Companies and people working in food manufacturing are being told they must pay closer attention to how they manage workplace health risks or face serious penalties.
Link: HSE food manufacturing inspections target the causes of workplace ill-health
Source: Health and Safety
Mr Shakoor’s disqualification follows an investigation by the Insolvency Service into the liquidation of Raptor Commerce Ltd.
Between 5 December 2005 and 31 May 2006, Mr Shakoor caused or allowed Raptor to participate in transactions which were connected with the fraudulent evasion of VAT, which Mr Shakoor either knew or should have known about.
Mr Shakoor caused Raptor to make a wrongful claim of a VAT repayment for the period ending May 2006 totalling £1,224,134.
Tony Hannon, the Official Receiver in the Public Interest Unit South, part of the Insolvency Service said:
The Insolvency Service will take firm action when we find misconduct and wrongdoing in the operation of companies by directors.
The Insolvency Service is committed to protecting the integrity and confidence in the market both by consumers and business people alike.
Mr Naeem Shakoor, is of Glasgow and his date of birth is January 1972.
Raptor Commerce Ltd (Company Reg no. 04489352) was incorporated on 18 July 2002 and ordered into compulsory liquidation on 9 September 2013.
The order was pronounced by Mr Registrar Jones and the Secretary of State was represented by Camilla Chorfi of Selborne Chambers and the defendant was not present or represented.
A disqualification order has the effect that without specific permission of a court, a person with a disqualification cannot:
Persons subject to a disqualification order are bound by a range of other restrictions.
The Insolvency Service, an executive agency sponsored by the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS), administers the insolvency regime, and aims to deliver and promote a range of investigation and enforcement activities both civil and criminal in nature, to support fair and open markets. We do this by effectively enforcing the statutory company and insolvency regimes, maintaining public confidence in those regimes and reducing the harm caused to victims of fraudulent activity and to the business community, including dealing with the disqualification of directors in corporate failures.
BEIS’ mission is to build a dynamic and competitive UK economy that works for all, in particular by creating the conditions for business success and promoting an open global economy. The Criminal Investigations and Prosecutions team contributes to this aim by taking action to deter fraud and to regulate the market. They investigate and prosecute a range of offences, primarily relating to personal or company insolvencies.
The agency also authorises and regulates the insolvency profession, assesses and pays statutory entitlement to redundancy payments when an employer cannot or will not pay employees, provides banking and investment services for bankruptcy and liquidation estate funds and advises ministers and other government departments on insolvency law and practice.
Further information about the work of the Insolvency Service, and how to complain about financial misconduct, is available.
The Insolvency Service
4 Abbey Orchard Street
London
SW1P 2HT
Email
press.office@insolvency.gsi.gov.uk
Media Manager
020 7596 6187
This service is for journalists only. For any other queries, please contact the Insolvency Enquiry line on 0300 678 0015.
For all media enquiries outside normal working hours, please contact the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy Press Office on 020 7215 1000.
You can also follow the Insolvency Service on:
Link: Press release: 13 year disqualification for director over company’s VAT evasion
Source: Gov Press Releases
Following an Insolvency Service investigation, on 3 November 2017, the County Court at Wakefield disqualified Mr and Mrs Wagstaff for failing to ensure that TWM complied with its statutory obligations under the Environmental Protection Act 1990 resulting in the risk of serious pollution.
In addition, at a time Mr Wagstaff knew or ought to have known the company was insolvent he allowed the company to pay funds of at least £55,653 which was due to TWM into his personal bank account.
The Insolvency Service’s investigation involved close liaison and cooperation with the Environment Agency, who carried out inspections at the company’s trading site in Goole from 2014 to July 2015 noting breaches of TWM’s environment permit.
Between May 2015 and June 2015 three fires broke out at the trading site. This ultimately led to an enforcement notice from the Environment Agency prohibiting TWM from receiving certain types of waste and requiring the company to take steps to remove the risk of serious pollution with immediate effect. Soon after the enforcement notice was served the company entered liquidation.
