Month: December 2017

Almost 400 miles of roadworks across England will be lifted and completed in December, leaving almost 99 per cent of motorways and strategic A roads roadworks-free in time for Christmas.

All roadworks will be lifted or completed by 6am on 22 December until 12.01am on 2 January to help people get away this Christmas with as little disruption as possible.

With the festive countdown well and truly underway, the UK’s largest coach operator National Express, has praised Highways England for its role in helping people get to their destination on time.

Chris Hardy, National Express Coach Managing Director, said:

We’ll be moving hundreds of thousands of passengers around the UK during the festive period, including on Christmas and Boxing Day when there are no rail services; and New Year’s Day.

We work with Highways England round the year to support them in maintaining and improving the road network so that we can offer our customers a reliable and convenient service.

It’s great that they’ve lifted road works during a busy time for travel, helping us to make sure we can get passengers where they want to be for Christmas.

And with thoughts turning to the all-important getaway, Highways England is also calling on motorists to do their bit before getting behind the wheel.

Highways England’s customer service director, Melanie Clarke, said:

We’re doing everything we can to make journeys as smooth as possible this Christmas and that’s why we’re keeping 99 per cent of the road network we manage, free from roadworks.

Safety is our top imperative and we know from experience that almost half of breakdowns are avoidable and these can easily be avoided with simple checks. Christmas is always a busy period on the road network and we’d urge all motorists to make sure they do their bit to check their vehicle is roadworthy before setting off over the festive period.

Highways England has also launched a special festive animation which shows Santa carrying out vital checks to his sleigh before embarking on the most important journey of the year – and he’s got a little help from his festive friends including Rudolph!

Some of Santa’s pre-flight checks include:

• checking that there is plenty of grip on his sledge – motorists should check their tyre tread to make sure it is within the legal limit
• making sure Rudolph’s nose is shining bright – always make sure lights on the vehicle are working correctly before setting off
• making sure the reindeer are full of fuel before travelling – make sure that you always keep your tank at least one quarter full to avoid running out of fuel on your journey

The animation can be found online at the Highways England YouTube channel. Latest statistics from Highways England show almost half of all breakdowns are caused by basic mechanical problems which could be avoided with simple checks.

Furthermore, nearly a quarter are caused by tyre problems; with more than 7,000 cases nationwide of vehicle breakdowns on the strategic road network due to lack of fuel over the course of a year.

Motorists can head online to the Think website where they can watch bespoke videos showing how to carry out basic vehicle checks.

Those wishing to find out more about driving on smart motorways can go to our webpage for further information.

Drivers planning to use the Dartford Crossing are reminded to pay Dart Charge in advance or by midnight the day after crossing.

More information can be found on our website or by calling our information line (0300 123 5000) they can keep up to date with conditions on the roads.

For more detailed information on how to carry out your vehicle checks, search Think!

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.

The floating moorings replace ones on the relief channels at Stowbridge, Wiggenhall St Mary and the Denver Complex, all in Norfolk.

Expected to last at least 50 years, the new platforms feature non-slip mesh decking and galvanised steel frames.

Andy Bennison, Anglian Waterways engineer, who has managed the project said:

The existing landing stages have been taken away to be refurbished and re-used elsewhere on the River Great Ouse. The new frames and decking will improve safety, as well as look better and reduce maintenance costs.

It’s all part of our ongoing efforts to protect and improve our cherished waterways.

The work to replace the landing stages is part of the Environment Agency’s £1.4m Capital Investment Programme. Announced in November, the programme sets out the investments being made into Anglian Waterways’ 353-mile network.

Projects in the pipeline include improvements to eight locks, and take place from November to March – avoiding the peak boating season to minimise disruption for those on the river.

The Environment Agency cares for more than 353 miles of navigable waterways in the Anglian region, as well as a vast network of associated facilities such as bridges, locks, moorings and toilets.

A pilot which is looking at streamlining the process for international Masters students wanting to study in the UK has been extended to two Welsh universities, the Immigration Minister announced today (Monday 18 December).

