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A new UK aid package will help governments in developing countries stamp out corruption and improve accountability, Minister of State for International Development Harriett Baldwin announced yesterday (Thursday 19 July).

It is estimated that up to £2 trillion is lost globally to corruption every year, which reduces the amount that governments can invest in vital services such as healthcare and education.

The support, announced at the Open Government Partnership’s (OGP) Fifth Global Summit in Tbilisi, Georgia, will drive transparency reforms through locally-led National Action Plans produced by governments and civil society, with the support of expertise from OGP.

The support is a part of the UK’s Transparency Agenda ‘Open Aid, Open Societies’, launched by Minister Baldwin in February 2018.

Minister of State Harriett Baldwin said:

“Corruption hurts the world’s poorest and most vulnerable the most. We must clamp down on the spaces where rogue money can operate if we are to end poverty and create a fairer world.

“Transparency transforms people’s lives for the better by helping developing countries to collect taxes, improve public services and ensure a level playing field in which businesses can flourish.

“Too many governments publish incomprehensible spreadsheets that do little to increase transparency. Today’s UK aid package will help some of the world’s poorest people access easily understandable information so that they can really see how their taxes are spent, and properly hold their leaders to account.”

The UK helped to found the Open Government Partnership in 2011. It has since grown from eight to 76 participating countries.

Notes to editors:

• The UK announced a £12 million programme of support over three years for the Open Government Partnership (OGP) at the OGP Fifth Global Summit in Tbilisi, Georgia – ‘Support for Open Government and Transparency’ yesterday. Today’s funding is an allocation from the Governance, Open Societies and Anti-Corruption programme budget for 2018/19.

• Of the £12 million, £6.8 million will help the OGP to scale up support to member countries in implementing open government reform commitments, including a focus on DFID priority countries Ghana, Kenya, Liberia, Nigeria and Pakistan.

• The programme also includes up to £4.7m for a new World Bank managed Multi-Donor Trust Fund which will provide technical and financial assistance to design and implement open government reform commitments.

The International Development Secretary, Penny Mordaunt, hails UK and Nigeria co-operation and announces UK aid support to help rural communities become self-sufficient.

Ms Mordaunt has praised the close partnership between the UK and Nigeria, which is helping the West African country lay the foundations on which to build a sustainable future.

During her first visit to Nigeria as International Development Secretary, Ms Mordaunt visited rural communities in Kaduna in the north of the country.

She announced extended support to the Propcom Mai-karfi scheme which, with UK aid funding, will support the livelihoods of farmers in some of the poorest parts of rural Nigeria.

By utilising simple and effective innovations, such as developing a private sector tractor hire service model providing over 53,000 farmers with access to tractors, the programme will open up markets for vulnerable communities and ensure stability and economic recovery in the north east.

Since 2012, DFID’s Propcom Mai-karfi programme has successfully generated over £27.3 million of additional income for the programme’s 676,316 beneficiaries including 150,561 women.

Ms Mordaunt also witnessed the impact UK tax-collecting expertise is making in Northern Nigeria. Thanks to a robust and efficient UK-supported tax collection system, Kaduna now has more money to spend on public services including hospitals and schools.

In a symbolic moment, Ms Mordaunt provided the final ever UK aid package of medical supplies to one of the region’s health centres. The state will now take over the running of the health clinic, paid for with taxes generated in Kaduna.

International Development Secretary Penny Mordaunt said:

The UK has a key role to play in ensuring Nigeria, one of the fastest growing countries in the world, has a bright, stable and prosperous future.

We are working to help Nigeria invest in its people and create more jobs, giving it a future beyond aid. British expertise in tax collection is ensuring Nigeria can build better schools and health centres.

Nigeria is our trading partner. Together we are working towards a mutually prosperous future, which is firmly in Nigeria’s, but also the UK’s national interest.

The Secretary of State saw how UK aid is driving a step-change in the relationship between the people of Kaduna, their Government, and the role of taxes in funding everyday services, which can improve lives in a practical way.

