Category: Gov Press Releases

Women’s charities can now bid for the latest £15 million round of the Tampon Tax Fund, Minister for Sport and Civil Society Tracey Crouch announced today.

Projects that aim to reduce drug and alcohol abuse and engage excluded and vulnerable women through sport can also apply for funding.

Tracey Crouch, Minister for Sport and Civil Society said:

The Tampon Tax Fund is already making a real difference to the lives of women and girls across the country. We are ensuring that the money generated from sanitary products continues to support good causes and address the serious issues that women of all ages face.

The deadline for applications closes at midnight on Sunday 28 January 2018 and applications are particularly welcomed from organisations that support women and girls across multiple regions.

All grants from this round of funding may be provided for one or two year projects. All activities must be delivered and funds must be spent by March 2020.

Apply for the funding

The current 5 year time limit on abuse evidence in the family courts will be scrapped, while the range of documents accepted as evidence of abuse will be widened to include statements from domestic violence support organisations and housing support officers. The changes will come into effect from January.

The move represents the latest step to protect and support victims of domestic abuse. Earlier this year the government announced a £17 million fund to support 41 projects across the country to tackle violence against women and girls.

Justice Minister Dominic Raab said:

We have listened to victims’ groups and carefully reviewed the criteria for legal aid for victims of domestic abuse in family cases.

These changes make sure that vulnerable women and children get legal support, so their voice is properly heard in court.

Legal aid is available to people involved in private family disputes if they are victims, or are at risk of becoming victims, of domestic violence or child abuse. To qualify, applicants must provide objective evidence of the abuse while their case is also subject to means and merits tests.

The changes announced today follow a review of the evidence requirements set out in the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act (LASPO) 2012. A Statutory Instrument amending the relevant regulations will be laid in Parliament in the coming days.

The government has also committed to bringing forward a landmark Domestic Violence and Abuse Bill which will ensure that no stone is left unturned in protecting and supporting victims and children.

Notes to editors

• Currently documentation is accepted as evidence of abuse from social services, law enforcement and medical professionals.
• Evidence provided by domestic violence support organisations or housing support officers as part of an application for legal aid in disputed family court cases will need to include:
  • a statement that in the letter writer’s reasonable professional opinion, the applicant is a victim of domestic violence or at risk of being a victim;
  • the matters relied on in support of that opinion;
  • and a summary of the support the individual or organisation provided following the determination.
• The SI will also amend the regulations to accept evidence of abuse against previous partners, to better evidence an applicant being ‘at risk’ of domestic violence.
• The Legal Aid Agency has existing powers to withdraw funding in the event that evidence of domestic violence is proven to be false.

• Two World Heritage Sites to work together on research, education and tourism growth
• New Heritage Council to be launched emphasising value of historic environment, building consensus and ensuring greater coordination across government

Hadrian’s Wall and The Great Wall of China will sign a unique collaboration agreement to increase the historical and cultural understanding of the two sites, Heritage Minister John Glen announced today as he set out his priorities for heritage.

Representatives from the two World Heritage Sites will work together to examine the challenges and opportunities of managing large and complex archaeological remains and explore the potential tourism growth in both countries.

The agreement – the first of its kind – was announced by John Glen as he launched his framework for the growth of the heritage sector.

The Heritage Statement outlines how he wants to strengthen the sector, through regeneration and placemaking, skills and environment and how it will contribute to an outward-looking global Britain.

Measures in the statement include:

• Launching a new Heritage Council, chaired by the Minister, to emphasise the value of the historic environment, build consensus and ensure greater coordination.
• A new commemorative scheme to be rolled out across England to mark and celebrate the events, people and places that have shaped local communities.
• Exploring options to strengthen interim protection measures and reduce the risk of damage or destruction to sites while they are being considered for listing.
• Working with Historic England and Heritage Lottery Fund to support the digitisation of historic environment records and heritage archives to help councils make informed planning decisions and increase public appreciation for their local heritage.

