Author: Pulse Assent

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Press release: Statement on the proposed merger between Comcast Corporation and Sky plc

On 7 May 2018, Comcast Corporation formally notified the European Commission of its intention to acquire the entire issued share capital of Sky plc.

Under section 58 of the Enterprise Act 2002 (“the Act”), the Secretary of State has the powers to intervene in certain media mergers on public interest grounds.

Having reviewed the relevant evidence available, I can confirm that I have today written to the parties to inform them that I am minded not to issue an EIN on the basis that the proposed merger does not raise concerns in relation to public interest considerations which would meet the threshold for intervention.

This is a quasi-judicial decision and I am required to make my decision independently, following a process that is scrupulously fair and impartial, and as promptly as quickly as possible.

I will now allow until 5pm on Thursday 24 May for interested parties to submit written representations, and I aim to come to a final decision on whether to intervene in the merger shortly.

Link: Press release: Statement on the proposed merger between Comcast Corporation and Sky plc
Source: Gov Press Releases

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Press release: Tipping the scales – Fish farm generating future fisheries

The Environment Agency’s National Coarse Fish Farm near Calverton, Nottinghamshire, is continuing to break records for producing healthy fish for re-stocking.

These fish play an important role in the work of the Environment Agency and its partners to restore, improve and develop sustainable fisheries in England.

In 2017 the fish farm produced 9 tonnes of strong healthy fish, an increase from the 6 tonnes produced in 2016.
Over the 12 months the farm bred more than 350,000 fish, with the average size and quality of each fish increasing on previous years.

In 2017, Calverton Fish Farm also stocked out over 6,000,000 advanced reared larvae back into the wild. Some of these larvae were introduced into waters where natural reproduction has previously been poor. They help to give the resident fish populations a boost to become self-sustainable in the future.

The main reasons for stocking Calverton-bred fish and larvae are: replacing stocks lost to pollution or following habitat or water quality improvements; improving stocks where natural reproduction is low; and helping to create fisheries in areas where there is a shortage of angling opportunities.

Kevin Austin, Environment Agency Deputy Director Agriculture, Fisheries and the Natural Environment said:

The work of Calverton fish farm is funded by income from fishing licence fees so it’s great to see it continuing its work producing the healthy fish needed for recovery and re-stocking.

Alan Henshaw, Calverton Fish Farm Team Leader said:

We’ve achieved increases in weight by improving the growing conditions for the fish and by mixing the species up more to find groups that grow well together. Having a highly dedicated and professional team that are producing fish of such high quality is also key to the success of Calverton.

Our annual production of fish by overall weight has more than doubled since 2013. This is a huge increase and a great achievement on the part of the team. Production of these bigger, stronger, fitter, disease-free fish means that they are better able to cope with life in the wild when we release them.

When they reached 18 months old, the 358,552 fish produced in 2017 were restocked into rivers, lakes and ponds as part of re-stocking programmes across England.

The fish breeding process is complex and involves the team at Calverton removing the sperm and eggs by hand from the fish. The eggs are laid out in specialist trays and placed inside troughs, where they receive a fresh, temperature controlled water supply. The eggs are incubated for between three and 30 days depending on species and when the eggs have hatched, the larvae are fed with tiny shrimp.

Notes to editors
In 2017, the number of each species of fish released was:

  • Barbel – 10,020
  • Bream – 46,910
  • Chub – 57,359
  • Roach – 70,525
  • Dace – 47,818
  • Rudd – 12,280
  • Tench – 23,080
  • Crucian carp -16,560
  • Grayling – 74,000

Link: Press release: Tipping the scales – Fish farm generating future fisheries
Source: Environment Agency

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Press release: £400m A1 upgrade brings safer, faster journeys for drivers

The £400m Highways England upgrade – the biggest road building project in the north of England – means there are now motorway links all the way between Newcastle and London.

The extra capacity which comes from adding an extra lane in each direction near Catterick promises to reduce journey times by a fifth, and with safety benefits leading to less accidents, it is predicted to pump more than £1billion in the economy.

Over the next 60 years the improved road is predicted to prevent 450 accidents and save 20 lives.

The upgrade is part of the government’s £15 billion roads investment strategy, which is transforming the road network and improving connections between cities.

Secretary of State for Transport Chris Grayling said:

Our record investment to improve our roads is making a real difference to people’s lives – providing quicker and safer journeys for millions of drivers.

This scheme will not only save motorists time stuck in traffic, but will also help unlock £1 billion into the economy.

