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Category: Great Britain

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: FMQs: Greens condemn lack of action since anti far-right summit 

    Source: Scottish Greens

    19 Jun 2025 Climate Human Rights

    Warm words are not enough when people and planet are suffering.

    More in Climate

    Promises made to defend democracy and oppose the far-right at a summit hosted by First Minister John Swinney must be turned into actions, says Scottish Greens co-leader Patrick Harvie MSP.

    Patrick used his last slot at First Minister’s Questions in his position as co-leader to challenge John Swinney on the lack of action from the Scottish Government since the summit in April, and to condemn the policy drift from the Scottish Government since John Swinney became First Minister.

    In his first question, Patrick asked:

    “Nearly 2 months ago, the First Minister hosted a summit about opposing the far right and defending democracy. 

    “There was a clear message from many people in the room – governments need to act to address people’s concerns – restore the public services we all rely on, give local communities more power, tackle extreme wealth, and tax the big polluters who are profiteering from climate breakdown so we can invest in our communities.

    “It was obvious that without clear action, this would be just another talking shop. But what changes have we really seen since then?

    “What exactly has the Scottish Government done differently in practical terms, since that meeting to turn promises into action?”

    The First Minister responded claiming that his government had taken action to eradicate child poverty, but pointed to actions which are yet to be taken. He also referred to the publication of the Scottish Government’s carbon budgets this morning, which the Scottish Greens slammed as “deeply concerning” earlier today after advice from the UK Climate Change Committee was rejected.

    Responding to the First Minister, Patrick asked: 

    “There is a clear sense of drift from the First Minister; he came into this job saying he wanted to “build the best future for our country”.

    “But since then he has watered down rent controls. He has stalled plans to help get people off expensive fossil fuels. 

    “He’s abandoned progress on human rights and equalities laws. He has ditched environmental actions like a new National Park.

    “And just today, he has rejected advice from his independent climate experts.

    “And in place of the progressive Green policies that the First Minister has walked away from… what? I struggle to think of a single, signature policy showing ambition or leadership that he has actually delivered in his year in the job.

    “In the face of the threat from the far right, this “steady as she goes” approach is a course to disaster.

    “Does the FM understand that people need to see real progress toward a fairer, greener Scotland, and that failure to tackle inequality and injustice will only benefit the snake oil sellers on the far right?”

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Decade long Infrastructure Strategy to deliver stability, investment and national renewal

    Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments

    News story

    Decade long Infrastructure Strategy to deliver stability, investment and national renewal

    10 Year Infrastructure Strategy published today (19 June) will deliver on the Government’s growth mission, as part of the Plan for Change, transforming how infrastructure projects are planned and delivered.

    • Safer hospitals, modernised schools, and renovated courts to replace crumbling public sector buildings, as Strategy pledges at least £9 billion per year over next decade for renewal of Health, Education and Justice estates
    • New approach to infrastructure will include vital reforms to ensure planning and delivery is joined up, backed by £725 billion in long-term funding for maintenance and major projects.

    The soaring maintenance backlog which has left our schools, colleges, hospitals and courts in a state of disrepair will be turned around as part of the government’s landmark 10 Year Infrastructure Strategy published today (19 June).  

    The Strategy sets out a long-term plan for how the government will invest in infrastructure and ensure that funding is spent effectively and efficiently, marking a new approach to how projects are planned and delivered.  

    This government is committed to doing things differently to deliver infrastructure and fix the failures of the past, having accepted all of the James Stewart Review’s recommendations on HS2. The Strategy provides the certainty and stability needed to attract investment, boosting British supply chains and jobs, and takes a joined-up view to improve planning and delivery across all types of infrastructure.  

    It will also encourage inward investment by providing a long-term vision that gives investors the confidence and certainty they need to truly commit funding to projects, creating job opportunities and boosting living standards for people across the country, delivering on the Plan for Change. 

    These plans are backed by at least £725 billion of government funding over the coming decade, from which at least £9 billion will be allocated in 2025-26 to address the critical maintenance needs of health, education and justice estates, rising to over £10 billion per year by 2034-35.  

    This will increase access to quality, modern public services, following years of underinvestment, and deliver significant real-world benefits for patients, students, staff, and communities.

    Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rachel Reeves said:

    Infrastructure is crucial to unlocking growth across the country, but for too long investment has been squeezed. Crumbling public buildings are a sign of the decay that has seeped into our everyday lives because of a total failure to plan and invest.

    We’re not just fixing buildings – we’re enhancing public services, improving lives and creating the conditions for sustainable economic growth in communities throughout the UK.

    This will deliver the decade of national renewal we promised Britain, and fulfil our Plan for Change goals to kickstart economic growth, and build an NHS fit for the future.

    The 10-year maintenance investment will deliver tangible improvements for people across the country:

    • Health: Over £6 billion per year will create safer hospital environments across England with reduced waiting times, improved patient outcomes, and better working conditions for NHS staff. By eliminating RAAC concrete and addressing critical infrastructure risks, patients will receive care in modern facilities that support rather than hinder their treatment and recovery.
    • Education: Investment in school and college maintenance will rise to almost £3 billion annually, transforming learning environments across England and providing safe and high-quality spaces for children and young people, improving educational outcomes and breaking down barriers to opportunity.
    • Justice: At least £600 million investment each year will improve safety and security in prisons across England and Wales, reducing incidents and creating environments more conducive to rehabilitation. Enhanced court facilities will help reduce backlogs and improve access to justice.

    This strategic investment approach will help break the cycle of deterioration and emergency repairs that has characterised public infrastructure maintenance for decades. By adopting a preventative approach, services will face fewer disruptive closures, operate more efficiently, and deliver better value for taxpayers in the long term. 

    The programme directly supports the government’s mission to build an NHS fit for the future, with healthcare facilities that enable earlier diagnosis and better treatment outcomes. It also advances the mission to break down barriers to opportunity by ensuring all children have access to quality learning environments, regardless of where they live. 

    To support delivery of this strategy, the government is funding at least £725 billion for the country’s infrastructure over the next decade, ensuring that public infrastructure capital funding continues to grow in line with inflation after the current Spending Review period. This funding certainty will help government and industry plan further ahead, allowing for more efficient delivery of UK wide infrastructure. 

    The National Infrastructure and Service Transformation Authority (NISTA), established by the government this year, will work with partners across government and industry to effectively implement the strategy across the whole of the UK. NISTA will periodically review the progress made and work with devolved governments to ensure that infrastructure strategy across the UK is joined up.

    Becky Wood, Chief Executive Officer of NISTA, said:

    This investment is a welcome part of the 10 Year Infrastructure Strategy and will help us to address some of the challenges that our key public services have faced over recent years.   

    Strategic preventative maintenance based on longer-term plans is a more effective approach than making decisions in the absence of certainty about the future – and will ensure our vital public services remain resilient and fit for purpose. 

    By approaching replacement and maintenance of our infrastructure in an informed and systematic way, we can target interventions effectively and plan properly for the future.

    More information

    The 10 Year Infrastructure Strategy outlines the government’s comprehensive approach to infrastructure investment across all sectors.

    This funding commitment follows recommendations from the National Audit Office on the need for long-term, sustainable maintenance funding.

    The funding in the 10YIS includes:   

    • £1 billion to carry out maintenance on key transport infrastructure, including crumbling bridges, flyovers and crossing.  

    • £590 million to start work on the Lower Thames Crossing. 

    • £16 billion of new public investment will help build over 500,000 new homes, which will also unlock over £53bn of private investment.

    Tracy Blackwell, Chief Executive Officer, Pension Insurance Corporation said:

    The government’s 10-year infrastructure strategy is a good step in the right direction – providing clarity, ambition, and commitment to long-term investors in UK infrastructure, like Pension Insurance Corporation. We welcome the clearer pipeline of projects and a renewed focus on social value, something that is of real importance for local people. The Government’s wider efforts on planning reform, transparent delivery bodies, and reducing the regulatory burden will supplement this new strategy – offering a much more investable environment across the UK.

    Lord O’Neill of Gatley said:

    The Strategy set out today is a serious plan for addressing the long-running challenges that have prohibited investment for years. The government needs to be transparent in how it selects its infrastructure investments to drive growth and this Strategy is a big step forward in doing that. I look forward to further detail on the government’s plans for Northern Powerhouse Rail.

    Keith Lawson, Executive Vice President, Jacobs said:

    Jacobs welcomes the 10-Year Infrastructure Strategy as a testament to the Government’s commitment to driving economic growth, empowering communities, and providing market certainty. We are excited about the potential for this ambitious strategy to attract new talent to our sector, embrace new technologies, and promote the UK’s ability to compete globally.

    By investing in public services, transport, and clean energy, we are not only addressing today’s needs but also laying the foundation for a resilient future. The combined efforts of the Spending Review, NISTA, and the 10-Year Infrastructure Strategy provide the stability, coordination, and long-term vision necessary for efficient infrastructure delivery.

    At Jacobs, we are committed to partnering with the Government to deliver these vital projects, creating lasting positive impacts across the UK.

    Updates to this page

    Published 19 June 2025

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: New law to ensure fairness for all in court

    Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments

    Press release

    New law to ensure fairness for all in court

    Sentencing guidelines which risked differential treatment for different races and religions blocked as Sentencing Guidelines (Pre-sentence Reports) Act receives Royal Assent

    • Sentencing Guidelines (Pre-sentence Reports) Act receives Royal Assent
    • Law prevents guidelines on pre-sentence reports which reference personal characteristics – such as race or ethnicity coming into effect
    • Law will ensure everyone is treated equally by the courts, part of mission to create Safer Streets through the Plan for Change

    Sentencing guidelines which risked differential treatment for different races and religions, in terms of access to pre-sentence reports, will be blocked under new legislation which has become law today (Thursday 19 June).

    Pre-sentence reports can play a valuable role in supporting judges when making decisions on sentencing. The reports provide an assessment of the nature and causes of an offender’s behaviour, the risk they pose, as well as an independent recommendation of the sentencing options available to the court. However, the changes proposed by the Sentencing Council earlier this year risked a two-tier justice system with offenders treated differently based on their religion or the colour of their skin.

    The new law prevents sentencing guidelines from singling out specific cohorts for differential treatment based on their personal characteristics, when it comes to ordering pre-sentence reports – maintaining fairness and equality under the law.  

    This Act will not restrict courts from requesting pre-sentence reports on a case-by-case basis, such as for pregnant women or those involving young people, or domestic abuse. 

    The Lord Chancellor, Shabana Mahmood said:  

    Equality before the law is the backbone of public confidence in our justice system and today’s change to the law ensure fairness for all in our courts.  

    I am grateful to the Council and its officials for their constructive work on this, I will continue to ensure no one is treated differently just because of their skin colour or religion under the law.

    Background information

    • The Government supports the use of PSRs but the guidance included in the Sentencing Council’s revised Imposition of community and custodial sentences guideline – specifically stating a PSR would normally be considered necessary for offenders based on their personal characteristics, such as religion or ethnicity – risked differential treatment before the law. 
    • The measures will apply to England and Wales.  
    • This Act follows formal objections raised by the Lord Chancellor to the Sentencing Council regarding sections of the revised Imposition guideline, which was published on 5 March 2025 and originally due to come into effect on 1 April 2025. 
    • Courts are under a statutory obligation to request PSRs in all cases (under section 30 of the Sentencing Code), unless they consider it unnecessary in the circumstances of the case. This Act does not impact this statutory obligation. 
    • The Act also does not prevent the Sentencing Council from advising, in general terms, that PSRs are sought in cases where the court would benefit from an assessment of an offender’s personal circumstances. 
    • The Act also does not affect Court of Appeal case law about the types of cases where PSRs are necessary or desirable, including the recent case of Thompson in which the Court of Appeal said it would be desirable to obtain a PSR in cases of pregnant or post-natal women.

    Updates to this page

    Published 19 June 2025

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Marine Resources and Planning Services win at RTPI South West Awards18 June 2025 ​The Infrastructure and Environment Department was successful in winning two awards at the Royal Town Planning Institute, RTPI, South West Awards for Planning Excellence. Marine Resources received… Read more

    Source: Channel Islands – Jersey

    25 June 2025

    The Infrastructure and Environment Department was successful in winning two awards at the Royal Town Planning Institute, RTPI, South West Awards for Planning Excellence.

    Marine Resources received the ‘Best Plan’ award for its work on Jersey’s Marine Spatial Plan. In particular, the plan’s visions to create a thriving marine environment and provide environmental, economic, cultural, and social benefits. 

    RTPI Judges’ comments: “In selecting this entry to win this award, the judges felt that this was a very well-crafted submission, with an excellent balance of aspiration, practical application and evidence of cross-transferability and innovation. The wide-ranging scope of the study, inter-relationship with international objectives and links to the Island Bridging Plan is impressive. 

    “Unanimous political support and evidence of exemplary recognition from well-respected organisations cannot be overlooked, neither can its relevance and inspiration in the formation of plans in Scotland and the Red Sea. Judges consider it a worthy winner of the category as an ‘excellent’ and innovative example of evidenced-based and collaborative plan making.” 

    Francis Binney, Head of Marine Resources, said: “We are really chuffed that the Jersey Marine Spatial Plan won ‘Best Plan’ at the South West RTPI awards. Building the Marine Spatial Plan was a huge collaborative effort between Government, industry, and Islanders with an interest in the sea. This is a great endorsement of how we are managing and planning to manage Jersey’s territorial seas.” 

    Andrew Marx, Head of Development and Land in Regulation ,received the ‘Unsung Planning Hero’ award. He was recognised for delivering transformational leadership in the face of considerable scrutiny and challenge, and overseeing a comprehensive reform of Jersey’s Planning Service in response to an independent review. 

    RTPI Judges’ comments: “The nomination set out Andrew’s positive and proactive planning reform, resulting in wider improvements for the planning service. The introduction of an industry partnership board for collaborative working enabled greater transparency in terms of performance. Leading reform and taking the team with you whilst increasing visibility of planning performance and stakeholder engagement is really challenging, and to be nominated in the successful delivery of this speaks so highly of how this has been approached.”

    Andrew Marx said: “I was honoured and humbled to be nominated for the award, and I wish to share the recognition with our Group Director Kelly Whitehead, all our planners and the technical support and regulatory improvement officers that have worked tirelessly to improve our planning services for the benefit of all Islanders. I wish to thank the Minister for the Environment, Deputy Steve Luce, for his trust and support, and the Members of the Industry Partnership Board for their guidance and positive engagement with our planning reform programme.” 

    Additionally, Tracey Ingle, Principal Planning Officer, was commended for the ‘Unsung Planning Hero’ award. The judges commented: “The nomination highlighted Tracey’s collaborative ways of working and through the six-month secondment to reform Development Management, processes and procedures were sympathetically managed and changed to support colleagues to work more efficiently and increase quality of decisions.” 

    For more information, visit: RTPI South West Awards for Planning Excellence.​

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Fairness and Child Poverty Update

    Source: Scotland – City of Dundee

    Grassroots examples of how Dundee City Council and partners are tackling fairness and child poverty issues are to be showcased to councillors.

