Category: Gov Press Releases

Defence Secretary Gavin Williamson has today (25 February) pledged to increase funding for Armed Forces mental health services to £220-million over the next decade and launched the new 24/7 Military Mental Health Helpline.

The new number – 0800 323 4444 – will be open and ready to take calls from midday today (Sunday). It will be backed up by a major internal communications campaign on mental fitness across the services.

The Armed Forces mental health services will also be boosted by an extra £2million a year, it was announced today.

Defence Secretary Gavin Williamson said:

Every hour of every day our safety, security and way of life are protected by our courageous Armed Forces personnel. They are always there for us – often risking life and limb and making huge personal sacrifices – and we must be there for them in their own time of need.

Mental illnesses caused by life on the battlefield can have a devastating impact on our brave heroes and their families. It is our moral and professional duty to ensure that we do all we can for our world class troops.

That’s why we have commissioned the new 24/7 Military Mental Health Helpline and will spend an extra £2-million a year on mental health services for the next decade on top of the £20-million we already spend each year.

I will personally be working with all the service chiefs to make sure there isn’t a single person in the forces who doesn’t know where to turn in times of trouble.

0800 323 4444 will be targeted at serving personnel and their families – allowing them to access the help, advice and support they need anywhere, anytime.

Surgeon General of the British Armed Forces Major General Martin Bricknell said:

This number will complement the range of mental health services, including our Departments of Community Mental Health, which we provide for our serving personnel. It is important to deliver a holistic service to ensure our Armed Forces have every opportunity to access the help and care they need and deserve. We must do all we can to provide easy access to the support available.

0800 323 4444 will act as a memorable and accessible gateway to mental health services for service personnel and their families.

Combat Stress – the leading veterans mental health charity – has been commissioned to run the new helpline service for serving troops 24 hours a day. The new line will be backed up by a deeper partnership between the MOD and the charity and run by a team of specially-trained professionals. The Ministry of Defence (MOD) will provide additional funds to enhance Combat Stress’ existing service – predominantly aimed at veterans – and are working together to develop information sharing processes with the military to ensure any serving service personnel in crisis are provided with the appropriate support tailored for their needs.

Chief Executive of Combat Stress Sue Freeth said:

We welcome the opportunity to work with the MOD to provide mental health support to serving personnel. A significant minority of servicemen and women develop mental health conditions, such as anxiety, depression and post-traumatic stress disorder. We know they can delay seeking treatment while in the Armed Forces, with some preferring to come forward for help after they have left the military.

Left untreated, mental health problems can become more complex and have a devastating impact on those with the condition, as well as their loved ones. It’s vital that people seek help as soon as they notice a change in their mental health.

Combat Stress has delivered a 24-hour Helpline service since 2011. With almost a century’s experience of supporting veterans with mental health issues, we have the knowledge, expertise and understanding to assist serving personnel.

The Combat Stress helpline is the only service in the country, tailored towards the Armed Forces community, which talks to callers whilst simultaneously providing practical help by calling the emergency services if needed.

Alongside this announcement, the Defence Secretary has also agreed to spend an extra £2-million a year for the next ten years to improve mental health services in the Armed Forces on top of the £20-million per year that is currently committed. The additional money, which brings the total planned spending to £220-million over the next decade, will be put towards an increase in mental health specialists and bolstering existing provision.

Minister for Defence People and Veterans Tobias Ellwood said:

Wellbeing is not just about physical fitness but mental fitness too. Perhaps as we can’t see it, and are less inclined to step forward, mental fitness has not received the attention it deserves. The brain is just another muscle we must look after.

By choosing to work with Combat Stress, we are deliberately choosing to work with the leading organisation in the country for providing this specialist mental health service. We are changing the stigma associated with mental health.

It’s a complex science and there is always room for improvement. Therefore we will be building a stronger and deeper partnership with Combat Stress to deliver the best possible service for our people.

The MOD currently has a network of 20 ‘hub and spoke’ mental health centres, comprising of 11 hubs and a further nine teams. Regular visiting clinics are also held at other military centres across the country.

Last year the MOD launched its Defence People Mental Health and Wellbeing Strategy focusing on preventative measures to protect our personnel. MOD also partnered with the Royal Foundation, a charity setup by the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and Prince Harry, to improve training and education alongside the strategy to promote mental fitness.

There are a range of services provided by partners working with MOD and through the Armed Forces Covenant, including the NHS, other Government departments and charities which serving personnel, veterans, and their families can access.

Ends

Notes to editors:

· You can read Defence Secretary Gavin Williamson’s OpEd here.

