Day: December 13, 2017

The independent Committee, which advises the Prime Minister on standards of conduct across public life, has made a package of recommendations to address the threats and intimidation experienced by Parliamentary candidates and others. The recommendations include:

• Government should bring forward legislation to shift the liability of illegal content online towards social media companies.

• Social media companies must ensure they are able to make decisions quickly and consistently on the takedown of intimidatory content online

• Government should consult on the introduction of a new offence in electoral law of intimidating Parliamentary candidates and party campaigners.

• The political parties must work together to develop a joint code of conduct on intimidatory behaviour during election campaigns by December 2018. The code should be jointly enforced by the political parties.

• The National Police Chiefs Council should ensure that local police forces have sufficient training to enable them to effectively investigate offences committed through social media.

Lord Bew, Chair of the Committee, said:

This level of vile and threatening behaviour, albeit by a minority of people, against those standing for public office is unacceptable in a healthy democracy. We cannot get to a point where people are put off standing, retreat from debate, and even fear for their lives as a result of their engagement in politics. This is not about protecting elites or stifling debate, it is about ensuring we have a vigorous democracy in which participants engage in a responsible way which recognises others’ rights to participate and to hold different points of view.

The increasing scale and intensity of this issue demands a serious response. We are not alone in believing that more must be done to combat online behaviour in particular and we have been persuaded that the time has come for the government to legislate to shift the liability for illegal content online towards social media companies, and to consult on the introduction of a new electoral offence.

We believe that the parties themselves must show greater leadership. They must call out members who engage in this appalling behaviour, and make sure appropriate sanctions are imposed swiftly and consistently. They have an important duty of care to their candidates, members and supporters. Intimidation takes place across the political spectrum, both in terms of those engaging in and those receiving intimidation. The leadership of political parties must recognise this.

We have heard evidence that intimidatory behaviour can stem from of our current political culture, with low levels of trust in politicians and a feeling of frustration and alienation by some people. Against that backdrop, it is down to all in public life to play their part in restoring and protecting our public political culture by setting a tone which respects the right of every individual to participate and does not, however inadvertently, open a door to intimidation.

Many of the recommendations we are making today are not limited solely to election periods but will have wider relevance across our public life.

Notes to Editors

1. Interview requests and media enquiries should go to Maggie O’Boyle on 07880 740627.

2. The independent Committee on Standards in Public Life advises the Prime Minister on ethical standards across the whole of public life in the UK. It monitors and reports on issues relating to the standards of conduct of all public office holders.
3. On July 17 the Prime Minister asked the Committee to conduct a review of the intimidation experienced by Parliamentary candidates at the 2017 General Election.

4. The Committee’s terms of reference for this review were set out in July.

5. The Committee published a call for evidence, and invited submissions from anyone with an interest in these issues. The Committee contacted campaigning organisations, political parties and social media companies as part of the evidence gathering process. Transcripts of public meetings and evidence are available online.

6. The current members of the Committee are: Lord (Paul) Bew, Chairman, Rt Hon Dame Margaret Beckett DBE MP (Labour), Sheila Drew Smith OBE, Simon Hart MP (Conservative), Dr Jane Martin CBE, Jane Ramsey, Monisha Shah and Rt Hon Lord (Andrew) Stunell OBE (Liberal Democrat).

7. You can follow the Committee on twitter @PublicStandards.

The 2017 Global accounts of private registered providers, published today by the Regulator of Social Housing, shows that the sector delivered another strong year of investment in new and existing social housing properties.

Based on analysis of submitted regulatory returns and statements, the annual publication provides an overview of the financial status of private registered providers of social housing who own or manage at least 1,000 homes.

The main findings for 2017 are:

• The sector invested £10bn in new housing supply (including social housing, as well as investment in properties for sale, and market rent) and £1.6bn in existing stock. Total investment of £11.6bn represents a 15% increase on 2016.