    The frontline actions are contained in a new report which highlights the scale of the task faced by local agencies during the continuing cost of living crisis.

    While Dundee is setting itself the ambitious goal of matching the Scottish Government’s overall national target of reducing child poverty to less than 10% of children living in relative poverty, latest figures show a rate of 26.1 % for the city.

    A combined Fairness and Local Child Poverty Action Plan Report for 2024/25 is to go before the City Governance committee at its next meeting on Monday June 23. The document sets out how the council and partners will continue to work together to improve the situation for families and communities across Dundee.

    It also takes on board the latest recommendations of the Dundee Fairness Leadership Panel, which is looking to prioritise efforts around mental health and isolation, fair housing and support to third sector projects offering crisis assistance to tackle poverty.

    In the report, areas of improvement over the last year are highlighted.

    These include:  

    • The number of council and registered social landlord housing completions (increased by 29.2%).
    • percentage point gap in literacy in p1-p7 between pupils living in SIMD 1 areas and SIMD 5 areas (decreased by 16.6%)
    • number of children living in temporary accommodation (decreased by 13.4%) 

    Within the report, a number of case studies are used to illustrate the efforts that are ongoing throughout the city. These are grouped under themes and some of the projects listed include:

    Social Inclusion and Stigma

    Strengthening family support through volunteering – DVVA Programme

    Promoting community-led suicide prevention – Dundee Creating Hope Awards Pilot

    Work and Wages  

    Supporting young people into employment – Employability Pathfinder (LFI Linlathen)

    Safe Housing Enabling Employment – Housing & Communities Team

    Benefits and Advice

    Preventing housing insecurity through school-based advice

    Securing backdated benefits for an older resident

    Attainment and Child Poverty

    Tackling poverty and increasing attainment in Longhaugh and St Francis’ Primary Schools

    Closing the attainment gap through the Strategic Equity Fund

    Health Inequalities

    Promoting wellbeing and resilience in schools – S2 Health & Wellbeing Group

    Supporting mental health through community-led events – Hilltown Community

    Housing and Communities

    Adapting homes for children with disabilities

    Providing coordinated housing and community support

    Committee depute convener Councillor Willie Sawers said: “The voices of communities with experience continue to be listened to as they are a vital help to us to develop responses to inequalities and poverty.

    “Statistics concerning child poverty in Dundee are stark, that is why we committed to doing as much as we can to turn this around.

    “I am heartened by the strong partnerships that exist between Dundee organisations and agencies across the public, private and third sectors and the ongoing desire to work together to transform life for people in the city.” 

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Open letters between HM Treasury and Bank of England, June 2025

    Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments 3

    Correspondence

    Open letters between HM Treasury and Bank of England, June 2025

    CPI inflation was 3.5% in April 2025, prompting an open letter from the Governor of the Bank of England to the Chancellor on 19 June 2025. The Chancellor replied to the Governor on 19 June 2025.

    Documents

    Letter from the Chancellor of the Exchequer to the Governor of the Bank of England (19/06/2025)

    PDF, 62.3 KB, 2 pages

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    Letter from the Governor of the Bank of England to the Chancellor of the Exchequer (19/06/2025)

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    Details

    The remit for the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) requires an exchange of open letters between the Governor of the Bank of England and the Chancellor of the Exchequer if inflation moves away from the target by more than 1 percentage point in either direction.

    Updates to this page

    Published 19 June 2025

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    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Supply of Veterinary Medicines to Northern Ireland from 1 January 2026

    Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments

    News story

    Supply of Veterinary Medicines to Northern Ireland from 1 January 2026

    New rules governing the distribution of veterinary medicines in Northern Ireland will apply from 1 January 2026.

    On 19 June 2025, the Government published its paper ‘Protecting Animal Health: The Government’s Approach to Veterinary Medicines in Northern Ireland’.

    This paper sets out important information for Marketing Authorisation Holders, Wholesale Dealers and Retailers and reports on the progress in safeguarding the ongoing supply of veterinary medicines in Northern Ireland, and the steps that the Government will take to support this.

    The following guidance accompanies the Paper and provides further technical guidance which can be found on the VMD Information Hub – GOV.UK:

    • Supplying veterinary medicines to Northern Ireland from 2026 – Guidance for Marketing Authorisation holders
    • Supplying veterinary medicines to Northern Ireland from 2026 – Guidance for Wholesalers / Retailers
    • Supplying veterinary medicines to Northern Ireland from 2026 –  Veterinary Medicine Health Situation Scheme – Guidance
    • Supplying veterinary medicines to Northern Ireland from 2026 – Veterinary Medicines Internal Market Scheme guidance

    Please direct any queries to windsorframework@vmd.gov.uk

    Updates to this page

    Published 19 June 2025

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Spencer Woods path to be upgraded for safer beach access 19 June 2025 Spencer Woods path to be upgraded for safer beach access

    Source: Aisle of Wight

    A popular footpath winding through Spencer Woods in Gurnard is set to receive a welcome upgrade, improving access from Worsley Road down to the beach.

    From Monday 23 June, work will begin on the installation of timber steps and boardwalks along what has been an historical informal route. These enhancements will make it easier and safer for walkers to navigate the steep terrain.

    The improvements aim to boost accessibility for both residents and visitors — whether heading to the beach for a swim, enjoying a stroll, or simply taking in the coastal views.

    Funded by Natural England as part of its England Coastal Path initiative, the project forms a small but significant part of the national trail being developed around the English coastline.

    Michelle Love, the council’s service director for highways and community protection, said: “We’re delighted to be moving forward with these improvements.

    “Our thanks go to the landowner, Mr Richard Murphy, whose support has been instrumental in making this possible. This upgrade will enhance access to the beach and contribute to the wider coastal path network.”

    The works are expected to take between six and eight weeks to complete. During this time, the path will be closed to the public, and residents are encouraged to follow signage and use alternative routes.

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Northfield Academy Pupils Honour Fallen Hero

    Source: Scotland – City of Aberdeen

    Secondary Year Two pupils at Northfield Academy were so inspired by the courage and sacrifice of former pupil Lance Corporal Allan Douglas they decided there should be a memorial plaque and trophy created in his honour.

    Lance Corporal Allan Douglas, of The Highlanders (Seaforth, Gordons and Camerons), lost his life on 30 January 2006, while on patrol in Al Amarah, Iraq. 

    The Lord Provost of Aberdeen, Dr David Cameron, unveiled the memorial plaque at the main entrance of the school building yesterday (Wednesday 18 June). The pupils of Crew 2.5 wanted the plaque located there as they want everyone entering the building to be reminded of Allan’s legacy.   

    The unveiling ceremony, featured, a lone piper suggested by Allan’s mum who was delighted and moved to learn of the pupils’ tribute to her son. Rikki Evans, owner of Alba Bagpipes was a school friend of Allan and said it was an honour to play in Allan’s memory.  

    The ceremony also included a welcome from Craig McDermott, head teacher of Northfield Academy before the pupils from Crew 2.5 spoke about why they felt compelled to honour Allan.  Ann Lowson, a retired guidance teacher, spoke fondly of Allan as she shared memories of his time at the school with the audience that included members of Allan’s family, the school community and the wider Northfield community.

    Following the ceremony, the Lord Provost, said: “It was clear that the unveiling of the memorial plaque and creation of the Allan Douglas Trophy, means a great deal to the school community and the wider community of Northfield.

    “Lance Corporal Allan Douglas was a young man when he died, and his legacy continues with the commendable efforts and community spirit demonstrated by the pupils of Crew 2.5 at Northfield Academy. They are immensely proud of Allan, and I am sure he would be very proud of them too.”

    Former guidance teacher Ann Lowson, said: “Allan’s death was very tragic. He was a typical Northfield lad …..full of life and fun. He was very caring of others, a loyal friend and very respectful of staff.”

    The pupils from Crew 2.5 have worked with the school’s management team and technical department to create the permanent memorial plaque.

    In addition to the plaque, the pupils have also raised funds for the creation of the Allan Douglas Trophy.  This annual award, presented at the academy’s Celebration of Success ceremony, will recognise Northfield Academy pupils who display bravery, courage and sacrifice. 

    The first recipient of this special award is Adam Mitchell, Secondary Year One pupil, who was presented with the Allan Douglas Trophy at the academy’s Celebration of Success ceremony, on Wednesday 11 June.  The trophy was awarded for bravery, courage and sacrifice.

    Adam Mitchell, Secondary Year One (S1) pupil at Northfield Academy. “It’s been a real honour to win the first ever Allan Douglas Trophy. It has been overwhelming in a good way.  I was left absolutely speechless when winning the trophy and receiving the medal. It is good to remember a former pupil from this school who fought for his country and sadly got killed during the war. I am proud to have been chosen.”

    Paul Rorie, Executive Officer, TD SCOTS RHQ Aberdeen & Tayforth Officer Training Regiment and John McLeish, Chief Executive, The Gordon Highlanders Museum were also in attendance.  

    Photo: The Lord and Lady Provost of Aberdeen, Dr David Cameron and Hazel Cameron with pupils from Crew 2.5 Mason Sherriffs; John Eglitis; Ashton Duncan; and Kaiden Henderson at the unveiling of plaque in memory of Lance Corporal Allan Douglas.  

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: HMS Unicorn on board with the Living Wage

    Source: Scotland – City of Dundee

    A major visitor attraction in Dundee has committed to fair pay and secure work by joining the Dundee Living Wage Family.

    HMS Unicorn, located in Dundee’s City Quay, is a well-known tourist destination and is much loved by locals, attracting around 10,000 visitors every year.

    At just over 200 years old, HMS Unicorn is Scotland’s oldest ship. She was built at Chatham Dockyard in 1824 and due to not being used in active service, remains one of the most original wooden ships of her time.

    The post-Napoleonic war frigate is an iconic piece of Dundee’s maritime history first docking in the city in 1873 and after many different locations, uses, and even a change in name, she has been a part of the city’s tourist offering for around 50 years.

    Owned and operated by The Unicorn Preservation Society, who are in charge of her conservation, they employ 12 staff and because of their recent accreditation have been able to uplift 3 of those workers to the real living wage, which is currently £12.60 per hour.

    Appointed this year, Andrew Tibbs is The Unicorn Preservation Society’s Chief Executive and has been a driving force behind their recent accreditation.

    Andrew said: “Becoming Living Wage accredited was an easy decision and I am incredibly proud that we as an organisation have taken this step as it’s vitally important for our staff. Paying the real Living Wage makes them feel more valued and secure in their role.

    “This announcement also brings benefits to our visitors and will add to their experience on board. It also enhances our reputation as an employer.

    “As we look to the future plans we have for HMS Unicorn, it is clear that investing in our people is also key to her long term success as an attraction.”

    Along with members of the Dundee Living Wage action group, Councillor Steven Rome, Convener of the council’s Fair Work, Economic Growth and Infrastructure committee visited the vessel for a tour and to meet with Andrew. He presented an accreditation certificate and heard more about the preservation efforts and future plans for the ship.

    Cllr Rome said: “Visiting HMS Unicorn to formally welcome the preservation society to the Dundee Living Wage family has reminded me of what an asset it is to the city, and I am delighted they have committed to this enhanced rate of pay.

    “Speaking with Andrew and hearing him speak so passionately about both the ship and the reasoning behind becoming accredited, it was clear to me this will have a huge benefit to staff, visitors, and the city as a whole.”

    “I would encourage any business out there thinking of becoming accredited to get in touch. Living Wage Scotland and the action group are always ready to help and support you to become a Living Wage accredited employer.”

    There are over 120 Living Wage accredited employers headquartered in Dundee collectively employing over 43,000 thousand workers.

    Lynn Anderson, Living Wage Scotland Manager said: “We’re delighted that The Unicorn Preservation Society (HMS Unicorn) has become an accredited Living Wage employer. They join a growing movement of employers across Dundee whose commitment strengthens ambitions to Make Dundee a Living Wage Place.

    “The security of a real Living Wage can help create a happier, healthier and more motivated workforce, something which is recognised by employers from across all sectors and industries. We hope to see many more join the Unicorn Preservation Society in going further than the minimum.”

    More information about the ‘Making Dundee A Living Wage Living City’ campaign as well as contact details for the action group can be found on the council’s website.
     

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: Minutes – Wednesday, 18 June 2025 – Strasbourg – Final edition

    Source: European Parliament

    PV-10-2025-06-18

    EN

    EN

    iPlPv_Sit

    Minutes
    Wednesday, 18 June 2025 – Strasbourg

     Abbreviations and symbols

    + adopted
    – rejected
    ↓ lapsed
    W withdrawn
    RCV roll-call votes
    EV electronic vote
    SEC secret ballot
    split split vote
    sep separate vote
    am amendment
    CA compromise amendment
    CP corresponding part
    D deleting amendment
    = identical amendments
    § paragraph

    EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT

    2025 – 2026 SESSION

    Sittings of 16 to 19 June 2025

    STRASBOURG

    MINUTES

    WEDNESDAY 18 JUNE 2025

    IN THE CHAIR: Roberta METSOLA
    President

    1. Opening of the sitting

    The sitting opened at 09:02.



    2. Negotiations ahead of Parliament’s first reading (Rule 72) (action taken)

    The decision of the LIBE Committee to enter into interinstitutional negotiations had been announced on 16 June 2025 (minutes of 16.6.2025, item 12).

    As no request for a vote pursuant to Rule 72(2) had been made, the committee responsible had been able to enter into negotiations upon expiry of the deadline.



    3. Upcoming NATO summit on 24-26 June 2025 (debate)

    Commission statement: Upcoming NATO summit on 24-26 June 2025 (2025/2748(RSP))

    The President provided some clarifications on the arrangements for the conduct of the debate, for which a test format was to be used.

    Kaja Kallas (Vice President of the Commission / High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy) made the statement.

    The following spoke: Nicolás Pascual de la Parte, on behalf of the PPE Group, Yannis Maniatis, on behalf of the S&D Group, Harald Vilimsky, on behalf of the PfE Group, Alexandr Vondra, on behalf of the ECR Group, Valérie Hayer, on behalf of the Renew Group, Bas Eickhout, on behalf of the Verts/ALE Group, Marc Botenga, on behalf of The Left Group, René Aust, on behalf of the ESN Group, Michael Gahler, Sven Mikser, Jean-Paul Garraud, Adam Bielan, Dan Barna, Mārtiņš Staķis, Özlem Demirel, Milan Uhrík, Ruth Firmenich, Ingeborg Ter Laak and Eero Heinäluoma.

