Posts

Posted on

Press release: Road schemes to help create jobs and homes in Yorkshire and North East

Communities in Yorkshire and the North East are set to benefit from three major road improvements which will help create hundreds of new jobs and homes

A better access from the A19 to the proposed new International Advanced Manufacturing Park and Nissan plant in Sunderland is among the upgrades which are worth around £82 million.

A second scheme in Sunderland will tackle a bottleneck at the A19 and A690 Doxford Park junction, unlocking the potential for 1,345 new homes.

The third upgrade will improve junction 47 of the A1(M) at Harrogate, helping to increase capacity, reduce queuing, improve journey times and create new jobs at the planned Flaxby Green Business Park.

Highways England, Regional Director, Operations, Yorkshire & North East, Richard Marshall, said

Our roads are vital for the country and its economic success; they connect businesses and communities and support employment and new homes. All of our improvements will ultimately ensure our roads continue to improve journeys and unlock the potential for new jobs and homes.

After the Government gave Highways England the green light to start construction, work on the major upgrade to improve access from the A19 at Testos to the proposed Manufacturing Park and Nissan plant, is due to start in the New Year.

At the Doxford Park junction the company will work with Sunderland City Council to increase capacity, significantly reducing journey times and congestion at peak hour, as well as paving the way for new homes in the future.

And in Harrogate, subject to finalising agreements with local developers, it plans to work with North Yorkshire County Council to improve junction 47 of the A1(M), helping to increase capacity, reduce queuing, improve journey times as well as supporting the planned business park.

The improvements in Sunderland and Harrogate, totalling £2 million, are being paid for as part of Highways England’s dedicated £100 million fund to help local growth and housing schemes get off the ground.

The award-winning fund has already provided over £77 million to communities across the country, improving junctions and creating access to commercial land and new homes.

This includes a £1 million boost to a scheme in Darlington, improving the A68 Rotary Way roundabout. This roundabout links Darlington with the A1M and has unlocked 1 million square feet of business land in Faverdale.

The completed scheme has created a new slip road on the A68 approaching Rotary Way roundabout from the motorway, a new link road from West Park onto Newton Lane, and the roundabouts at Cockerton have also been improved.

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.

Link: Press release: Road schemes to help create jobs and homes in Yorkshire and North East
Source: Gov Press Releases

Posted on

Press release: Results of fully-video hearings pilot published

  • Fully-video hearings tested for the first time as part of government’s £1bn court reform programme
  • Evaluation finds they were easy to understand and welcomed by users
  • Technological improvements will be made going forwards

Working closely with the judiciary, the pilot, involving eight cases, ensured hearings were conducted as in a physical courtroom and aimed to test people’s experiences and the support required in the early days.
The small-scale trial was carried out in the first-tier tax tribunal and was the first time all parties could attend via video. Hearings took place over the internet, with each participant logging in from a location of their choice using their own equipment and, for the purposes of the pilot, the judge located in the court room.

Independent evaluation from the London School of Economics, published today (13 September 2018), shows that the trial was a success among appellants who welcomed the chance not to have to travel to a court room – with one person living abroad reporting that they avoided the need to fly to the UK and a new mother welcoming the chance to stream from home. The research – “Implementing Video Hearings: A Process Evaluation” – revealed people found hearings clear, easy to navigate and user-friendly.

Justice Minister, Lucy Frazer, said:
> Fully-video hearings have huge potential for those who find it difficult to travel to a courtroom and this trial is a welcome first step.
>
> Of course, we are still in the early stages of testing the technology, but the findings in this report will help us drive the innovation needed to make video hearings a success.

Lessons will now be learnt from the pilot scheme including making fully-video hearings available for more users by improving the technical product; ensuring technology is robust and reliable; and ensuring the level of pre-hearing support is right at each stage.

The move is part of the Government’s £1 billion investment to modernise the court service, making it swifter, simpler and easier to access for everyone.

Video technology is already used in criminal courts to allow some victims and witnesses to give evidence without having to come face to face with the accused.

Following the report, HMCTS will continue to work with the judiciary and run further pilots later in the year.

Link: Press release: Results of fully-video hearings pilot published
Source: Gov Press Releases

Posted on

Energy Consumption (Innovative Technologies)

A Bill to require the Secretary of State to undertake a public consultation on innovative technologies and energy consumption in households and commercial properties and to report on responses to that consultation and steps to be taken to encourage the development of innovative technologies to reduce energy consumption; and for connected purposes.

Link: Energy Consumption (Innovative Technologies)
Source: Public Bills

Posted on

Press release: Secretary of State Appointments to the Birmingham Organising Committee for the 2022 Commonwealth Games

Jonathan Browning and Zara Hyde Peters have been appointed for 4 years and 8 months commencing 5 September 2018 until 30 June 2023.

Jonathan Browning

Jonathan Browning is Chairman of the Coventry and Warwickshire Local Enterprise Partnership. He is also a Board Member for the West Midlands Combined Authority and a member of the Auto 1 Group Supervisory Board. He was previously Interim Chairman (2017) and a Non-Executive Director (2015-18) at British Cycling.

During his executive career Jonathan held a number of senior roles within the automotive industry with Volkswagen, Ford, Jaguar and General Motors. He was awarded automotive
industry ‘All Star’ in both 2011 and 2012 and received an Honorary Doctorate from Coventry University in 2017 in recognition for his contribution to the global automotive industry.

Zara Hyde Peters OBE

Zara Hyde Peters is Managing Director at North Hampshire Clinical Commissioning Group, where she relocated after a period as Strategy Director for Birmingham Community Health Care. She was previously Chief Executive of the British Triathlon Federation (2008-2014) and Director of Athlete Development at UK Athletics (2004-2008). Zara has also held Non-Executive roles with UK Sport, the Triathlon Trust and Sport Birmingham.

She competed for England at the 1994 Commonwealth Games and was awarded an OBE for national leadership services to athletics and triathlon in Great Britain in 2011.

The roles

The roles are not remunerated. These appointments have been made in accordance with the Cabinet Office’s Governance Code on Public Appointments. The process is regulated by the Commissioner for Public Appointments. The Government’s Governance Code requires that any significant political activity undertaken by an appointee in the last five years is declared. This is defined as including holding office, public speaking, making a recordable donation or candidature for election. Jonathan and Zara have declared no such political activity.

Link: Press release: Secretary of State Appointments to the Birmingham Organising Committee for the 2022 Commonwealth Games
Source: Gov Press Releases