Heritage Minister John Glen said:

The Wall to Wall Collaboration is the perfect example of how heritage can be used to strengthen international partnerships, grow tourism and build a truly global Britain.

Today I am setting out how we will continue to make the case for heritage, and showcase the benefits it brings to our economy, our communities and our quality of life.

Duncan Wilson, Chief Executive of Historic England, said:

“The Minister has reaffirmed the importance of our heritage to creating great places, to the economy, to communities and to our wellbeing. We look forward to delivering a new place-marker scheme to enable local communities to identify, mark and celebrate the events, people and places that are important to them along with eight new Heritage Action Zones which will help to revive towns and cities that are rich in heritage. I also look forward to a fruitful collaboration between Historic England and the Chinese Academy of Cultural Heritage with the signing of the Wall to Wall agreement.”

The Wall to Wall Collaboration is part of the People to People Dialogue – a cultural exchange between China and the UK taking place in London this week. The initiative arose from the UK-China Cultural Heritage High Level Dialogue, held in Beijing and Xi’an in February 2017, when the conservation of the two Walls was one of the key topics.

Historic England and Chinese Academy of Cultural Heritage, which manages the Great Wall, will sign the agreement on Thursday. They will hold a seminar in Newcastle next year – the first step in a wider programme of collaboration between the two sites.

The Minister also celebrated the strength of UK heritage in his speech at the Heritage Day conference, organised by Heritage Alliance.

The UK heritage sector contributed £987 million to the UK economy last year – a rise of 7% on 2015 – and employs 278,000 people. Previous research commissioned by English Heritage in 2010 found that every £1 of public sector investment in heritage-led regeneration generated £1.60 return.

ENDS

For more information please contact the DCMS press office: 0207 211 2210

A more supportive and collaborative approach to short inspections of good schools was announced by Ofsted today.

The new arrangements are set out in Ofsted’s response to September’s consultation on changes to short inspections. Overall, the majority of respondents supported each of the consultation’s 3 proposals.

This means that from January 2018:

• inspectors will continue to convert short inspections, usually within 48 hours, if they have serious concerns about safeguarding or behaviour, or if they think the quality of education provided by a school has declined to inadequate
• when there are no significant issues with safeguarding or behaviour, but inspectors identify potential concerns about either the quality of education or leadership and management, the inspection will not convert. Instead, Ofsted will publish a letter setting out the school’s strengths and areas for improvement. A section 5 inspection will then take place later, typically within 1 to 2 years. This will give the school time to address any weaknesses and seek support from appropriate bodies. In the meantime, the letter will be clear that the school’s current overall effectiveness judgement has not changed.
• when inspectors have reason to believe that a school may be improving towards an outstanding judgement, Ofsted will publish a letter confirming that the school is still good and setting out its strengths and priorities for further improvement. A section 5 inspection will then take place within 1 to 2 years, giving the school time to consolidate its strong practice. However, requests from schools for early inspections will be considered.
  The majority of short inspections will confirm that the school remains good and, as now, Ofsted will return to carry out another short inspection after approximately 3 years.

Ofsted’s National Director of Education, Sean Harford said:

The process for converting short inspections to full section 5 inspections has proven challenging for both schools and inspectors. We have been consulting with the sector on ways to address these challenges and I’m delighted that the majority of respondents supported our latest proposals. I’m very grateful to everyone who took the time to engage with us.

These new arrangements reflect our overall aim to act as a force for improvement through inspection, and to catch schools before they fall. We’re confident they will ensure short inspections are responsible interventions that minimise the burden on schools, while at the same time providing constructive support and more time to improve.

The consultation ran from 21 September to 8 November 2017 and was open to the general public. In total, more than 1,500 responses to the online questionnaire were submitted. Ofsted also gathered responses from direct engagement with parents, headteachers, teaching unions and professional associations.

People planning to add a four-legged friend to the family this Christmas need to be wary of unscrupulous breeders and sellers, animal welfare Minister Lord Gardiner has warned today.

