Category: Gov Press Releases

The Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson said:

I am shocked and appalled by yesterday’s horrific attack in Kabul and condemn it in the strongest possible terms. The use of an ambulance as a weapon to target civilians is despicable.

Once again, so many innocent Afghan lives lost and so many people’s lives affected. My heartfelt condolences go out to the victims and their families. I commend the brave Afghan men and women in the emergency services for their response to this brutal act.

The UK stands resolutely with Afghanistan against terrorism and calls for those responsible to be brought to justice. We remain firmly committed to supporting Afghan efforts to bring peace to Afghanistan. Yesterday’s attack makes it all the more crucial that all parties intensify efforts to pursue dialogue. Regional and international partners must be united in support of this goal. The Afghan people deserve peace.

Further information

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

Drivers will receive new legal protections from unscrupulous private parking operators as Communities Secretary, Sajid Javid, today (28 January 2018) confirmed that government will support new legislation aimed at raising standards in the industry.

Evidence shows that, in total, nearly 10,000 people approached the Citizen’s Advice Bureau for advice on private parking tickets last year and parking firms are issuing almost 13 times more tickets than decade ago.

Drivers are increasingly complaining of inconsistent practices, substandard signage, confusing appeals processes and intimidating payment letters.

That is why the government is supporting new legislation to regulate the private parking industry.

Under the plans, which will deliver on a manifesto commitment to tackle rogue parking operators, a stringent new Code of Practice will be developed by the Secretary of State in conjunction with motorists groups and other experts.

Those falling foul of the rules would then be blocked from accessing driver data and issuing fines, effectively forcing them out of the industry.

These measures, introduced in a Bill by Sir Greg Knight MP, build on action government has already taken to tackle rogue private parking operators, including banning wheel clamping and towing, and over-zealous parking enforcement by councils and parking wardens.

Secretary of State for Communities, Sajid Javid, said:

For too long drivers have suffered from unjust fines at the hands of dodgy parking firms.

We need a fairer, clearer and more consistent system that brings the small minority of unscrupulous operators in line with those who are behaving appropriately.

That is why government is putting the brakes on these rogue operators and backing new laws that will put a stop to aggressive behaviour and provide a simpler way for drivers to appeal fines.

Industry bodies have lined up to support the Bill, which will receive its Second Reading in the House of Commons on Friday (2 February 2018).

Steve Gooding, director of the RAC Foundation, said:

Motorists will be delighted that the government is throwing its weight behind Sir Greg Knight’s move to bring some much needed regulatory rigour to the world of private parking.

We all hoped the ban on clamping would end the sharp practices that had come to plague private parking, but the fact that companies are issuing millions of penalty tickets annually is clear evidence that something is still going
badly awry.

Drivers don’t want a parking free-for-all, but they do want a system that is fair to all parties and that’s what a code of practice set by government – rather than the industry itself – should bring about.

Andrew Pester, Chief Executive of the British Parking Association, said:

We welcome Sir Greg’s Bill that aims to drive consistency and fairness in the private parking sector. Our membership already complies with a robust Code of Practice which we continuously seek to improve through consultation.

A single, mandatory code of practice across the whole sector is important to ensure that unscrupulous providers don’t undermine the parking sector with bad practice. As the leading authority in the sector we shall continue to work closely with government and key stakeholders to press for progress towards a positive outcome for all.

Further information

The Parking (Code of Practice) Bill is a Private Members Bill introduced by Sir Greg Knight MP.

The new Code of Practice will be drafted up with stakeholders, and would provide the clarity of a single set of rules for private parking, with clearer processes for appeals.

The Secretary of State would also have the power to raise a levy on the sector to fund the production, publishing and enforcement of the code.

At present, there are 2 parking trade associations, the British Parking Association (BPA) and the International Parking Community (IPC). Each has a Code of Practice that their members are required to abide by. A single code is intended to set a higher standard for practices across the sector, especially in the area of appeals against parking tickets.

Citizen’s Advice Bureau statistics show that, in 2017, 5,011 (2016: 4690) people went into their local CAB branch seeking help about private parking. In addition, 4,395 (stats not available for 2016) called the Consumer helpline.

