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Sequoia contains the active ingredient Sulfoxaflor which was approved by the EU in 2015 following assessment by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA).

The Government’s decision follows a full assessment by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) and the UK Expert Committee on Pesticides (ECP).

A Defra spokesperson said:

The Health and Safety Executive and the Expert Committee on Pesticides recommended that Sequoia should be authorised for use in greenhouses as they assessed the risk to bees and pollinators to be low. In line with commitments to be led by the science, Ministers have accepted this recommendation.

Both organisations concluded Sequoia used in greenhouses meets the requirements for authorisation as the risk to pollinators is low.

Our priority is the protection of people and the environment which is why decisions on the use of pesticides are based on a careful scientific assessment of the risks.

This decision is consistent with the EU’s recent decision on neonicotinoids, which bans the outdoor use of neonicotinoids while allowing continued use in greenhouses. Further information is online.

The decision by the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) comes following an in-depth investigation into market leader JLA’s takeover in May 2017 of its closest competitor Washstation. The 2 firms supply managed laundry services to higher education providers including universities, colleges and student accommodation providers.

The merger was investigated by a CMA group of independent panel members which today published its final decision. The group found a substantial loss of competition resulting from the merger and that customers may be expected to pay more for, or receive lower quality, managed laundry services.

Findings show that other firms offering laundry services to higher education providers are not currently able to compete effectively with JLA / Washstation. The investigation also found that any future growth by these smaller rivals would be unlikely to offset the loss of competition resulting from the merger, either sufficiently or quickly enough. Additionally, it was found that companies providing laundry services in other sectors, such as healthcare or leisure, would find it difficult to enter the higher education sector and compete effectively against JLA / Washstation in the foreseeable future.

In order to address the loss of competition resulting from the merger, the CMA has decided that JLA must sell Washstation’s higher education business to a new owner to be approved by the CMA.

Stuart McIntosh, Inquiry Chair, said:

Our decision will preserve competition and choice for universities and other providers of student accommodation.

The CMA thoroughly monitors mergers across the UK. Where it finds concerns it will take action, and has the ability to reverse completed mergers to ensure that customers are not worse off.

Full information on the merger investigation can be found on the case page.

Notes for editors

1. The CMA is the UK’s primary competition and consumer authority. It is an independent non-ministerial government department with responsibility for carrying out investigations into mergers, markets and the regulated industries and enforcing competition and consumer law.
2. JLA and Washstation are both UK companies predominantly active in the UK.
3. JLA acquired Washstation in May 2017. In December 2017, the CMA called in the merger for investigation. At the end of the initial (phase 1) review, JLA offered no undertakings to address the competition concerns found in the CMA’s phase 1 decision, and the CMA therefore referred the case for an in-depth (phase 2) investigation on 16 April 2018.
4. On 10 August 2018 the group of independent panel members published its provisional findings and notice of possible remedies and invited views. The group considered responses to its provisional findings and proposals on remedies.
5. The CMA’s functions in phase 2 merger investigations are performed by inquiry groups chosen from the CMA’s panel members. The appointed inquiry group are the decision-makers on phase 2 investigations.
6. The CMA’s panel members come from a variety of backgrounds, including economics, law, accountancy and/or business; the membership of an inquiry group usually reflects a mix of expertise and experience.
7. The members of this inquiry group are Stuart McIntosh (Inquiry Chair), Anne Fletcher, Ulrike Hotopp and Sheila McClelland.
8. Media enquiries to the CMA should be directed to press@cma.gsi.gov.uk or 020 3738 6460.

Foreign Secretary, Jeremy Hunt, said:

In the last five decades, the world has lost nearly 60 percent of its vertebrate animals. In case you believe that is just another statistic, think about what it means.

The magnificent wildlife that humanity has inherited – the animals that enliven our imaginations, enhance the beauty of the world and provide livelihoods for millions of people – are disappearing with terrifying speed.
We have lost two thirds of Africa’s elephants since the 1970s. We are down to the last 80,000 giraffes and the final 20,000 lions. The world’s tiger population has dropped by 95 per cent in the last century.

If we go on like this, our grandchildren may only know of these animals from David Attenborough documentaries.

