A Bill to require public bodies to accompany any proposal for a change in public expenditure, administration or policy with a family impact assessment; and to require the Secretary of State to report on the costs and benefits of extending family impact assessments to local authorities and to establish and evaluate progress towards objectives and targets for family stability.
Link: Family Relationships (Impact Assessment and Targets)
Source: Public Bills
Elizabeth Denham’s speech at the Association of Chief Executives and Public Chairs’ Forum joint event, on Friday 2 February 2018
Thank you for that kind introduction.
Forgive me for being a bit of a tourist. You may be aware that my office is based in a small town called Wilmslow in…
Link: Information rights and responsibilities, with the Information Commissioner
Source: ICO .org.uk
A gang of robbers who targeted elderly people will spend longer behind bars after Solicitor General Robert Buckland QC MP referred their original sentences to the Court of Appeal as unduly lenient.
Between the 1st and 4th May 2017, the gang of 5, led by Gerald McCann, 23, committed a series of robberies against elderly victims, specifically targeting them because of their vulnerability. The men used force against the victims upon entering the houses. In one case, an 80 year old man was struck on the head with a metal coffee pot. Valuable items of jewellery and money were taken from the properties.
McCann, who was 22 at the time, was convicted of robbery and possession of a prohibited article at Leeds Crown Court last November. He was jailed for 8 years and 4 months. The Court of Appeal agreed the sentence was too low and increased it to 10 years and 4 months.
The rest of the gang were sentenced to time in a young offenders’ institute. The second offender, who was 18 at the time, received 6 years and 9 months. His sentence has been increased to 7 years 8 months.
The third offender, who was 17 at the time, received 5 years and 4 months, his sentence has been increased to 6 years 6 months.
The forth offender, who was 15 at the time, received 4 years, his sentence has been increased to 5 years.
The fifth offender who was also 15, received 4 years and 4 months, his sentence has been increased to 5 years 3 months.
Speaking after the hearing, the Solicitor General said:
“This group of young men purposely set out to target vulnerable and elderly people. Many lives have been affected by their actions, and some of the victims no longer feel safe in their own homes. The Court’s decision to increase these sentences show that crimes of this nature will not be tolerated.”
Link: Press release: Jail term increased for robbers who targeted elderly
Source: Gov Press Releases
Following complaints over several months from Norfolk Broads residents living along the River Yare in Norwich about illegal fishing, littering and general anti-social behaviour, Environment Agency Fisheries Enforcement Officer Nick Beardmore took action. He raised the matter with partners including Norfolk Police and the Broads Authority at the monthly Norfolk Police Broadsbeat Partnership meeting.
As a result a multi-agency day of action was arranged for the Heron Island area, led by the Norfolk Police Broadsbeat team. The day saw new information signs installed, a big clean-up of the area and rod licence checks carried out.
Nick Beardmore said:
The residents were overwhelmed with the support they received and I want to thank everyone who joined us on the day, which was a real success. Hopefully the problems encountered in the past won’t be repeated.
Norfolk Police Broadsbeat officers Derek Rutter, Martin Chapman, Paul Bassham and Amy Barrell used 2 police boats to transport everyone over to the island and carry out hi-visibility patrols along the Rivers Wensum and Yare. They also explained their role to the cadets, who were split into 3 groups and rotated throughout the day.
Broadsbeat officer PC Paul Bassham said:
It was recognised that if we didn’t all pull together to tackle the emerging issues, the problems would continue to escalate once the weather turned warmer. This would take up valuable resource time and make life miserable for residents around Heron Island.
PC Barrell co-ordinated the follow-up response, supervising North Norfolk and Broadlands Police Cadets, and Officers Tina Wright, Peter Davison, Andy Mason and Ian Kennedy while they cleared the area and installed the new signs. The team worked alongside Broads Authority Rangers, local residents, a tree surgeon and the Environment Agency throughout the day.
Environment Agency Enforcement Team Leader Lesley Robertson said:
Working together in this way means we can pool our resources and tackle a number of issues at the same time. I am very pleased that local residents felt supported and urge anyone with information about illegal fishing activities to report it to our 24-hour Incident Hotline on 0800 80 70 60.
For updates and pictures, follow us on Twitter @EnvAgencyAnglia @Broadsbeat @BroadsAuth
Link: Press release: Partners work together on day of action along Norfolk river
Source: Environment Agency
Link: The Alteration of Judicial Titles (Registrar in Bankruptcy of the High Court) Order 2018
Source: Legislation .gov.uk
Leading experts from homelessness charities and local government met for the first time today as part of the government’s new rough sleeping advisory panel and committed to work together to help eliminate rough sleeping within a decade.
The new panel chaired by Homelessness Minister Heather Wheeler will help develop the national rough sleeping strategy to halve rough sleeping over the course of the Parliament and eliminate it altogether by 2027.
Made up of experts, charities and local government, the panel will draw on their considerable experience and individual successes to support the upcoming Ministerial Taskforce. This will bring together ministers from key departments to provide a cross-government approach to preventing rough sleeping and homelessness.