    IN THE CHAIR: Sabine VERHEYEN
    Vice-President

    The following spoke: Anna Bryłka, Rasa Juknevičienė, Bert-Jan Ruissen, Petras Auštrevičius, Sebastião Bugalho, Hannah Neumann, Merja Kyllönen, Pekka Toveri, Elio Di Rupo, Roberto Vannacci, Sebastian Tynkkynen, Wouter Beke, Dan Nica, Hans Neuhoff, Ioan-Rareş Bogdan, Branislav Ondruš, who also answered a blue-card question from Maria Grapini, Riho Terras, Tobias Cremer, Jaak Madison, Markéta Gregorová, Michał Szczerba, Marina Mesure, Sarah Knafo, Ondřej Dostál, Angelika Niebler, who also declined to take a blue-card question from Özlem Demirel, Tonino Picula, Pierre-Romain Thionnet, Stephen Nikola Bartulica, Massimiliano Salini, Evin Incir, Lucia Yar, Mika Aaltola, Giorgos Georgiou, Davor Ivo Stier, Vilija Blinkevičiūtė, Georgiana Teodorescu, Reinier Van Lanschot, Željana Zovko, Rihards Kols, Irene Montero, Eszter Lakos, Petar Volgin and Juan Ignacio Zoido Álvarez.

    IN THE CHAIR: Javi LÓPEZ
    Vice-President

    The following spoke: José Cepeda, Petra Steger, who also declined to take a blue-card question from Marta Wcisło, Jüri Ratas, Loucas Fourlas, Niels Fuglsang, Engin Eroglu, Miriam Lexmann, Kathleen Funchion, Ana Miguel Pedro, who also answered a blue-card question from João Oliveira, Francisco Assis, Matej Tonin, Johan Van Overtveldt, Anders Vistisen, Marta Wcisło, Ville Niinistö, Sandra Kalniete and Danilo Della Valle.

    The following spoke under the catch-the-eye procedure: Hélder Sousa Silva, Maria Grapini, João Oliveira, Petras Gražulis, Lukas Sieper, Vytenis Povilas Andriukaitis, Lefteris Nikolaou-Alavanos and Juan Fernando López Aguilar.

    The following spoke: Kaja Kallas.

    The debate closed.

    (The sitting was suspended at 11:43.)



    IN THE CHAIR: Roberta METSOLA
    President

    4. Resumption of the sitting

    The sitting resumed at 12:00.



    5. Voting time

    For detailed results of the votes, see also ‘Results of votes’ and ‘Results of roll-call votes’.



    5.1. Macro-financial assistance to Egypt ***I (vote)

    Report on the proposal for a decision of the European Parliament and of the Council on providing macro-financial assistance to the Arab Republic of Egypt [COM(2024)0461 – C10-0009/2024 – 2024/0071(COD)] – Committee on International Trade. Rapporteur: Céline Imart (A10-0037/2025)

    An initial vote had been held on 1 April 2025 and the matter had been referred back to the committee responsible for interinstitutional negotiations under Rule 60(4) (minutes of 1.4.2025, item 6.11).

    (Majority of the votes cast)

    REQUEST FROM THE LEFT GROUP TO PROCEED WITH A VOTE ON THE AMENDMENTS (Rule 60(3))

    Rejected

    PROVISIONAL AGREEMENT

    Adopted (P10_TA(2025)125)

    Parliament’s first reading thus closed.

    Detailed voting results



    5.2. Adoption by the Union of the Agreement on the interpretation and application of the Energy Charter Treaty ***I (vote)

    Report on the proposal for a decision of the European Parliament and of the Council on the adoption by the Union of the Agreement on the interpretation and application of the Energy Charter Treaty between the European Union, the European Atomic Energy Community and their Member States [COM(2024)0257 – C10-0058/2024 – 2024/0148(COD)] – Committee on International Trade – Committee on Industry, Research and Energy. Rapporteurs: Anna Cavazzini and Borys Budka (A10-0009/2025)

    (Majority of the votes cast)

    COMMISSION PROPOSAL and AMENDMENTS

    Approved (P10_TA(2025)126)

    Parliament’s first reading thus closed.

    Detailed voting results

    2

    The following had spoken:

    Anna Cavazzini (rapporteur), before the vote, to make a statement on the basis of Rule 165(4).



    5.3. EU/Euratom Agreement on the interpretation and application of the Energy Charter Treaty: adoption by Euratom * (vote)

    Report on the Proposal for a Council decision on the adoption by the European Atomic Energy Community of the Agreement on the interpretation and application of the Energy Charter Treaty between the European Union, the European Atomic Energy Community and their Member States [COM(2024)0256 – C10-0092/2024 – 2024/0146(NLE)] – Committee on Industry, Research and Energy. Rapporteur: Borys Budka (A10-0008/2025)

    (Majority of the votes cast)

    COMMISSION PROPOSAL TO THE COUNCIL

    Approved by single vote (P10_TA(2025)127)

    Detailed voting results



    5.4. Implementation report on the Recovery and Resilience Facility (vote)

    Report on the implementation of the Recovery and Resilience Facility [2024/2085(INI)] – Committee on Budgets – Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs. Rapporteurs: Victor Negrescu and Siegfried Mureşan (A10-0098/2025)

    The debate had taken place on 17 June 2025 (minutes of 17.6.2025, item 10).

    (Majority of the votes cast)

    MOTION FOR A RESOLUTION

    Adopted (P10_TA(2025)128)

    Detailed voting results



    5.5. The Commission’s 2024 Rule of Law report (vote)

    Report on The Commission’s 2024 Rule of Law report [2024/2078(INI)] – Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs. Rapporteur: Ana Catarina Mendes (A10-0100/2025)

    The debate had taken place on 17 June 2025 (minutes of 17.6.2025, item 11).

    (Majority of the votes cast)

    MOTION FOR A RESOLUTION

    Adopted (P10_TA(2025)129)

    Detailed voting results



    5.6. 2023 and 2024 reports on Montenegro (vote)

    Report on the 2023 and 2024 Commission reports on Montenegro [2025/2020(INI)] – Committee on Foreign Affairs. Rapporteur: Marjan Šarec (A10-0093/2025)

    The debate had taken place on 17 June 2025 (minutes of 17.6.2025, item 12).

    (Majority of the votes cast)

    MOTION FOR A RESOLUTION

    Adopted (P10_TA(2025)130)

    Detailed voting results



    5.7. 2023 and 2024 reports on Moldova (vote)

    Report on 2023 and 2024 Commission reports on Moldova [2025/2025(INI)] – Committee on Foreign Affairs. Rapporteur: Sven Mikser (A10-0096/2025)

    The debate had taken place on 17 June 2025 (minutes of 17.6.2025, item 13).

    (Majority of the votes cast)

    MOTION FOR A RESOLUTION

    Adopted (P10_TA(2025)131)

    Detailed voting results

    7

    (The sitting was suspended for a few moments.)



    IN THE CHAIR: Christel SCHALDEMOSE
    Vice-President

    6. Resumption of the sitting

    The sitting resumed at 12:35.



    7. Approval of the minutes of the previous sitting

    The minutes of the previous sitting were approved.



    8. Stopping the genocide in Gaza: time for EU sanctions (topical debate)

    The following spoke: Manon Aubry to open the debate proposed by the The Left Group.

    The following spoke: Kaja Kallas (Vice President of the Commission / High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy).

    The following spoke: Hildegard Bentele, on behalf of the PPE Group, Nacho Sánchez Amor, on behalf of the S&D Group, Juan Carlos Girauta Vidal, on behalf of the PfE Group (the President noted that some comments needed to be checked), Sebastian Tynkkynen, on behalf of the ECR Group, Hilde Vautmans, on behalf of the Renew Group, Tineke Strik, on behalf of the Verts/ALE Group, Hanna Gedin, on behalf of The Left Group, Marc Jongen, on behalf of the ESN Group, Seán Kelly, Evin Incir, Beatrice Timgren, Barry Andrews, Jaume Asens Llodrà, Nikos Pappas, Kateřina Konečná, Matjaž Nemec, Christophe Bay, Kristoffer Storm, Ilhan Kyuchyuk, Ana Miranda Paz, Isabel Serra Sánchez, Ruth Firmenich, Francisco Assis, Abir Al-Sahlani, Ignazio Roberto Marino, Per Clausen, Cecilia Strada, Irena Joveva, Ville Niinistö, Özlem Demirel, Alex Agius Saliba, Lucia Yar, Giorgos Georgiou, Elio Di Rupo, Billy Kelleher, Estrella Galán, Ciaran Mullooly, Mimmo Lucano, Pernando Barrena Arza and Jussi Saramo (once the checks had been carried out, the President provided some clarifications).

    The following spoke: Kaja Kallas.

    The debate closed.



    9. Freedom of assembly in Hungary and the need for the Commission to act (debate)

    Commission statement: Freedom of assembly in Hungary and the need for the Commission to act (2025/2758(RSP))

    Michael McGrath (Member of the Commission) made the statement.

    The following spoke: Tomas Tobé, on behalf of the PPE Group, Iratxe García Pérez, on behalf of the S&D Group, Kinga Gál, on behalf of the PfE Group, Paolo Inselvini, on behalf of the ECR Group, Fabienne Keller, on behalf of the Renew Group, Terry Reintke, on behalf of the Verts/ALE Group, Konstantinos Arvanitis, on behalf of The Left Group, Zsuzsanna Borvendég, on behalf of the ESN Group, Michał Wawrykiewicz, Klára Dobrev, Harald Vilimsky, who also declined to take a blue-card question from Nicolae Ştefănuță, Nicolas Bay, who also answered a blue-card question from Mélissa Camara, Dainius Žalimas, who also answered a blue-card question from Lukas Sieper, Tineke Strik, Ilaria Salis, who also declined to take a blue-card question, Christine Anderson, who also declined to take a blue-card question, Judita Laššáková, Maria Walsh, Ana Catarina Mendes and Hermann Tertsch.

    IN THE CHAIR: Martin HOJSÍK
    Vice-President

    The following spoke: Arkadiusz Mularczyk, who also answered a blue-card question from Lukas Sieper, Moritz Körner, Mélissa Camara, who also answered a blue-card question from Jacek Ozdoba, Carolina Morace, Milan Mazurek, Diana Iovanovici Şoşoacă, Arba Kokalari, Marc Angel, Paolo Borchia, Jacek Ozdoba, Raquel García Hermida-Van Der Walle, Daniel Freund (the President reminded him of the rules on conduct), Li Andersson, Tomasz Froelich, Lukas Sieper, Mirosława Nykiel, Alessandro Zan, Jorge Buxadé Villalba, Tobiasz Bocheński, who also answered a blue-card question from Raquel García Hermida-Van Der Walle, Kim Van Sparrentak, Lena Düpont, Krzysztof Śmiszek, András László, who also answered a blue-card question from Michał Wawrykiewicz, Rasmus Nordqvist, who also answered a blue-card question from Tomasz Froelich, Evin Incir, Juan Fernando López Aguilar and Chloé Ridel.

    The following spoke under the catch-the-eye procedure: Sebastian Tynkkynen and Alexander Jungbluth.

    The following spoke: Michael McGrath.

    The debate closed.



    10. Safeguarding the rule of law in Spain, ensuring an independent and autonomous prosecutor’s office to fight crime and corruption (debate)

    Commission statement: Safeguarding the rule of law in Spain, ensuring an independent and autonomous prosecutor’s office to fight crime and corruption (2025/2759(RSP))

    Michael McGrath (Member of the Commission) made the statement.

    The following spoke: Tomas Tobé, on behalf of the PPE Group, Javier Moreno Sánchez, on behalf of the S&D Group, Jorge Buxadé Villalba, on behalf of the PfE Group, Diego Solier, on behalf of the ECR Group, Oihane Agirregoitia Martínez, on behalf of the Renew Group, Diana Riba i Giner, on behalf of the Verts/ALE Group, Isabel Serra Sánchez, on behalf of The Left Group, Dolors Montserrat, Evelyn Regner, who also declined to take a blue-card question from Enikő Győri, Hermann Tertsch, Nora Junco García, João Cotrim De Figueiredo, Jaume Asens Llodrà, Lena Düpont, Francisco Assis, Petra Steger, Siegfried Mureşan, who also answered a blue-card question from Maria Grapini, and Sandro Ruotolo.

    IN THE CHAIR: Younous OMARJEE
    Vice-President

    The following spoke: Enikő Győri, who also answered a blue-card question from Gabriella Gerzsenyi, Michał Wawrykiewicz, who also answered a blue-card question from Nicolás González Casares, Evin Incir, who also declined to take a blue-card question from François-Xavier Bellamy, Csaba Dömötör, Sebastião Bugalho, Juan Fernando López Aguilar, who also declined to take a blue-card question from François-Xavier Bellamy, Fabrice Leggeri, François-Xavier Bellamy to raise a point of order (the President cut off the speaker as his remarks did not constitute a point of order), Juan Ignacio Zoido Álvarez, Juan Carlos Girauta Vidal, who also accepted a blue-card question from François-Xavier Bellamy (the President cut him off and made some clarifications on the blue-card procedure), David Casa, Ana Miguel Pedro, Dirk Gotink, Andrey Kovatchev and Javier Zarzalejos.

    The following spoke under the catch-the-eye procedure: José Cepeda, András László, Sebastian Tynkkynen and Lukas Sieper.

    The following spoke: Michael McGrath.

    The debate closed.



    11. Clean Industrial Deal (debate)

    Question for oral answer O-000020/2025 by Tom Berendsen, on behalf of the ITRE Committee to the Commission: Clean Industrial Deal (B10-0006/2025) (2025/2656(RSP))

    Tom Berendsen moved the question.

    Stéphane Séjourné (Executive Vice-President of the Commission) answered the question.

    The following spoke: Angelika Winzig, on behalf of the PPE Group, Nicolás González Casares, on behalf of the S&D Group, Paolo Borchia, on behalf of the PfE Group, Daniel Obajtek, on behalf of the ECR Group, Christophe Grudler, on behalf of the Renew Group, Sara Matthieu, on behalf of the Verts/ALE Group, Per Clausen, on behalf of The Left Group, and Anja Arndt, on behalf of the ESN Group.

    The following spoke: Stéphane Séjourné.

    Motions for resolutions tabled under Rule 142(5) to wind up the debate: minutes of 19.6.2025, item I.

    The debate closed.

    Vote: 19 June 2025.



    12. Electricity grids: the backbone of the EU energy system (debate)

    Report on electricity grids: the backbone of the EU energy system [2025/2006(INI)] – Committee on Industry, Research and Energy. Rapporteur: Anna Stürgkh (A10-0091/2025)

    Anna Stürgkh introduced the report.

    The following spoke: Ekaterina Zaharieva (Member of the Commission).

    The following spoke: Seán Kelly, on behalf of the PPE Group, Bruno Tobback, on behalf of the S&D Group, András Gyürk, on behalf of the PfE Group, Ondřej Krutílek, on behalf of the ECR Group, Christophe Grudler, on behalf of the Renew Group, Kira Marie Peter-Hansen, on behalf of the Verts/ALE Group, Dario Tamburrano, on behalf of The Left Group, Sarah Knafo, on behalf of the ESN Group, Angelika Winzig, Mohammed Chahim, Aleksandar Nikolic, Diego Solier, João Cotrim De Figueiredo, Jutta Paulus, Markus Buchheit, who also answered a blue-card question from Jutta Paulus, Fernand Kartheiser, Paulo Cunha, Tsvetelina Penkova, Isabella Tovaglieri, who also declined to take a blue-card question from Dario Nardella, Mariateresa Vivaldini, Barry Andrews, Benedetta Scuderi, Marcin Sypniewski, who also answered a blue-card question from Stine Bosse, Fidias Panayiotou, Mirosława Nykiel, Yannis Maniatis and Julie Rechagneux.