The RAC Foundation expects that, in 2018, 6 million tickets will be issued by firms operating on private land. This is up from 4.7 million in 2017.

RAC Foundation statistics also show that, in the second quarter of 2017-18, 1,429,703 vehicle-keeper records were sold to the private parking firms to issue tickets. This was 1,177% – or almost 13 times – higher than the 111,944 records sold a decade earlier in the second quarter of 2007 to 2008.

The government is currently consulting to stop unfair practices in the issuing of County Court judgments.

En la tarde del día jueves 25 de enero, Richard Cooke, científico del Instituto Smithsonian de Investigaciones Tropicales en Panamá, recibió oficialmente la Excelentísima Orden del Imperio Británico en la Residencia del Embajador del Reino Unido.

Este Honor es otorgado por S.M. la Reina dos veces al año en el marco de la celebración de su cumpleaños, y el Año Nuevo. Fue originalmente establecido en 1917 por el Rey Jorge V.

Los recipientes de La Excelentísima Orden del Imperio Británico (Most Excellent Order of the British Empire o M.B.E, por sus siglas en Inglés) son galardonados por sus contribuciones a las artes y las ciencias, contribuciones de caridad y el servicio público, fuera del servicio civil.

Cooke fue nominado a esta promoción por amigos y estudiantes británicos del Reino Unido, quienes reconocieron el impacto de sus contribuciones a lo largo de los años.

El premio fue anunciado por “The Gazette” – la publicación oficial del Reino Unido – en junio de 2017. La nota detalla que el Arqueólogo Cooke fue condecorado debido a sus “servicios a la arqueología y la intelección de la antigua Civilización de América Central.”

Durante la ceremonia, amigos y colegas de Cooke expresaron la magnitud del impacto de sus investigaciones al legado panameño por casi 50 años.

Acerca de Cooke:

Cooke nació en Guildford, Inglaterra en 1946. En 1968 obtuvo su licenciatura en Arqueología y Lenguas Modernas en la Universidad de Bristol. En octubre de 1969 llegó al país para trabajar en lo que resultó en su doctorado de la Universidad de Londres en 1972.

Los principales intereses de investigación de Cooke son: la historia de la pesca en aguas tropicales, la arqueología y la paleo ecología del puente terrestre centroamericano, además de la arqueo-zoología.

Sus trabajos y los de sus colegas nos brindan datos arqueológicos y de la genética humana, la lingüística y la ecología que nos muestra claramente que durante los 15,000 años del período precolombino, había sociedades humanas viviendo en tierras nacionales.

Ha brindado muchas oportunidades profesionales tanto a arqueólogos panameños como a centroamericanos, y de otros países.

Cooke es un incansable promotor de la arqueología panameña.

The Universal Periodic Review (UPR) is a unique mechanism of the Human Rights Council (HRC) aimed at improving the human rights situation of all 193 UN member states. The UK strongly supports the UPR process, and we have spoken at every session and about every country since it began. This session saw reviews of 14 countries, namely Barbados, the Bahamas, Botswana, Burundi, France, Israel, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Mali, Montenegro, Romania, Serbia, Tonga and the United Arab Emirates.

Modern slavery

During the session we ensured that modern slavery was raised at every review, alongside specific issues relevant to each country. Forced labour, modern slavery and human trafficking are horrific crimes, and the UK Government is fully committed to eradicating them by 2030 as set out in the UN’s Sustainable Development Goal Article 8.7. The Prime Minister has made this a personal priority, and launched the Call to Action at the UN General Assembly in September 2017. I encourage all countries to endorse this Call to Action, to demonstrate leadership and drive change on an international scale. These are global crimes, and require a global response. The UPR process provides a valuable opportunity for us all to commit ourselves to make concrete changes and move the agenda forward, making a real difference to the lives of so many people.

UN Treaty Body membership

We also raised the issue of UN Treaty Body membership at every review this session. These expert bodies are a central part of the UN human rights system, charged with monitoring the implementation of human rights conventions in states which have signed up to them. The membership of Treaty Bodies is central to their success and the UK encourages states to adopt an open, merit-based selection process when selecting national candidates in order to improve membership quality.

