Exiting the European Union Committee looks at the implications of trading on WTO terms for the UK
Link: Former Director General of the World Trade Organisation questioned
Source: Parliamentary News
Press release: Government launches call for evidence for Civil Society Strategy
Tracey Crouch, Minister for Sport and Civil Society, has today launched a public call for evidence on a new strategy that will harnesses the power of communities, charities, and businesses to help build a fairer society.
Tracey Crouch welcome views on Civil Society strategy
The engagement exercise for the Civil Society Strategy will look at four themes that will strengthen civil society further, exploring the best way sectors can work together, empowering people to take action on the issues that matter to them and improving the places they live and work in.
It is open for anyone to share their opinions, experiences and feedback over the next twelve weeks.
This work will build on the government’s current work with young people and youth organisations, as well as efforts to grow social impact investing, tackle loneliness and build integrated communities.
Further to the online platform, the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport will also hold events around the country where people will be invited to talk about civil society.
Tracey Crouch Minister for Sport and Civil Society said:
The civil society sector is incredible and works hard to deliver so much for people and communities. I want to bring these individuals and organisations together even more to improve communities and help tackle the everyday challenges that people face. The strategy will be important in our mission to build a fairer society and help secure a better future for the next generation. I encourage everyone with an interest in this important area to come forward and make their voices heard.
The Civil Society Strategy will be developed by the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, together with the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government and other government departments.
Jake Berry, Minister for the Northern Powerhouse and Local Growth, said:
This strategy reaffirms our commitment to working alongside all sections of society to build a fairer future for all. This piece of work will shape how we work with communities and will encompass their views in order to create a society that works for everyone.
ENDS
NOTES TO EDITORS
The online platform will be open for twelve weeks.
It is split into four sections: Our Civil Society, People, Partnerships and Places. You can choose to just answer the questions that are relevant to you:
- Our civil society: is about the big questions of what civil society is, how it is working well and what needs to change to strengthen it further
- People: explores how more people could take action on issues that matter to them
- Partnership: explores the best ways to work across different sectors to make a better society
- Places: explores how we empower local people to improve the places they live and work
Link: Press release: Government launches call for evidence for Civil Society Strategy
Source: Gov Press Releases
Online retailers and delivery companies explain delivery charges
Scottish Affairs Committe hears from Amazon, eBay and Argos
Link: Online retailers and delivery companies explain delivery charges
Source: Parliamentary News
Press release: Planting the seeds for a flood resilient future
A Sunderland school is more prepared for flooding after a rain garden planter was installed and the school’s pupils created a flood plan as part of the Environment Agency’s ‘Flood Weeks’.
Community Engagement Officer Taryn Al-Mashgari helped the youngsters at Springwell Village Primary School develop a flood plan and ‘grab bag’ so they are prepared in the event of a flood.
And partners at Northumbrian Water installed a rain planter – which captures and stores rainfall from the school’s roof – as part of its Rainwise initiative.
Youngsters at the school helped put flowers into the planter in an event on Friday 23 February and then ‘tagged’ the school with a flood warden logo designed by a pupil from Hetton Lyons Primary School.
This was done using Rainworks – an invisible spray which will only show the logo when it rains. It will remind pupils during key times to be aware of their flood resilience learning.
Initiative helps schools be prepared for flooding
A workshop held by the Environment Agency, Northumbrian Water and Northern Powergrid then also took place for parents and local councillors to see what the children have been leaning and to see them demonstrate their newly-created flood plan.
It’s part of an Environment Agency initiative to help schools across the North East be better prepared for flooding. Taryn works with children in all year groups to help them understand different types of flooding and how it happens.
They learn what to do before and during a flood, and what the flood warning symbols used by the Environment Agency mean. Taryn said:
It’s important that younger people understand what flooding is, how it happens and what the different organisations that deal with flooding do.
We also teach them how to prepare for and what to do during a flood in a series of interactive sessions where they design their own flood protection and describe how they would keep their favourite possessions safe.
