Press release: Exercise Tempest tests the Environment Agency flood response ahead of winter

More than 300 metres of temporary flood defence barrier, drones and new visual mapping technology are being put to the test today (7th November) as the Environment Agency continues preparation for the winter ahead.

Exercise Tempest will see frontline staff test out temporary barriers in Stratford-upon-Avon –birthplace of William Shakespeare – for the first time. The exercise will test working arrangements with the local council and partners so that barriers can be put up quickly and safely when needed to help to protect properties on the waterfront from flooding.

Staff on-site and in the Environment Agency’s incident room in Lichfield will also be working together to test new visual mapping technology which will provide better intelligence about flood damage and impacts on the ground. This includes drones that teams can use to survey wider flood-hit areas, sending footage via a live feed, to the Environment Agency incident room.

Up and down the country, the Environment Agency is prepared to take action this winter wherever it is needed.

Sir James Bevan, chief executive of the Environment Agency, said:

This test exercise is one of many across the country to make sure we are ready for winter. We have 6,500 trained staff ready to respond to flooding and we’re making the most of new kit and technology.

Since the flooding of winter 2015/16, the Environment Agency has invested £12.5 million in new equipment including an additional 20 miles of temporary barriers, 500,000 sandbags and 250 pumps. The use of drones will also allow us to have a clearer idea of flood damage on the ground.

Floods Minister Thérèse Coffey said:

This exercise is a brilliant example of work taking place across the country to make sure we are fully prepared for any potential flooding this winter.

The use of new hi-spec equipment such as drones and live ‘visual mapping’ to show flood affected areas will be a huge asset to flood prevention teams.

The investment we have made in new technology, portable barriers and other equipment forms part of the £2.5 billion we are spending across the country up until 2021 to better protect over 300,000 properties.

Temporary barriers are just one of the ways the Environment Agency aims to better protect people and properties. But it’s important to remember people can never be fully protected against flooding, which is why people are being urged to go online and check their flood risk by entering their postcode, and find out what they can do to protect themselves and their property when flooding hits.

More than 1.2 million people are signed up to the Environment Agency’s free flood warning service, which sends a message directly by voice message, text or email when a flood warning is issued.

From 2015 to 2021, Government is investing £2.5 billion in flood and coastal erosion risk management projects which will reduce the risk of flooding from rivers, the sea, groundwater and surface water for at least 300,000 homes.

Link: Press release: Exercise Tempest tests the Environment Agency flood response ahead of winter
Source: Environment Agency

Press release: Call for women to get life-saving smear test after uptake drops

Public Health England (PHE) has issued a fresh appeal to young women to take up the invitation of a cervical cancer test as new figures published today show a fall in the number of 25 to 29-year-old women being tested.

NHS Digital statistics show a drop in the number of women of all ages being screened but worryingly only 62% of younger women took up the invitation for a test last year.

PHE is urging all eligible women (aged 25 to 64) who are invited for cervical screening (smear tests) to take the test.

Cervical screening currently prevents 70% of cervical cancer deaths. However, if everyone attended screening regularly, 83% of cases could be prevented.

Professor Anne Mackie, PHE’s director of screening said:

It is of real concern that fewer women, particularly younger women are not being screened, with over a third of women under 30 not taking the test.

If women are embarrassed about having the test or worried about what the test results might say, they should talk to their GP who can explain why the test is important.

PHE is committed to improving screening attendance and has a programme of work which includes:

  • supporting local services to encourage more women to attend screening by providing clearer information
  • encouraging GPs to consider offering a variety of appointments earlier in the morning and evening, making it easier for women to attend at a time that suits them
  • developing an interactive database which informs individual practices about the numbers of women they are screening and how they compare with neighbouring practices

Women aged 25 to 49 registered with a GP are invited every 3 years and every 5 years if aged 50 to 64. The test detects abnormalities within the cervix that could, if undetected and untreated, develop into cervical cancer. Studies show if the proportion of women screened was raised to 84% it could save the NHS £10 million a year as well as women’s lives.

The Cervical Cancer Screening Programme, recommended by the UK National Screening Committee, began in 1988 and the expert committee has reviewed the evidence every 3 years. The committee recommends the programme as it shows clear benefits and saves lives. Screening remains a choice, based on a woman’s individual circumstances.

Background

  1. Women over the age of 64 will no longer be invited for cervical screening unless they have had a previous abnormal result that requires a further follow up.
  2. PHE’s interactive screening coverage tool shows screening coverage for individual GPs and how they compare with neighbouring practices.
  3. Public Health England exists to protect and improve the nation’s health and wellbeing, and reduce health inequalities. It does this through world-class science, knowledge and intelligence, advocacy, partnerships and the delivery of specialist public health services. PHE is an operationally autonomous executive agency of the Department of Health.