It also fills in the missing link to provide motorway-standard roads between Newcastle and London, helping businesses in the north by opening up new opportunities thanks to better and more reliable connections to the rest of the country.

Highways England Senior Project Manager Tom Howard said:

This is great news for the almost 70,000 drivers who already use this section every day and whose journeys will be safer and faster.

At the same time we’ve also made it easier for local people to access the A1 safely, and we’ve planted miles of hedgerows and acres of woodland.

This has been the biggest road project in the north and I would like to thank everybody involved in the scheme for their hard work and commitment in making it happen.

A total 13 miles of the route between Leeming and Barton has been upgraded to motorway standard, with an extra lane added in each direction. It means drivers using the M1 and A1(M) can have motorway standard journeys between Newcastle and London.

The upgrade has made access to the motorway safer via a new junction at Catterick and an improved junction at Scotch Corner.

The improvements also include 11 miles of new local access road, improving safety for local traffic and the surrounding communities as well as providing an improved route for cyclists, equestrians and pedestrians. There are also 10 new bridges to help people more easily get from one side to the other.

The project created more than 800 jobs, with 11 apprentices and 15 graduates recruited to the scheme.

To benefit the local environment 28 hectares of new woodland have been established and 18 miles of new hedgerows have been planted.

The improvements will translate into huge benefits for the economy.

David Laws, Chief Executive at Leeds Bradford Airport, said:

The A1 Leeming to Barton scheme will help to play a big part in improving surface access connectivity to Leeds Bradford Airport and this upgrade will ensure the economic benefits the airport can deliver for the wider Leeds City Region will be accelerated.

Contractors for Highways England will still be on the site over the next few weeks while they complete minor work such as landscaping.

For more details, visit the scheme website.

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.

Link: Press release: £400m A1 upgrade brings safer, faster journeys for drivers
Source: Gov Press Releases

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Press release: Merseyside drivers urged not to risk road workers’ lives

Contractors for Highways England have reported 23 separate incidents in the past two months where road users have driven into the roadworks for the £3 million improvement project at Switch Island, where the M57, M58 and three A roads all join together.

Incidents have included a lorry driver who travelled through the construction area without stopping forcing road workers to quickly get out of the way, a motorcyclist who swerved around a worker when he tried to stop the driver to explain the dangers, and the driver of a 4×4 who swore at a worker who tried to offer advice before driving away.

Drivers are now being warned that their details will be passed on to Merseyside Police and they could face prosecution if they deliberately ignore roads closures to try and save time on their journeys.

Karl Sandiford, 48 from Bolton, has worked on the motorways for 18 years. The married father-of-one is a site supervisor for Highways England contractor Balfour Beatty Mott MacDonald and is currently working nights at Switch Island. He said:

We get frequent incidents where drivers break through our road closures. Most are people who simply do not care and ignore the cones and signs that are installed to protect us.

We have enough to think about while getting the job done. What I and everyone else working, not just on this site but anywhere on the motorway network, can do without is the chance that we could get run over.

We’ve all got families and it only takes a second for someone to be hit by a vehicle that shouldn’t be there, and then that’s that person’s life and their family’s lives ruined.

On average there are nearly 300 incidents a week of road users driving into coned-off construction areas, risking the lives of road workers who are busy improving England’s 4,300 miles of motorways and major A roads. They included over 1,200 incidents in the North West alone during a three-month period last year.

Phil Tyrrell, Highways England Project Manager for the Switch Island scheme, said:

This is a complex engineering scheme which will result in much better journeys through the junction, and our road workers should be able to concentrate on the job they’re doing.

We’ve deliberately planned the project so that sections of the junction are only closed overnight when traffic levels are much lower, and clearly-signed diversions are in place to help drivers get to their destinations.

Drivers who selfishly and illegally ignore the closures to force their way through are putting both their lives and those of our road workers at risk – all to save a few minutes on their journeys.

The Switch Island improvement scheme includes changes to the road layout and lane markings, new barriers between carriageways, coloured high friction surfaces, better signs and a new 400 metre shared cycle path.

Airport-runway-style LED lights are also being installed in the road surface which will light up when traffic lights turn green so drivers can clearly see which lane they should follow.

And new signs will be displayed on three new gantries over the A5036 Dunnings Bridge Road, A59 Ormskirk Road and A5758 Brooms Cross Road to help drivers get into the correct lane to continue their journeys.

More details on the scheme are available via the project web page.

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.

Link: Press release: Merseyside drivers urged not to risk road workers’ lives
Source: Gov Press Releases