So today, I will open a conference in London attended by 80 countries on how to combat the illegal wildlife trade.
The criminal gangs who smuggle horns and tusks pose one of the greatest threats to the survival of wildlife. They target some of the poorest countries in the world, spreading corruption and depriving governments of desperately needed revenues that could be used for schools and hospitals.

The World Bank estimates that governments lose as much as $15 billion (£11 billion) every year because of illegal logging. And the same criminal networks that traffic the body parts of wild animals may also deal in guns and drugs and people.

This week, I have joined Penny Mordaunt, the International Development Secretary, to announce a new British initiative to target the traffickers by helping countries in Africa and Asia to launch investigations and seize assets. We are sending more British diplomats to Africa, including experts on combating the illegal wildlife trade.

Last year, our Parliament passed the Criminal Finances Act, strengthening the British Government’s powers to combat money laundering and freeze unexplained wealth. Since then, we have placed another law before Parliament that would ban domestic ivory sales.

We will also contribute £250 million to the United Nations Global Environment Facility by 2022. As part of this, the Global Wildlife Programme has worked with Kenya on a new law imposing tougher punishments for wildlife crimes, including life imprisonment for anyone caught smuggling the body parts of an endangered species.

We are using our aid budget to help the UN Office of Drugs and Crime to strengthen the ability of developing countries to enforce their laws against the wildlife trade and improve their investigative skills.

When laws are enforced and smugglers prosecuted, wildlife populations can and do recover. The number of wild tigers in Nepal, for example, has doubled in the last nine years.

The London conference will be the biggest international gathering of its kind ever held. My aim is for Britain to do everything possible to protect wild animals for the sake of our grandchildren. If we failed to act, quite simply we would never be forgiven.

Further information

• Follow the Foreign Secretary on Twitter @Jeremy_Hunt
• Follow the Foreign Office on Twitter @foreignoffice and Facebook
• Follow the Foreign Office on Instagram, YouTube and LinkedIn

On the first day of the fourth international Illegal Wildlife Trade conference in London (Thursday, 11 October 2018), £900,000 of new funding has been announced to develop a new British military counter-poaching taskforce.

The announcement builds on the significant success of, and lessons learned from, the UK’s previous work to train rangers in Gabon and Malawi.

Operatives will be deployed to train African park rangers in more effective and safer counter-poaching techniques. The project aims to reduce the number of poaching incidents by catching poachers and bringing them to justice.

The UK will work in partnership with targeted countries to provide support for intelligence mapping, interception tracking tactics and operations management.

Training carried out by the British Army in Gabon and Malawi during 2018 has been well received with 84 Ecoguards being trained in Gabon, which will double by the end of the year, and 120 Rangers partnered in Malawi.

UK Environment Secretary, Michael Gove said:

The illegal wildlife trade is one of the most serious issues of organised crime facing the world. In the last year alone more than 100 rangers were killed on the front line of the fight against poachers – as an international community we must do everything we can to support their vital work. The ranger programme we are funding provides professional training and builds capability to tackle this crime across Africa.

This demonstrates the UK’s global leadership and delivers our commitment in the 25-Year Environment Plan.

UK Defence Secretary, Gavin Williamson said:

The training we already provide has made a significant difference to the protection of some of the planet’s most magnificent wildlife.

As the British Army now takes its world-renowned training further across Africa, those responsible for this abhorrent practice should be looking over their shoulders.

Maj James Cowen, who led the deployment in Malawi, said:

Having seen the beauty of these animals up close, and how at risk their survival is due to poaching, we are more determined than ever to stop these criminals in their tracks.

Planning is currently ongoing to identify countries and parks across the region with which the British Army will partner and assist over the next year.

Assistance can be tailored to the needs of the specific parks and consists of both base located training, such as command and control and paramedic, and a partnering model that sees UK soldiers living and operating with Rangers – helping Rangers to improve techniques and procedures whilst the UK soldiers have been able to improve their own skills in tracking and bush craft; a true partnership.

Environmental Crime, which includes the illegal wildlife trade and illegal logging, is the fifth most lucrative serious organised crime and is estimated to be worth up to £17billion a year.

The two-day conference in London (11 to 12 October 2018) is bringing more than 80 nations together including international political leaders, conservation organisations and individuals interested in closing down the vile trade in wildlife.