During her visit the International Development Secretary visited a health centre and school:

• the Badarawa Primary Healthcare Centre in Kaduna. Here the Secretary of State completed the formal handover of the final consignment of UK Aid funded medicine and equipment to Kaduna. While at the clinic, the Minister witnessed UK Aid’s contribution to the Government of Kaduna’s investment in primary health systems, which is giving women and children under five better access to essential health services.
• LGEA Primary School, supported by UK Aid’s Teacher Development Programme (TDP). The school has benefitted from UK Aid through DFID’s Teacher Development Programme which supports teacher training in English, Maths and Science. The programme supports teachers by providing print and audio visual materials on low cost mobile devices. TDP has also supported Kaduna to improve the quality of initial teacher training provided in Colleges of Education in the state.

In Abuja, the Secretary of State also:

• attended a roundtable discussion with the British High Commission and representatives from disability charities to discuss disability in Nigeria and Nigeria’s commitment to the Global Disability Summit next week, co-hosted by DFID in the UK on Tuesday, July 24;
• met with Vice President Yemi Osinbajo to further strengthen UK Nigeria relations and sought commitments from the Vice President on using Nigerian resources effectively to reduce poverty, and on resolving the humanitarian crisis in the North East;
• met with staff from the British High Commission, and thanked them for their support and hard work.

Notes to editors

Propcom Mai-karfi is DFID’s rural markets and livelihoods programme that has been working to address the challenges of access to market for smallholder farmers in Northern Nigeria.

The extension to Propcom Mai-karfi (PM) will supply an additional £24 million made available over three additional years. This extension covers three broad areas.

• Expand the programme into conflict affected states in the north east to work towards sustained stability and economic recovery that improves livelihoods of the rural poor.
• Increase resilience of the rural poor to climate change by growing a portfolio of Climate Smart Agriculture (CSA) interventions such as encouraging the market for solar powered driers for post-harvest loss reduction in vulnerable crops such as tomato and pepper.
• Improve access to rural and agricultural markets of Northern Nigeria for the poorest and most vulnerable including 162,500 women.

The programme extension will increase the resilience of 487,500 rural entrepreneurs and smallholder farmers in northern Nigeria, over 250,000 of which will now be based in the north east.

A man who burgled multiple Northampton homes has today had his sentence increased after it was referred to the Court of Appeal by the Attorney General’s Office for being too low.

Darren Barry Williams, 39, was caught after he broke into a house on Prescott Close in Northampton in April. He damaged a window and door, as well as attempting to steal jewellery. Before he could make his escape, two neighbours apprehended him, having been alerted to his crime by an alarm. Once in police custody, Williams pleaded guilty to this burglary, as well as five other home burglaries.

Williams was originally sentenced at Northampton Crown Court in May, where he was given 2 years 6 months’ imprisonment and ordered to pay a £170 victim surcharge. Today, after the Attorney General’s referral, the Court of Appeal increased his sentence to 3 years 8 months’ imprisonment.

Commenting on the sentence increase, Attorney General Geoffrey Cox QC MP said:

“Burglaries leave owners feeling unsafe within their own homes, and can cause a wider sense of disquiet in the community. Williams had an extensive criminal history, including multiple burglaries. I therefore welcome the Court of Appeal’s decision today to agree to increase his sentence.”

Two years ago the UK voted to leave the EU, triggering the formation of the Department for International Trade (DIT) to help businesses export, attract investment, negotiate market access and free trade deals, and champion global free trade.

In that time, the department has seen exports grow by an average of £7 billion per month for the last 23 months with DIT actively helping firms secure more than £70 billion worth of export wins. During that same period, DIT has overseen a boom in total trade which has grown 15.7% to a record-breaking £2,381.8 billion.

Jobs have been created across the country with DIT figures showing that 4,337 investment projects were recorded over the last 2 financial years, creating 151,194 new jobs and safeguarding 47,735. This amounts to nearly 1,500 new jobs per week.

Two years on and DIT is also nearing the completion of a capability building programme ahead of the UK’s exit from the EU. In that time, the department has grown from some 2,500 people at inception to around 3,500 people now – more than 500 of whom work in DIT’s specialist trade policy group.

More recently, there have been significant additions to the senior leadership team and changes to how DIT operates, with 9 new Her Majesty’s Trade Commissioners to lead the trade and investment business across the world and new Directors-General for Exports and Investment with decades of experience at the world’s biggest banks.

All this work will ensure that DIT is able deliver on the government’s ambition to build a truly global Britain operating the UK’s first independent trade policy in more than 40 years.

