent for all parents. Together the 2 current codes stretch to more than 130 pages and impose more than 600 mandatory requirements on admissions authorities (local authorities, governing bodies or Academy Trusts).
The process is complex, confusing, costly & unfair. The current Admissions Code and Appeals Code undermine parental choice. The proposed changes would see 2 new codes created containing around half as many requirements. Following the consultation period, the draft codes will be laid before parliament. The new codes will not affect the next admissions round (for entry in September 2012) but will take effect for the September 2013 intake.
Press release ~ New admissions code: more places in good schools, a fairer & simpler system
Deloitte: Deloitte, the business advisory firm, has opened its annual survey of entrepreneurs for its report: ‘Entrepreneurship
: 2011/12’. Now in its fourth year, Entrepreneurship UK has become a leading report reflecting the current attitudes, performance & objectives of entrepreneurs and their businesses.
The survey is open until the end of July 2011 and takes just 10 minutes to complete. The results, which will be analysed by Deloitte and the London Business School, will be published in late summer. Each entrepreneur participating in the survey will receive a copy of the ‘Entrepreneurship
: 2011/12’ report.
Press release & links
EU News: Last week the European Commission published its report on ‘progress achieved in the Common Fisheries Policy over the last few years and its suggestions for fishing opportunities in EU waters in 2012’. The document sets out how the Commission intends to act on the scientific advice it receives about the state of fish stocks when proposing catch limits and quotas for next year.
The latest figures show that the state of fish stocks in European waters is slowly improving, but sufficient scientific data is still missing for the majority of the stocks, mainly due to inadequate reporting by Member States. The Commission will therefore be using a new method for setting fishing limits, notably cutting levels where insufficient data exist.
The Commission's ideas will now be the object of a wide consultation (closes on 1 September 2011) and input will feed into its proposals for fishing opportunities for next year which will be adopted in the autumn.
Press release & links ~ International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES) ~ Advisory Committee for Fisheries and Aquaculture (ACFA)
Guidance Notes and Best Practice Guides
NICE: A new NICE guideline aims to help GPs provide quick, cost-effective treatment to improve the lives of millions of people experiencing common mental health disorders. Common mental health disorders can affect up to 15% of the population at any one time. They account for 1 in 5 of all work days lost and cost
employers £25bn each year.
Common mental health disorders include depression, generalised anxiety disorder, panic disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and social anxiety disorder. This new NICE guideline, on the identification of & pathways to care for common mental health disorders, focuses on primary care.
Press release & links
NICE: The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) last week issued final guidance recommending naftidrofuryl oxalate as an option for the treatment of people who have intermittent claudication caused by peripheral arterial disease and for whom vasodilator therapy is considered appropriate after taking into account other treatment options.
Press release & links
WAG: Plans to help local authorities and transport providers work with the Welsh Government to protect communities from noise pollution have been published. Organisations will use 2 documents to identify areas for possible mitigation work to reduce noise and specific areas for protection against increases in noise.
Press release & links
DH: With summer on the horizon, this year’s Heatwave Plan has been launched by Health Secretary, Andrew Lansley. The annual plan, first published in 2004, is updated each year to provide health & social care services with emergency planning & preparedness guidance in the event of a heatwave.
It operates from 1 June to 15 September and is based on information provided by the Met Office. The Met Office can trigger 1 of 4 alert levels according to ‘threshold temperatures’ that range from the late 20s or early 30s depending on the region. In summer 2010, the highest recorded temperature was 31.7 degrees Celsius on 9 July in
Gravesend, .
Press release & links
Annual Reports
FSA: The Food Standards Agency has published its 'Annual Report of Incidents 2010'. The report includes case studies of some of the 1,505 incidents they handled during 2010 and which contributed to their overall strategic objective of safer food for the nation. The report also outlines future challenges, such as working to ensure food at the 2012 London Olympics & Paralympics venues is safe to eat.
Press release & links
General Reports and Other Publications
DCMS: The Government has published the results of independent research on digital radio. This includes research by Intertek into the energy consumption of radios, which shows that products are becoming more energy efficient. Also published is research into consumer behaviour and the public's willingness to pay for digital radios.
Press release & links
PC&PE: The Business, Innovation and Skills Committee has recently published its sixth Report of Session 2010–12, Is Kraft working for Cadbury? (HC 871), which considers undertakings given by Kraft to the Committee in the previous Parliament.