· Defence images can be found on www.defenceimagery.mod.uk.

· The UK Armed Forces Mental Health Annual Statistics: Financial Year 2016/2017 can be found here.

· For more information, please contact the MOD press office on 020 7218 7907.

Secretary of State for Wales Alun Cairns will urge Wales’ best businesses and cultural organisations to seize the opportunities to promote Wales on a global stage during the Wales Week in London initiative, which launches today (24 February).

Wales Week in London aims to promote Welsh interests in London via a series of activities and events from 24 February to 10 March, from a number of sectors and locations in the UK’s capital.

During the fortnight, the Welsh Secretary will urge Welsh businesses to take their products and services to the world market at the Department for International Trade and Foreign and Commonwealth Office’s Celebrating Welsh Trade event.

The Secretary of State will also host a reception at Gwydyr House to celebrate the strength and diversity of Welsh culture, and recognise the contribution the arts industry makes towards Wales’ growing tourism industry in a speech at a National Museum Wales pop up event.

UK Government Minister Stuart Andrew will chair a meeting with tourism industry experts to discuss how the UK Government can further support the burgeoning market in Wales.

As part of the celebrations, the Welsh Secretary will also attend a St David’s Day reception at No10 Downing Street for leading Welsh figures from the worlds of business, media, tourism and sport.

Secretary of State for Wales Alun Cairns said:

Wales Week in London is an excellent opportunity for Welsh businesses and organisations to make their mark on a global stage. We have some of the strongest industries in the world in the fields of aerospace, agriculture and the food and drink market.

This is the second year running where we have united all St David’s Day related events in London under one umbrella title, which shows the strength of our country’s brand to the wider world.

This campaign ties in with the ambitions of the UK Government’s Industrial Strategy in facilitating greater trade and investment opportunities between Wales, the United Kingdom and the world. It’s my job to champion those Welsh interests, and I look forward to playing my part in representing the Welsh brand and its culture throughout the week.

Wales Week in London was formed by Dan Langford and Mike Jordan, two Wales-based business people with strong business ties to London.

Dan Langford, Chair of Wales Week in London said:

We have a terrific programme of events this year – over 70 different activities and events covering all aspects of Welsh life and business; celebrating and promoting Wales whilst commemorating St David’s Day across London.

The support from the UK Government, led through the Office of the Secretary of State for Wales and importantly, also involving a number of other government departments has been tremendous; and together with the Welsh Government, we’re working collaboratively with a shared ambition to promote a modern Wales to the rest of the world.

Huge thanks also goes to those people and organisations, drawn from the Welsh diaspora in London as well as from Wales, who are leading on many of the events taking place. Together we’ll be making a huge amount of Welsh noise in the heart of one of the most important capitals in the world.

Through a calendar of events for two weeks centred around St David’s Day, the festival will showcase activities of existing London-based Welsh communities and promote the best of Wales in London, helping organisations in all sectors to promote their products and services while broadening their networks and audiences.

ENDS

Secretary of State for Wales Alun Cairns has called on the Welsh Government to take further steps to drive up animal welfare standards in Wales as the UK Government today (23 Feb) laid legislation in Parliament to make CCTV cameras mandatory in slaughterhouses in England.

The legislation will come into effect in England from May 2018, once it passes through Parliament, at which point businesses will have six months to comply.
It forms part of a package of reforms implemented by the UK Government designed to drive up welfare standards.

Secretary of State for Wales Alun Cairns said:

This legislation is a clear demonstration of the steadfast and focused commitment the UK Government has to ensuring the highest possible animal welfare standards in the UK.

There is clearly a real strength of feeling among the public that all animals should be treated with the utmost respect at all stages of life and be subject to the highest possible welfare standards.

I would urge Welsh Ministers in Cardiff Bay to listen to those voices and to investigate fully what further steps they can take to apply the same legislation to slaughterhouses in Wales to ensure the highest standards of animal health, welfare and food safety across the board.

ENDS

NOTES TO EDITORS

In August 2017, the UK Government’s Environment Secretary Michael Gove launched a consultation on the plans to deliver a manifesto commitment for CCTV to be required in every slaughterhouse in England in all areas where live animals are present, with unrestricted access to footage for Official Veterinarians – reassuring consumers that high welfare standards are being effectively enforced.

A summary of responses published in November showed that of almost 4,000 respondents, more than 99% were supportive of the plans.

Cultivating and nurturing the strong UK-US trading relationship topped the agenda when Welsh Secretary Alun Cairns met with the Ambassador of the United States to the UK, Robert W Johnson at the new US Embassy building in south London earlier today (22 Feb).