Currently in its second year with the Universities of Oxford, Cambridge, Bath and Imperial College London, the pilot will streamline the process for international students looking to study on a Masters course of 13 months or less in the UK. It also provides greater support for students who wish to switch to a work visa and take up a graduate role, by allowing them to remain in the UK for 6 months after they have finished their course.

Universities taking part are given responsibility for eligibility checks, meaning that students can submit fewer documents than required in the current process alongside their visa applications. Applicants that do not meet immigration rules will be refused. All students will continue to require Home Office security and identity checks.

The additional 23 universities to benefit from the pilot include Cardiff University and The University of Wales Trinity St. David as well as two in Scotland, one in Northern Ireland and universities from across England.

Immigration Minister Brandon Lewis said:

I am delighted to announce the expansion of this pilot which is part of our ongoing activity to ensure that our world-leading institutions remain highly competitive.

The UK continues to be the second most popular destination for international students and the number coming to study at our universities has increased by 24% since 2010.

This is a clear indication that genuine students are welcome and there is no limit on the number who can come to study in the UK.

Cardiff University’s Vice-Chancellor, Professor Colin Riordan said:

We welcome the opportunity to take part in the expanded Tier 4 visa pilot.
Cardiff University is home to over 7,000 international students from over 100 countries, and we have seen first-hand the positive impact they have, both on our community and on the economy of Cardiff and Wales.

We look forward to participating in the Tier 4 visa pilot and its evaluation to give our international students the opportunities they deserve and to strengthen our global partnerships.

The most recent Home Office statistics show that the number of students applying for visas increased by 8% over the past year, and there has been a 9% increase in the number of students applying to Russell Group universities.

The 23 additional universities will be able to apply the pilot to their 2018/19 intake. The universities were selected as their visa refusal rates are consistently the lowest in their area or region.

NOTES TO EDITORS

• The 23 universities to be added to the pilot are: Cardiff University, Goldsmiths University of London, Harper Adams University, Newcastle University, Queen’s University Belfast, The Royal Central School of Speech and Drama, University of Bristol, Durham University, University of East Anglia, University of Edinburgh, University of Essex, University of Exeter, University of Glasgow, University of Leicester, University of Liverpool, University of Manchester, University of Nottingham, University of Reading, University of Sheffield, University of Southampton, The University of Wales Trinity St. David (Swansea Campus), University of Warwick, University of York

The UK is providing urgent new food and fuel supplies to help keep millions of Yemeni people alive as an escalation in fighting and restrictions on aid access threaten to push Yemen into a catastrophic famine, International Development Secretary Penny Mordaunt announced today (Monday 18 December 2017).

During a visit to a port in Djibouti from where UK aid is shipped to Yemen, Ms Mordaunt warned of the “human tragedy” of the world’s worst humanitarian crisis, with over eleven million people needing help to survive. She pledged an extra £50 million that will help feed millions of people for one month and process more lifesaving food, which is absolutely vital as rapidly diminishing supplies mean there is currently only a few months of wheat and rice left in the country.

Ms Mordaunt also called for an immediate opening up of commercial and humanitarian access into Yemen during a visit to Saudi Arabia, and condemned the continued Houthi blockages in the north of the country.

Today’s announcement of UK aid support will help the World Food Programme to:

• provide food and food vouchers for 3.4 million vulnerable Yemenis for one month – including malnourished children who are 20 times more likely to die than children who have enough to eat
• mill over 106,000 metric tonnes of grain into wheat flour, which will feed 6.5 million people for two months
• provide fuel to help make sure urgent food supplies can be delivered to those who need it most, keep hospitals running and pump clean water into major cities

Speaking in Djibouti, International Development Secretary Penny Mordaunt said:

The harrowing stories I have heard from Yemenis and aid workers today are a powerful reminder of the human tragedy of the world’s worst humanitarian crisis where three quarters of the population are in desperate need.

Every day, parents are carrying their malnourished children to hospital because they haven’t eaten in days, and families are watching as loved ones die needlessly from treatable illnesses because they do not have access to medical care.

