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On 15 February 2018 Highways England will launch a consultation on options to upgrade a three-mile stretch of the A417 near Birdlip in Gloucestershire.

Known locally as the ‘missing link’, this stretch of single carriageway road between the Brockworth bypass and Cowley roundabout restricts the flow of traffic on a key route which is otherwise dual carriageway. Upgrading this section to dual carriageway will help unlock Gloucestershire’s potential for growth and secure opportunities for housing and jobs, as well as improving life in local communities.

The A417 passes through the Cotswolds Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and so any solution will be designed sensitively to meet the special character of the landscape, environment and history.

The improvement is being made possible by the Government’s £15bn investment in motorways and major A roads and will be delivered by Highways England.

Project manager Mike Goddard said:

Our plans will deliver reliable journey times between the Thames Valley and West Midlands, offer a safer journey for drivers and protect the special character of the landscape.

Upgrading this route has been a key focus for the community and we would encourage as many people as possible to share their views on the different options to help us shape the best possible outcome.

Highways England is holding a public consultation between 15 February 2018 and 29 March 2018. Once the consultation officially launches, full details of the options for consideration and feedback forms will be available online via the scheme website, along with dates and venues public information exhibitions.

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.

FCO spokesman said:

We are concerned by the rejection of Agnes Chow’s nomination for the forthcoming Legislative Council by-election. The right to stand for election is a fundamental right enshrined in Article 26 of the Basic Law of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region and the Hong Kong Bill of Rights.

Hong Kong’s high degree of autonomy, and its rights and freedoms, are central to its way of life, and it is important that they should be fully respected.

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The A57 improvement on the Greater Manchester side – featuring new dual and single carriageways between the M67 and Woolley Bridge – is the centrepiece of the Trans-Pennine Upgrade programme and requires special planning permission. There are also other important improvements along the route with safety and technology improvements either side of Woodhead Pass – and a major overhaul of Westwood roundabout in South Yorkshire where the A616 meets the A61.

Highways England unveiled the timetable for the statutory consultation on Monday 29 January. It will run between Monday 12 February 2018 and Sunday 25 March 2018 with a programme of public consultation events and a variety of other ways for people to get involved – including by email, post and online.

Highways England’s Trans-Pennine Upgrade project manager Monica Corso Griffiths said:

Having announced our preferred options for this important investment last November this is now the opportunity for everyone concerned to help us shape the detail of the individual schemes before we submit firm and final proposals to the planning authorities.

We’d urge anyone with an interest in the improvements to let us know their views. This is an important investment in one of the most important east to west routes in the country. The improvements form part of the current £15 billion government investment in motorways and major A roads and are a vital element of Highways England’s support for the Northern Powerhouse – unlocking the potential for new homes and jobs by tackling congestion.

The proposals included in the public consultation are:

• Mottram Moor link road – a new dual carriageway from the M67 junction 4 roundabout to a new junction on the A57 at Mottram Moor and a new single carriageway connecting to the A6018 Roe Cross Road
• a new single carriageway link from the A57 at Mottram Moor to a new junction on the A57 at Woolley Bridge
• safety and technology improvements – including safety measures focused on addressing accident hotspots and the provision of electronic message signs
• A616/A61 Westwood roundabout – improvements to reduce congestion and improve the flow of traffic through the roundabout in Tankersley, Sheffield

Highways England will need to secure a development consent order (DCO) to enable it to build the new stretches of road at Mottram. To help Highways England prepare its DCO to the planning authorities, statutory consultation events are being staged across both sides of the Pennines during the consultation period. As well as the public exhibitions, paper response forms and consultation brochures will be available at locations open to the public from 12 February and can be handed in at these events or sent to the freepost address provided on the form.

Further information about the venues for the events, scheme proposals and details of the deposit locations, which include some local post offices and libraries, can be found on the scheme website.

Anyone who wants more information or to give their views on the scheme can also email the project team at: Trans_Pennine_Scheme@highwaysengland.co.uk or call 0300 123 5000, the Highways England’s customer care centre.

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 Queen has approved the nomination of the Reverend Canon Susan Helen Jones, BEd, MPhil, PhD, Residentiary Canon at Derby Cathedral and Director of Mission and Ministry in the Diocese of Derby, to be appointed to the Deanery of the Cathedral Church of Christ, Liverpool, on the elevation of the Very Reverend Peter Jonathan Wilcox, MA, DPhil as Bishop of Sheffield on 23 September 2017.

The project, valued at around £225m, will make journeys between Birmingham and the M1 and through Derby quicker and simpler by separating long distance traffic from those making local journeys.

Specifically, the Kingsway, Markeaton and Little Eaton roundabouts will be replaced, with two underpasses and a flyover, which will collectively help to reduce congestion on this busy route.

In February and March 2015, Highways England ran a public consultation to discuss its proposals.

Highways England senior project manager, Graham Littlechild, said:

Following our consultation held in 2015 we carefully considered all feedback to select the best possible options to take forward as our preferred route. This process has been detailed and time consuming, but this has been necessary to ensure we make the correct decision.