PHE press office

Link: Press release: Call for women to get life-saving smear test after uptake drops
Source: Gov Press Releases

Press release: Love birds postpone Ouse Bridge inspection

Inspections are carried out on the bridge every two years but on discovering the pair of protected birds Highways England called in experts.

The nesting periods for birds vary from species to species and RSPB were able to offer the necessary advice about the peregrine pair.

image of a female peregrine.
Female peregrine.

The latest inspection was due to be carried out in October however engineers have waited until the peregrine chicks have left the nest before carrying out their regular bridge inspection.

image of a male peregrine.
Male peregrine.

Highways England service delivery team leader for Yorkshire and Humber, Mark Ramsden, said:

We have worked with the RSPB to make sure we do everything we can to not upset the chicks and their parents. We have now been able to schedule our work outside of fledgling period and hope that the pair will produce chicks for many years to come.

During peak times up to 23,000 drivers use the bridge each day and this is just part of the activity that goes on behind the scenes on this major Yorkshire landmark.

To carry out the inspections engineers need to be within touching distance of the bridge. They use a specialist underbridge unit which parks on the hard shoulder of the bridge and deploys a hanging walkway under the bridge and lowers workers beneath the structure.

Diving inspections are also carried out to assess the underwater condition of the bridge structure.
Ouse Bridge was opened in 1976 and was the last section of the main part of the M62 which stretches east to west from Liverpool to Hull.

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: Love birds postpone Ouse Bridge inspection
Source: Gov Press Releases

Press release: Call for evidence on how to reduce the cost of energy launched

A call for evidence on reducing the cost of energy has been launched by the government today, following the independent review by Professor Dieter Helm CBE.

On 25 October, Professor Helm concluded his independent review which outlines recommendations on how to reduce costs in the power system, whilst ensuring the UK meets its climate change targets.

Building on the government’s Industrial Strategy Green Paper, Professor Helm was asked to consider the whole electricity supply chain of generation, transmission, distribution and supply, and recommend how to reduce costs in each part.

The Government is now calling on industry, businesses and consumer groups to give their opinions on Professor Helm’s recommendations to government.

Business and Energy Secretary Greg Clark said:

Energy bills are too high for consumers. We have been clear that we are committed to bringing down costs, both for households and for businesses.

I commissioned this review to start a debate about the future of our energy markets. Now I am opening up that debate, asking everyone with an interest to give us their views on Professor Helm’s ideas for bringing down the cost of energy for consumers.

Any stakeholders who would like to comment on the findings should email their submissions to costofenergy@beis.gov.uk by 5 January 2018.

Link: Press release: Call for evidence on how to reduce the cost of energy launched
Source: Gov Press Releases

Press release: HM Land Registry makes commercial ownership data free

Today, HM Land Registry is making available, for free, data on land or property in England and Wales where the registered legal owner is a UK company or corporate body, or an overseas company.

The Commercial and Corporate Ownership Data and Overseas Companies Ownership Data contain more than 3 million rows of data and include the address, company’s name, price paid and country of incorporation along with other useful information.

By making the data available free of charge HM Land Registry is offering citizens and organisations the opportunity to scrutinise the records and discover which companies own land and property in England and Wales.

Today’s release also removes existing cost barriers that have previously restricted the use of the data. This will support growth in the property technology (PropTech) sector and among small and medium-sized enterprises.

Responding to the Government’s commitment to drive innovation in the digital economy, HM Land Registry will be opening up more of its datasets externally and across government to promote economic development, financial stability, tax collection, law enforcement and national security.

Chief Executive and Chief Land Registrar Graham Farrant said:

We are continually striving to make the best use of our hugely valuable data. Our ambition is to become ‘the world’s leading land registry for speed, simplicity and an open approach to data’. The release of two significant sets of data today marks another important milestone in that journey.

We will be releasing more datasets in high quality and accessible formats to enable them to be used by anyone with an interest in land and property, supporting the growing digital economy and adding to the nation’s geospatial intelligence.

HM Land Registry is committed to protecting the register while encouraging greater use of the data. To safeguard against possible fraud or misuse, the datasets are being released under licence and require users to register to get access.