Mr Cairns and Mr Johnson discussed providing certainty, continuity and increasing confidence for UK and US businesses as the UK leaves the EU and how the UK Government is committed to a post-Brexit economy that gives the UK and the USA even more opportunity to trade than ever before.

The meeting comes hot on the heels of the Secretary of State’s three-day mission to New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania last week (12-14 Feb).

With the aim of attracting American businesses to invest in Wales and build on a trading relationship already worth more than £3.9 billion, Mr Cairns met with companies operating in sectors from cyber security to pharmaceuticals.

Businesses in Wales already have strong links with some of the strongest and fastest growing economies in the world. There are over 250 American companies based in Wales such as GE Aviation, Ford and General Dynamics.

Welsh companies exported more than £2 billion to the world’s largest economy in the year to September 2017.

Secretary of State for Wales Alun Cairns said:

As our largest trading partner, the US remains an enormously important market for Wales as well as the rest of the UK.

During last week’s trade mission to the USA so many of the businesses I met looked upon the UK as the bridge between America and Europe and a partner of choice for trade.

I was delighted to have the opportunity today to discuss the positive meetings I had there, and to discuss how we can take the next positive steps to create more investment and exporting opportunities for companies on both sides of the Atlantic.

Ambassador of the United States to the United Kingdon Robert W Johnson said:

Wales is an important partner for the United States.

There is a significant amount of trade and investment between us, which is great news for workers in Wales and America.

But there is still a lot of potential for us to do more business, and together we are going to help more companies cross the Atlantic and find new opportunities to succeed.

The Foreign Secretary said:

I am utterly appalled by the brutal and merciless violence that the Asad regime is inflicting on the people of Eastern Ghouta. They are enduring a hell entirely of the making of Asad and his enablers.

Today in the UN Security Council, the UK will press Russia to support a ceasefire to allow for the urgent delivery of humanitarian aid. Protecting Syrians and getting them the lifesaving aid they need must be paramount. The UK is committed to working closely with all international partners to secure an end to the terrible bloodshed and make progress towards a political solution, which is the only way to bring peace to the people of Syria.

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

Under the plans, the Bean and Ebbsfleet junctions will both see their capacity increased, improving journeys, boosting safety and preparing the road network for the transformative growth expected in north Kent in the coming decades.

Both junctions will see enlarged junction roundabouts, with new lanes and enhanced slip roads. At Bean, a new bridge will be built over the A2 dual carriageway providing two extra lanes between the two junction roundabouts, which will also be improved, and an additional slip road for eastbound traffic joining the A2.

The Ebbsfleet junction improvements include enlarging the existing roundabouts, widening the road between the roundabouts to a dual carriageway and widening existing slip roads.

An initial consultation ran between January and March last year, before the preferred options were announced in August. Now, the public is being asked for views on the updated plans, which will form the basis of the project’s formal planning application.

Highways England Senior Project Manager, Brian Gash said:

Bean and Ebbsfleet junctions serve Bluewater, Ebbsfleet International station and soon the new Garden City and these vital upgrades will help to make sure that the A2 stays fit for the future opportunities coming to Kent.

Demand is expected to grow by up to 200 per cent by 2027, so it is vital that the final proposals we end up taking forward for planning permission are the best we can possibly make them. People’s input into the consultation will help us make sure that they are. There are important decisions still to be made about each junction, so I’d encourage anyone with an interest – drivers, residents, business owners and visitors – to get involved.

The announcement has been welcomed by the Ebbsfleet Development Corporation, who have also contributed £45m funding for the project.

Ian Piper, Chief Executive of Ebbsfleet Development Corporation, said:

With up to 15,000 new homes in Ebbsfleet Garden City, it is important that local infrastructure is improved to accommodate this growth. With our support for the proposed scheme for the two A2 junctions and a commitment from us to improve public transport in the area through a new and upgraded Fastrack service, we are investing to ensure traffic continues to flow.

Details on the plans and feedback forms will be available online from 21 February until 11:45pm on 4 April 2018 on the scheme web page. These pages also include details of the Public Information Events that are taking place throughout February and March.

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.

Discussions between the UK Government and the devolved administrations on the EU Withdrawal Bill have taken ‘a considerable step forward’, the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster David Lidington MP said today after chairing the Joint Ministerial Committee meeting in the Cabinet Office.

