Category: 0 Archive

Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson said:

I am pleased Andargachew Tsege is now able to reunite with his loved ones after being separated from them for so long.

His case has been a priority for the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, and our staff have worked tirelessly to support him and his family throughout his detention.

Recent moves by the Ethiopian Government send a positive signal that they remain serious about following through with promised reforms to increase political space.

Further information

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

The UK is providing a new package of life-saving support to help treat patients in 11 hospitals under pressure in Gaza, by restocking vital medical supplies including surgical equipment, bandages and medicines following the recent surge in violence.

The funding, announced by Minister for the Middle East Alistair Burt today (Tuesday 29 May) on a visit to Gaza, will support work by the International Committee of the Red Cross to keep hospitals open and functioning at a time when the healthcare system is under huge strain.

Today’s commitment of £1.5 million will also help provide physical rehabilitation services for around 4,000 people.

Speaking from Gaza, Minister for the Middle East Alistair Burt said:

I am deeply concerned about the worsening situation in the Gaza strip, and today’s UK aid package gives a message to the world, and to the people of Gaza, that we have not forgotten them or their plight.

Today’s support will help to ensure that hospitals which are under immense pressure are able to cope with the increased number of casualties who need medical and surgical care. It is absolutely vital that the UK steps up to help those suffering and ensure that vulnerable Gazans are able to access treatment to keep them alive.

We have been clear that a political settlement is the only way to ensure lasting peace for Palestinians and Israelis alike. All parties must redouble their political efforts and return to the negotiating table, not only to address the deteriorating conditions in Gaza, but to ensure tragedies of the past months are not repeated.

UK support is already providing Gazans with access to clean water, and improving sanitation facilities to help stop the spread of deadly disease.

Through the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine refugees (UNRWA), UK aid is providing basic health and education to 1.3 million people in Gaza, as well as over 800,000 refugees in the West Bank.

Minister Burt announced in March at the Rome Conference that the UK will deliver its next round of financial support to UNRWA earlier than originally planned to help meet the growing needs of Palestinian refugees across the region.

Notes to editors

Today’s £1.5 million package is a new allocation from the Occupied Palestinian Territories programme budget for 2018/19.

Deputy President of the Supreme Court: Lord Reed

The Queen has been pleased to approve the appointment of The Rt Hon Lord Reed as Deputy President of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom. Lord Reed will replace The Rt Hon the Lord Mance who retires on Wednesday 6 June 2018.

Background information

Lord Reed was appointed as a Justice of the Supreme Court in February 2012. From 2008 to 2012 he was a member of the Inner House of the Court of Session, and from 1998 to 2008, a member of the Outer House of the Court of Session, where he was the Principal Commercial Judge.

In response to shocking recent chemical attacks, 10 states have now joined the UK’s request, sharing a desire to see the use of Chemical Weapons banished to the past.

The Conference will look at ways in which the international community can work together to strengthen and protect this cornerstone of the international rules-based system of non-proliferation.

Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson said:

The world came together in 1997 to outlaw the development, stockpiling and use of these vile substances through the Chemical Weapons Convention. But in recent years we have seen chemical attacks by the Asad regime in Syria, by Daesh in Syria and Iraq, in Malaysia and even here in the UK in Salisbury.

Today we have brought together 11 other states to formally ask the Director General of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons to convene a special Conference of the States Parties to the Chemical Weapons Convention.

We call on all right-thinking states to come together next month to take action to reaffirm and defend the ban on chemical weapons, and to strengthen the Organisation which we have entrusted with overseeing it.

Notes

• Under the Chemical Weapons Convention, 192 States Parties came together to ban the use of Chemical Weapons.
• The special Conference must be held within 30 days of today’s letter. With 11 states already cosponsoring the call, the UK is confident that the OPCW will soon receive the 64 supportive responses needed for the conference to go ahead.

Further information

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

Welsh troops based in Afghanistan are showing the “incredible spirit” of Welsh soldiers throughout history as they work to support the war-torn country, Alun Cairns said today.

The Secretary of State for Wales spoke after a 24-hour visit to see soldiers of the Welsh Guards based in the Afghan capital Kabul. Mr Cairns sat down with soldiers to learn more about their role in providing security and mentoring help to Afghan officials as the country’s Government continues its work of reconstruction. He also met senior British army commanders for an update on the troops’ peace-keeping mission.

Mr Cairns said:

I was inspired by the incredible spirit and determination of the soldiers I met who are doing their job in a volatile and often dangerous environment.

Having heard from the soldiers first-hand about their life in Kabul, I am incredibly proud of what the Welsh Guards are doing. This is a regiment with a century-long history of serving across the world in conflicts from WWII to Palestine and the Falklands. They are now on their third tour of duty in Afghanistan, and showing the incredible spirit they always do.

While I have always championed our Welsh servicemen and women, being in Afghanistan really brought home to me the work they do in dangerous circumstances. All of Wales owes them a vote of thanks.

There are currently 260 members of the Welsh Guards battle group deployed to Kabul as part of NATO’s Resolute Support Mission from all parts of Wales. The Secretary of State for Wales visited the Regiment’s base camp, sat in on preparations for a patrol and also learned more about their support for the Afghan National Army Officer Academy – often compared to the country’s equivalent of Sandhurst – which is producing the Afghan army’s future officer corps.