Press release & links ~ Comment from Unite the union
PC&PE: The House of Lords EU Sub-Committee on Home Affairs said that the European Commission’s plans for implementing the EU's Internal Security Strategy could raise standards among Member States and enhance the EU's security as a whole.
The committee says that the 5 objectives covered by the Commission's proposals are sensible, practical & achievable. Of these, improving cyber-security is most urgent. The committee says more funding will be needed for the Commission’s proposed new Cybercrime Centre, and that Europol should take responsibility for the Centre rather than establishing a separate agency.
Press release & links
PC&PE: There is a convincing case for reducing the corporation tax rate in Northern Ireland, not least so it can better compete with the Republic of Ireland, concludes the Northern Ireland Affairs Committee in a report published last week.
The committee’s report uses 12.5% as a benchmark for the lower rate of corporation tax, but suggests that on the basis that the decision is devolved to the
executive it may, in due course, choose a lower rate.
Press release & links ~ ScotGov comment
PC&PE: The Public Accounts Committee has released a report on Departmental Business Plans which map out how cuts recommended from the 2010 Spending Review will be made. The Business Plans also contain key indicators of input & impact which the Government intends should provide high level accountability to Parliament and others for overall departmental performance.
The Plans will also be a source of information for Parliament as they underpin the allocation of resources within departments and the subsequent accountability for the use of those resources. The management of the full range of departmental activity, however, will require more detailed operational planning & information.
Press release & links
HEFCE: HEFCE's support for strategically important & vulnerable subjects (SIVS) has enabled courses in these subjects to be sustained, has built research capacity and provided value for money, according to an evaluation published last week.
The evaluation report indicates that the programme of support contributed strongly to sustaining provision in SIVS, which include chemistry, physics, engineering & maths, as well as modern languages and quantitative social sciences. Without HEFCE-funded SIVS interventions it is unlikely that provision would have been sustained to the same extent.
Press release & links
NAO: The Mortgage Rescue Scheme, launched in January 2009 by the Department for Communities and Local Government, in 2 years achieved fewer than half of the rescues expected. The National Audit Office has reported that the Department directly helped 2,600 households avoid repossession & homelessness at a cost of in excess of £240m - but it originally expected to help 6,000 households for £205m.
The report concludes that the Department did not adequately test the assumptions underpinning the Scheme’s business case, and that it could have acted earlier to improve value for money.
Press release & links
Newswire – TUC: Disabled people were ‘urged to continue their resistance to the government spending cuts which are hitting every aspect of their lives’ at the TUC's annual disability conference last week. A new TUC briefing - Disabled people fighting the cuts - issued to coincide with the conference ‘reveals the true impact of the government's spending cuts on disabled people, and encourages unions and disabled people to fight back’.
Press release & links
IfG: Frequent reshuffles ‘damage the quality of government’ according to a new report from the Institute for Government. In The Challenge of Being a Minister, the Institute finds that in the
most ministers get just over 2 years to prove themselves in a job before being moved on. Many ministers & civil servants interviewed for the report said a high turnover rate is damaging to ministerial effectiveness.
Press release & links
IPCC: Leicestershire Police’s error in not identifying Fiona Pilkington and her children as a vulnerable family lay at the core of their failure to provide a cohesive & effective approach to the anti-social behaviour the family suffered, an Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) investigation published last week has found. The 180-page investigation report by the IPCC contains 92 findings on interaction police had with the family and on force procedures & systems.
Press release & links ~ EHRC comment
PC&PE: The Commons Science and Technology Committee has published its report on the UK Centre for Medical Research & Innovation and says it ‘agrees with, and commends, the scientific vision for the centre but expresses reservations about the project's location’.
It says the case for the centre's central
London location near St Pancras station was not overwhelming and it could have been sited elsewhere. While the decision over location cannot be reversed, the committee urges the centre to develop plans and put in place measures so that those outside the South-East are part of the project and obtain maximum benefit.
Press release & links
PC&PE: The Commons Public Accounts Committee has published a report which, on the basis of evidence from HM Treasury and the Department of Health, examines the cost of public service pensions and the impact of the 2007-08 changes.
The Rt Hon Margaret Hodge MP, Chair of the Committee of Public Accounts, said: "Government projections of the future cost of public service pensions suggest that the changes made in 2007-2008 will stabilise costs at around 1% of GDP, thereby bringing substantial savings to the taxpayer”.
The Treasury expects the majority of savings to come from cost sharing & capping, a reform designed to ensure that employees bear a greater share of future costs. However, implementation has been deferred because of the Treasury’s discount rate review, and remains on hold while the Government consults on the recommendations put forward by the Hutton Commission. As soon as possible after the consultation, the Treasury needs to publish its timetable for implementing this mechanism or an alternative scheme, as well as the expected savings.