    IN THE CHAIR: Antonella SBERNA
    Vice-President

    The following spoke: Ivars Ijabs, Michael Bloss, Andrea Wechsler, Dario Nardella, Mireia Borrás Pabón, Marion Maréchal, Bart Groothuis, Virgil-Daniel Popescu, Jens Geier, Nikola Bartůšek, Beatrice Timgren, Wouter Beke, Nicolás González Casares, who also answered blue-card questions from João Oliveira and Mireia Borrás Pabón, Gilles Pennelle, Hildegard Bentele, who also answered a blue-card question from Lukas Sieper, Sofie Eriksson, Niels Flemming Hansen, Jüri Ratas, Michał Szczerba, Dimitris Tsiodras, Krzysztof Hetman, Andreas Schwab, Regina Doherty and Tomislav Sokol.

    The following spoke under the catch-the-eye procedure: Vytenis Povilas Andriukaitis, Sebastian Tynkkynen, Billy Kelleher, João Oliveira, Maria Zacharia and Lukas Sieper.

    The following spoke: Ekaterina Zaharieva and Anna Stürgkh.

    The debate closed.

    Vote: 19 June 2025.



    13. Composition of committees and delegations

    The ECR Group had notified the President of the following decision changing the composition of the committees and delegations:

    – ITRE Committee: Anna Zalewska

    The decision took effect as of that day.



    14. Rise in violence and the deepening humanitarian crisis in South Sudan (debate)

    Commission statement: Rise in violence and the deepening humanitarian crisis in South Sudan (2025/2751(RSP))

    Ekaterina Zaharieva (Member of the Commission) made the statement.

    The following spoke: Michael Gahler, on behalf of the PPE Group, Marit Maij, on behalf of the S&D Group, György Hölvényi, on behalf of the PfE Group, Adam Bielan, on behalf of the ECR Group, Jan-Christoph Oetjen, on behalf of the Renew Group, Erik Marquardt, on behalf of the Verts/ALE Group, Özlem Demirel, on behalf of The Left Group, Ingeborg Ter Laak, Francisco Assis, Barry Andrews, Murielle Laurent and Leire Pajín.

    The following spoke under the catch-the-eye procedure: Alessandra Moretti, Nikos Papandreou and Sebastian Tynkkynen.

    The following spoke: Ekaterina Zaharieva.

    IN THE CHAIR: Roberts ZĪLE
    Vice-President

    The debate closed.



    15. Debate on cases of breaches of human rights, democracy and the rule of law (debate)

    (For the titles and authors of the motions for resolutions, see minutes of 18.6.2025, item I.)



    15.1. Media freedom in Georgia, particularly the case of Mzia Amaglobeli

    Motions for resolutions B10-0282/2025, B10-0283/2025, B10-0287/2025, B10-0288/2025, B10-0289/2025, B10-0290/2025 and B10-0295/2025 (2025/2752(RSP))

    Rasa Juknevičienė, Tobias Cremer, Małgorzata Gosiewska, Dainius Žalimas, Lena Schilling, Danilo Della Valle and Petr Bystron introduced their groups’ motions for resolutions.

    The following spoke: Liudas Mažylis, on behalf of the PPE Group, Nacho Sánchez Amor, on behalf of the S&D Group, and Thierry Mariani, on behalf of the PfE Group.

    The following spoke under the catch-the-eye procedure: Lukas Sieper.

    The following spoke: Ekaterina Zaharieva (Member of the Commission).

    The debate closed.

    Vote: minutes of 19.6.2025, item 5.1.



    15.2. Case of Ahmadreza Jalali in Iran

    Motions for resolutions B10-0280/2025, B10-0284/2025, B10-0285/2025, B10-0286/2025, B10-0296/2025, B10-0299/2025 and B10-0300/2025 (2025/2753(RSP))

    Michał Wawrykiewicz, Evin Incir, Veronika Vrecionová, Abir Al-Sahlani, Alice Kuhnke, Jonas Sjöstedt and Sebastiaan Stöteler introduced their groups’ motions for resolutions.

    The following spoke: Alice Teodorescu Måwe, on behalf of the PPE Group, Francisco Assis, on behalf of the S&D Group, Gerolf Annemans, on behalf of the PfE Group, Hilde Vautmans, on behalf of the Renew Group, Wouter Beke, Daniel Attard and Danuše Nerudová.

    The following spoke: Ekaterina Zaharieva (Member of the Commission).

    The debate closed.

    Vote: minutes of 19.6.2025, item 5.2.



    15.3. Dissolution of political parties and the crackdown on the opposition in Mali

    Motions for resolutions B10-0281/2025, B10-0291/2025, B10-0292/2025, B10-0293/2025, B10-0294/2025, B10-0297/2025 and B10-0298/2025 (2025/2754(RSP))

    Christophe Gomart, Laura Ballarín Cereza and Catarina Vieira introduced their groups’ motions for resolutions.

    The following spoke: Ingeborg Ter Laak, on behalf of the PPE Group, Marta Temido, on behalf of the S&D Group, and Reinhold Lopatka.

    The following spoke: Ekaterina Zaharieva (Member of the Commission).

    The debate closed.

    Vote: minutes of 19.6.2025, item 5.3.



    16. Digital Markets, Digital Euro, Digital Identities: economical stimuli or trends toward dystopia (topical debate)

    The following spoke: Rada Laykova to open the debate proposed by the ESN Group.

    The following spoke: Ekaterina Zaharieva (Member of the Commission).

    The following spoke: Fernando Navarrete Rojas, on behalf of the PPE Group, Aurore Lalucq, on behalf of the S&D Group, Piotr Müller, on behalf of the ECR Group, Billy Kelleher, on behalf of the Renew Group, Sergey Lagodinsky, on behalf of the Verts/ALE Group, Jussi Saramo, on behalf of The Left Group, Siegbert Frank Droese, on behalf of the ESN Group, Lídia Pereira, Stefano Cavedagna, Katri Kulmuni, Damian Boeselager, Milan Mazurek, Fabio De Masi, Paulius Saudargas, Marlena Maląg, Diego Solier, Gheorghe Piperea, Dick Erixon and Claudiu-Richard Târziu.

    The following spoke: Ekaterina Zaharieva.

    The debate closed.



    17. Oral explanations of votes (Rule 201)

    No oral explanations of votes were made.



    18. Explanations of votes in writing (Rule 201)

    Explanations of votes given in writing would appear on the Members’ pages on Parliament’s website



    19. Agenda of the next sitting

    The next sitting would be held the following day, 19 June 2025, starting at 09:00. The agenda was available on Parliament’s website.



    20. Approval of the minutes of the sitting

    In accordance with Rule 208(3), the minutes of the sitting would be put to the House for approval at the beginning of the afternoon of the next sitting.



    21. Closure of the sitting

    The sitting closed at 21:10.



    LIST OF DOCUMENTS SERVING AS A BASIS FOR THE DEBATES AND DECISIONS OF PARLIAMENT



    I. Motions for resolutions tabled

    Media freedom in Georgia, particularly the case of Mzia Amaglobeli

    The following Members or political groups had requested that a debate be held, in accordance with Rule 150, on the following motions for resolutions:

    on media freedom in Georgia, particularly the case of Mzia Amaglobeli (2025/2752(RSP)) (B10-0282/2025)
    Lena Schilling, Mélissa Camara, Mounir Satouri, Ville Niinistö, Maria Ohisalo, Mārtiņš Staķis, Nicolae     Ştefănuță, Markéta Gregorová
    on behalf of the Verts/ALE Group

    on media freedom in Georgia, particularly the case of Mzia Amaglobeli (2025/2752(RSP)) (B10-0283/2025)
    Danilo Della Valle
    on behalf of The Left Group

    on media freedom in Georgia, particularly the case of Mzia Amaglobeli (2025/2752(RSP)) (B10-0287/2025)
    Urmas Paet, Petras Auštrevičius, Malik Azmani, Dan Barna, Benoit Cassart, Veronika Cifrová Ostrihoňová, Engin Eroglu, Svenja Hahn, Karin Karlsbro, Ľubica Karvašová, Ilhan Kyuchyuk, Nathalie Loiseau, Jan-Christoph Oetjen, Marie-Agnes Strack-Zimmermann, Eugen Tomac, Hilde Vautmans, Lucia Yar, Dainius Žalimas, Olivier Chastel
    on behalf of the Renew Group

    on media freedom in Georgia, particularly the case of Mzia Amaglobeli (2025/2752(RSP)) (B10-0288/2025)
    Petr Bystron, Tomasz Froelich, Hans Neuhoff, Alexander Sell
    on behalf of the ESN Group

    on media freedom in Georgia, particularly the case of Mzia Amaglobeli (2025/2752(RSP)) (B10-0289/2025)
    Yannis Maniatis, Francisco Assis, Tobias Cremer
    on behalf of the S&D Group

    on media freedom in Georgia, particularly the case of Mzia Amaglobeli (2025/2752(RSP)) (B10-0290/2025)
    Sebastião Bugalho, David McAllister, Željana Zovko, Isabel Wiseler-Lima, Tomas Tobé, Miriam Lexmann, Andrey Kovatchev, Michał Wawrykiewicz, Dariusz Joński, Loránt Vincze, Danuše Nerudová, Mirosława Nykiel, Antonio López-Istúriz White, Davor Ivo Stier, Luděk Niedermayer, Ingeborg Ter Laak, Liudas Mažylis, Inese Vaidere, Rasa Juknevičienė
    on behalf of the PPE Group

    on media freedom in Georgia, particularly the case of Mzia Amaglobeli (2025/2752(RSP)) (B10-0295/2025)
    Adam Bielan, Małgorzata Gosiewska, Sebastian Tynkkynen, Reinis Pozņaks, Rihards Kols, Alexandr Vondra, Mariusz Kamiński, Veronika Vrecionová, Ondřej Krutílek, Waldemar Tomaszewski, Assita Kanko, Bogdan Rzońca, Arkadiusz Mularczyk, Joachim Stanisław Brudziński
    on behalf of the ECR Group

    Case of Ahmadreza Jalali in Iran

    The following Members or political groups had requested that a debate be held, in accordance with Rule 150, on the following motions for resolutions:

    on the case of Ahmadreza Jalali in Iran (2025/2753(RSP)) (B10-0280/2025)
    Jonas Sjöstedt
    on behalf of The Left Group

    on the case of Ahmadreza Jalali in Iran (2025/2753(RSP)) (B10-0284/2025)
    Alice Kuhnke, Maria Ohisalo, Mounir Satouri, Nicolae     Ştefănuță, Mélissa Camara, Ville Niinistö, Hannah Neumann
    on behalf of the Verts/ALE Group

    on the case of Dr Ahmadreza Djalali’s illegal arrest and detention in Iran (2025/2753(RSP)) (B10-0285/2025)
    Abir Al-Sahlani, Petras Auštrevičius, Malik Azmani, Dan Barna, Benoit Cassart, Olivier Chastel, Veronika Cifrová Ostrihoňová, Engin Eroglu, Bart Groothuis, Svenja Hahn, Karin Karlsbro, Ilhan Kyuchyuk, Jan-Christoph Oetjen, Urmas Paet, Marie-Agnes Strack-Zimmermann, Hilde Vautmans, Lucia Yar
    on behalf of the Renew Group

    on the case of Ahmadreza Jalali in Iran (2025/2753(RSP)) (B10-0286/2025)
    Sebastiaan Stöteler, Marieke Ehlers, António Tânger Corrêa, Nikola Bartůšek, Pierre-Romain Thionnet, Gerolf Annemans, Hermann Tertsch
    on behalf of the PfE Group

    on the case of Ahmadreza Jalali in Iran (2025/2753(RSP)) (B10-0296/2025)
    Yannis Maniatis, Francisco Assis, Evin Incir, Chloé Ridel
    on behalf of the S&D Group

    on the case of Ahmadreza Jalali in Iran (2025/2753(RSP)) (B10-0299/2025)
    Sebastião Bugalho, Michał Wawrykiewicz, Željana Zovko, David McAllister, Isabel Wiseler-Lima, Tomas Tobé, Miriam Lexmann, Andrey Kovatchev, Loucas Fourlas, Dariusz Joński, Loránt Vincze, Danuše Nerudová, Mirosława Nykiel, Antonio López-Istúriz White, Davor Ivo Stier, Luděk Niedermayer, Ingeborg Ter Laak, Liudas Mažylis, Inese Vaidere
    on behalf of the PPE Group

    on the case of Ahmadreza Jalali in Iran (2025/2753(RSP)) (B10-0300/2025)
    Adam Bielan, Reinis Pozņaks, Rihards Kols, Sebastian Tynkkynen, Mariusz Kamiński, Alexandr Vondra, Ondřej Krutílek, Veronika Vrecionová, Alberico Gambino, Carlo Fidanza, Waldemar Tomaszewski, Assita Kanko, Bogdan Rzońca, Arkadiusz Mularczyk, Cristian Terheş, Diego Solier, Nora Junco García, Michał Dworczyk, Małgorzata Gosiewska, Marion Maréchal
    on behalf of the ECR Group

    Dissolution of political parties and the crackdown on the opposition in Mali

    The following Members or political groups had requested that a debate be held, in accordance with Rule 150, on the following motions for resolutions:

    on dissolution of political parties and the crackdown on the opposition in Mali (2025/2754(RSP)) (B10-0281/2025)
    Merja Kyllönen
    on behalf of The Left Group

    on dissolution of political parties and the crackdown on the opposition in Mali (2025/2754(RSP)) (B10-0291/2025)
    Nathalie Loiseau, Oihane Agirregoitia Martínez, Petras Auštrevičius, Malik Azmani, Dan Barna, Benoit Cassart, Olivier Chastel, Engin Eroglu, Svenja Hahn, Karin Karlsbro, Ilhan Kyuchyuk, Jan-Christoph Oetjen, Urmas Paet, Marie-Agnes Strack-Zimmermann, Hilde Vautmans, Yvan Verougstraete, Lucia Yar
    on behalf of the Renew Group

    on dissolution of political parties and the crackdown on the opposition in Mali (2025/2754(RSP)) (B10-0292/2025)
    Tomasz Froelich, Hans Neuhoff, Alexander Sell
    on behalf of the ESN Group

    on dissolution of political parties and the crackdown on the opposition in Mali (2025/2754(RSP)) (B10-0293/2025)
    Matthieu Valet, Pierre-Romain Thionnet, Nikola Bartůšek
    on behalf of the PfE Group

    on dissolution of political parties and the crackdown on the opposition in Mali (2025/2754(RSP)) (B10-0294/2025)
    Yannis Maniatis, Francisco Assis, Laura Ballarín Cereza
    on behalf of the S&D Group
    Catarina Vieira
    on behalf of the Verts/ALE Group

    on dissolution of political parties and the crackdown on the opposition in Mali (2025/2754(RSP)) (B10-0297/2025)
    Sebastião Bugalho, Christophe Gomart, Željana Zovko, David McAllister, Isabel Wiseler-Lima, Tomas Tobé, Miriam Lexmann, Andrey Kovatchev, Michał Wawrykiewicz, Dariusz Joński, Loránt Vincze, Danuše Nerudová, Mirosława Nykiel, Antonio López-Istúriz White, Davor Ivo Stier, Luděk Niedermayer, Ingeborg Ter Laak, Liudas Mažylis, Inese Vaidere
    on behalf of the PPE Group

    on dissolution of political parties and the crackdown on the opposition in Mali (2025/2754(RSP)) (B10-0298/2025)
    Adam Bielan, Sebastian Tynkkynen, Alexandr Vondra, Ondřej Krutílek, Veronika Vrecionová, Waldemar Tomaszewski, Assita Kanko, Bogdan Rzońca, Arkadiusz Mularczyk, Joachim Stanisław Brudziński, Małgorzata Gosiewska
    on behalf of the ECR Group