• Of this, investment in new and existing social housing stock was £7.9bn, including £6.3bn in new rental supply – an increase of £0.7bn on 2016. Investment was funded by past surpluses, debt and grant and resulted in the completion of 41,000 social homes for rent.

• Turnover was unchanged at £20 billion, as providers have implemented the 1% rent reduction on general needs units (required under the Welfare Reform and Work Act 2016), offset by additional rental income from new properties.

• Operating margins have increased by 2% to 30%, through reductions in operating expenditure – social housing costs per unit decreased by 7% to £3,698, with reductions in both management and maintenance costs.

• Total debt held by the sector increased by £2.9bn to £69.6bn.

• Interest cover was again strong at over 200% excluding one-off breakage costs, servicing existing debt and supporting additional investment

• The underlying net surplus was £3.5bn – a 7% increase on 2016, with reported net surplus of £4.1 billion. The reported net surplus is increased by the one-off gains reported on mergers of £0.6bn and is not indicative of recurring performance.

Fiona MacGregor, Director of Regulation said:

This year’s figures show that the social housing sector is continuing to invest substantially in existing stock and new supply and as a whole is well-placed to respond to the changing operating environment. The sector has consolidated over recent years and there are now a small number of very large providers; significant changes in these providers can have a material effect on sector results.

The year-on-year decrease in management costs and major repairs expenditure demonstrate how the first 12 months of rent reductions have been managed. While the lower repairs spend partly indicates the progress being made towards reducing non-decent stock we will continue to encourage providers to have a rigorous, evidence-based approach to expenditure and investment, which ensures that housing is sustainable for the long term, responds to tenant needs and gives good value for money.

The 2016 Global Accounts were published in February 2017. In response to sector feedback that an earlier publication date would help providers to compare their performance against their peers more easily, we have brought forward the publication date compared to previous years.

The annual Global Accounts of housing providers are available on the website. The headline social housing unit cost data, based on 2017 submissions, is included in the Global Accounts data file.

Further information

1. This is the second year of the Financial Reporting Council Accounting Standards where the presentation of financial statements has changed in areas such as accounting treatments for government grant, the valuation of housing properties and the measurement of financial instruments. These are presented under the new Financial Reporting Standard 102 and the Housing Statement of Recommend Practice 2014.

2. Under International Financial Reporting Standards most mergers in the sector are accounted for using the purchase accounting method. This requires the receiving organisation to report the fair value of the net assets acquired – effectively the balance sheet – as a gain (or profit) in the year of acquisition. The gain will usually be considerably more than the annual trading surplus generated by the merging organisation, and so will inflate reported surpluses in the year of acquisition. Subsequent years will not be affected.

3. A small number of providers who have risen above the 1,000 unit threshold have been added to the Global Accounts dataset for the first time in 2017.

4. The Homes and Communities Agency is the single, national housing and regeneration delivery agency for England, and is the regulator of social housing providers. As regulator, its purpose is to promote a viable, efficient and well-governed social housing sector able to deliver homes that meet a range of needs. It will do this by undertaking robust economic regulation, as enshrined in legislation, focusing on governance, financial viability and value for money that maintains lender confidence and protects the taxpayer.

For more information visit the HCA website or follow us on Twitter.

Our media enquiries page has contact details for journalists.

For general queries to the HCA, please email mail@homesandcommunities.co.uk or call 0300 1234 500.

The Prime Minister expressed the UK’s support and solidarity with the Argentines in the search for the missing submarine ARA San Juan. She said that in any country the armed forces make hugely important sacrifices which made this search all the more poignant. She added that the UK would continue to provide support where we could.

President Macri thanked the Prime Minister for the help the UK had given.
Both leaders looked forward to the meeting of the G20 in Buenos Aires next year. They agreed it would be a significant moment for South America and they looked forward to working with each other before and during the summit.