Notes to editors

  1. Registration for the datasets is available from today, 7 November. When you complete the registration process, we will contact you by email within one working day (subject to the volume of applications).
  2. Find out more about the Commercial and Corporate Ownership Data (CCOD) and Overseas Companies Ownership Data (OCOD).
  3. Communities Secretary Sajid Javid’s call for evidence asks for views on innovative digital solutions, including making more data available online.
  4. In February 2017 the Housing White Paper “Fixing our broken housing market” committed HM Land Registry to become the world’s leading land registry for speed, simplicity and an open approach to data with an aim to achieve comprehensive registration of land in England and Wales by 2030.
  5. HM Land Registry’s mission is to guarantee and protect property rights in England and Wales.
  6. HM Land Registry is a government department created in 1862. It operates as an executive agency and a trading fund and its running costs are covered by the fees paid by the users of its services. Its ambition is to become the world’s leading land registry for speed, simplicity and an open approach to data.
  7. HM Land Registry safeguards land and property ownership worth more than £4 trillion, including more than £1 trillion of mortgages. The Land Register contains more than 25 million titles, which show evidence of ownership, covering more than 84% of the land mass.
  8. For further information about HM Land Registry visit www.gov.uk/land-registry.
  9. Follow us on Twitter @HMLandRegistry, our blog, LinkedIn, and Facebook.

Contact

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Press Officer

Paula Dorman
Head Office

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CR0 2AQ

Link: Press release: HM Land Registry makes commercial ownership data free
Source: Gov Press Releases

Press release: Minister for Europe visits Albania and Kosovo

During his first official visits to Albania and Kosovo, the Minister will meet senior government representatives, entrepreneurs, journalists and future leaders to reaffirm the UK’s commitment to the Western Balkans and to discuss preparations for the UK-hosted 2018 Western Balkans Summit.

In Tirana, Albania, the Minister will hold discussions with Prime Minister Edi Rama, Minister of Foreign Affairs Ditmir Bushati, Interior Minister Fatmir Xhafaj and Justice Minister Etilda Gjonaj. He will discuss the UK cooperation on judicial reform, the fight against organised crime and tackling corruption.

With Interior Minister Xhafaj, the Minister will attend the launch of Albania’s Strategic Plan to tackle Organised Crime Strategy. Sir Alan will also meet Chevening Scholars and young entrepreneurs

In Pristina, Kosovo, the Minister will meet President Thaci, Prime Minister Haradinaj, the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Communities and Return, and the Ministers of Justice and Internal Affairs to discuss UK support for the rule of law in Kosovo.

The Minister for Europe Sir Alan Duncan said:

My first official visits to Albania and Kosovo come at an important time, as we continue to work with our partners in the region on reform and progress.

In Albania the UK is working to help judicial reform and the fight against organised crime and corruption, as well as the country’s EU membership aspirations.

The UK has a special relationship with Kosovo. We were the first country to recognise its independence, and we remain committed to supporting Kosovo’s progress and working together on rule of law. We have a joint interest in seeing Kosovo develop into a prosperous country that is a source of stability in the region.

Further information

Media enquiries

For journalists

Link: Press release: Minister for Europe visits Albania and Kosovo
Source: Gov Press Releases

Press release: UK Government Minister visits Cardiff business making waves on global defence stage

BCB International is an established leader in the field of protective and survival equipment and has become a trusted supplier for troops serving in operations overseas.

The company has evolved from its early days as a cough medicine supplier, to become a major exporter of cutting-edge technologies and slick product design.

Guto Bebb will meet with the company’s Managing Director Andrew Howell to discuss how the company is branching out to new markets and developing new products for military services around the world.

UK Government Minister Guto Bebb said:

Businesses like BCB International are reaching out to international markets and putting Wales on the map.

It goes to show that a little Welsh innovation goes a long way – saving and protecting the lives of those hundreds and thousands of miles away, in often challenging and hostile environments.

There has never been a better time for Welsh companies like BCB to seize the moment and start exporting to new markets and the UK Government is standing by ready to support that aspiration.

BCB International has been designing and making specialised protective and survival equipment since 1854.

The company supplies military forces with equipment such as body armour, first aid kits and camping supplies. It exports 40 50 per cent of its products, mainly to the US, the Middle East and Europe and has a turnover of nearly £9million.

This year the company has won new business from new customers including the Canadian Defence Forces (Camouflage Face Paint), and the French (Fire Resistant Gloves) and Dutch Armies (Camp beds).

BCB has benefitted from UK Government help when it won a significant contract to supply the Ecuadorian Navy with 100 units of inflatable body armour. The country’s Navy wanted a payment guarantee and UK Export Finance stepped in to share the risk through its bond support scheme so BCB could use it as a working capital for the order and take on more business.

Andrew Howell Managing Director at BCB International said:

It is a pleasure to welcome the Minister to our premises and show him some of the quality products which are helping us capture new export business. We have exciting expansion plans which we look forward to briefing the Minister about.

Wales is already an exporting nation. There are currently more than 3,800 businesses in Wales that export, with a combined value of £13billion in the first quarter of 2017. Wales is also an attractive place for inward investment, with latest figures showing that 85 foreign direct investment projects were secured in Wales, creating 2,581 new jobs and safeguarding almost 9,000 more.