Commenting on the disqualification, Robert Clarke, Investigations Group Leader at the Insolvency Service said:
The failure by the directors of TWM to comply with environmental protection legislation presented a significant risk of pollution to both the environment and the public.
The disqualification of Mr and Mrs Wagstaff sends a clear message that corporate entities failing to comply with legislation which is in place to protect environmental interests will not be tolerated.
I would like to thank the Environment Agency for supporting our investigation and helping to ensure a successful outcome.
Total Waste Management Ltd (Company Registration Number 007861416) was placed into Creditors’ Voluntary Liquidation (CVL) on 13 July 2015 with a deficiency as regards creditors of £1,055,131.
The company, which was incorporated on 25 November 2011, traded as a specialist waste management company dealing in the treatment and disposal of non-hazardous waste, from Unit 2 Long Lane, Great Heck, Goole, DN14 0BT.
On 3 November 2017, the Court ordered that Mr & Mrs Wagstaff, both of Goole, would not act as directors for 9 years and 7 years respectively. The disqualification came into effect on 3 November 2017.
The order was pronounced by District Judge Ellington at the County Court at Wakefield. The Insolvency Service was represented by Simon Charles (Counsel) and Gowling WLG (UK) LLP (solicitors).
The defendants represented themselves however they did not attend the hearing on 3 November 2017.
Mr Wagstaff’s date of birth is November 1961 and Mrs Wagstaff’s date of birth is April 1963.
A disqualification order has the effect that without specific permission of a court, a person with a disqualification cannot:
Persons subject to a disqualification order are bound by a range of other restrictions.
The Insolvency Service, an executive agency sponsored by the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS), administers the insolvency regime, and aims to deliver and promote a range of investigation and enforcement activities both civil and criminal in nature, to support fair and open markets. We do this by effectively enforcing the statutory company and insolvency regimes, maintaining public confidence in those regimes and reducing the harm caused to victims of fraudulent activity and to the business community, including dealing with the disqualification of directors in corporate failures.
BEIS’ mission is to build a dynamic and competitive UK economy that works for all, in particular by creating the conditions for business success and promoting an open global economy. The Criminal Investigations and Prosecutions team contributes to this aim by taking action to deter fraud and to regulate the market. They investigate and prosecute a range of offences, primarily relating to personal or company insolvencies.
The agency also authorises and regulates the insolvency profession, assesses and pays statutory entitlement to redundancy payments when an employer cannot or will not pay employees, provides banking and investment services for bankruptcy and liquidation estate funds and advises ministers and other government departments on insolvency law and practice.
Further information about the work of the Insolvency Service, and how to complain about financial misconduct, is available.
The Insolvency Service
4 Abbey Orchard Street
London
SW1P 2HT
Email
press.office@insolvency.gsi.gov.uk
Media Manager
020 7596 6187
This service is for journalists only. For any other queries, please contact the Insolvency Enquiry line on 0300 678 0015.
For all media enquiries outside normal working hours, please contact the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy Press Office on 020 7215 1000.
You can also follow the Insolvency Service on:
Link: Press release: Ban for waste management directors who failed to comply with environmental laws
Source: Gov Press Releases
After Brexit, the UK travel document will no longer be required to conform to EU standards. So in a move to symbolise our national identity, the cover will be changing from the standard EU burgundy colour to a blue and gold design.
The new, unique blue passport will be one of the most secure travel documents in the world, with a raft of new and updated security features and technologies to protect against fraud and forgery. For example, the current paper-based picture page will be replaced with a new, super-strength plastic polycarbonate material that will be more difficult to alter.
Immigration Minister Brandon Lewis said:
Leaving the EU gives us a unique opportunity to restore our national identity and forge a new path for ourselves in the world.
That is why I am delighted to announce that the British passport will be returning to the iconic blue and gold design after we have left the European Union in 2019.
It will also be one of the most secure travel documents in the world, with a raft of new security measures to protect against fraud and forgery.