The UK is a nation of animal lovers, and each year thousands of us consider welcoming a pet into the family at Christmas time to add to the UK’s 8.5 million pet dogs and 7.4 million cats. However, puppy smugglers and unlicensed sellers are ready to take advantage of the high demand by illegally importing them into the country, neglecting their health and welfare and not properly vaccinating them – leading to steep vets’ bills and heartbreak for buyers when the puppies fall ill or in some cases, sadly die.

Consequently, it’s now more important than ever that buyers are armed with the knowledge they need to buy responsibly and avoid inadvertently fuelling the illegal puppy smuggling trade.

Minister for animal welfare, Lord Gardiner, said:

We all know that a dog is for life, not just for Christmas. But that life could be cruelly cut short if they haven’t been properly looked after by the breeder, bringing heartbreak to the family.

We are a nation of animal lovers and buyers can do their bit to avoid the dishonest sellers by never buying a puppy younger than 8 weeks old, seeing the puppy interact with its mother and checking on its health history.

The government announced earlier this year that some of the Pet Advertising Advisory Group’s minimum standards will become mandatory for online sellers as part of a swathe of reforms to the animal licensing system. The reforms will make it illegal to sell puppies younger than eight weeks and require anyone breeding and selling three or more litters a year to apply for a formal licence. Anyone trading commercially in pets online will need to be properly licensed.

The plans will be laid in Parliament in the new year and will empower local authorities to take tough action on ‘backstreet breeders’ and help ensure the pets we buy are healthy, happy and from reputable sellers.

Minister for animal welfare Lord Gardiner recently hosted a roundtable with a number of animal charities and websites including Gumtree, Preloved and Vivastreet to discuss the progress made so far. The Minister has since written to those invited to the roundtable to praise their work in helping to stop illegal sellers and encouraging further action.

Lord Gardiner has also set out five simple tips to help anyone thinking of committing to a new pet to choose the right animal:

• Always consider a rescue dog in the first instance.
• If you are buying a puppy, only buy from reputable breeders and sellers – and make sure they’re licensed if buying from a business rather than private seller.
• Never buy a puppy that’s younger than 8 weeks old.
• Check the puppy’s health history – check vaccinations, make sure it’s microchipped, and consider asking the seller to complete the ‘Puppy Contract’.
• See the puppy interact with its mother.

If something still doesn’t feel right, don’t be afraid to walk away and look elsewhere. You should also report suspect breeders and sellers to your local council or Trading Standards.

Paula Boyden, Dogs Trust Veterinary Director and Chair of PAAG said:

The ease and popularity of the internet means that the impulse buying of pets has increasingly become an appealing option for many prospective buyers. However, the lure of a quick sale also attracts many unscrupulous breeders and dealers to websites.

We urge buyers to be cautious when looking to buy an animal via an online advert and if they have any concerns, walk away and report the seller to Trading Standards.

John Fishwick, President of the British Veterinary Association, said:

Vets see first-hand the tragic consequences that can result from poorly bred and illegally imported puppies. We’ve heard awful stories of people buying puppies only for their puppy to be dead 24 hours later because of the way it was bred and cared for in its early days.

Owning a dog is a life-changing commitment and we’d advise anyone thinking about getting a dog to first speak to their local vet about the right breed for them and then use the free online Puppy Contract to ensure they get a happy, healthy and well-socialised puppy.

A dog should never be bought ‘for Christmas’ as it can be a stressful time of year for pets, with lots going on, so we’d recommend waiting until the new year to welcome a new dog into your home.

This announcement comes as the UK embarks on a package of reforms to make sure we are a leader in animal welfare once we leave the EU. From bringing in tougher prison sentences for those who abuse animals to mandatory CCTV in slaughterhouses, the UK is leading the way with some of the highest animal welfare standards in the world.

Background

1. More information on the Pet Advertising Advisory Group, including a list of websites which are currently meeting their minimum standards.
2. Further information on the RSPCA’s Puppy Contract

Mr Andrew Pearce OBE has been appointed Governor of Montserrat in succession to Ms Elizabeth Carriere who will be leaving the Diplomatic Service. Mr Pearce will take up his appointment during January 2018.