Notes to editors:

• The Welsh Guards came into existence on 26 February 1915 by Royal Warrant of George V in order to include Wales in the national component to the Foot Guards. They were the last of the Guards to be created, with the Irish Guards coming into being in 1900. Just three days later, 1st Battalion Welsh Guards mounted its first King’s Guard at Buckingham Palace on 1 March 1915 – St David’s Day. Since then the Welsh Guards has served in WW2, Palestine, Aden, The Falklands War, Northern Ireland, the Balkans, Iraq and Afghanistan. The Welsh Guards are Wales’s Senior Infantry Regiment with a formidable reputation forged throughout the last century.
• The regiment maintains very close links to the Royal Family and the Colonel of the Regiment is HRH The Prince of Wales. Due to the regiments dual role as combat soldiers and ceremonial troops, it is inextricably tied to the Royal Family. It is the fifth regiment of Foot Guards and regularly conducts guard duty at the Royal palaces and on state occasions such as the Trooping of the Colour.

Dr Martin Read, Sir Adrian Johns and Dr Peter Westaway have been reappointed to the Senior Salaries Review Body (SSRB), with Dr Read continuing in his role as Chair. The SSRB provides independent advice to the Prime Minister and senior ministers on the pay of many of the nation’s top public servants. The appointments are all for a further term of approximately 3 years with immediate effect.

Biographies

Dr Martin Read, CBE, MA, DPhil, FIET

Martin Read is Chairman of Laird plc, of the two government companies which manage contracts and payments under the electricity market reform programme (the Low Carbon Contracts Company and the Electricity
Settlements Company) and of the Remuneration Consultants Group. He is also a non-executive director of Lloyd’s of London. Martin was chief executive of international IT services company Logica from 1993 to 2007 and has served as a non-executive director on the boards of invensys, Aegis Group, British Airways, Siemens Holdings, Boots, ASDA and the UK Government Efficiency and Reform Board. He was chairman of the Remuneration Committees at Invensys, British Airways and Boots. He has been a senior adviser to private equity firms Candover and Actis and to Indian technology companies HCL and Zensar. He led UK government reviews on back office operations and IT across the public sector (2008/9) and management information (2012).

Sir Adrian Johns, KCB, CBE, DL

Adrian Johns served for 35 years in the Royal Navy specialising as a helicopter pilot and flying instructor but also commanding 5 times at sea in ships ranging from a minesweeper to HMS OCEAN, Britain’s largest warship
at the time. He was Head of the Fleet Air Arm for 5 years and retired from the Navy in the rank of Vice-Admiral as Second Sea Lord and Commander-in-Chief Naval Home Command in 2008. In his final appointment he was responsible for all aspects of HR, remuneration, recruiting, training, and career management for the naval service. Following retirement from active service he was Governor and Commander-in-Chief, Gibraltar from 2009 to 2013. He has a variety of charitable interests, is patron of a number of Veterans’ Associations, and is a Deputy Lieutenant for Greater London.

Dr Peter Westaway, DPhil

Dr Peter Westaway is chief economist and head of investment strategy for Vanguard Asset Management, Europe. He meets with clients and writes articles to provide Vanguard’s perspective on economic issues and longerterm investment strategy implications. Dr. Westaway was previously chief economist, Europe, for Nomura International and a senior official at the Bank of England where he conducted analysis on the economy and financial markets and the economy for the Monetary Policy Committee of the Bank of England. He also provided analysis and input to HM Treasury’s “Five Tests Assessment” in 2002-2003 of whether the UK should adopt the euro.

Dr. Westaway earned a Ph.D. in economics and a Master of Philosophy in
control engineering and operational research from the University of Cambridge, and a B.Sc in mathematics and economics from the University of York.

Further information

Further details of the roles are available on the Centre for Public Appointments website.

The appointment process for these roles was in full accordance with the Commissioner for Public Appointments’ Code of Practice. The SSRB provides independent advice to the Prime Minister, the Lord Chancellor, the Secretary of State for Defence, the Secretary of State for Health and the Home Secretary on the pay of: the judiciary; senior civil servants; senior officers of the armed forces; certain senior managers in the NHS; Police and Crime Commissioners; chief police officers; and other such public appointments as may from time to time be specified.

The Regulator of Social Housing reports that Inclusion Housing Community Interest Company has been placed on its Grading under review list.

The regulator is currently investigating a matter regarding Inclusion’s compliance with the Governance and Financial Viability Standard. The outcome of the investigation will be confirmed in a regulatory judgement, once completed.

The GUR list is available on the website.

Further information

1. The GUR list includes providers being investigated for an issue that may result in non-compliant grades for the Governance and/or Financial Viability Standard.
2. The regulatory framework can also be found on the website.
3. Inclusion does not currently have a regulatory judgement as it previously held less than 1,000 homes. The regulatory judgement to be published at the end of the investigation will be its first regulatory judgement.

The regulation of social housing is the responsibility of the Regulation Committee, a statutory committee of the Homes and Communities Agency (HCA). The organisation refers to itself as the Regulator of Social Housing in undertaking the functions of the Regulation Committee. Homes England is the trading name of the HCA’s non-regulation functions.

The regulator’s purpose is to promote 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.

Our About the Regulator of Social Housing page has contact details for media enquiries.

For general queries to RSH, please email enquiries@rsh.gov.uk or call 0300 124 5225.