Country reviews

Every country’s UPR is important, and as I noted above the UK makes a point of engaging with each and every one of them. At the 29th session of the UPR, Israel and Burundi were among the highest profile of the countries under review.

Israel

I welcome Israel’s engagement with the UPR and am pleased to see the positive steps taken since its last review, including its commitment to eradicate forced labour, modern slavery and human trafficking; and the progress Israel has made on gender equality. However, the lack of reference in Israel’s national submission to substantive progress on human rights issues in the Occupied Palestinian Territories is disappointing. Areas of concern include the need to address Israeli policies on settlement expansion and demolitions.

The advancement by the Israeli authorities of plans, tenders and permits for thousands of settlement units across the West Bank is deeply concerning. Settlements are illegal under international law and undermine both the physical viability of the two-state solution and perceptions of Israel’s commitment to it.

I am also seriously concerned by the Israeli authorities’ continuous demolition of Palestinian properties in Area C of the West Bank and in East Jerusalem. As the UK has made clear in the past, these demolitions cause unnecessary suffering and are harmful to the objective of achieving peace.

Finally, the matter of children in detention in Israel remains highly concerning. The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, to which Israel is a State Party, clearly sets out the need to grant special care and protection to children. I hope Israel recognises these responsibilities and takes the necessary action to ensure that child detainees are protected, including to engage with partners, like the UK, on best practice.

Burundi

While I welcome Burundi’s participation in the UPR process, I remain deeply concerned that the Government of Burundi has shown no willingness to acknowledge and make efforts to improve the deteriorating human rights situation. It is also distressing that the Government of Burundi continues to facilitate a culture of impunity for the perpetrators. Specific areas which need to be addressed and investigated are arbitrary detentions, violence and executions by security forces, and attacks against human rights defenders. I urge the Government of Burundi to review, in good faith, all of the recommendations made in the UPR; and encourage them to co-operate with the OHCHR and the Commission of Inquiry. The UK and the international community stand ready to work with the Government of Burundi to improve the situation.

Conclusion

I encourage all countries reviewed during this session to give serious consideration to accepting the UK’s recommendations. I trust that those recommendations which are accepted will be fully implemented in a timely manner. I look forward to the formal adoption of these UPRs at the 38th session of the UN Human Rights Council, in June 2018.

Further information

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

Pictures and videos are available to use here

UK scientists are leading new cutting-edge research to allow farmers to grow crops that are more nutritious, more resistant to disease and better able to withstand severe floods or drought in Africa, in addition to developing medicines to protect farmers’ livestock from devastating disease.

Millions of farmers in Africa, who depend on agriculture to support their families, struggle to grow enough crops to put food on the table because of natural disasters such as drought, or floods, which destroy their livelihoods.

Now UK scientists, backed by UK aid, are using their expertise to identify the specific genes in crops that help them be more nutritious, grow faster and are more resilient to disease and extreme weather. This scientific work on ‘super-crops’ will help up to 100 million African farmers lift themselves and their families out of poverty, in turn building stability and prosperity, which will help African countries become our trading partners of the future.

International Development Secretary Penny Mordaunt announced the new UK aid research, which is being carried out by international organisation, CGIAR, during a joint visit to the University of Edinburgh with Bill Gates.

The Bill & and Melinda Gates Foundation is an important partner in international research and announced further investment in UK based livestock R&D during the visit.

International Development Secretary Penny Mordaunt said:

Unpredictable flooding, plant diseases and drought are threatening the lives and livelihoods of millions of farmers in Africa who struggle to grow enough crops to put food on the table – the urgency of the task is clear.

That’s why UK aid is supporting British scientists to develop new crops that are more productive, more nutritious and more resistant to droughts and flooding, as well as creating new medicines to protect cattle and poultry from devastating disease.

This transformative UK aid research will not only stop diseases from destroying the livelihoods of African farmers, it will also help control livestock diseases on British farms.

New ideas, cutting edge science and innovative partnerships with organisations like the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation will help Britain create a healthier, more secure and prosperous world for us all.