CURRICULUM VITAE

Full name: Andrew John Pearce OBE

Married to: Pornpun Pearce

Children: Two

2017 – present Vilnius, Chargé d’Affaires

2015 – 2016 FCO, Director of Security, FCO Services

2009 – 2015 FCO, Head of Security, Estates and Security Directorate

2004 – 2008 Bangkok, Deputy Head of Mission and Political Counsellor

2000 – 2003 Bucharest, Deputy Head of Mission and Political Counsellor

1996 – 2000 Pretoria, Head, Economic and Trade Policy Team

1992 – 1996 Tel Aviv, Head, Press and Political Section

1990 – 1992 FCO, Head, Gibraltar and Iberian Section, Southern European Department, Europe Directorate

1988 – 1990 FCO, Head, Chemical and Biological Weapons Negotiating Team, Arms Control and Disarmament Department

Further information

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

Housing and Planning Minister Alok Sharma today (4 December 2017) announced that the Planning Delivery Fund is now open for bids and will support ambitious local authorities and third sector organisations in areas of high housing need to plan for new homes and infrastructure.

Initially opening up £11 million of the fund, councils will be able to apply to help gain the skills or capacity they need to deliver high quality housing growth at scale, pace and implement wider planning reforms. The fund is aimed at encouraging more innovation in the design quality of new housing developments, as well as provide design advice and support to local authorities.

As part of the government’s plans to raise housing supply to 300,000 per year on average by the mid-2020s, a package of measure has been announced to boost local authority planning capacity, support councils to take a proactive role in planning and encourage ambition and leadership in the delivery of new communities.

Others measures announced include:

• a further £3 million funding to support the delivery of the 14 garden villages that are part of the government’s existing programme
• publishing a consultation on plans to allow the creation of locally led New Town Development Corporations, and help speed up the delivery of new garden towns.

Housing and Planning Minister Alok Sharma said:

Locally-led developments have enormous potential to deliver the scale and quality of housing growth that we need. By supporting our local authorities, we will be able to unlock more homes where people want to live.

These measures including the £28 million of government support which will help develop new communities that will not only help deliver high-quality well-designed homes, but will also bring new jobs and facilities and a boost to local economies.

Across England, the government is currently supporting 24 locally-led garden cities, towns and villages, which have the potential to deliver around 220,000 homes.

Backed by £16 million funding, a further £3 million has been allocated to 14 garden villages in the programme to fund dedicated staff and studies and assessments that are vital to the delivery of garden villages that are key to successful delivery.

The government’s housing white paper in February 2017 committed to the creation of New Town Development Corporations, which would be overseen by the local authority or authorities covering the area proposed for a new garden community, rather than by Whitehall. Government is now seeking views on this proposal.

Further information

The first part of Planning Delivery Fund allocation of £11 million will be open to bids for the financial years 2017-18 to 2018-19.

A garden town is a development of more than 10,000 homes. Garden villages are smaller settlements of between 1,500 and 10,000 homes.

The 14 Garden Towns are: Long Marston, Oxfordshire Cotswold, Tresham, Culm, Welborne, West Carclaze, Dunton Hills, Spitalgate Heath, Halsnead, Longcross, Bailrigg, Infinity Garden Village, St Cuthberts and Handforth.

Measures apply to England only.

The exercise will take place after 7:30pm and will involve activities that may be visible and audible to neighbouring communities.

The site siren may be sounded and the public and agency alert cascade system may be activated. This means that local residents who have registered to receive automated SMS text, email and telephone warnings from us, may be contacted.

Exercise umpires and safety marshalls wearing high visibility clothing might be visible to people off site.
The exercise scenario will require the use of blank firearms and low level pyrotechnics which might be audible to neighbouring communities.

At no time will live ammunition be carried by those involved in the exercise.

The exercise scenario may also include the use of simulated casualties and injuries, although this is unlikely to be visible outside of the site boundary.

Emergency exercises are held regularly at all nuclear licensed sites to test their readiness in the event of an emergency.

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