Pulse.Assent

A Downing Street spokesperson said:

The Prime Minister spoke to President Trump on the phone earlier today.

The Prime Minister raised the US decision to apply tariffs to EU steel and aluminium imports, which she said was unjustified and deeply disappointing. The Prime Minister said the US, UK and EU are close national security allies and we recognise the importance of the values of open and fair trade across the world. The Prime Minister also underlined the need to safeguard jobs that would potentially be affected by the decision. They agreed to discuss this and wider issues of free and fair global trade further at the G7 summit later in the week.

They discussed North Korea, and the Prime Minister said the US had our full support ahead of the President’s planned summit with Kim Jong Un. They agreed we needed to see an agreement that brings about the complete, verifiable and irreversible denuclearisation and the removal of the North Korean ballistic missile capability. They agreed to discuss further at the G7 summit later this week.

They discussed the importance of stability in oil markets and the Prime Minister updated President Trump on her conversation with the Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman over the weekend, where they had discussed the same issue, agreeing that stability was in the interests of both consumers and producers. On Yemen, the Prime Minister and the President agreed the enduring requirement for a political resolution to the conflict and cautioned against any action that might increase the severe humanitarian suffering there. They also agreed on the importance of continuing to work together to counter Iran’s destabilising regional activity, including its support for the Houthis in Yemen.

They agreed that taking a strong and unified stance against hostile state activity more broadly would be an important topic for discussion at the G7 summit.

They ended the call by saying they looked forward to seeing each other in the UK next month.

Baroness Fairhead, Minister of State for Trade and Export Promotion at the Department for International Trade, is today leading a strong delegation of UK life sciences businesses at the world-renowned Bio Conference.

The UK pavilion at the conference will play host to 21 British organisations and will celebrate the 70th anniversary of the NHS.

16,000 people are expected to attend the event over the course of the 3 days, presenting huge opportunities for the innovative UK life sciences firms and thought leaders who are attending.

The US is the world’s largest market for life sciences. Abingdon based PsiOxus is a great example of a UK company who are benefiting from the opportunities across the Atlantic. They have recently secured a deal with US counterpart Bristol Myers-Squibb that could be worth nearly $1 billion over the lifetime of the partnership.

The likes of Alderley Park from Manchester, the Northern Health Science Alliance and Ulster University will join PsiOxus and Baroness Fairhead at the conference. Delegates will have the chance to attend networking forums, panel sessions and the UK Innovation Reception which will focus on showcasing the UK as ‘the home of health innovation’.

Baroness Fairhead, Minister of State for the Department for International Trade, said:

As a global leader in scientific innovation, with more than 5,500 life sciences companies, the UK’s offer to the world in this sector is clear. I am delighted to be joined on this trade mission by terrific businesses from all across the UK.

The Department for International Trade will continue to use trade missions such as this to promote healthcare and life sciences innovators across the world, driving investment and forging trade ties that have the potential to further scientific boundaries and improve the lives of millions.

British pharma exports to the US totaled more than £6 billion last year, 8% of all American pharma imports, whilst US medical exports to the UK totaled £1.6 billion – demonstrating the demand for UK life sciences expertise.

Latest statistics from the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy show that health and life sciences are worth over £70 billion to the economy and provide jobs for almost 241,000 people across the country. The recent launch of the government’s Industrial Strategy Life Sciences Sector Deal, demonstrates how the government will support the sector to develop and launch the next generation of medicines, technologies and diagnostics and provide better care and treatments for millions of patients.

The trade mission has a particular Northern Powerhouse angle as Virgin Atlantic have announced the reinstatement of the seasonal flight from Manchester Airport to Boston. The flight is a further boost for businesses across the Northern Powerhouse, increasing connectivity and ensuring Boston’s thriving financial and life sciences markets are made more accessible to UK companies.

Andrew Cowan, CEO of Manchester Airport, said:

Having strong connectivity to the world’s most important markets is key to creating a balanced and outward facing UK economy.

That is particularly the case when it comes to accessing global centres of excellence for high-growth sectors like life sciences.

It is clear the North has a number of strengths in the area, including world leading universities and a proven track record for innovation and commercialisation.

The availability of direct services to Boston from Manchester Airport only serves to enhance the international competitiveness of the sector, and North as a whole.