At the University of Edinburgh, scientists are also leading ground-breaking work on diseases which cause huge economic losses for African farmers, including Animal African Trypanosomiasis (AAT), a disease which kills over 3 million cattle a year, has been estimated to cost over $4bn a year in total to African economies and can cause sleeping sickness in people.

Scientists believe that within the next five years – and for the first time in over 40 years – a new drug will be available to treat AAT. UK scientists have uncovered new molecules, which can be developed into an effective treatment for this devastating disease – with the aim of wiping it out.

This research could also help British farmers who face similar threats in the future, by identifying responses to diseases before they reach the UK.

UK scientists are also working to reduce the impact of many diseases that can be passed to people from animals such as Porcine Cysticercosis – the most common cause of epilepsy in developing countries. The scientists are currently involved in testing the effectiveness of a new vaccine to tackle this disease, which will help protect the health of families and communities.

During the visit Ms Mordaunt also announced plans to develop the Centre for Tropical Livestock Genetics and Health, which is based in both Edinburgh and Nairobi.

The centre uses the most recent scientific advances in genetics and genomics that are being used by farmers in the UK and apply these to help smallholder dairy and poultry farmers in sub-Saharan Africa.

The campus at the University of Edinburgh, which hosted the visit, has a number of organisations involved in this work including; The Roslin Institute and the Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies. Scotland’s Rural College and GALVmed are also located nearby. Scientists working here have been responsible for many of the advances in farming techniques now used both here in the UK and throughout the developing world.

This research underlines the UK’s commitment to tackling climate shocks, protecting the environment and increasing resilience – all of which are themes at the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in London in April 2018.

Notes to editors

• DFID will support CGIAR with funding of £90m over 3 years. CGIAR’ was originally the acronym for the ‘Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research’. In 2008, CGIAR redefined itself as a global partnership. To reflect this transformation and yet retain its roots, ‘CGIAR’ was retained as a name. CGIAR is now a global research partnership for a food-secure future. The role of CGIAR is to deliver new agricultural technologies to support food and nutrition security and growth. Access to high-yielding, drought, heat and disease-resistant crops and livestock underpins the livelihoods and incomes of poor farmers and is essential to combat hunger and reduce the risks of crop failure.
• Technology developed by CGIAR was at the heart of the green revolution, tripling yields and lifting millions out of poverty and hunger. CGIAR-developed varieties of the 10 main food crops are now grown on over 200 million ha in developing countries.
• This new funding will support the development and deployment of: crop varieties that are climate resilient, more resistant to heat, drought and flooding; crop varieties that are more nutritious, with elevated levels of essential micronutrients; agronomic practices that boost resilience and reduce the use of costly inputs; new livestock varieties, diagnostics, vaccines and medicines, to reduce the risks faced by livestock farmers.
• The Centre for Tropical Livestock Genetics and Health (CTLGH) will receive £4 million through funding by DFID. It is a joint venture launched by three partners – the Roslin Institute of the University of Edinburgh, Scotland’s Rural College (SRUC) and CGIAR – International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI), who have created a new, multidisciplinary Centre for Tropical Livestock Genetics and Health, with two main nodes, one in Edinburgh and one in Nairobi.
• The Centre will mobilise the most recent scientific advances in genetics and genomics that have led to substantial gains in livestock productivity in temperate zones and apply these to improve livestock productivity in tropical environments, for the benefit of smallholder dairy and poultry farmers in sub-Saharan Africa.

]

A Downing Street spokesperson said:

Prime Minister Theresa May today met with President Trump at the World Economic Forum in Davos.

The two leaders began by discussing Bombardier, with the PM reiterating the importance of the company’s jobs in Northern Ireland.

The PM and the President discussed Iran, and the need to work together to combat the destabilising activity which it is conducting in the region, including ballistic missile development, and continuing efforts to ensure Iran does not develop nuclear weapons.

They also agreed on the importance of continuing to stand side-by-side in the fight against Daesh in Syria and elsewhere.

The Prime Minister updated the President on the good progress which had been made in the Brexit negotiations so far. The two leaders reiterated their desire for a strong trading relationship post-Brexit, which would be in the interests of both countries.

The PM and President concluded by asking officials to work together on finalising the details of a visit by the President to the UK later this year.