Press release & links ~ TUC comment ~ PCS union comment
AC: The challenges faced by the country's 152 council highways authorities are the subject of a new Audit Commission report Going the Distance: Achieving better value for money in road maintenance. Between them, council highways authorities are responsible for 98% of the country's roads, spending a total of £2.3bn in 2009/10. Yet, in response to increasing financial pressure on councils, highways budgets are facing significant cuts.
The Commission has found that the cost of maintaining roads is now 5% higher than it was 10 years ago, in part due to inflation in road materials and construction costs.
Press release & Links
NO: Local Government Ombudsman, Dr Jane Martin, has issued a report which is critical of the City of
London ’s adult social care team’s failure to pay agreed funding for respite care for over 4.5 years. ‘Mrs Rose’ has an advanced form of dementia and is completely dependent upon others for all aspects of her personal care & welfare. ‘Ms White’, her daughter, is in her seventies and has cared for her mother at home for over 13 years.
In 2005, the Council agreed to provide a direct payment for 30 hours per week of personal care for Mrs Rose. It agreed an additional carer’s respite payment to Ms White of £960 per month, to enable Ms White to have regular breaks from the demands of caring for her mother. Due to an administrative error, the Council never made any respite care payments to Ms White.
Press release & links
ESRC: Where you live, how old you are & whether you're male or female all affect your chances of giving up smoking. These are the findings of a study which suggests that while NHS stop smoking services are effective in supporting some smokers to quit there are significant differences in the longer term success rates for specific groups who are trying to give up smoking.
The study, commissioned by the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) and undertaken by the UK Centre for Tobacco Control Studies (UKCTCS), reviewed published studies from between 1990 & 2007 to establish success rates for the NHS smoking cessation services.
Press release & links
HO: The UK Border Agency has published a report on progress made by the asylum improvement project, which was set up to explore new ways to speed up the processing of asylum applications. The report outlines the progress we have made so far on 25 elements of the project and explains the next steps for asylum reform. It is too early to make a robust assessment of the impact of all 25 elements of the project, but the Home Office will do so over the coming months, as part of the next phase of asylum reform.
Press release
LSIS: The further education & skills sector can and should play a greater role in generating jobs and setting up businesses, a major new report suggests. The report, The Further Education and Skills Sector in 2020: A Social Productivity Approach, is published by the 2020 Public Sector Hub at the RSA and features interviews with over 30 stakeholders.
It was commissioned by the Learning and Skills Improvement Service (LSIS), the improvement body for the sector, to develop independent thinking on possible futures for further education & skills.
Press release ~ The Further Education and Skills Sector in 2020: A Social Productivity Approach
Newswire – RF: The living standards of people on low to middle incomes were already faltering prior to the recession, and it is no longer safe to assume they will rise when steady economic growth returns, according to new analysis by the independent think tank the Resolution Foundation. The major new report, Growth without gain?, reveals that even during the boom years, people on low to middle incomes were losing out.
Press release & Links ~ TUC comment
PC&PE: The House of Lords Science and Technology Committee has reported its findings following an investigation into the use of public procurement as a tool to stimulate innovation. In 2009-10, public procurement was valued at over £236bn, approximately 15% of GDP.
Government is ‘the single largest customer’ in the
. This magnitude of expenditure provides enormous potential to stimulate innovation & encourage economic growth – a potential which, according to the Committee, is not being realised.
Press release & links
Legislation / Legal
Newswire – ICO: Organisations & businesses that run websites aimed at UK consumers are being given up to 12 months to ‘get their house in order’ before enforcement of the new EU cookies law begins, Information Commissioner, Christopher Graham said last week.
Press release & links
EU Legislation, Initiatives, etc.
EU News: By proposing to enhance cooperation on migration, mobility & security, the Commission hopes to reinforce long term relations between the EU and the countries of
North Africa . The proposed set of measures will help support the democratic & economic transition in the region, promote people to people contacts across the
Mediterranean and contribute to more effectively preventing irregular migration. These elements will now be discussed by the European Council on 24 June 2011.