Fishermen across the country are set for a boost as the UK government’s commitment to sustainable fishing secured significant quota increases for key stocks at this year’s annual negotiations. This included an increase in quotas of North Sea Cod, Haddock and Monkfish. Importantly, stocks of both cod and haddock are now accredited as sustainable by the Marine Stewardship Council.

Challenges remain in some parts of the country where the latest scientific evidence means further restraint is needed, for example in the Celtic Sea to revive stocks of haddock and megrim. However, there were increased quotas such as Western Skates and Rays (+15%), Bristol Channel Plaice (+49%), Sole (+9%) and Celtic Sea Cod (+11%). Crucially, a further package of measures has been agreed on sea bass in an attempt to reverse the decline around the English coast.

Total fishing opportunities worth more than £750 million were agreed at this year’s negotiations, including increased quotas for:

• North Sea: Cod +10%, Haddock +23% and Monkfish +20%.
• Irish Sea: Cod +377% and Haddock +55%.
• Eastern Channel: Sole +25% and Skates and Rays +20%
• Bristol Channel: Plaice +49% and Sole +9%

Speaking after the negotiations in Brussels, Fisheries Minister George Eustice said:

The UK has long championed sustainable fishing and that is starting to yield results in some areas with a recovery in key stocks and increased quota as a result.

Challenges remain in areas like the Celtic sea and on iconic species such as bass so further restrictions have been needed.

As we prepare to leave the EU, we will place science based fisheries management at the heart of future policy.

Significantly increased stocks for North Sea cod and haddock will provide a welcome boost for Scotland. In Northern Ireland, the UK secured quota increases for cod (+377) and haddock (+55) in the Irish Sea.

Strong work to drive sustainable fishing and tackle wasteful discards was clear throughout the negotiations, with the UK supporting the EU Commission’s proposal to introduce tougher controls on eel fishing to protect this critically endangered species.

In a vision of the future outlined today the government company said an intelligent network coupled with connected vehicles would improve how efficiently roads are maintained and at the same time improve safety.
In another development drones could also be used to fly overhead and report back on incidents, improving response times.

In its Strategic Road Network Initial Report, published today (13 December 2017), the company says technology will play an increasingly major role in keeping people moving, and the country connected.

It also stresses the importance of keeping existing roads properly maintained, and that it does so in a way which minimises disruption to road users and local communities. The report will be used to inform the government’s next road investment strategy which begins in 2020.

Highways England Chief Executive, Jim O’Sullivan, said:

We are delivering a record £15 billion of government investment to give people safe, efficient and reliable journeys, and provide businesses with the links they need to prosper and grow.

Because people’s journeys are important to us we are setting out our high level aspirations which will help ensure the network continues to drive economic growth, jobs and prosperity, and keeps traffic moving today, and into the future.

We encourage people to read our report and feedback through the Department for Transport’s consultation, which is also launched today.

Since it was created in 2015, Highways England has completed 18 major road improvements and has a further 15 currently in construction.

Transport Secretary Chris Grayling said:

This government is making people’s journeys better, faster and safer to give people better access to jobs, schools and their community.

We are planning to spend more than ever before to upgrade England’s motorways and major A roads from 2020 through to 2025.

The Initial Report outlines eight aspirations for the next road period:

• focus on operations, maintenance and renewals
• build the smart motorway spine of the network
• roll out expressways
• undertake transformational investments
• deliver a balanced programme
• renew focus on small schemes
• deliver through refined designated funds
• prepare for the future

The Department for Transport has also today launched its consultation, into Highways England’s Initial Report. Their consultation will run until Wednesday, 7 February 2018.

The results of it will be used by the department to help develop the next Road Investment Strategy which the government is expected to publish in 2019. It is then that detail on specific road projects will be outlined.

General enquiries

Members of the public should contact the Highways England customer contact centre on 0300 123 5000.

Media enquiries

Journalists should contact the Highways England press office on 0844 693 1448 and use the menu to speak to the most appropriate press officer.