The panel members agreed key priority areas including what works best in terms of prevention such as housing-led approaches and the most effective ways of intervening with someone already experiencing rough sleeping.
Following the first panel meeting, Heather Wheeler said:
We cannot accept rough sleeping as a stubborn problem that will always be with us.
That’s why we are providing over £1 billion of funding, supporting those who are homeless and rough sleeping and bringing in the most ambitious legislation in decades that will mean people get the support they need earlier.
Tackling homelessness is complex, but no one should ever have to sleep rough.
The new panel is clear we need to act swiftly to realise our shared determination to help the most vulnerable in society and eliminate rough sleeping for good.
The panel will meet monthly and will report back to the Taskforce in the summer with a series of recommendations.
Among the key themes the panel will pursue are:
The government aims to halve rough sleeping over the course of the Parliament and eliminate it altogether by 2027.
The Minister for Housing and Homelessness, Heather Wheeler, will chair the Rough Sleeping Advisory Panel which will support government to produce a national rough sleeping strategy. The strategy will take action to reduce rough sleeping now, and ensure the structures are in place to eliminate rough sleeping by 2027.
Over the coming months the Advisory Panel will:
Rough Sleeping is a chronic issue and the Advisory Panel will consider a wide range of interventions to ensure we take action now. The Panel will also look at how the government can embed integrated systems in the long term to ensure that no one has to sleep rough. The review will take into account the experiences and successes of previous interventions, and highlight good practice.
The following lines of inquiry will be pursued:
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Link: Press release: New government backed advisory panel commits to help eradicate rough sleeping
Source: Gov Press Releases
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Source: Legislation .gov.uk
This Order provides for the enforcement of trade restrictions against Venezuela specified in Regulation (EU) No. 2017/2063 concerning restrictive measures against Venezuela (OJ L 295, 14.11.2017, p. 21–37) (“the Venezuela Sanctions Regulation”).
Link: The Export Control (Venezuela Sanctions) Order 2018
Source: Legislation .gov.uk
A woman has been sentenced today following a long running investigation into the sale of counterfeit and unlicensed drugs which convicted 12 individuals in 2015. The defendant received a prison sentence of 2 years and 3 months.
The medicines, which were sold predominantly over the internet, have an estimated value of £11 million with a suggested annual turnover in excess of £3 million.
She facilitated payments for the purchase of unlicensed erectile dysfunction medicines and claims that she received 10% of the ‘earnings’ laundered through her account but was unaware that the money was for the unlicensed medicine, Kamagra.
Samples of the products were found to contain potent, active medicinal ingredients with potential serious side effects and are classified as prescription only. Supply without medical supervision is dangerous as the contents of unlicensed medicines are unknown and untested.
Alastair Jeffrey, MHRA Head of Enforcement said:
Selling medicines outside of the regulated supply chain is a serious criminal offence. If you buy medicines online, you are potentially trusting a criminal to look after your health”.
Always seek professional help and visit your GP if you are ill. These criminals are motivated by greed and have no concern about your welfare.
MHRA is currently running the #FakeMeds campaign to warn people against buying potentially dangerous or useless unlicensed medicines sold by illegal online suppliers.
Visit www.gov.uk/fakemeds for tips on buying medicines safely online and how to avoid unscrupulous sites.
Link: Press release: Brighton woman imprisoned for laundering £1.4m as part of family fake sex drug operation
Source: Gov Press Releases
From luxury British couture and tea, to chocolate, beauty products, home appliances and other items, UK products have gained popularity in China in recent years. To meet this growing demand,JD.com, China’s largest retailer, has announced plans to sell £2 billion of UK goods to Chinese consumers in the next 2-3 years.
The agreement signed today between JD.com and the British Government’s Department of International Trade (DIT), is focused on making it easier for British companies to access the China market via JD.
“Many British brands recognise the huge potential of China’s enormous e-commerce market” said Richard Burn, Director-General of DIT China. “JD truly understands what Chinese consumers want and has the resources to help British brands ensure success in the region. We’re looking forward to working with JD to bring more British brands to China in the future.”
Prime Minister Theresa May, who is on her first official state visit to China since becoming Prime Minister, met with JD Chairman and CEO Richard Liu at the Residence of the British Ambassador to China. Among the topics Liu and May discussed were JD’s plans to help more UK brands reach JD’s 266 million customers.
The number of UK brands on JD.com has doubled over the last two years, with sales in 2017 growing 100% year-on-year. World famous brands Dyson, Clark’s, Johnnie Walker and Lipton are among the brands that have been popular with JD consumers. Over the past three years, Dyson sales on JD have increased by over 60 times.
In order to push even greater sales of British goods, JD will launch special campaigns for seasonal products and undertake other activities to give brands more opportunities to reach Chinese consumers. JD will kick off with a 24-hour “Celebrate Britain” sales promotion for UK products this April to introduce the “Best of Britain” to Chinese customers.
Link: Press release: JD.com commits £2 billion to bring UK products to Chinese consumers
Source: Gov Press Releases