Due to the countries' geographic position, their importance as countries of origin or of transit of irregular migration towards the EU, as well as countries of destination for persons in need of international protection, the Commission proposes to offer the possibility of developing a Dialogue on Mobility, Migration and Security, first of all to , and
Press release & links ~ Related PR
EU News: Body scanning should be voluntary for passengers at EU airports, argued Parliament's Transport Committee last week. If scanners are used, health & fundamental rights must be safeguarded along with personal data, dignity & privacy. No body images should be seen and, for health reasons, no X-ray-based scanners should be allowed at EU airports, say MEPs. They also restate their view that the ban on carrying liquids on planes should be lifted by 2013.
The European Commission intends to propose new rules this summer that would add body scanners to the list of EU-authorised methods for screening passengers. Some Member States (the , the , , , &
), have already tested such scanners. Parliament will have a veto right over the new rules once they are drafted but at this stage MEPs are sending an advance signal of their wishes.
Press release & links
EU News: Motorists who speed, ignore red lights or drink & drive when in a country other than their own will be brought to book more easily, thanks to closer co-operation between European police forces and EU-wide enforcement of traffic rules, under plans approved last week by Parliament's Transport Committee.
Traffic police authorities will be able to pursue offenders in their home country by using the EUROCARIS data exchange system. Speeding, driving under the influence of drink or drugs, failure to wear seatbelts, illegal use of mobile phones, using bus lanes, not wearing helmets when riding a motorcycle and crossing red lights are among the offences covered by the legislation.
Press release & links
EU News: From 1 June 2011 onwards, all 143 nuclear power plants in the EU will be re-assessed using EU wide criteria. These are comprehensive tests as the Commission has called for which embrace both natural & man made hazards (i.e. effects of airplane crashes and terrorist attacks). The European Commission and the European Nuclear Safety Regulators' Group (ENSREG) agreed last week on the criteria covered and the way controls will be done.
Press release & links
EU News: In the last few years, technological change and, in particular, the growing importance of online activities, have completely changed the world in which Intellectual property rights (IPR) operate. The existing mix of European & national rules are no longer adapted and need to be modernised.
That is why the Commission has adopted a comprehensive strategy to revamp the legal framework in which IPR operate. The objective is to enable inventors, creators, users & consumers to adapt to the new circumstances and to enhance new business opportunities.
Press release & links
EU News: The EP Economics Committee last week voted to uphold the increased bank deposit protection limit of €100,000, but chose to allow Member States more leeway over how they design their schemes. The schemes must be fully funded within 15 years instead of the Commission's proposed 10, said MEPs, who also voted for payouts to be made within 5 working days rather than 7.
Press release & links
EU News: Catherine Ashton, EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy/Commission Vice-President and Štefan Füle, EU Commissioner for Enlargement and Neighbourhood Policy, last week launched a new European Neighbourhood Policy (ENP) – ‘confirming the EU’s determined and reinforced engagement with its neighbours’.
The proposal sets out the main priorities & directions of a revitalised ENP strategy which seeks to strengthen individual & regional relationships between the EU & countries in its neighbourhood through a ‘more funds for more reform’ approach - making more additional funds available, but with more mutual accountability.
Press release & links
EU News: The European Commission has, together with the UN Environment Programme, launched 2 major reports that call for a radical change in the way we use scarce resources. The first report shows the immense potential for increasing metal recycling rates. Only 18 metals are recycled more than 50%, and the majority do not even attain a 1% recycling rate.
The second report, first presented at the UN Sustainable Development Commission on 18 May 2011, underlines the need for a radical decoupling to avoid a global resource crunch by 2050, and provides science-based scenarios on future resource consumption.
Press release & links ~ Green Week
EU News: A Europe-wide register aims to help Europeans actively engage in decisions affecting the environment. New online maps published last week by the European Commission and the European Environment Agency, in close cooperation with the Joint Research Centre, the Commission's in-house science service, allow citizens to pinpoint the main diffuse sources of air pollution, such as transport and aviation.
The new set of 32 maps shows where certain pollutants such as nitrogen oxides and particulate matter are released. It complements existing data on emissions from individual industrial plants from the European Pollutant Release and Transfer Register (E-PRTR).
Press release & links
EU News: Close to 85.8% of respondents to a recent public consultation on the future of LIFE+, the European Commission's environmental funding tool, consider that there is a need for a specific EU financial instrument for environment & climate action.
The results of these consultations will be factored in a combined impact assessment and ex-ante evaluation of a successor for LIFE+. The Commission intends to prepare a proposal for a future financial instrument for the environment and climate action by the end of 2011.
Press release & links
EU News: Last week, European Commission Vice President, Antonio Tajani, inaugurated a new network of Member States' SME Envoys at the SBA conference ‘Mobilising SMEs for the Future of Europe’ in
Budapest . As SMEs are affected by policies originating in different government departments ranging from tax to financial and from regulatory to education, the SME envoys should help small businesses to concentrate on their core business to strive and create jobs.