Prime Minister Theresa May said:

The UK has always been an outward-facing, trading nation and as we move towards our departure from the European Union, our priority is to establish the UK as a fully independent member of the international trading system and pursue trade agreements with new friends and old allies.

Since its creation 2 years ago, the Department for International Trade has formed strong global trading relationships, begun the process of establishing Britain’s independent seat at the table, supported British businesses to export to new markets, and set out the strategic direction for exports and investment post-Brexit.

We have come a long way in a short space of time, and I look forward to seeing this work reach fruition, as we exit the European Union.

International Trade Secretary, Dr Liam Fox MP said:

As we celebrate our second anniversary, there are many great achievements which reflect the dedication and hard work of my international economic department. After 150 years, DIT has reconstituted a Board of Trade for the 21st century, we have developed export and investment strategies; and have begun legislating for our trading future by taking the Trade Bill through Parliament.

We have succeeded in ensuring continued record export performance which has seen the trade deficit narrow by £3.9 billion in the year to May 2018, and made sure the UK remains the number one destination for inward investment in Europe.

Permanent Secretary Antonia Romeo commented:

The department published its flagship piece of legislation, the Trade Bill, currently in Parliament, established a new approach to foreign direct investment and outward direct investment and we are shortly to publish our Export Strategy.

As we reach our second anniversary, I am proud of the significant progress the department has made.

Second Permanent Secretary and Chief Trade Negotiation Adviser, Crawford Falconer said:

This department has become the hometown stadium for a fantastic team of dedicated professionals, that have already built a formidable trade policy machine from the ground up. It’s nothing less than a privilege to be adopted by it.

Earlier this year, DIT launched the International Trade Profession, a government profession designed to build trade expertise across the civil service, in the UK and overseas, maximising opportunities for the UK with an independent trade policy. I look forward to heading up this exciting new profession and helping to develop a new wave of trade talent.

Since DIT started 2 years ago

ENDS

Background

• The Department for International Trade Annual Report and Accounts 2017 to 2018 can be found at: gov.uk
• Export and total trade figures measured over 23-month period between July 2016 to May 2018 and comparable to the prior 23 months to May 2016. Trade deficit figures measured over the latest available 12-month period between June 2017 and May 2018 and comparable to the prior 12 months to May 2017.
• Export wins figures consolidated over 2 year period, where there has been a change to methodology and validation. In 2016/17 there was no systematic validation in place, but in 2017/18 2 new processes were introduced to deliver a proportionate but robust validation approach.
• £70 million export win figure is measured from April 2016 to March 2018.

For further information

• Contact the DIT Media Team on 020 7215 2000 or email newsdesk@trade.gov.uk
• Follow us: @tradegovuk or visit gov.uk/dit

Due to launch in August 2020 the UK-built rover is part of the European Space Agency’s ExoMars mission which will look at how Mars has evolved and whether there may be conditions for life.

The ExoMars rover will be the first of its kind to travel across the Martian surface and drill down to determine if evidence of life is buried underground, protected from the destructive radiation that impinges the surface today. It will collect samples and analyse them with next-generation instruments, many designed by British engineers.

Science Minister Sam Gyimah said:

“Exploring the surface of another planet is what many scientists and researchers dream of and now a British-built rover will travel the surface of Mars to answer some fundamental questions, and the public can be part of this exciting new chapter by naming the rover. We want creative and bold entries – I’ll start the ball rolling with Rover McRoverface!

“The ExoMars mission showcases the very best of the UK’s world-leading robotics expertise and this mission will inspire the next generation of engineers, scientists and space enthusiasts to be part of the journey as the UK continues to reach for the stars. We are truly entering the new Great British Space Age.”

The competition was unveiled by British ESA astronaut Tim Peake at the Farnborough International Airshow today (Friday 20th July). Tim Peake said:

“Mars is a fascinating destination, a place where humans will one day work alongside robots to gather new knowledge and search for life in our Solar System.

“The ExoMars rover is a vital part of this journey of exploration and we’re asking you to become part of this exciting mission and name the rover that will scout the Martian surface.”

The UK is the second largest European contributor to the ExoMars mission, behind Italy, having invested €287 million in the mission and £14 million on the instruments.

Airbus Defence and Space is leading the build of the rover while the UCL Mullard Space Science Laboratory is leading on a key instrument known as the PanCam, a high resolution 3D camera which will be used to look at the terrain and rocks to try to detect signs of life.