UK aid will save lives with new food and fuel; fuel that will produce food, pump clean water to help stop the spread of cholera, and power hospital generators.

Our brave British, international and Yemeni aid workers are working relentlessly to alleviate suffering in these atrocious circumstances. But humanitarian aid alone is not enough and millions of people will starve to death without commercial imports that the country depends on.

That’s why the UK Government is calling on all parties to this conflict to immediately restore full access for humanitarian and commercial imports and find a peaceful solution to this conflict to stop Yemen falling into a catastrophic famine.

During her visit to Djibouti – a regional processing centre for humanitarian aid and commercial supplies into Yemen – Ms Mordaunt heard harrowing stories from Yemenis who have escaped the crisis and aid workers who have been delivering life-saving food, water and medical support.

Following this, Ms Mordaunt visited Saudi Arabia and met key high-level political figures where she made clear that commercial and humanitarian supplies – on which Yemen depends to meet 90% of basic needs – must be resumed and that immediate access must be granted to avert a catastrophic famine.

This builds on the Prime Minister’s visit to Saudi Arabia last month, where she reiterated the need to ensure full access across Yemen, renewed calls for all sides to find a peaceful solution and emphasised the importance of full humanitarian and commercial access through the port of Hodeida.

The UK is the second largest donor to the UN appeal and today’s new package of support will bring the total UK aid to Yemen to £205 million for 2017/18, making the UK the third largest donor overall.

This builds on the UK’s existing support, which this year is providing:

• enough food for 1.8 million people for at least a month;
• nutrition support for 1.7 million people; and
• clean water and sanitation for 1.2 million people.

Notes to Editors

1. Today’s announcement of £50 million of UK aid support for the Yemen crisis includes £40 million to the World Food Programme for food from DFID’s crisis reserve and allocations from DFID’s wider country budget, as well as £10 million for the World Food Programme for fuel for humanitarian purposes from re-allocations from DFID’s wider country budget.
2. The United Nations launched Yemen’s Humanitarian Needs Overview for 2018 last week, confirming Yemen’s status as the worst humanitarian crisis in the world. The number of people in need of humanitarian or protection assistance now stands at an estimated 22.2 million people, including 2 million internally displaced people, and representing 76% of the entire population of Yemen.
3. The number of people in need of immediate life-saving assistance is an estimated 11.3 million, with 17.8 million people food-insecure or malnourished, of whom 8.4 million are acutely so including 400,000 children. Yemen’s UN Humanitarian Appeal for 2018 will request $2.5 billion to meet the country’s humanitarian needs.

The Queen has approved the nomination of the Right Reverend Sarah Elisabeth Mullally, DBE, MA, BSc, MSC, DSc(Hons), RGN, Suffragan Bishop of Crediton in the Diocese of Exeter for election as Bishop of London in succession to the Right Reverend and Right Honourable Richard John Carew Chartres, KCVO, PC, on his resignation on the 28 February 2018.

Further information

The Right Reverend Sarah Mullally, DBE, (aged 55) studied first at South Bank University for her BSc followed by a MSc and then at Heythrop College, University of London where she got her MA. She was awarded Honorary Doctorates of Science from Bournemouth University, (2004), University of Wolverhampton (2004) and University of Hertfordshire (2005) and was made a Dame Commander of the British Empire in 2005 for her contribution to nursing and midwifery.

She is a late ordinand who before ordination was Chief Nursing Officer in the Department of Health. She trained for the ministry at the South East Institute for Theologian Education and served her first curacy at Battersea Fields in Southwark Diocese from 2001 to 2006. From 2006 to 2012 she was Team Rector at Sutton in Southwark Diocese. From 2012 to 2015 she was Canon Residentiary and Canon Treasurer at Salisbury Cathedral before taking up her current role in 2015 as Suffragan Bishop of Crediton in the Diocese of Exeter.

Sarah Mullally is married to Eamonn and they have two children. She has continued her interest in the health service having been a non executive director at The Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust then at Salisbury NHS Foundation Hospital. She is a member of Council at King’s College London University. She is a novice potter.