It’s absolutely devastating to be flooded and that’s why we are working with schools and our partners to educate our future generations about what they can do to keep themselves and their valuables safe.
Spreading the word about managing rainfall
Northumbrian Water’s Rainwise initiative aims to spread the word about how managing rainfall better can help increase capacity in the sewer network and encourages residents to make small changes around their homes and gardens.
Rain garden planters help reduce the risk of flooding by reducing the amount of water directly entering the sewer network, as well as slowing the amount of water that does.
Northumbrian Water’s Project Manager, Chris Bond, said:
The Environment Agency’s flood week gave us a real opportunity to work with the school to raise awareness of our Rainwise initiative and how it’s important for families to manage rainfall better around their home to help reduce flood risk.
The planter captures rainwater from the roof of the school, which is then absorbed by the soil and plants and helps to take some of the pressure off our sewer network. It’s been great working with the children to put in these plants, which builds their knowledge of flooding and creating new natural habitats.
For more information on Rainwise, visit Northumbrian Water’s website
The Environment Agency is urging people to ‘Prepare, Act, Survive’ by visiting the Floods Destroy website and do three things to prepare for flooding.
- check your postcode and find out if you are at risk of flooding
- sign-up for free flood warnings if you are at risk
- view and save the 3-point flood plan so you know how to ‘Prepare, Act, Survive’ in a flood
Link: Press release: Planting the seeds for a flood resilient future
Source: Gov Press Releases
The Occupational Pension Schemes (Preservation of Benefit and Charges and Governance) (Amendment) Regulations 2018
These Regulations amend the Occupational Pension Schemes (Preservation of Benefit) Regulations 1991 (S.I.1991/167) (“the Preservation Regulations”) and the Occupational Pension Schemes (Charges and Governance) Regulations 2015 (S.I.2015/879) (“the Charges and Governance Regulations”).
Link: The Occupational Pension Schemes (Preservation of Benefit and Charges and Governance) (Amendment) Regulations 2018
Source: Legislation .gov.uk
The Occupational Pension Schemes (Employer Debt and Miscellaneous Amendments) Regulations 2018
These Regulations contain provisions about debts arising for employers under section 75 of the Pensions Act 1995 (c.26) in respect of occupational pension schemes and also contain consequential amendments. In particular, the Regulations introduce a new option for employers managing section 75 debt, namely the ‘deferred debt arrangement’ which permits employers in specified circumstances to defer payment of the section 75 debt provided certain conditions are met.
Link: The Occupational Pension Schemes (Employer Debt and Miscellaneous Amendments) Regulations 2018
Source: Legislation .gov.uk
The Contracting-out (Transfer and Transfer Payment) (Amendment) Regulations 2018
These Regulations amend the Contracting-out (Transfer and Transfer Payment) Regulations 1996 (S.I. 1996/1462) (“the 1996 Regulations”) and the Occupational Pension Schemes (Schemes that were Contracted-out) (No. 2) Regulations 2015 (S.I. 2015/1677) (“the 2015 Regulations”) to allow contracted-out pension rights to be transferred without members’ consent to schemes which have never been contracted out of the Additional State Pension.
Link: The Contracting-out (Transfer and Transfer Payment) (Amendment) Regulations 2018
Source: Legislation .gov.uk
The Housing and Planning Act 2016 (Banning Order Offences) Regulations 2018
Part 2 of the Housing and Planning Act 2016 (c. 22) (“the Act”) makes provision for the imposition of banning orders. Section 15 of the Act confers power on local housing authorities in England to apply to the First-tier Tribunal for a banning order against a person who has been convicted of a banning order offence. Section 16 confers power on the First-tier Tribunal to make a banning order against that person if that person was a residential landlord or property agent at the time the offence was committed. Section 14 defines “banning order” and “banning order offence” for the purposes of Part 2 of the Act (rogue landlords and property agents in England). Section 14(3) confers power on the Secretary of State to make regulations specifying the description of what constitutes a “banning order offence”. Regulation 3 and the Schedule to these Regulations specify those offences.