Once complete, this scheme will alleviate three key bottlenecks for those travelling through Derbyshire on the A38.

Highways England will now do further work looking more closely at the local area, completing surveys and investigations to help design the scheme in greater detail.

There will also be a further period of consultation later this year, where Highways England will ask for views on a more detailed design before formally submitting an application for a Development Consent Order.

Highways England will work with the local authorities to shape this consultation, to ensure that everyone has the opportunity to have their say.

If planning approval is granted, construction work on the scheme could start in 2020/21.

For more information about the preferred route announcement and about the scheme, visit the scheme website.

Alternatively email: A38derbyjunctions@highwaysengland.co.uk or call the Highways England Customer Contact Centre on 0300 123 5000.

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.

Diplomats and consular staff at the UK Embassy in Bangkok will move to new premises by 2019, following the sale of the existing site to a joint-venture consortium of Hongkong Land, a member of the Jardine Matheson Group, and Central Group for over £420 million.

This is the biggest land deal in Thai history and the FCO’s biggest ever sale. The proceeds will be reinvested in the FCO’s overseas estate and will fund 30-40 modernisation projects around the world that are necessary for security or health and safety reasons.

The new embassy building will be based in the AIA Sathorn Tower in the central business district from where diplomats will continue to promote UK interests in Thailand, a key partner on security and prosperity, as well as the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and wider region.

Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson said:

Britain is a leading player on the global stage and I’m determined to ensure that our diplomats have all the necessary tools to do their job effectively. This includes working in modern, safe, fit for purpose premises not just in Bangkok but around the world.

Our workforce in Bangkok will be moving into a state-of-the-art premises by 2019 and this can only enhance our trade links and bilateral relations in Thailand and throughout the region.

Simon McDonald, Permanent Under-Secretary at the Foreign Office said:

In a tight fiscal environment, it is right that we take tough decisions to ensure that the UK can maintain a global presence while getting the best value for taxpayers.

This deal will ensure that we have a modern, state of the art premises in Bangkok, confirming our long-term commitment to our relationship with Thailand, while releasing much-needed funds to modernise other embassies around the world, including in Cairo, New Delhi and Washington.

The sale is part of the FCO’s continual review of its global estate, which is designed to ensure the maintenance of a world-class platform from which to promote UK interests, and also deliver value to the British taxpayer.

The existing embassy building, which dated from the 1920s, required a significant upgrade and refurbishment to make it fit-for-purpose for a modern working environment, with large parts of the embassy building no longer usable.

After exploring all the options for the Bangkok estate, and conducting an independent valuation of the site, the decision was taken to sell the compound to the joint-venture consortium of Hongkong Land, a member of the Jardine Matheson Group, and Central Group following an open competition.

The new embassy will reaffirm our long-term commitment to our relationship with Thailand – a key partner for the UK’s security and prosperity interests and a leading ASEAN nation.

We are also strengthening our trade links through the new the Thai-UK Business Leadership Council, and this is complemented by the strong collaboration on science and innovation through our £3 million Newton Fund for Thailand.

Our diplomatic staff are also working with the Thai authorities on preventing child exploitation, organised crime, money laundering and human trafficking. And we will continue to maintain our focus on supporting human rights defenders, promoting freedom of expression and encouraging full Thai cooperation with the Universal Periodic Review process.

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Peter, who has held the post on an interim basis since August, has extensive UK and international project and programme experience across rail, road, airports and utilities.

In addition, Peter has also led substantial business units, working at board level, with accountability and oversight for delivering global engineering design and programme management services responsible for safety, financial, people and overall business performance.

The appointment takes effect from 1 February,

Highways England Chief Executive Jim O’Sullivan said:

I congratulate Peter on his appointment and am pleased he will continue with Highways England and the Executive Team as we deliver the Government’s £15bn road investment programme.

Peter said:

I am delighted to be joining Highways England at such an exciting time as we focus on delivering our significant portfolio of major projects and continue to prepare for the next roads investment period and beyond. With so much achieved in recent years, I look forward to working with our leadership and teams across the business as we continue to focus on safety, customer and delivery towards the aim of safer, smoother and more sustainable roads.

Peter has previously held senior positions within a number of construction industry related organisations.

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.

Mr Matthew Field has been appointed Her Majesty’s Ambassador to Bosnia and Herzegovina in succession to Mr Edward Ferguson. Mr Field will take up his appointment in August 2018.

CURRICULUM VITAE

Full name: Matthew Field

Married to: Martina Field-Klisovic

Children: Two sons

2016 – present EU Special Representative Office, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Senior Adviser/Head of Political Section

2012 – 2016 Brasilia, Political Counsellor

2010 – 2012 FCO, Head of Brazil & Southern Cone Team, Americas Directorate

2009 – 2010 Skopje, Political Adviser to the EU Special Representative in Macedonia/Head of Delegation

2006 – 2009 Zagreb, Head of EU/Political Section

2004 – 2005 FCO, Resource Manager, Europe Directorate

2003 – 2004 FCO, Desk Officer, Middle East Peace Process

2003 Joined FCO

Further information

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