    II. Delegated acts (Rule 114(2))

    Draft delegated acts forwarded to Parliament

    – Commission Delegated Regulation amending Regulation (EU) 2024/1735 of the European Parliament and of the Council as regards the identification of sub-categories within net-zero technologies and the list of specific components used for those technologies. (C(2025)02901 – 2025/2733(DEA))

    Deadline for raising objections: 2 months from the date of receipt of 23 May 2025

    referred to committee responsible: ITRE
    opinion: ECON, EMPL, ENVI, IMCO, REGI

    – Commission Delegated Regulation amending Regulation (EU) 2019/125 concerning trade in certain goods which could be used for capital punishment, torture or other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment (C(2025)03066 – 2025/2727(DEA))

    Deadline for raising objections: 2 months from the date of receipt of 21 May 2025

    referred to committee responsible: INTA

    – Commission Delegated Regulation amending Regulation (EU) 2019/1242 of the European Parliament and of the Council as regards the addition of vehicle sub-groups for extra-heavy-combination lorries (C(2025)03071 – 2025/2726(DEA))

    Deadline for raising objections: 2 months from the date of receipt of 20 May 2025

    referred to committee responsible: ENVI

    – Commission Delegated Regulation supplementing Directive 2003/87/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council as regards measures adopted by the International Civil Aviation Organisation for the monitoring, reporting and verification of aviation emissions for the purpose of implementing a global market-based measure and repealing Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2019/1603 (C(2025)03075 – 2025/2725(DEA))

    Deadline for raising objections: 2 months from the date of receipt of 20 May 2025

    referred to committee responsible: ENVI
    opinion: ITRE

    – Commission Delegated Regulation amending Regulation (EC) No 273/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council and Council Regulation (EC) No 111/2005 as regards the inclusion of the drug precursors 4-piperidone and 1-boc-4-piperidone in the list of scheduled substances (C(2025)03079 – 2025/2729(DEA))

    Deadline for raising objections: 2 months from the date of receipt of 21 May 2025

    referred to committee responsible: LIBE

    – Commission Delegated Regulation supplementing Regulation (EU) No 600/2014 of the European Parliament and of the Council with regard to regulatory technical standards on the authorisation and organisational requirements for approved publication arrangements and approved reporting mechanisms, and on the authorisation requirements for consolidated tape providers, and repealing Delegated Regulation (EU) 2017/571 (C(2025)03100 – 2025/2765(DEA))

    Deadline for raising objections: 3 months from the date of receipt of 12 June 2025

    referred to committee responsible: ECON

    – Commission Delegated Regulation supplementing Regulation (EU) No 600/2014 of the European Parliament and of the Council with regard to regulatory technical standards specifying the input and output data of consolidated tapes, the synchronisation of business clocks and the revenue redistribution by the consolidated tape provider for shares and ETFs, and repealing Delegated Regulation (EU) 2017/574 (C(2025)03102 – 2025/2761(DEA))

    Deadline for raising objections: 3 months from the date of receipt of 12 June 2025

    referred to committee responsible: ECON

    – Commission Delegated Regulation supplementing Regulation (EU) No 600/2014 of the European Parliament and of the Council with regard to regulatory technical standards on the obligation to make market data available to the public on a reasonable commercial basis (C(2025)03103 – 2025/2762(DEA))

    Deadline for raising objections: 3 months from the date of receipt of 12 June 2025

    referred to committee responsible: ECON

    – Commission Delegated Regulation supplementing Regulation (EU) 2018/1139 of the European Parliament and of the Council with detailed rules and procedures on the acceptance of air traffic controller licences and certificates issued by third countries. (C(2025)03114 – 2025/2732(DEA))

    Deadline for raising objections: 2 months from the date of receipt of 23 May 2025

    referred to committee responsible: TRAN

    – Commission Delegated Regulation supplementing Regulation (EU) 2024/1735 of the European Parliament and of the Council by specifying the rules on the identification of authorised oil and gas producers who are required to contribute to the objective of reaching the Union-target for available CO2 injection capacity by 2030, on the calculation of their respective contributions, and on their reporting obligations (C(2025)03218 – 2025/2730(DEA))

    Deadline for raising objections: 2 months from the date of receipt of 21 May 2025

    referred to committee responsible: ITRE
    opinion: ECON, EMPL, ENVI, IMCO, REGI

    – Commission Delegated Regulation supplementing Regulation (EU) 2023/1114 of the European Parliament and of the Council with regard to regulatory technical standards specifying the information in an application for authorisation to offer asset-referenced tokens to the public or to seek their admission to trading (C(2025)03221 – 2025/2737(DEA))

    Deadline for raising objections: 3 months from the date of receipt of 5 June 2025

    referred to committee responsible: ECON

    – Commission Delegated Regulation amending Regulation (EU) No 748/2012 as regards updating the references to the environmental protection requirements and correcting that Regulation (C(2025)03287 – 2025/2735(DEA))

    Deadline for raising objections: 2 months from the date of receipt of 28 May 2025

    referred to committee responsible: TRAN

    – Commission Delegated Regulation amending Regulation (EU) 2019/1241 of the European Parliament and of the Council as regards geographic coordinates in Annexes VII and XIII thereto (C(2025)03293 – 2025/2734(DEA))

    Deadline for raising objections: 2 months from the date of receipt of 28 May 2025

    referred to committee responsible: PECH

    – Commission Delegated Regulation amending the Annex to Regulation (EU) No 609/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council to allow the use of monosodium salt of L-5-methyltetrahydrofolic acid as a source of folate in infant formula and follow-on formula, processed cereal-based food and baby food, total diet replacement for weight control and in food for special medical purposes (C(2025)03411 – 2025/2736(DEA))

    Deadline for raising objections: 2 months from the date of receipt of 4 June 2025

    referred to committee responsible: ENVI

    – Commission Delegated Regulation amending Regulation (EU) 2017/745 of the European Parliament and of the Council, as regards the assignment of Unique Device Identifiers for spectacle frames, spectacle lenses and ready-to-wear reading spectacles (C(2025)03484 – 2025/2763(DEA))

    Deadline for raising objections: 3 months from the date of receipt of 12 June 2025

    referred to committee responsible: SANT

    – Commission Delegated Regulation amending Regulation (EU) 2019/2144 of the European Parliament and of the Council to take into account regulatory developments concerning amendments to UN Regulations Nos 25, 34, 79, 100, 117, 127 and 152, and the new UN Regulations Nos 167, 169 and 171 adopted by the World Forum for Harmonization of Vehicle Regulations of the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (C(2025)03502 – 2025/2738(DEA))

    Deadline for raising objections: 2 months from the date of receipt of 5 June 2025

    referred to committee responsible: IMCO

    – Commission Delegated Regulation amending Delegated Regulation (EU) No 876/2013 supplementing Regulation (EU) No 648/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council as regards changes to the functioning and management of colleges for central counterparties (C(2025)03626 – 2025/2755(DEA))

    Deadline for raising objections: 3 months from the date of receipt of 11 June 2025

    referred to committee responsible: ECON

    – Commission Delegated Regulation amending Regulation (EU) No 575/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council with regard to the date of application of the own funds requirements for market risk (C(2025)03643 – 2025/2764(DEA))

    Deadline for raising objections: 3 months from the date of receipt of 12 June 2025

    referred to committee responsible: ECON

    – Commission Delegated Regulation on the implementation of the Union’s international obligations, as referred to in Article 15(2) of Regulation (EU) No 1380/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council, under the Trade and Cooperation Agreement between the European Union and the European Atomic Energy Community, of the one part, and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, of the other part, as regards picked dogfish (C(2025)03715 – 2025/2768(DEA))

    Deadline for raising objections: 2 months from the date of receipt of 13 June 2025

    referred to committee responsible: PECH

    – Commission Delegated Regulation amending Delegated Regulation (EU) 2016/1675 to add Algeria, Angola, Côte d’Ivoire, Kenya, Laos, Lebanon, Monaco, Namibia, Nepal and Venezuela to the list of high-risk third countries which have provided a written high-level political commitment to address the identified deficiencies and have developed an action plan with the FATF, and to remove Barbados, Gibraltar, Jamaica, Panama, the Philippines, Senegal, Uganda and the United Arab Emirates from that list (C(2025)03815 – 2025/2740(DEA))

    Deadline for raising objections: 1 month from the date of receipt of 10 June 2025

    referred to committee responsible: ECON, LIBE

    – Commission Delegated Regulation amending Delegated Regulation (EU) 2025/530 as regards its date of application (C(2025)03819 – 2025/2766(DEA))

    Deadline for raising objections: 2 months from the date of receipt of 12 June 2025

    referred to committee responsible: INTA



    ATTENDANCE REGISTER

    Present:

    Aaltola Mika, Abadía Jover Maravillas, Adamowicz Magdalena, Aftias Georgios, Agirregoitia Martínez Oihane, Agius Peter, Agius Saliba Alex, Alexandraki Galato, Allione Grégory, Al-Sahlani Abir, Anadiotis Nikolaos, Anderson Christine, Andersson Li, Andresen Rasmus, Andrews Barry, Andriukaitis Vytenis Povilas, Androuët Mathilde, Angel Marc, Annemans Gerolf, Annunziata Lucia, Antoci Giuseppe, Arias Echeverría Pablo, Arimont Pascal, Arłukowicz Bartosz, Arnaoutoglou Sakis, Arndt Anja, Arvanitis Konstantinos, Asens Llodrà Jaume, Assis Francisco, Attard Daniel, Aubry Manon, Auštrevičius Petras, Axinia Adrian-George, Azmani Malik, Bajada Thomas, Baljeu Jeannette, Ballarín Cereza Laura, Bardella Jordan, Barley Katarina, Barna Dan, Barrena Arza Pernando, Bartulica Stephen Nikola, Bartůšek Nikola, Bausemer Arno, Bay Nicolas, Bay Christophe, Beke Wouter, Bellamy François-Xavier, Benea Dragoş, Benjumea Benjumea Isabel, Beňová Monika, Bentele Hildegard, Berendsen Tom, Berg Sibylle, Berlato Sergio, Bernhuber Alexander, Biedroń Robert, Bielan Adam, Bischoff Gabriele, Blaha Ľuboš, Blinkevičiūtė Vilija, Blom Rachel, Bloss Michael, Bocheński Tobiasz, Boeselager Damian, Bogdan Ioan-Rareş, Bonaccini Stefano, Bonte Barbara, Borchia Paolo, Borrás Pabón Mireia, Borvendég Zsuzsanna, Borzan Biljana, Bosanac Gordan, Boßdorf Irmhild, Bosse Stine, Botenga Marc, Boyer Gilles, Brasier-Clain Marie-Luce, Braun Grzegorz, Brejza Krzysztof, Bricmont Saskia, Brnjac Nikolina, Bryłka Anna, Buchheit Markus, Buczek Tomasz, Buda Daniel, Buda Waldemar, Budka Borys, Bugalho Sebastião, Buła Andrzej, Buxadé Villalba Jorge, Bystron Petr, Bžoch Jaroslav, Camara Mélissa, Canfin Pascal, Carberry Nina, Cârciu Gheorghe, Carême Damien, Casa David, Caspary Daniel, Cassart Benoit, Castillo Laurent, del Castillo Vera Pilar, Cavazzini Anna, Cavedagna Stefano, Ceccardi Susanna, Cepeda José, Ceulemans Estelle, Chahim Mohammed, Chaibi Leila, Chastel Olivier, Christensen Asger, Ciccioli Carlo, Cifrová Ostrihoňová Veronika, Ciriani Alessandro, Cisint Anna Maria, Clausen Per, Clergeau Christophe, Cormand David, Corrado Annalisa, Costanzo Vivien, Cotrim De Figueiredo João, Cowen Barry, Cremer Tobias, Cristea Andi, Crosetto Giovanni, Cunha Paulo, Dahl Henrik, Danielsson Johan, Dauchy Marie, Dávid Dóra, David Ivan, Decaro Antonio, de la Hoz Quintano Raúl, Della Valle Danilo, Deloge Valérie, De Masi Fabio, Demirel Özlem, Deutsch Tamás, Devaux Valérie, Dibrani Adnan, Dieringer Elisabeth, Dîncu Vasile, Di Rupo Elio, Disdier Mélanie, Dobrev Klára, Doherty Regina, Doleschal Christian, Dömötör Csaba, Do Nascimento Cabral Paulo, Donazzan Elena, Dorfmann Herbert, Dostalova Klara, Dostál Ondřej, Droese Siegbert Frank, Düpont Lena, Dworczyk Michał, Ecke Matthias, Ehler Christian, Ehlers Marieke, Eriksson Sofie, Erixon Dick, Eroglu Engin, Estaràs Ferragut Rosa, Everding Sebastian, Falcă Gheorghe, Falcone Marco, Farreng Laurence, Farský Jan, Ferber Markus, Ferenc Viktória, Fernández Jonás, Fidanza Carlo, Fiocchi Pietro, Firmenich Ruth, Flanagan Luke Ming, Fourlas Loucas, Fourreau Emma, Fragkos Emmanouil, Freund Daniel, Fritzon Heléne, Froelich Tomasz, Fuglsang Niels, Funchion Kathleen, Furet Angéline, Furore Mario, Gahler Michael, Gál Kinga, Galán Estrella, Gálvez Lina, Gambino Alberico, García Hermida-Van Der Walle Raquel, Garraud Jean-Paul, Gasiuk-Pihowicz Kamila, Geadi Geadis, Gedin Hanna, Geese Alexandra, Geier Jens, Geisel Thomas, Gemma Chiara, Georgiou Giorgos, Gerbrandy Gerben-Jan, Gerzsenyi Gabriella, Geuking Niels, Gieseke Jens, Giménez Larraz Borja, Girauta Vidal Juan Carlos, Glavak Sunčana, Glucksmann Raphaël, Goerens Charles, Gomart Christophe, Gomes Isilda, Gómez López Sandra, Gonçalves Bruno, Gonçalves Sérgio, González Casares Nicolás, González Pons Esteban, Gori Giorgio, Gosiewska Małgorzata, Gotink Dirk, Gozi Sandro, Grapini Maria, Gražulis Petras, Gregorová Markéta, Grims Branko, Griset Catherine, Gronkiewicz-Waltz Hanna, Groothuis Bart, Grossmann Elisabeth, Grudler Christophe, Gualmini Elisabetta, Guarda Cristina, Guetta Bernard, Guzenina Maria, Győri Enikő, Gyürk András, Haider Roman, Halicki Andrzej, Hansen Niels Flemming, Hassan Rima, Hauser Gerald, Häusling Martin, Hava Mircea-Gheorghe, Heinäluoma Eero, Henriksson Anna-Maja, Herbst Niclas, Herranz García Esther, Hetman Krzysztof, Hojsík Martin, Holmgren Pär, Hölvényi György, Homs Ginel Alicia, Humberto Sérgio, Ijabs Ivars, Imart Céline, Incir Evin, Inselvini Paolo, Iovanovici Şoşoacă Diana, Jalloul Muro Hana, Jamet France, Jarubas Adam, Jerković Romana, Jongen Marc, Joński Dariusz, Joron Virginie, Jouvet Pierre, Joveva Irena, Juknevičienė Rasa, Junco García Nora, Jungbluth Alexander, Kabilov Taner, Kalfon François, Kaliňák Erik, Kaljurand Marina, Kalniete Sandra, Kamiński Mariusz, Kanev Radan, Kanko Assita, Karlsbro Karin, Kartheiser Fernand, Karvašová Ľubica, Katainen Elsi, Kefalogiannis Emmanouil, Kelleher Billy, Keller Fabienne, Kelly Seán, Kennes Rudi, Khan Mary, Kircher Sophia, Knafo Sarah, Knotek Ondřej, Kobosko Michał, Köhler Stefan, Kohut Łukasz, Kokalari Arba, Kolář Ondřej, Kollár Kinga, Kols Rihards, Konečná Kateřina, Kopacz Ewa, Körner Moritz, Kountoura Elena, Kovařík Ondřej, Kovatchev Andrey, Krištopans Vilis, Kruis Sebastian, Krutílek Ondřej, Kubín Tomáš, Kuhnke Alice, Kulmuni Katri, Kyllönen Merja, Kyuchyuk Ilhan, Lagodinsky Sergey, Lakos Eszter, Lalucq Aurore, Lange Bernd, Langensiepen Katrin, Laššáková Judita, László András, Latinopoulou Afroditi, Laurent Murielle, Laureti Camilla, Laykova Rada, Lazarov Ilia, Lazarus Luis-Vicențiu, Le Callennec Isabelle, Leggeri Fabrice, Lenaers Jeroen, Leonardelli Julien, Lewandowski Janusz, Lexmann Miriam, Liese Peter, Lins Norbert, Loiseau Nathalie, Løkkegaard Morten, Lopatka Reinhold, López Javi, López Aguilar Juan Fernando, López-Istúriz White Antonio, Lövin Isabella, Lucano Mimmo, Luena César, Łukacijewska Elżbieta Katarzyna, Lupo Giuseppe, McAllister David, Madison Jaak, Maestre Cristina, Magoni Lara, Magyar Péter, Maij Marit, Maląg Marlena, Mandl Lukas, Maniatis Yannis, Mantovani Mario, Maran Pierfrancesco, Marczułajtis-Walczak Jagna, Maréchal Marion, Mariani Thierry, Marino Ignazio Roberto, Marquardt Erik, Martín Frías Jorge, Martins Catarina, Martusciello Fulvio, Marzà Ibáñez Vicent, Mato Gabriel, Matthieu Sara, Mavrides Costas, Mayer Georg, Mazurek Milan, Mažylis Liudas, McNamara Michael, Mebarek Nora, Mehnert Alexandra, Meimarakis Vangelis, Meleti Eleonora, Mendes Ana Catarina, Mendia Idoia, Mertens Verena, Mesure Marina, Metsola Roberta, Metz Tilly, Mikser Sven, Milazzo Giuseppe, Millán Mon Francisco José, Minchev Nikola, Miranda Paz Ana, Molnár Csaba, Montero Irene, Montserrat Dolors, Morace Carolina, Morano Nadine, Moreira de Sá Tiago, Moreno Sánchez Javier, Moretti Alessandra, Motreanu Dan-Ştefan, Mularczyk Arkadiusz, Müller Piotr, Mullooly Ciaran, Mureşan Siegfried, Muşoiu Ştefan, Nagyová Jana, Nardella Dario, Navarrete Rojas Fernando, Negrescu Victor, Nemec Matjaž, Nerudová Danuše, Nesci Denis, Neuhoff Hans, Neumann Hannah, Nevado del Campo Elena, Nica Dan, Niebler Angelika, Niedermayer Luděk, Niinistö Ville, Nikolaou-Alavanos Lefteris, Nikolic Aleksandar, Ní Mhurchú Cynthia, Noichl Maria, Nordqvist Rasmus, Novakov Andrey, Nykiel Mirosława, Obajtek Daniel, Ódor Ľudovít, Oetjen Jan-Christoph, Oliveira João, Olivier Philippe, Omarjee Younous, Ondruš Branislav, Ó Ríordáin Aodhán, Orlando Leoluca, Ozdoba Jacek, Paet Urmas, Pajín Leire, Palmisano Valentina, Panayiotou Fidias, Papadakis Kostas, Papandreou Nikos, Pappas Nikos, Pascual de la Parte Nicolás, Paulus Jutta, Pedro Ana Miguel, Pedulla’ Gaetano, Pellerin-Carlin Thomas, Peltier Guillaume, Penkova Tsvetelina, Pennelle Gilles, Pereira Lídia, Peter-Hansen Kira Marie, Petrov Hristo, Picaro Michele, Picierno Pina, Picula Tonino, Piera Pascale, Pietikäinen Sirpa, Pimpie Pierre, Piperea Gheorghe, de la Pisa Carrión Margarita, Polato Daniele, Polfjärd Jessica, Popescu Virgil-Daniel, Pozņaks Reinis, Prebilič Vladimir, Princi Giusi, Protas Jacek, Pürner Friedrich, Rackete Carola, Radev Emil, Radtke Dennis, Rafowicz Emma, Ratas Jüri, Razza Ruggero, Rechagneux Julie, Regner Evelyn, Repasi René, Repp Sabrina, Ressler Karlo, Reuten Thijs, Riba i Giner Diana, Ricci Matteo, Ridel Chloé, Riehl Nela, Ripa Manuela, Rodrigues André, Roth Neveďalová Katarína, Rougé André, Ruissen Bert-Jan, Ruotolo Sandro, Rzońca Bogdan, Saeidi Arash, Salini Massimiliano, Salis Ilaria, Salla Aura, Sánchez Amor Nacho, Sanchez Julien, Sancho Murillo Elena, Saramo Jussi, Sardone Silvia, Šarec Marjan, Sargiacomo Eric, Satouri Mounir, Saudargas Paulius, Sbai Majdouline, Sberna Antonella, Schaldemose Christel, Schaller-Baross Ernő, Schenk Oliver, Scheuring-Wielgus Joanna, Schieder Andreas, Schilling Lena, Schneider Christine, Schnurrbusch Volker, Schwab Andreas, Scuderi Benedetta, Seekatz Ralf, Sell Alexander, Serrano Sierra Rosa, Serra Sánchez Isabel, Sidl Günther, Sienkiewicz Bartłomiej, Sieper Lukas, Singer Christine, Sinkevičius Virginijus, Sjöstedt Jonas, Śmiszek Krzysztof, Smith Anthony, Smit Sander, Sokol Tomislav, Solier Diego, Solís Pérez Susana, Sommen Liesbet, Sonneborn Martin, Sorel Malika, Sousa Silva Hélder, Søvndal Villy, Squarta Marco, Staķis Mārtiņš, Stancanelli Raffaele, Ștefănuță Nicolae, Steger Petra, Stier Davor Ivo, Storm Kristoffer, Stöteler Sebastiaan, Stoyanov Stanislav, Strada Cecilia, Streit Joachim, Strik Tineke, Strolenberg Anna, Sturdza Şerban Dimitrie, Stürgkh Anna, Sypniewski Marcin, Szczerba Michał, Szekeres Pál, Tamburrano Dario, Tânger Corrêa António, Tarquinio Marco, Tarr Zoltán, Târziu Claudiu-Richard, Tavares Carla, Tegethoff Kai, Temido Marta, Teodorescu Georgiana, Teodorescu Måwe Alice, Terheş Cristian, Ter Laak Ingeborg, Terras Riho, Tertsch Hermann, Thionnet Pierre-Romain, Timgren Beatrice, Tinagli Irene, Tobback Bruno, Tobé Tomas, Tolassy Rody, Tomac Eugen, Tomašič Zala, Tomaszewski Waldemar, Tomc Romana, Tonin Matej, Toom Jana, Topo Raffaele, Torselli Francesco, Tosi Flavio, Toussaint Marie, Tovaglieri Isabella, Toveri Pekka, Tridico Pasquale, Trochu Laurence, Tsiodras Dimitris, Tudose Mihai, Turek Filip, Tynkkynen Sebastian, Uhrík Milan, Ušakovs Nils, Vaidere Inese, Valchev Ivaylo, Vălean Adina, Valet Matthieu, Van Brempt Kathleen, Vandendriessche Tom, Van Dijck Kris, Van Lanschot Reinier, Van Leeuwen Jessika, Vannacci Roberto, Van Overtveldt Johan, Van Sparrentak Kim, Varaut Alexandre, Vasconcelos Ana, Vasile-Voiculescu Vlad, Vautmans Hilde, Vedrenne Marie-Pierre, Ventola Francesco, Verheyen Sabine, Verougstraete Yvan, Veryga Aurelijus, Vešligaj Marko, Vicsek Annamária, Vieira Catarina, Vigenin Kristian, Vilimsky Harald, Vind Marianne, Vistisen Anders, Vivaldini Mariateresa, Volgin Petar, von der Schulenburg Michael, Vondra Alexandr, Voss Axel, Vozemberg-Vrionidi Elissavet, Vrecionová Veronika, Vázquez Lázara Adrián, Waitz Thomas, Walsh Maria, Walsmann Marion, Warborn Jörgen, Warnke Jan-Peter, Wąsik Maciej, Wawrykiewicz Michał, Wcisło Marta, Wechsler Andrea, Weimers Charlie, Werbrouck Séverine, Wiezik Michal, Winkler Iuliu, Winzig Angelika, Wiseler-Lima Isabel, Wiśniewska Jadwiga, Wölken Tiemo, Wolters Lara, Yar Lucia, Yon-Courtin Stéphanie, Zacharia Maria, Zajączkowska-Hernik Ewa, Zalewska Anna, Žalimas Dainius, Zan Alessandro, Zarzalejos Javier, Zdechovský Tomáš, Zdrojewski Bogdan Andrzej, Zijlstra Auke, Zīle Roberts, Zingaretti Nicola, Złotowski Kosma, Zoido Álvarez Juan Ignacio, Zovko Željana

    Excused:

    Burkhardt Delara, Friis Sigrid, Hazekamp Anja, Kemp Martine

    MIL OSI Europe News –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Scottish Government must choose human rights over war profiteers

    Source: Scottish Greens

    19 Jun 2025 External Affairs

    Scottish Greens call for update on Government funding of Israel’s arms dealers

    More in External Affairs

    The SNP must urgently update parliament on what it is doing to end Scottish Government support for companies arming and supporting Israel, say the Scottish Greens.

    Yesterday in Holyrood, Scottish Greens co-leader and Economy spokesperson Lorna Slater MSP forced a vote to ensure the Scottish Government takes urgent action on Scottish Enterprise’s failing human rights due diligence checks.

    All other parties except the Scottish Greens refused to back Lorna’s call.

    Since 2019, the Scottish Government has reportedly given at least £8 million of Scottish Enterprise grants to companies involved in arms dealing and manufacturing. This includes a number of businesses who have directly supplied weapons and military equipment to Israel during its assault on Gaza, including Leonardo and Raytheon.

    Companies receiving funds through Scottish Enterprise are subject to a human rights due diligence check, but no company has ever failed these checks. Amnesty International has condemned the process as “inadequate”.

    Following a debate forced by the Greens in February this year, the Scottish Government committed to a review of these human rights checks to ensure that Scotland is meeting its international obligations.

    However, the Government has yet failed to update Parliament on the progress of the review.

    Lorna Slater spoke in the Conservatives party debate ‘Recognising the Economic Contribution of Scotland’s Defence Sector’.

    Speaking after the vote, Lorna said:

    “Not a penny of public money should be going to arms companies that are profiting from war crimes and genocide in Gaza. But four months on from the Scottish Government’s promised review of Scottish Enterprise human rights checks, we’ve had no update and seen no changes. Ten-thousand more people have been killed in Gaza while this review has been going on.

    “Yesterday, the Parliament could have forced the Government to report on this critical review and ensure they meet their own public commitments to upholding and promoting human rights internationally. But despite voting for the review in February, the SNP, Labour and the Lib Dems refused to back our call for an urgent update to Parliament.

    “The ongoing genocide of the Palestinian people in Gaza that is being live streamed on social media into our homes, is only possible because of the companies and governments arming the state of Israel to carry out the assaults.

    “Just this week, 51 starving Palestinians were killed while desperately trying to access food through a so-called ‘aid’ distribution point coordinated by the US and Israel. This is only one of several attacks at these sites, where the death toll has now reached into the hundreds, with thousands more severely injured.

    “We may not have the power to stop the UK’s active participation in Israel’s genocide, but we can control where our public money goes – and that should never be put into the pockets of companies who are profiting from some of the most horrific war crimes of our generation.”

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Debbie Sutton appointed as Chief Officer – Operations and Maintenance at The Highland Council

    Source: Scotland – Highland Council

    The Highland Council is pleased to announce the appointment of Debbie Sutton as Chief Officer – Operations and Maintenance. This marks the fourth of five key appointments within the Council’s newly restructured senior management team for the Place service cluster, led by Malcolm Macleod, Assistant Chief Executive – Place.

    This appointment is part of the Council’s revised senior management structure, approved on 14 March 2024 as outlined in the 2024/25 budget plan. The new structure streamlines the management hierarchy from three layers to two, aligning Highland Council with other benchmarked local authorities and enhancing operational efficiency.

    Council Convener, Cllr Bill Lobban, said: “I warmly congratulate Debbie on her new role. She brings a wealth of experience and strong leadership that will be a tremendous asset to The Highland Council.”

    Council Leader, Cllr Raymond Bremner, added: “I’m encouraged by the continued progress in implementing our new senior management structure. These appointments are a key step in delivering the efficiencies agreed in our February 2024 budget. The restructure is expected to generate initial savings of £370,000, with long-term savings projected to reach approximately 20% of senior management costs.”