Mr Lidington said the Scottish and Welsh Government Ministers had acknowledged that the changes the UK Government is proposing to Clause 11 of the Bill represent good progress. Ministers agreed to meet again as soon as possible to try and reach an agreement.

Speaking after the Joint Ministerial Committee (European Negotiations) meeting in Whitehall, David Lidington said:

We had a constructive discussion today. We have not yet secured an agreement but have agreed to meet again in the very near future to crack this.

The Devolved Administrations acknowledged that the proposal we offered yesterday was a significant step forward.

We want to find an agreed way forward that respects and strengthens the devolution settlements and which also provides certainty for businesses and families as we depart the EU.

As we have always been clear, it is our intention that the Devolved Administrations will have more powers as a result of this process.

It is also very important that we protect the UK internal market and ensure that companies all across the UK are able to buy and sell freely.

Joint Ministerial Committee (EU negotiations) communique, 22 February 2018

The seventh Joint Ministerial Committee (EU Negotiations) met today in 70 Whitehall. The meeting was chaired by the Rt Hon David Lidington MP, Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Minister for the Cabinet Office.

The attending Ministers were:

From the UK Government:

• the First Secretary of State and Minister for the Cabinet Office, Rt Hon David Lidington MP
• the Secretary of State for Exiting the EU, Rt Hon David Davis MP
• the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, Rt Hon Karen Bradley MP
• the Secretary of State for Wales, Rt Hon Alun Cairns MP
• the Secretary of State for Scotland, Rt Hon David Mundell MP

From the Welsh Government:

• Cabinet Secretary for Finance, Mark Drakeford AM

From the Scottish Government:

• the Minister for UK Negotiations on Scotland’s Place in Europe, Michael Russell MSP

In the absence of Ministers from the Northern Ireland Executive, a senior civil servant from the Northern Ireland Civil Service was in attendance.

The Chair opened the meeting by summarising the constructive bilateral engagement with the Scottish and Welsh governments, including political developments that had taken place since JMC(EN) last met. The Secretary of State for Exiting the EU provided an update on the previous rounds of negotiations with the EU. The Committee discussed forthcoming priorities, including the implementation period and the future relationship with the EU.

The Committee discussed the role of the Devolved Administrations in contributing to the process of developing the UK position in the next phase of negotiations with the EU on the future relationship. The Committee noted the engagement that had taken place between UK Government and Devolved Administration officials since the previous meeting to open discussion on the future economic and security partnerships. Engagement would continue with the aim of ensuring the Devolved Administrations were fully involved in developing the UK’s negotiating position, while respecting the UK Government’s role as negotiator.

The Committee discussed the EU (Withdrawal) Bill, including the proposal to amend clause 11. It was noted that progress had been made, but agreement had not yet been reached between the UK Government, Scottish Government and Welsh Government on the form of an amendment. Discussions on further detail would continue in the coming weeks.

The Committee discussed progress on common frameworks. Multilateral official level discussions had explored a range of areas where common frameworks may be required, including where legislative and non-legislative approaches could be appropriate. These discussions were ongoing.

Following withdrawal of CE certification for the Aquilon series of nebulisers, the manufacturer has continued to place the nebulisers on the market. We have issued a Medical Device Alert today to all relevant healthcare professionals.

The affected nebulisers and packaging do have a CE mark placed on them, however this has not been obtained through appropriate regulatory oversight and therefore, their safety cannot be assured.

A medical device cannot be marketed in Europe without carrying a CE mark. It is applied by the manufacturer and means that the device meets the relevant regulatory requirements and, when used as intended, works properly and is acceptably safe.

This issue affects Aquilon2, Aquilon, Aquilon+ and Aquilon Pro series medical nebulisers manufactured since 01 April 2015. MHRA believes that more than 8,000 Aquilon nebulisers, which have been on the market since 2015 are affected in the UK.

If there is suspicion that a nebuliser is affected, people are advised to stop using immediately, dispose of the device and to use an alternative nebuliser where available. It is advisable that you speak to your healthcare professional or GP who can help you find out if your device is affected, give you advice on how to dispose of it and provide a replacement.

John Wilkinson, MHRA’s Director of Medical Devices said:

We have been made aware that the manufacturer has continued to sell nebulisers even after their CE certification was withdrawn. We cannot guarantee they have been manufactured to an appropriate standard.

These devices deliver potential life-saving treatment and it is vital they operate correctly when needed.

We are taking action, as a matter of priority, to make sure people are aware the CE mark has been withdrawn and that these devices should not be used and should be disposed of.

Patient safety is our highest priority and we urge anyone with questions to speak to a healthcare professional as soon as possible.