To save the taxpayer money, the newly designed passports will be introduced in a phased approach.
After the UK leaves the EU, burgundy passports will continue to be issued but with no reference to the European Union.
New blue and gold passports will be issued from October 2019, when the new passport contract begins, to those renewing or applying for a new passport.
There is no need for British passport holders to do anything ahead of their current passport renewal date.
The blue cover is a return to the original appearance of the British passport, with the colour first used in 1921. It remained the colour of choice until the UK joined the EU and the burgundy common format colour was agreed and adopted.
More details about the new passport will be announced when a supplier is appointed in spring next year.
Link: Press release: Blue UK passport to return after EU exit
Source: Gov Press Releases
Regulation 2 of these Regulations provides for an increase of approximately 20% for all existing fees to be paid to local planning authorities in respect of applications, deemed applications, requests or site visits in respect of which a fee is payable under the Town and Country Planning (Fees for Applications, Deemed Applications, Requests and Site Visits) (England) Regulations 2012 (S.I. 2012/2920), “the 2012 Regulations”. The increase was offered by Government to all local planning authorities in Command Paper 9352 (paragraph 2.15) if they agreed that the additional money would be re-invested within their planning department. All local planning authorities accepted the offer.
Link: The Town and Country Planning (Fees for Applications, Deemed Applications, Requests and Site Visits) (England) (Amendment) Regulations 2017
Source: Legislation .gov.uk
These Regulations prohibit the use of microbeads as an ingredient in the manufacture of rinse-off personal care products and the sale of any such products containing microbeads (regulation 3). Breach of these prohibitions is an offence (regulation 3). (Definitions of “microbead” and “rinse-off personal care product” are contained in regulation 2.) The prohibition on the manufacture of such products comes into force 21 days after these Regulations are made and the prohibition on the sale of any such products comes into force 6 months after the day on which these Regulations are made.
Link: The Environmental Protection (Microbeads) (England) Regulations 2017
Source: Legislation .gov.uk
These Regulations amend the Care and Support (Deferred Payment) Regulations 2014 (“the Principal Regulations”). Regulation 2 of the Principal Regulations sets out the circumstances in which a local authority must enter into a deferred payment agreement and regulation 3 of the Principal Regulations sets out the circumstances in which a local authority is permitted to enter into a deferred payment agreement.
Link: The Care and Support (Deferred Payment) (Amendment) Regulations 2017
Source: Legislation .gov.uk
Section 13A of the Local Government Finance Act 1992 (“the 1992 Act”) requires each billing authority in England to make a scheme specifying the reductions which are to apply to amounts of council tax payable by persons, or classes of person, whom the billing authority considers are in financial need (“a council tax reduction scheme”). The Council Tax Reduction Schemes (Prescribed Requirements) (England) Regulations 2012 (“the 2012 Regulations”) prescribe matters which must be included in such a scheme in addition to those matters which must be included in such a scheme by virtue of paragraph 2 of Schedule 1A to the 1992 Act.
Link: The Council Tax Reduction Schemes (Amendment) (England) Regulations 2017
Source: Legislation .gov.uk
These Regulations make miscellaneous provision in respect of apprenticeships.
Link: The Apprenticeships (Miscellaneous Provisions) Regulations 2017
Source: Legislation .gov.uk
This Order, which applies in England only, makes provisions in relation to permission in principle. In particular it amends the Town and Country Planning (Permission in Principle) Order 2017 (S.I. 2017/402)(“the 2017 Order”) to allow local planning authorities to grant permission in principle for development the main purpose of which is housing development on an application to the authority in accordance with provisions inserted into that Order by this instrument. Permission in principle and its effect are described in sections 58A, 59A and 70(2ZZA) to (2ZZC) of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 (“the 1990 Act”) (those sections were inserted by section 150 of the Housing and Planning Act 2016 (c. 22)).
Link: The Town and Country Planning (Permission in Principle) (Amendment) Order 2017
Source: Legislation .gov.uk