The Annual Report of the Certification Officer, Sarah Bedwell, was laid before Parliament today 11 October 2018. The report describes the work of the Certification Officer over the year 1 April 2017 to 31 March 2018 and provides detailed information on all trade unions and employers’ associations. The statistical information it contains is drawn from the annual returns received during the reporting period, which relate mainly to the year ending 31 December 2016.

Sarah Bedwell was appointed by the Secretary of State on 1 January 2018. The report was prepared together with Gerard Walker who held the position on an interim basis until 31 December 2017 and has since been appointed as Assistant Certification Officer.

TRADE UNION MEMBERSHIP AND FINANCES

• Figures reported to the Certification Officer show total trade union membership of 6,875,231. This is an increase of 10,175 members or 0.15%. However, this included 147,330 retired members of UNISON that had not been included in previous totals. Without this figure the total figure would have been 6,727,901 or a decrease of 2% on the figures for the previous reporting period. This continues the decrease in union membership for the ninth successive year. The 13 largest unions account for over four fifths of the total trade union membership (5.82 million members or 84.7%) (Introduction, Chapter 4 and Appendix 4).
• The number of trade unions has also continued to decrease, notwithstanding the modest increase in 2014-15. There were 146 trade unions on the Certification Officer’s lists and schedules at the end of this reporting period, compared to 150 at the end of the previous period. Whilst three trade unions were added to the list, seven were removed. At the end of this reporting period there were 91 employers’ associations, the same number as at the end of the previous reporting period. (Introduction, Chapter 1).
• The total funds (net assets) of trade unions as reported in this period decreased 14% to £1,307 million. The 13 largest unions, that each have membership in excess of 100,000 members, had average net assets of £53 million (Chapter 4 and Appendix 4).
• The total sum contained in the political funds of the trade unions at the end of this period was £34 million. This is up £2.3 million, from £31.7 million the previous year. The largest political fund was that of Unite the Union, which was valued at around £14.5 million (Chapter 7 and Appendix 9).
• On 1 September 2017 the National Education Union was formed by amalgamation of the National Union of Teachers (NUT) and Association of Teachers and Lecturers (ATL), two unions who at the end of the previous reporting period had a combined membership of around 565,583.

COMPLAINTS

Over the past reporting year 55 complaints were determined. This compares to 39 complaints in the previous reporting year. Of these, 52 complaints alleged that a union had breached its own rules. The other 3 related to alleged breaches of statute. A summary of these decisions can be found in Chapters 3, 4, 8 and 9 of this report. The issue that attracted the most interest was the decision made by Her Honour Judge Mary Stacey in her role as Assistant Certification Officer to hear the complaints of Mr Burgess and others against UNISON. The complaints related to the General Secretary election in 2015. There were multiple applicants and 16 complaints that required a preliminary hearing and three full days of evidence and submissions. Following this, the ACO made a single declaration that the union had breached its own rules relating to the election; she considered it inappropriate to make an enforcement order on the basis that it would be disproportionately punitive, in response to the breach found, to order the General Secretary election to be run again.

During the reporting year, a number of complaints arising out of the General Secretary election in 2017 were raised against Unite the Union by two applicants, Gerard Coyne and Richard Brooks. The Certification Officer appointed Jeffrey Burke QC to hear these complaints as Assistant Certification Officer. Following hearings between March and June 2018, the Assistant Certification Officer dismissed all 10 complaints. The decisions can be accessed on the breach of union rules section of our website.

THE TRADE UNION ACT 2016

The Trade Union Act 2016 received royal assent on 4 May 2016. To date three sections of the Act, that relate to the work of the Certification Officer, have been implemented:
Section 7 Information to Certification Officer about industrial action etc;
Section 11: Opting in by union members to contribute to political funds; and
Section 12: Union’s annual return to include details of political expenditure

All these provisions were commenced on 1 March 2017. Further details can be found in the Annual Report.