    Debbie Sutton, currently serving as Acting Strategic Lead for Community Operations and Logistics, brings 19 years of experience with The Highland Council. She holds a degree in (Hospitality) Management and brings extensive experience in insourcing, strategic reviews, and strategy development. Her work includes the original development of the Greenspace Strategy for Inverness in 2006, as well as the more recent and nationally recognised Play Park Strategy. Debbie has also led and managed a wide range of operational services, including Grounds Maintenance, Play Areas and Public Conveniences. Debbie will assume her new responsibilities with immediate effect.

    19 Jun 2025

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Vulnerable people given greater access to social housing

    Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments

    Press release

    Vulnerable people given greater access to social housing

    New changes to remove local connection rules for young care leavers and victims of domestic abuse to access social housing.

    • Care leavers under 25 and victims of domestic abuse to benefit from removal of local connection rules
    • Follows £39 billion investment in affordable and social housing to deliver biggest expansion in a generation 
    • Delivers on the government’s Plan for Change, providing people with safe and secure housing and raising living standards

    Young people leaving care and domestic abuse survivors will now have better access to social housing, as the government delivers on its promise to remove a local connection requirement for these groups.

    New changes, which come into force next month, will exempt them from rules that restrict access to social housing for those that do not have a connection to the local area – making sure the most vulnerable in society can access the housing support they need.  

    This change applies to all councils in England, nearly 90% of which currently use local connection criteria to determine who qualifies for social housing. It follows reforms last year to remove barriers for all former UK Armed Forces Veterans, as pledged by the Prime Minister.

    Under the new rules, care leavers under the age of 25 and domestic abuse survivors will no longer be unfairly penalised for not having a local connection; recognising the unique challenges they can face, such as transitioning out of care or fleeing an unsafe home to seek safety.

    It comes as the government committed £39 billion for a new ten-year Affordable Homes Programme, supporting the Plan for Change to build 1.5 million homes and tackle housing waiting lists for families and young people across the country.

    Deputy Prime Minister and Housing Secretary, Angela Rayner said:

    “It breaks my heart to hear countless stories of people leaving the care system or fleeing an abusive relationship and not having a place they can truly call home. We’re rewriting the rules to help get them a roof over their heads and the security they deserve.

    “Our changes will make sure these vulnerable groups do not face unfair barriers to safe and secure housing. This is backed by our commitment to secure the biggest boost to social and affordable housing in a generation, and through our Plan for Change we are going further and faster to make this a reality.”

    Last year the Deputy Prime Minister wrote to local councils reminding them of their obligations to prioritise vulnerable groups for social housing. Government guidance will be updated to reflect these changes.  

    Additional support includes:

    • £160 million for councils to help provide safe accommodation and support for domestic abuse survivors and meet their statutory duty to help victims and their children when they need it the most – increased by £30 million this year.
    • New legislation proposed to ensure young care leavers in scope of the council’s corporate parenting duty have access to housing and cannot be considered ‘intentionally homeless’.
    • An £800 million top-up for the current Affordable Homes Programme to ramp up the delivery of new social homes.  
    • Proposed Right to Buy reforms to protect council housing stock and a new ten-year social rent settlement to give the sector the certainty it needs to build more social homes.

    CEO of Become, Katharine Sacks-Jones said:

    “We welcome these new regulations that will allow more care leavers to access social housing where they are. Too many children in care are moved away from the people and places that matter to them and then made to move back to their local authority area once they turn 18 to access social housing support.  

    “Removing the local connection test will prevent forced moves, could help reduce homelessness and give care leavers a more positive start to adulthood.”

    Director of Policy and Prevention at Centrepoint, Balbir Kaur Chatrik said:

    “Removing this barrier will reduce homelessness and rough sleeping amongst care leavers and help them to thrive. 

    “Care leavers are often extremely vulnerable young people and lack the support networks that many of us take for granted. Despite this they often find it a real struggle to access the stable housing they need to thrive because they lack a local connection. The government’s change will hopefully stop this practice and ensure young people can get the stable and affordable homes they deserve. 

    “It’s also an important step towards ending youth homelessness and protecting the most vulnerable. Taken together with funding for prevention and housebuilding, this brings us a bit closer over the short- and long-term towards ensuring young people are getting the support they need.”

    Further information

    The government will publish a written ministerial statement today setting out new changes for young care leavers and domestic abuse survivors. The regulations will come into force on Thursday 10 July.  

    On 24 September, the Prime Minister set out his ambition to improve access to social housing for former UK Armed Forces Veterans, young care leavers and victims of domestic abuse.  

    While the changes remove a specific barrier for these vulnerable groups, the allocation of social housing is still at the discretion of the local housing authority.

    Updates to this page

    Published 19 June 2025

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Boosting Scotland’s maritime sector

    Source: Scottish Government

    More than £9 million to create 300 jobs.

    Funding of £9.22 million to support a training and skills academy has been awarded to BAE Systems.

    The Scottish Enterprise support will form part of a project to modernise its shipyards on the Clyde, creating around 300 new jobs and securing over a thousand more.

    Deputy First Minister Kate Forbes announced the funding during a visit to BAE Systems’ Applied Shipbuilding Academy, which provides training to help grow a skilled workforce across Scotland.

    It is part of a wider £300 million investment by BAE Systems which includes a new shipbuilding facility and the adoption of pioneering manufacturing technologies to improve productivity.

    The Deputy First Minister said:

    “BAE Systems’ investment, supported by Scottish Enterprise, will radically transform shipbuilding on the Clyde – bringing state-of-the-art, globally competitive training and skills facilities, creating up to 300 new jobs and contributing wider economic benefits to Scotland.

    “Projects like this will shape Scotland’s future workforce, developing the next generation of skilled professionals and supporting high-quality apprenticeship programmes.

    “I am confident that this funding will help to secure the future of shipbuilding on the Clyde.”

    Managing Director of BAE Systems’ Naval Ships business Simon Lister said:

    “We welcome the additional funding from Scottish Enterprise that will help secure shipbuilding in Glasgow for generations to come.

    “The funding supports our ambition to attract and retain the workforce of the future, providing people with the necessary skills to work in a highly specialised industry. This will also provide ongoing value and significant contribution to the Scottish economy.”

    Scottish Enterprise Chief Executive Adrian Gillespie said:

    “This significant strategic capital investment by BAE Systems in cutting-edge technologies and its commitment to helping upskill the shipbuilding industry and the broader maritime sector is exactly the kind of ambitious, transformative project we want to support through our mission-based approach to growing and strengthening Scotland’s economy.

    “Not only will the project create hundreds of highly skilled jobs and protect many more, but it will also establish some of the most advanced and productive manufacturing facilities in the UK, helping to reduce the time it takes to build ships on the Clyde and open the door to global export opportunities.”

    Scottish Enterprise has worked with BAE Systems for more than 10 years to encourage investment in its Govan and Scotstoun shipyards.

    The Applied Shipbuilding Academy collaborates with schools, colleges and universities, suppliers, customers and local authorities to provide training and skills development across Scotland. It also partners with the National Manufacturing Institute for Scotland and the Clyde Maritime Industry Forum to share knowledge in advanced manufacturing across the Scottish maritime sector.

    Background

    The Scottish Enterprise funding includes a Research and Development grant of £7.4 million and a Training Aid grant of £1.8 million to maximise skills as well as providing a collegiate training facility, offering access to the broader industry via the Applied Shipbuilding Academy, overseen by BAE Systems as custodians of the Glasgow shipyards.

    The BAE Systems project has a potential value to the economy (Gross Value Added) of £255 million over five years, rising to £1.1 billion over 10 years. It aligns with Scottish Enterprise’s mission-based approach to transforming Scotland’s economy, including increasing productivity through strategic capital investments.

    The Academy in Glasgow is one of three dedicated BAE Systems training facilities, providing bespoke learning for just under 50,000 BAE employees across the UK.

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Future farming Investment Scheme

    Source: Scottish Government

    Applications for £14 million fund to open in July.

    A new flexible grants scheme offering farmers and crofters capital investment will open next month, Rural Affairs Secretary Mairi Gougeon has announced.

    The £14 million Future Farming Investment Scheme offers flexible capital grants to support investments in efficiency, nature and climate friendly farming.  It will provide priority support in a number of areas, including for new entrants, and young farmers, small farms and tenants.

    The Rural Affairs Secretary also confirmed that a three-year programme of national LiDAR scanning is underway to provide a detailed three dimensional baseline map of Scotland to help better understand the landscape and plan for the future.

    A new Code of Practice on Sustainable and Regenerative Agriculture has also been published.

    Speaking at the Royal Highland Show in Edinburgh, Ms Gougeon said:

    “Scotland invests more than £600 million a year in agriculture through reformed direct payments, Voluntary Coupled Support and Less Favoured Area Support Scheme – all in stark contrast to elsewhere in the UK.

    “I am pleased to be able to confirm that, having worked with so many partners in its development, the Future Farming Investment Scheme will open on 14 July. The scheme will provide upfront payments of up to £20,000 at up to 100% grant rate and give people the freedom to choose the most appropriate capital investment to improve their business.

    “The Scottish Government recognises the importance of small suckler cow herds in some of our most remote and fragile areas. These cows deliver for biodiversity, landscapes, they help to sustain people and deliver socio-economic benefits, so from the 2026 scheme, farms claiming for 10 calves or fewer will receive a derogation from the calving-interval condition.

    “By working together we have secured a flexible support policy through the Agriculture and Rural Communities Act, ensuring the industry continues to benefit from reformed direct support. We are driving down emissions, improving productivity and supporting the next generation.

    “We do not have all the powers to protect the Scottish agricultural industry, but where we do, we have shown that long term policy made in Scotland for Scotland can serve this great industry well.”

    Background

    The Code of Practice on Sustainable and Regenerative Agriculture (ruralpayments.org)

    Future Farming Investment Scheme (ruralpayments.org)

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Night bus services to return in time for Tall Ships

    Source: Scotland – City of Aberdeen

    Night buses to key destinations across Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire are to be reintroduced next weekend – in plenty of time for the Tall Ships arriving.

    After a tendering process, Aberdeen City Council has contracted the five routes out to First Bus which will operate them from the city centre on weekends from the evening of Friday 27 June for the next three years.

    The provision of the night bus services will be funded from bus lane enforcement revenue. First Aberdeen’s single fares will apply on the service and allow the use of both Concessionary and Under 22’s National Entitlement Cards.

    Aberdeen City Council Co-Leader Councillor Ian Yuill said: “The night bus service over Christmas and New Year was popular. I am delighted the City Council is bringing night bus services back year-round. These services being in place in time for the Tall Ships arriving in the city is a real bonus.

    “Over the Tall Ships weekend, many more people than normal are expected to be enjoying the cafes, restaurants, and pubs in the city centre. The night buses will provide safe and efficient transport for visitors to our city centre. I hope as many people as possible take advantage of this cost-effective and safe transport to get home.”

    Aberdeen City Council Co-Leader Councillor Christian Allard said: “The return of the night buses will be welcomed by businesses in the city centre and are part of our Purple Flag status for city centre safety and vibrancy.

    “The Aberdeen City Council move will help to support businesses by giving people another transport option for getting home.”

    All services will operate on Friday night/Saturday morning and Saturday night/Sunday morning only, from 12midnight to approximately 3.30am.

    David Adam, Head of Operations at First Bus Aberdeen, said: “We are delighted to be working with Aberdeen City Council to launch this night bus service in Aberdeen, making it easier for people to get home later in the night, while continuing to support local businesses in the city.

    “It’s important people have the confidence they will be able to get home safely and affordably when going to enjoy a meal, some drinks or a night out at one of the fantastic venues in the city centre. We hope the introduction of the new night bus routes will do just that.”

    Aberdeen Inspired will also be promoting the Council-funded night buses.

    Adrian Watson, chief executive of Aberdeen Inspired, said: “The return of weekend night buses to Aberdeen all year round is a huge boost for the city’s evening and night-time economy, one that will be particularly welcomed by bars and restaurants. We know many people avoid coming into the city centre for a night out because of uncertainty over getting home at the end of the evening. The weekend night bus service will now give people reassurance they can get home easily, affordably and safely.  The same goes for those who work in our vital night-time economy.

    “I would urge people to come into town and make the most of Aberdeen’s superb night-time offering, safe in the knowledge a night bus will get them home. I’m sure the city’s bars and restaurants will be promoting that same message to their customers and visitors. The more people use the night bus service, the more sustainable it will become and more likely to be a permanent and key part of the city’s transport solutions.”

    The services are

    •           N1, City Centre (Alford Place) – Danestone, via Seaton; Dubford and Ashwood;

    •           N17, City Centre (Union Terrace) – Inverurie, via Great Northern Road, Bucksburn & Dyce;

    •           N23, City Centre (Bridge Street) – Kingswells, via Summerhill and Sheddocksley;

    •           N201, City Centre (Bridge Street) – Banchory, via Mannofield; Cults; Bieldside; Milltimber;  and Peterculter;

    •           N18, City Centre (Bridge Street) – Cove/Charleston via Kincorth.

    The re-introduction of the night bus services follows on from the successful night bus service over the 2024 festive season.

    Full route and timetable information is at Weekend Night Bus Services | Aberdeen City Council. Passenger should be aware there will be a commercial night bus service going to Westhill and Stonehaven by another operator, starting next month.

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Cornishman report and safety flyer published

    Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments

    News story

    Cornishman report and safety flyer published

    Fatal accident on board a beam trawler 44 nautical miles south-south-west of the Isles of Scilly, England, with the loss of 1 life.

    Today, we have published our accident investigation report into the fatal accident to a deckhand on board the beam trawler Cornishman (PZ 512) 44 nautical miles south-south-west of the Isles of Scilly, England on 6 February 2021.

    The report, available via this link, contains details of what happened and subsequent actions taken.

    A safety flyer to the fishing industry has also been produced with this report.

    Media enquiries (telephone only)

    Media enquiries during office hours 01932 440015

    Media enquiries out of hours 0300 7777878

    Updates to this page

    Published 19 June 2025

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: New drainage standards tackle pollution in England’s communities 

    Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments

    Press release

    New drainage standards tackle pollution in England’s communities 

    Developers encouraged to reduce pollution, protect communities from flooding and benefit nature as part of government’s ambition to build 1.5 million homes. 

    extensive wildflower green roof

    In a move to tackle water pollution and protect communities from flooding, the government is updating the national standards for Sustainable Drainage Systems (SuDS) for the first time in a decade.  

    The new standards – welcomed by the construction industry – will give developers clearer guidance on how to create rainwater management systems that mimic the natural environment and deliver better outcomes.

    Suggested features include spaces designed to collect and filter rainwater, which will relieve pressure on our crumbling sewage system and prevent pollution overflowing into our waterways. 

    Impermeable surfaces such as roads and pavements increase the risk of flooding in heavy downpours, as the excess water has nowhere to go. By introducing materials designed to soak up water, new developments will be better protected against flooding. 