DIT provides a wide range of export support for UK businesses, including the opportunity to join trade missions via our Exporting is GREAT website.

Background

All the UK regions are well represented on the visit:

• The Northern Powerhouse presence on the trade missions is particularly strong, with the Northern Health Science Alliance leading a 14-strong delegation involving 3 widely respected academics from the Universities of Manchester and York and the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence.
• This delegation will be highlighting the North of England’s strengths in the life sciences sector, where the region is leading the way. The North boasts a health services sector worth £30 billion, employing 500,000, and is home to more than a fifth of life science companies located in the UK.
• Northern Ireland also has clinical specialisms within the areas of oncology, cardiology, opthamology, respiratory and diabetes. Its new Centre of Excellence in Precision Medicine, in association with Queen’s University Belfast, joins a suite of research centres and centres of excellence which are attracting investment to the region.
• The Midlands offers a world-class research and innovation infrastructure including science and technology parks and business incubation facilities, and is home to the largest number of medical technology and device companies in the country. It is bringing a delegation of 10 outstanding companies to the UK Pavilion at Bio.
• In addition, Scottish Development International (SDI), is hosting a Scotland pavilion for Scottish life sciences companies. Over 600 life sciences organisations make Scotland one of the largest life sciences clusters in Europe, with innovation centres including stratified medicine, sensors and digital health.
• Wales, too, will be showcasing its strengths in medical technology, regenerative medicine, diagnostics, eHealth, pharmaceutical services and neuroscience.

Further information

Contact the DIT Media and Digital Team on 020 7008 3333 or follow us: @tradegovuk and gov.uk/dit

Councils will receive new powers to help them deliver the homes their communities need under proposed regulations published today (4 June 2018) by Housing Minister Dominic Raab MP.

Under new rules, councils will be able to seek government’s approval to launch a New Town Development Corporation, which will be responsible for delivering new towns and garden communities in their area.

The new bodies themselves will be responsible for master planning and project development, bringing on board private investment, partnering with developers and overseeing the completion of a new town or garden village with each expected to deliver tens of thousands of new homes.

Held accountable by councils, the development corporations will be expected to involve communities in their projects, which includes allowing residents to have their say on how high-quality homes are delivered.

Subject to the normal planning requirements, including safeguards that protect the Green Belt, the corporations will be led by teams made up of council representatives, community stakeholders, experts in delivering major projects and other partner organisations involved in the delivery of sites.

This measure is part of the government’s wide-ranging programme of planning reform and targeted funding to deliver 300,000 homes a year by the mid-2020s.

Housing Minister Dominic Raab MP said:

We need to build the homes our communities need and I’m committed to giving councils the tools they need to deliver.

That’s why we’re giving councils the option of applying to establish development corporations. These will be locally accountable and must listen to the views of the community to ensure that the right homes are built in the right places.

Previously, all New Town Development Corporations created by the Secretary of State remained accountable to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government.

Housing Minister Dominic Raab MP will today introduce the regulations to Parliament, which are subject to further debate by MPs and will come into force later this year once approved by Parliament.

Further information

The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government has also released a summary document to its recent consultation on the new town regulations.

A limited number of functions will remain with the Secretary of State. For example, it will remain the Secretary of State who confirms compulsory purchase orders.

The new development corporations set up after the regulations come into force will operate in a similar way to the new town development corporations that delivered the post-war new towns such as Milton Keynes. As with traditional new town development corporations, these locally-led bodies will be able to draft “proposals” for the new town which the oversight authority can approve.

The government is preparing to launch its new National Planning Policy Framework later this summer, which will streamline the system and allow the delivery of the homes this country needs.

The powers to create New Town Development Corporations accountable to the Secretary of State remain on the statute book.

Her Majesty The Queen recognises Rwandan volunteer with Commonwealth Points of Light award

Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II has today recognised Isabelle Kamariza, representing Rwanda, as the 55th Commonwealth Point of Light in honour of her exceptional voluntary service supporting patients in Rwandan hospitals.