SECTION 7 – TRADE UNION ACT 2016 – INFORMATION TO CERTIFICATION OFFICER ABOUT INDUSTRIAL ACTION ETC

New duties to report on political expenditure and to provide information about industrial action apply to the reporting periods which begin after 1 March 2017. For the majority of trade unions this will mean that they will provide this information, for the first time, in their annual returns to me for the period ending 31 December 2018 which should be provided to me before 1 June 2019. In preparation for this my team have amended the template which trade unions use to report to this office so that unions can provide the additional information required

SECTION 11 – TRADE UNION ACT 2016 – OPTING IN BY UNION MEMBERS TO CONTRIBUTE TO POLITICAL FUNDS

The law relating to the way members of trade unions contribute to the political funds of their unions has been amended to favour a system of opting in rather that requiring members to opt out of making an otherwise automatic contribution. New members joining a union with a political fund on or after 1 March 2018 or all members of a union which establishes a new political fund will have to opt in if they wish to contribute to a political fund. To comply with the changes trade unions with political funds had to amend their rules relating to these funds and the amended rules must have been approved by me before 1 March 2018. All rule changes were approved for all trade unions wishing to retain a political fund during this period.

MEMBERSHIP AUDIT CERTIFICATE

The Transparency of Lobbying, Non-Party Campaigning and Trade Union Administration Act 2014 introduced new provisions relating to the membership register of trade unions. The new provisions, incorporated into section 24 of the 1992 Act, impose a requirement on trade unions to submit to the Certification Officer annually a Membership Audit Certificate at the same as the union’s annual return. The new provisions also provide further powers to the Certification Officer to investigate concerns that the provisions of section 24 are not being or have not been compline with by a trade union. These powers came into force on 1 June 2016.

In this reporting year 153 membership audit certificates were due and all of these were received. No circumstances arose leading the Certification Officer to use his investigatory powers under section 24 of the 1992 Act.

Notes to editors:

1. The annual report of the Certification Officer for Trade Unions and Employers’ Associations was published and laid before Parliament on 11 October 2018. It is available on the Certification Office website: www.gov.uk/certificationofficer.
2. The Trade Union and Labour Relations (Consolidation) Act 1992, as amended, sets out the Certification Officer’s statutory responsibilities. Section 258 requires the Certification Officer to make an annual report on his activities to the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy and to the Chair of the Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service (Acas). The report must be laid before Parliament and published.
3. The Certification Officer is appointed by the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy and resourced through Acas, but is independent of any direction from Ministers or Acas. Sarah Bedwell was appointed to the post on 1 January 2018.
4. The Certification Officer’s website contains every decision made by the Certification Officer since 1975. It contains all the annual returns from trade unions and employers associations since 2012, with links to The National Archives website for returns from between 2003 and 2012. It also contains guidance on various aspects of the Certification Officer’s functions, copies or links to Annual Reports going back to 2001-2002 and a list of trade unions and employers’ associations.
5. The Certification Officer invites you to subscribe to his email service to receive notice of any new items posted to the website. Visit the website: www.gov.uk/certificationofficer, to subscribe.
6. The Certification Officer has reported the following figures for trade union membership over the past 10 reporting years.

Year	TU Membership	Changes from previous year	%
17-18	6,875,231	+10,175	+0.15
16-17	6,865,056	-83,669	-1.2
15-16	6,948,725	-61,802	-0.88
14-15	7,010,527	-75,589	-1.1
13-14	7,086,116	-111,299	-1.5
12-13	7,197,415	-63,795	-0.9
11-12	7,261,210	-67,695	-0.9
10-11	7,328,905	-58,993	-0.8
09-10	7,387,898	-268,258	-3.5
08-09	7,656,156	+28,463	+0.4
07-08	7,627,693	+ 24,851	+ 0.3

For press enquiries please contact Gerard Walker, telephone: 0330 109 3605,
e-mail: gerard.walker@certoffice.org

The Sector Risk Profile 2018, published today (11 October 2018) by the Regulator of Social Housing, highlights health and safety issues, failures to meet stakeholder expectations and reliance on sales as significant potential risks for social housing providers to manage.

The report, now in its sixth edition, sets out the range of strategic and financial challenges facing the social housing sector. It is designed to help registered providers, board members and others to understand the operating environment and to think strategically about how their organisation can manage its risks.