Link: The Housing and Planning Act 2016 (Banning Order Offences) Regulations 2018
Source: Legislation .gov.uk
The Occupational Pension Schemes (Administration and Disclosure) (Amendment) Regulations 2018
These Regulations impose obligations on trustees or managers of certain occupational pension schemes in relation to the disclosure of information about transaction costs and charges imposed on members by those schemes. These Regulations implement the duty on the Secretary of State imposed by section 113 of the Pension Schemes Act 1993 (c. 48), as amended by section 44 of the Pensions Act 2014 (c.19), to make regulations requiring the giving and publication of information about administration charges and transaction costs. In addition, they impose obligations concerning the disclosure of information about the pooled funds in which assets are invested by the scheme on behalf of members.
Link: The Occupational Pension Schemes (Administration and Disclosure) (Amendment) Regulations 2018
Source: Legislation .gov.uk
Press release: Once-in-a-generation opportunity to shape future farming policy
Farmers, landowners and food producers have a once-in-a-generation opportunity to shape the future of English farming and the environment, with a consultation launched today (27 February) by Environment Secretary Michael Gove.
The government’s proposals will see money redirected from direct payments under the Common Agriculture Policy (CAP), which are based on the amount of land farmed, to a new system of paying farmers “public money for public goods” – principally their work to enhance the environment and invest in sustainable food production.
Other public goods which could be supported include investment in technology and skills to improve productivity, providing public access to farmland and the countryside, enhanced welfare standards for livestock and measures to support the resilience of rural and upland communities.
In line with its manifesto commitment, the government will continue to commit the same cash total in funds for farm support until the end of this Parliament in 2022.
It has today set out proposals for an ‘agricultural transition’ lasting a number of years beyond the implementation period during which direct payments would continue, providing stability and certainty for farmers as they prepare for the new system.
At the same time, however, reductions to direct payments to the largest landowners first could free up around £150 million in the first year of the agricultural transition period, which could be used to boost farmers delivering environmental enhancement and other public goods.
The Environment Secretary Michael Gove said:
As we leave the EU, we have a historic opportunity to deliver a farming policy which works for the whole industry. Today we are asking for the views of those who will be affected to make sure we get this right so any future schemes reflect the reality of life for famers and food producers.
The proposals in this paper set out a range of possible paths to a brighter future for farming. They are the beginning of a conversation, not a conclusion and we want everyone who cares about the food we eat and the environment around us to contribute.
As set out by the Secretary of State at the NFU Conference last week, the consultation is an opportunity for farmers to be more central to government thinking than any time for fifty years as the UK leaves the EU.
Among the range of proposals put forward by the government in today’s consultation, ‘Health and Harmony: The Future for Food, Farming and the Environment in a Green Brexit’, the Government is seeking views on:
- Options for how to gradually phase out direct payments, starting with the largest landowners, whilst developing a new environmental land management scheme.
- The range of public goods that could qualify for government funding under the new schemes, such as high animal welfare standards, wildlife protection, public access, and new technologies.
- Measures to move away from heavy handed enforcement which penalises farmers for minor errors, including a more efficient inspection regime to uphold important environmental and animal welfare standards.
- New business models and incentives for industry to invest in innovation and new technologies to increase their profitability.
The current system of support for farmers and landowners shaped by the CAP is inefficient and inequitable. It does not secure the public goods needed to enhance our environment such as resilient habitats, richer wildlife, healthier rivers and cleaner water.
Farm payments in 2019 will follow the existing model, and in the meantime, the government has pledged to simplify applications for farmers wishing to enter into existing schemes to provide environmental benefits such as Countryside Stewardship.
The consultation will run for ten weeks, closing on 8 May 2018.
Link: Press release: Once-in-a-generation opportunity to shape future farming policy
Source: Gov Press Releases