The Office of the Secretary of State for Wales has produced a dedicated exporting guide, which sets out the full range of support available from the UK Government and contains inspiring stories of companies based in Wales that are successfully exporting, to 26,000 Welsh businesses encouraging them to think about opportunities for exporting.

Link: Press release: UK Government Minister visits Cardiff business making waves on global defence stage
Source: Gov Press Releases

Press release: Glasgow becomes a world-leading smart city

Scotland’s biggest city is to reap benefits worth nearly £150 million. It follows a £24 million investment from the UK government into digital infrastructure and open data, making Glasgow a world-leading smart city.

The £24 million invested in the city since 2013, through Innovate UK, funds projects that connect the city together and help Glasgow save money and energy and develop the technologies of the future.

Speaking from the City Operations Centre in Glasgow, which has benefited from Innovate UK’s funding, Scottish Secretary, David Mundell said:

This fantastic return on investment demonstrates that targeted funding from the UK Government can lead to great results, benefiting businesses, visitors and communities.

Projects funded through this program demonstrate the innovative ways that modern technology and data can be used to make a tangible difference to the lives of people in cities across the world.

Projects funded so far have reduced energy costs in the city through intelligent street lights that adapt to people’s activity; created apps that give visitors and residents the open to plan their routes; and combined multiple separate city systems to allow teams to work on projects that cross multiple different disciplines.

These projects include an:

  • intelligent street lighting demonstrator, which showed how the city can use smarter streetlights to improve lighting quality, reduce energy usage and make maintenance more efficient. The pilot scheme also collected useful data that could have a positive impact on the quality of life and public safety in the 2 test locations, Riverside Walkway and Gordon Street, such as noise detection, movement detection, air pollution detection and WiFi service
  • active travel demonstrator, which showed how the city could be made friendlier for both cyclists and pedestrians. It has the potential to inform strategies that could help Glasgow reach the Scottish Government target of 10% of all journeys being completed by bike
  • energy efficiency demonstrator, which showed how obtaining increasingly accurate information could help inspire ways to cut emissions, reduce overheads and address issues of fuel poverty. By creating a detailed, data-rich portrait of Glasgow’s consumption, it became possible to identify and act upon factors that change energy behaviours
  • integrated social transport demonstrator, which helped some of Glasgow’s most vulnerable citizens access social and educational services. Smart integration and route scheduling software will increase flexibility and responsiveness, while also reducing operational costs and making it easier for the same transport to be used across various organisations

Background

Innovate UK

Innovate UK is the UK’s innovation agency, an executive non-departmental public body, sponsored by the Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy. It drives productivity and growth by supporting businesses all over the UK to realise the potential of new technologies, develop ideas and make them a commercial success.

Future cities demonstrator

  • in 2012, Innovate UK launched the future cities demonstrator programme. The objective was to discover the value that could be delivered to a city through integrating city services and systems
  • the focus was on innovative combinations of tools and techniques available off the shelf to demonstrate what could be achieved with what was already available
  • cities developed bids for funding based on their feasibility study to demonstrate in practice how integration of city systems could add value
  • Glasgow was awarded £24 million to implement its proposal
  • The project produced ROI of £144 million and positively impacted citizens and small to medium-sized enterprises. Read the full success story

Contact: pressoffice@innovateuk.gov.uk or 07766 901150.

Link: Press release: Glasgow becomes a world-leading smart city
Source: Gov Press Releases

Press release: Attorney General visits new Law Clinic at King’s

Attorney General Jeremy Wright QC MP will visit King’s College London University today to see the pro bono work happening there.

King’s College has recently opened a new legal advice centre that provides legal services free of charge to those who can’t afford a lawyer. The Attorney will meet law students who are carrying out pro bono work – a commitment that is often continued throughout a lawyer’s professional career.

Students will get the opportunity to talk to the Attorney about cases they have worked on at the legal advice centre and discuss their wider experiences of providing free advice to those in need.

The Attorney is the Government’s Pro Bono Champion and plays a key role in supporting pro bono work, as well as raising awareness of available services among members of the public and practitioners.

The Attorney General said:

Pro bono is an ancient legal tradition that widens access to justice and I look forward to meeting the students involved in pro bono work at King’s College.

The advice given at the newly opened clinic will help make a difference to people’s lives as well as to the communities in which they live.

These students are the next generation of lawyers, and the skills they gain now will be used throughout their careers.

The Director of Clinical Legal Education, Stephen Levett said:

Our Legal Clinic reflects the ethos of service to the wider community which underpins the work of King’s College London.

By spending time with clients and professional lawyers, our students gain first-hand experience of listening and responding to client problems. They learn skills which will put them in good stead in their future professional careers.

Link: Press release: Attorney General visits new Law Clinic at King’s
Source: Gov Press Releases