Whilst the sector continues to have to manage a range of issues to ensure that it remains viable and well governed, the regulator has highlighted 3 key areas for boards to consider. Boards should:

• be clear about their health and safety responsibilities, both for stock that they own and stock that they manage, to ensure that tenants are safe in their homes and staff are safe at work
• consider their stakeholders expectations in their decision making, including tenants and residents; lenders and investors; and central and local government
• ensure that sales activity is underpinned by an understanding of local housing demand and the mitigations available if sales and staircasing do not match expectations

This year’s publication also emphasises risks to specialist providers, including the particular risks inherent in lease-based providers of supported housing, on which the regulator will be issuing a further report in due course.

Fiona MacGregor, Chief Executive of RSH said:

The risks facing each organisation will depend upon the scale and nature of that business. It is important that boards understand the specific issues that they face, carry out adequate stress testing and plan meaningful mitigations. We will look for assurance from providers that they have robust stress tests, internal control systems and appropriate risk management. We will also continue to monitor the exposure that sales risks have on the sector as part of our quarterly review of providers’ overall financial strength.

The aftermath of the Grenfell Tower fire has seen unprecedented scrutiny of the social housing sector, landlords’ relationship with their tenants, and public interest in the sector’s wider social role. In this context providers must show how they are delivering on their social purpose and objectives, and meeting their promises and commitments. Where things go wrong providers should be open and transparent and look to put the issue right as quickly as possible. Failure to do so could not only undermine stakeholder confidence in individual providers but also affect the reputation of the sector as a whole.

The regulator’s Sector Risk Profile 2018 is available on the RSH website.

Further information

1. The regulator’s annual Sector Risk Profiles are available on the RSH website.
2. The Regulator of Social Housing promotes a viable, efficient and well-governed social housing sector able to deliver homes that meet a range of needs. It does this by undertaking robust economic regulation focusing on governance, financial viability and value for money that maintains lender confidence and protects the taxpayer. It also sets consumer standards and may take action if these standards are breached and there is a significant risk of serious detriment to tenants or potential tenants. For more information visit the RSH website.
3. See our Media enquiries page for press office contact details. For general queries, please email enquiries@rsh.gov.uk or call 0300 124 5225.

Following a meeting in Delhi earlier this month, MHRA will send intelligence to the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI), enabling them to target regions suspected of sending unlicensed medicines into the UK.

This is another example of co-ordinated efforts to tackle international medicines crime. The DRI recently seized 350,000 tablets of potent medicines such as Diazepam, Tramadol and Zopiclone destined for UK, European and US markets. Rapid mutual intelligence-sharing will help to combat the illegal cross-border trade in medicines.

The UK and India have a longstanding relationship when it comes to collaborating around the issue of medicines. In 2015 both countries signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU), further increasing collaboration in the area of medicines and medical devices and improving public safety.

MHRA’s Head of Enforcement, Alastair Jeffrey:

Our active collaboration with Indian Government agencies sends a strong message to criminals; when we work with our global partners we are able to disrupt criminal activity through the identification, arrest and prosecution of offenders wherever they are.

We are working tirelessly to identify all those involved in bringing unlicensed medicines into the UK.

Our collaborative efforts with key partners like India will help protect the health of UK citizens.

Additional Director General, Vivek Chaturvedi, said:

Indian Customs is committed to detecting and preventing illegal cross border trade in medicines and psychotropic substances. DRI being the apex intelligence and investigative agency has successfully booked a number of cases, carried out seizures and arrested offenders in recent past.

DRI works closely with international law enforcement agencies and regulators and MHRA is an important partner in tackling the menace of trade in illegal medicines.

Such collaboration is mutually beneficial to both countries in protecting the health of their citizens and in prosecuting the criminals involved in such offences.

Ends

Background

1. The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) is responsible for regulating all medicines and medical devices in the UK by ensuring they work and are acceptably safe.
2. All our work is underpinned by robust and fact-based judgements to ensure that the benefits justify any risks.
3. The Directorate of Revenue Intelligence is the apex intelligence and investigative agency for matters relating to smuggling and violation of the Customs Act, NDPS Act, and other allied Acts involving cross border offences. The Directorate is part of the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs under the Department of Revenue, Government of India.
4. The medicines seized were Zopiclone, Zolpidem, Lorazepam, Diazepam, Tramadol and Alprazolam.
5. MHRA will send intelligence to DRI under the existing bilateral provisions.