Isabelle founded ‘Solid’ Africa’ to support patients in Rwandan public hospitals. She has grown the organisation from a small group of young professionals helping five patients, to a household name working with thousands of patients every day. Under Isabelle’s leadership, ‘Solid’ Africa’ has become self-sustaining and runs four successful programmes providing financial assistance with medical and transport bills; water purifications systems for clean drinking water in hospitals; public health initiatives; and daily meals for patients in need or with special dietary requirements. She is currently overseeing the creation of an industrial kitchen to feed 1000 patients three times a day in four public hospitals across Kigali. Isabelle passionately believes in the importance of ‘giving back’ to the community and has inspired a team of 50 young people to volunteer alongside her team.

As part of the legacy of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in London 2018, Her Majesty The Queen – as Head of the Commonwealth – is thanking inspirational volunteers across the 53 Commonwealth nations for the difference they are making in their communities and beyond, by recognising one volunteer from each Commonwealth country each week in the two years following the summit.

By sharing these stories of service, the Commonwealth Points of Light awards celebrate inspirational acts of volunteering across the Commonwealth and help inspire others to make their own contribution to tackling some of the greatest social challenges of our time.

Each Commonwealth Point of Light will receive a personalised certificate signed by Her Majesty The Queen as Head of the Commonwealth. The award for Isabelle will be presented on 8th June at the UK High Commission Kigali by Jo Lomas, UK High Commissioner in Rwanda, as part of a Queen’s Birthday celebration. Mary Balikungeri, who received a Commonwealth Points of Light award in April for her work supporting thousands of victims of gender-based violence, will also be presented with her award.

Isabelle said:
“I am always filled with great emotions when our efforts are recognized, because even if often times I am the face of this movement, behind me is an unstoppable machine made of dozens of volunteers who were here from the beginning of this adventure and others who have joined even from other countries.

“This award is another sign that we must be doing something right. With your continued support, we vow to continue our efforts and, in the coming years, to expand them to the whole nation and even beyond Rwanda, God willing. I thank you again from the bottom of my heart and please send my regards to Her Majesty The Queen.”

Jo Lomas, UK High Commissioner in Rwanda said:
“Congratulations to Isabelle Kamariza and Solid Africa for winning the Commonwealth Points of Light Award. Her Majesty The Queen has recognised Isabelle’s superb work in supporting hospitals and vulnerable patients across Rwanda. Hers is an excellent example of the difference leadership and community spirit can make. The British High Commission in Rwanda is proud to present this award for her tireless and noble work. Congratulations.”

The Commonwealth is a diverse community of 53 nations that work together to promote prosperity, democracy and peace. The Heads of Government meeting brought together leaders from all the 53 Member countries to reaffirm common values, address shared global challenges and agree how to work to create a better future for all citizens, especially young people. Voluntary service is a vital part of this agenda, which is why Her Majesty The Queen has chosen to recognise outstanding volunteers across the Commonwealth in this special way.

• ENDS

For more information, please contact Robert Kamuratsi, Robert.Kamuratsi@fco.gov.uk

Notes to Editors:

ABOUT THE COMMONWEALTH POINTS OF LIGHT AWARD

1. The Points of Light awards recognise outstanding volunteers every day of the week – people whose service is making a difference in their communities and whose story can inspire others to creative innovative solutions to social challenges in their own communities and beyond.
2. Points of Light began in America under President George H. W. Bush and today over 6,000 US Points of Light have been recognised. The scheme has the support of all living US Presidents.
3. Since 2014 the UK Prime Minister has been recognising a daily Point of Light from the UK, with more than 900 volunteers now recognised.
4. Commonwealth Points of Light is a continuation of this programme with a special series of awards recognising inspirational volunteers throughout the Commonwealth, coinciding with the UK being the Commonwealth’s Chair-in-Office of for the next two years. One volunteer from each of the 53 Commonwealth countries was recognised in the days leading up to the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in April 2018. Following the success of this programme, Her Majesty The Queen decided to continue this work and award one volunteer from each Commonwealth country every week leading up to the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Rwanda in 2020.
5. More information, including details of other Commonwealth Points of Light recipients, can be found on the website: www.pointsoflight.gov.uk

About the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting

In April 2018 the UK hosted the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting, where leaders from across the Commonwealth gathered in London and Windsor. With the theme of ‘Towards a Common Future’ they will work to create a more prosperous, secure, sustainable and fair future for the Commonwealth’s 2.4 billion citizens, particularly its young people.

For further information visit www.chogm2018.org.uk or follow on Twitter @commonwealth18.