Press release & links
EU News: Last week the European Commission published its report on ‘progress achieved in the Common Fisheries Policy over the last few years and its suggestions for fishing opportunities in EU waters in 2012’. The document sets out how the Commission intends to act on the scientific advice it receives about the state of fish stocks when proposing catch limits and quotas for next year. The Commission's ideas will now be the object of a wide consultation (closes on 1 September 2011) – See ‘Consultations’ section for more information.
Charity and Voluntary Sector
BHF: Last week was National Vegetarian Week and some of you might be considering some time-off from meat and eating more vegetarian alternatives like beans, lentils, tofu or nuts. The British Heart Foundation's senior dietician Victoria Taylor suggests 3 delicious and healthy vegetarian meals for you to enjoy.
While a heart healthy diet doesn’t need to exclude meat, this is the perfect time to take the chance to try some different, meat-free meals that not only taste good, but will also add some variety into your diet. To replace meat, try incorporating alternative sources of protein like beans, lentils and tofu. As well as providing fibre & protein, these foods contain essential minerals like iron and one portion a day counts towards your five a day.
Press release & Links
AUK: New research shows that half of people over 60 have never had any contact with their local councillor, highlighting the huge challenge councillors face to reach out and make contact with older people. The good news is that the research also shows when they are in contact with councillors, older people are more likely than younger age groups to think councillors do a good job.
In a survey conducted by TNS on behalf of Age UK, 65% of older people said they were satisfied with the contact, compared to just 57% of 16-59 year olds. It also reveals more than 4 in 10 people over 60 believe that local councillors are working to improve the community in ways that will benefit older people.
Press release & links
DUK: Diabetes
has launched a unique annuity comparison service aiming to give people with diabetes the very best deal on their pensions, without any need for a GP assessment. They are urging people approaching retirement to act now to find the best possible deal as retirement income from pension plans has slumped by a third in the last five years.
Press release & links
DUK: Diabetes
, along with the British Heart Foundation, Children’s Food Campaign and Which?, has written to Secretary of State for Health, Andrew Lansley, calling for clear & easy-to-understand food labels to allow people to tell quickly & easily what’s in the food they’re buying.
The organisations have come together, ahead of an EU vote on 5 July 2011, to urge that
representatives call strongly for mandatory front-of-pack (FOP) labelling which includes information on energy, fat, saturated fat, sugar & salt.
Press release & Links
DCMS: The Government has unveiled new Big Society plans to make it easier & more attractive to give time and money to good causes. The Giving White Paper seeks to renew Britain’s culture of philanthropy by working with charities and businesses to support new ways for people to contribute – See ‘ Policy Statements & Initiatives’ section for more information.
Business and Other Briefings
PC&PE: There is a convincing case for reducing
the corporation tax rate in Northern Ireland, not least so it can better
compete with the Republic of
Ireland, concludes the Northern
Ireland Affairs Committee in a report published last week – See
‘General Reports and Other
Publications’ section for more information.
Industry News
Ofgem: Energy regulator Ofgem last week announced that 6 innovative projects are eligible to compete for a share of £64m in the second year of the £500m Low Carbon Networks (LCN) Fund. Ofgem set up the LCN Fund as part of the 2010-2015 electricity distribution price control.
It will encourage
’s electricity distribution network operators (DNOs) to develop projects that will help energy networks and energy consumers to make the crucial transition to a low carbon economy. The lessons learned from LCN Fund projects will be shared across the industry.
Press release & links
Ofgem: Green Energy Transmission (GET), a consortium comprising Equitix Ltd and AMP Capital Investors, together with Balfour Beatty Capital Limited has been selected by Ofgem EServe as the preferred bidder to own & operate the high voltage transmission link to the 500 MW Greater Gabbard offshore wind farm.
Press release & links
Forthcoming Event
NE: At a ‘one stop’ stand at Beef Expo 2011 at Newark Showground last week, farmers were able to get expert advice about Environmental Stewardship (ES) schemes from Natural England staff and meet representatives from other organisations at a single information point.
Natural
will be present alongside other agencies at several national farming events this year, where advisers will be happy to answer queries and provide information & advice. Visit us at:
Cereals: 16-17 June – Boothby Graffoe, nr
Lincoln
Dairy and Livestock Show: 6-7 September – NEC
Birmingham
Press release & links
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