Leicester University and Teledyne e2v are involved in work on the Raman Spectrometer with STFC RAL Space processing the data it delivers. ExoMars will be the first mission to combine the capability to move across the surface and to study Mars at depth.

The rover, which is due to land on Mars in March 2021, uses solar panels to generate the required electrical power, and is designed to survive the cold Martian nights with the help of batteries and heater units.

Another part of the ExoMars mission, the Trace Gas Orbiter, is already at Mars, looking for atmospheric gases that may be linked to active geological or biological processes.

In 2014 more than 4,000 people responded to a call to name Tim Peake’s 6-month mission to the International Space Station, with Principia being chosen as the winner. The name referred to Isaac Newton’s world-changing three-part text on physics, Naturalis Principia Mathematica, describing the principal laws of motion and gravity.

The Holiday Makers is a summer-long campaign to get kids making, inventing and having fun in the Year of Engineering. The campaign is supported by organisations such across the country, including the UK Space Agency, and there are lots of ways for families to get involved over the summer holidays, from free activities that kids can do at home, to events across the country and weekly challenges from partners like the Science Museum.

Engineering makes a major contribution to our economy, from driving advances in healthcare and communication to supporting our growing space industry, but the sector faces a major skills gap and lack of diversity – there is annual shortage of 20,000 engineering graduates each year, only 12% of the engineering workforce is female, and less than 8% comes from a black, Asian or ethnic minority background.

As well as the honour of naming the rover the winner of the competition will receive a tour for four people of the Airbus facility in Stevenage where the Mars rover is being built.

View the competition terms and conditions.

Providing registration numbers and mock driving licences for production companies is one of the services DVLA carries out that people may not know about.

Over the years DVLA has assisted production companies by issuing mock licences for use in a scene. These include Emmerdale (ITV), EastEnders (BBC) and Hatton Garden (ITV).

DVLA has also supplied registration numbers for use by the Grand Tour (Amazon Prime), Saturday Night Takeaway (ITV) and major Hollywood pictures such as Transformers.

DVLA also provided registration numbers for magazine shoots, adverts and programmes including Hollyoaks (Channel 4), Vera (ITV), Shetland (BBC One) and Rownd a Rownd (S4C).

Jody Davies, DVLA Personalised Registrations Sales Manager, said:

While we may not get our name included in the credits, we’re proud to have helped so many production companies over the years find their perfect registration number.

Our personalised registrations website helps motorists find their perfect number every day. And with prices starting from £250 you don’t need a studio’s budget to make your car stand out.

Notes to editors

Follow DVLA Personalised Registrations on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram for the latest updates and information.

A new travel programme at Sellafield has resulted in 500 fewer cars using site car parks.

Sellafield Ltd introduced a raft of new travel to work options in February this year.

These included park and ride bus services and direct commuter coaches.

Estimates have indicated that since then traffic accessing the site has reduced by 500 vehicles a day.
Building on that success, the company is launching the next phase of its travel improvements on Monday, 23 July 2018.

These include:

• a requirement for vehicles entering the site to have 3 or more occupants
• minimum occupancy of 2 people or more for vehicles using the off-site Yottenfews car park
• a new car sharing database

The measures supplement existing park and ride schemes in:

• Workington,
• Cockermouth
• Whitehaven
• Egremont
• Gosforth

This also includes direct coaches from north and south of the Sellafield site.

A shuttle service between satellite offices and the main site runs every 15 minutes.

Steve Bostock, Sellafield Ltd site director said:

I want to thank everyone who has embraced these changes.

These changes are necessary for us to deliver our mission of making Sellafield safer, sooner.

To clear space for future decommissioning projects, we needed to remove 1,300 parking spots on the site.

We’re doing it in phases to give people time to adjust and to ensure we balance the needs of the business.

I’m delighted at the success so far. We’re already seeing genuine benefits for people who work on the site and the local community.

Recorded benefits so far:

• 500 fewer cars using on-site car parks
• 300 fewer cars a day using the off-site Yottenfews car park, compared with June 2017
• 9,500 journeys on the direct commuter coaches in June 2018 alone
• 120 people a day using the Gosforth park and ride and commuter routes

For more information contact Ruth Hutchison: +44 (0)19467 86227, ruth.hutchison@sellafieldsites.com