    The new standards will also encourage design features like green roofs and soakaways. These provide a place for nature to thrive and improve a building’s energy efficiency –reducing energy bills, bringing mental and physical health benefits to communities by expanding access to nature and supporting wildlife. 

    The updated standards signify the government’s ambition to build 1.5 million homes sustainably without delaying the planning process and comes following the record £104 billion secured from private sector investment to clean up our rivers, lakes and seas. 

    Water Minister Emma Hardy said: 

    The Government will introduce new standards to tackle water pollution, protect communities from flooding and make our new towns beautiful. 

    Nature recovery and growth can go hand in hand, and these new standards will enable the sustainable building of 1.5 million homes as part of the Plan for Change. 

    Key features of the new standards include: 

    • Reducing flood risk by actively managing surface water on site
    • Improving water quality before it enters rivers and streams
    • Provide community benefits by creating more attractive and resilient places to live and work 
    • Prioritising solutions that enhance biodiversity and green space
    • Encouraging water efficiency, by enabling the reuse of rainwater through harvesting and collection systems
    • Emphasising long-term maintenance and performance 

    To support the government’s Plan for Change, the updated standards are aligned with the National Planning Policy Framework and will complement wider planning reforms which will take place later this year. Developers are encouraged to innovate and demonstrate how their systems meet the outcomes, rather than follow a one-size-fits-all checklist. 

    Updates to this page

    Published 19 June 2025

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-Evening Report: Egyptian crackdown on Gaza blockade busters but Kiwi activists vow to ‘defeat genocide’

    SPECIAL REPORT: By Saige England in Ōtautahi and Ava Mulla in Cairo

    Hope for freedom for Palestinians remains high among a group of trauma-struck New Zealanders in Cairo.

    In spite of extensive planning, the Global March To Gaza (GMTG) delegation of about 4000 international aid volunteers was thwarted in its mission to walk from Cairo to Gaza to lend support.

    The land of oranges and pyramids became the land of autocracy last week as peace aid volunteers — young, middle-aged, and elderly — were herded like cattle and cordoned behind fences.

    Their passports were initially seized — and later returned. Several New Zealanders were among those dragged and beaten.

    While ordinary Egyptians showed “huge support” for the GMTG, the militant Egyptian regime showed its hand in supporting Israel rather than Palestine.

    A member of the delegation, Natasha*, said she and other members pursued every available diplomatic channel to ensure that the peaceful, humanitarian, march would reach Gaza.

    Moved by love, they were met with hate.

    Violently attacked
    “When I stepped toward the crowd’s edge and began instinctually with heart break to chant, ‘Free Palestine,’ I was violently attacked by five plainclothes men.

    “They screamed, grabbed, shoved, and even spat on me,” she said.

    Tackled, she was dragged to an unmarked van. She did not resist, posed no threat, yet the violence escalated instantly.

    “I saw hatred in their eyes.”

    Egyptian state security forces and embedded provocateurs were intent on dismantling and discrediting the Global March activists. Image: GMTG

    Another GMTG member, a woman who tried to intervene was also “viciously assaulted”. She witnessed at least three other women and two men being attacked.

    The peacemakers escaped from the unmarked van the aggressors were distracted, seemingly confused about their destination, she said.

    It is now clear that from the beginning Egyptian State forces and embedded provocateurs were intent on dismantling and discrediting the GMTG.

    Authorities as provocateurs
    The peace participants witnessed plainclothed authorities act as provacateurs, “shoving people, stepping on them, throwing objects” to create a false image for media.

    New Zealand actor Will Alexander . . . “This is only a fraction of what Palestinians experience every day.” GMTG

    New Zealand actor Will Alexander said the experience had inflated rather than deflated his passion for human rights, and compassion for Palestinians.

    “This is only a fraction of what Palestinians experience everyday. Palestinians pushed into smaller and smaller areas are murdered for wanting to stand on their own land,” he said.

    “The reason that ordinary New Zealanders like us need to put our bodies on the line is because our government has failed to uphold its obligations under the Genocide Convention.

    “Israel has blatantly breached international law for decades with total impunity.”

    While the New Zealanders are all safe, a small number of people in the wider movement had been forcibly ‘disappeared’,” said GMTG New Zealand member Sam Leason.

    Their whereabouts was still unknown, he said.

    Arab members targeted
    “It must be emphasised that it is primarily — and possibly strictly — Arab members of the March who are the targets of the most dramatic and violent excesses committed by the Egyptian authorities, including all forced disappearances.”

    Global March to Gaza activists being attacked . . . the genocide cannot be sustained when people from around the world push against the Israeli regime and support the people on the ground with food and healthcare. Image: GMTG screenshot APR

    This did, however, continuously add to the mounting sense of stress, tension, anxiety and fear, felt by the contingent, he said.

    “Especially given the Egyptian authorities’ disregard to their own legal system, which leaves us blindsided and in a thick fog of uncertainty.”

    Moving swiftly through the streets of Cairo in the pitch of night, from hotel to hotel and safehouse to safehouse, was a “surreal and dystopian” experience for the New Zealanders and other GMTG members.

    The group says that the genocide cannot be sustained when people from around the world push against the Israeli regime and support the people on the ground with food and healthcare.

    “For 20 months our hearts have raced and our eyes have filled in unison with the elderly, men, women, and children, and the babies in Palestine,” said Billie*, a participant who preferred, for safety reasons, not to reveal their surname.

    “If we do not react to the carnage, suffering and complete injustice and recognise our shared need for sane governance and a liveable planet what is the point?”

    Experienced despair
    Aqua*, another New Zealand GMTG member, had experienced despair seeing the suffering of Palestinians, but she said it was important to nurture hope, as that was the only way to stop the genocide.

    “We cling to every glimmer of hope that presents itself. Like an oasis in a desert devoid of human emotion we chase any potential igniter of the flame of change.”

    Activist Eva Mulla . . . inspired by the courage of the Palestinians. Image: GMTG screenshot APR

    Ava Mulla, said from Cairo, that the group was inspired by the courage of the Palestinians.

    “They’ve been fighting for freedom and justice for decades against the world’s strongest powers. They are courageous and steadfast.”

    Mulla referred to the “We Were Seeds” saying inspired by Greek poet Dinos Christianopoulos.

    “We are millions of seeds. Every act of injustice fuels our growth,” she said.

    Helplessness an illusion
    The GMTG members agreed that “impotence and helplessness was an illusion” that led to inaction but such inaction allowed “unspeakable atrocities” to take place.

    “This is the holocaust of our age,” said Sam Leason.

    “We need the world to leave the rhetorical and symbolic field of discourse and move promptly towards the camp of concrete action to protect the people of Palestine from a clear campaign of extermination.”

    Saige England is an Aotearoa New Zealand journalist, author, and poet, member of the Palestinian Solidarity Network of Aotearoa (PSNA), and a contributor to Asia Pacific Report.

    *Several protesters quoted in this article requested that their family names not be reported for security reasons. Ava Mulla was born in Germany and lives in Aotearoa with her partner, actor Will Alexander. She studied industrial engineering and is passionate about innovative housing solutions for developing countries. She is a member of the Palestine Solidarity Network Aotearoa (PSNA).

    New Zealand and other activists with Tino Rangatiratanga and Palestine flags taking part in the Global March To Gaza. Will Alexander (far left) is in the back row and Ava Mulla (pink tee shirt) is in the front row. Image: GMTG screenshot APR

    MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

  • MIL-Evening Report: Egyptian crackdown on Gaza blockade busters but Kiwi activists vow to ‘defeat genocide’

    SPECIAL REPORT: By Saige England in Ōtautahi and Ava Mulla in Cairo

    Hope for freedom for Palestinians remains high among a group of trauma-struck New Zealanders in Cairo.

    In spite of extensive planning, the Global March To Gaza (GMTG) delegation of about 4000 international aid volunteers was thwarted in its mission to walk from Cairo to Gaza to lend support.

    The land of oranges and pyramids became the land of autocracy last week as peace aid volunteers — young, middle-aged, and elderly — were herded like cattle and cordoned behind fences.

    Their passports were initially seized — and later returned. Several New Zealanders were among those dragged and beaten.

    While ordinary Egyptians showed “huge support” for the GMTG, the militant Egyptian regime showed its hand in supporting Israel rather than Palestine.

    A member of the delegation, Natasha*, said she and other members pursued every available diplomatic channel to ensure that the peaceful, humanitarian, march would reach Gaza.

    Moved by love, they were met with hate.

    Violently attacked
    “When I stepped toward the crowd’s edge and began instinctually with heart break to chant, ‘Free Palestine,’ I was violently attacked by five plainclothes men.

    “They screamed, grabbed, shoved, and even spat on me,” she said.

    Tackled, she was dragged to an unmarked van. She did not resist, posed no threat, yet the violence escalated instantly.

    “I saw hatred in their eyes.”

    Egyptian state security forces and embedded provocateurs were intent on dismantling and discrediting the Global March activists. Image: GMTG

    Another GMTG member, a woman who tried to intervene was also “viciously assaulted”. She witnessed at least three other women and two men being attacked.

    The peacemakers escaped from the unmarked van the aggressors were distracted, seemingly confused about their destination, she said.

    It is now clear that from the beginning Egyptian State forces and embedded provocateurs were intent on dismantling and discrediting the GMTG.

    Authorities as provocateurs
    The peace participants witnessed plainclothed authorities act as provacateurs, “shoving people, stepping on them, throwing objects” to create a false image for media.

    New Zealand actor Will Alexander . . . “This is only a fraction of what Palestinians experience every day.” GMTG

    New Zealand actor Will Alexander said the experience had inflated rather than deflated his passion for human rights, and compassion for Palestinians.

    “This is only a fraction of what Palestinians experience everyday. Palestinians pushed into smaller and smaller areas are murdered for wanting to stand on their own land,” he said.

    “The reason that ordinary New Zealanders like us need to put our bodies on the line is because our government has failed to uphold its obligations under the Genocide Convention.

    “Israel has blatantly breached international law for decades with total impunity.”

    While the New Zealanders are all safe, a small number of people in the wider movement had been forcibly ‘disappeared’,” said GMTG New Zealand member Sam Leason.

    Their whereabouts was still unknown, he said.

    Arab members targeted
    “It must be emphasised that it is primarily — and possibly strictly — Arab members of the March who are the targets of the most dramatic and violent excesses committed by the Egyptian authorities, including all forced disappearances.”

    Global March to Gaza activists being attacked . . . the genocide cannot be sustained when people from around the world push against the Israeli regime and support the people on the ground with food and healthcare. Image: GMTG screenshot APR

    This did, however, continuously add to the mounting sense of stress, tension, anxiety and fear, felt by the contingent, he said.

    “Especially given the Egyptian authorities’ disregard to their own legal system, which leaves us blindsided and in a thick fog of uncertainty.”

    Moving swiftly through the streets of Cairo in the pitch of night, from hotel to hotel and safehouse to safehouse, was a “surreal and dystopian” experience for the New Zealanders and other GMTG members.

    The group says that the genocide cannot be sustained when people from around the world push against the Israeli regime and support the people on the ground with food and healthcare.

    “For 20 months our hearts have raced and our eyes have filled in unison with the elderly, men, women, and children, and the babies in Palestine,” said Billie*, a participant who preferred, for safety reasons, not to reveal their surname.

    “If we do not react to the carnage, suffering and complete injustice and recognise our shared need for sane governance and a liveable planet what is the point?”

    Experienced despair
    Aqua*, another New Zealand GMTG member, had experienced despair seeing the suffering of Palestinians, but she said it was important to nurture hope, as that was the only way to stop the genocide.

    “We cling to every glimmer of hope that presents itself. Like an oasis in a desert devoid of human emotion we chase any potential igniter of the flame of change.”

    Activist Eva Mulla . . . inspired by the courage of the Palestinians. Image: GMTG screenshot APR

    Ava Mulla, said from Cairo, that the group was inspired by the courage of the Palestinians.

    “They’ve been fighting for freedom and justice for decades against the world’s strongest powers. They are courageous and steadfast.”

    Mulla referred to the “We Were Seeds” saying inspired by Greek poet Dinos Christianopoulos.

    “We are millions of seeds. Every act of injustice fuels our growth,” she said.

    Helplessness an illusion
    The GMTG members agreed that “impotence and helplessness was an illusion” that led to inaction but such inaction allowed “unspeakable atrocities” to take place.

    “This is the holocaust of our age,” said Sam Leason.

    “We need the world to leave the rhetorical and symbolic field of discourse and move promptly towards the camp of concrete action to protect the people of Palestine from a clear campaign of extermination.”

    Saige England is an Aotearoa New Zealand journalist, author, and poet, member of the Palestinian Solidarity Network of Aotearoa (PSNA), and a contributor to Asia Pacific Report.

    *Several protesters quoted in this article requested that their family names not be reported for security reasons. Ava Mulla was born in Germany and lives in Aotearoa with her partner, actor Will Alexander. She studied industrial engineering and is passionate about innovative housing solutions for developing countries. She is a member of the Palestine Solidarity Network Aotearoa (PSNA).

    New Zealand and other activists with Tino Rangatiratanga and Palestine flags taking part in the Global March To Gaza. Will Alexander (far left) is in the back row and Ava Mulla (pink tee shirt) is in the front row. Image: GMTG screenshot APR

    MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: New climate targets set

    Source: Scottish Government

    Carbon budgets to tackle climate change.

    Limits on the amount of greenhouse gases Scotland will emit over the coming decades have been announced as part of action to tackle climate change.

    The Carbon Budgets propose five-year, statutory limits on emissions from 2026 to 2045. The proposed budgets are in line with the advice from the independent Climate Change Committee (CCC) and the Scottish Government’s own assessments.

    The average level of emissions for Scotland over each five-year period are:

    • 57% lower than 1990 levels for 2026 – 2030
    • 69% lower than 1990 levels for 2031- 2035
    • 80% lower than 1990 levels for 2036 – 2040
    • 94% lower than 1990 levels for 2041 – 2045

    The proposals will be scrutinised by Parliament before being voted on in the autumn.

    Once the Carbon Budgets have been agreed, the Scottish Government will publish and consult on a new draft Climate Change Plan outlining the specific actions required to reduce emissions so as to meet each of the first three carbon budget targets, as well as setting out the associated costs and benefits.

    Cabinet Secretary for Climate Action and Energy Gillian Martin said:

    “Scotland is now halfway to our 2045 climate change target and is ahead of the UK as a whole in reducing long term emissions.

    “These Carbon Budgets will set clear limits on emissions for the coming decades in line with the independent advice of the UK Climate Change Committee.

    “When we publish our draft Climate Change Plan later this year, it will set out the policies needed to continue to reduce our emissions and meet our first three carbon budget targets.

    “It will not ask the impossible of people. We will not sacrifice people’s health or wealth.

    “While we welcome the UK CCC’s advice on how to stay within these limits, as they make clear, it is always for Scotland to decide whether those policies are right for us.

    “This means, for example, that we will chart our own path on forestry, going further than the CCC suggest. And, to ensure we protect rural communities and have a thriving rural economy, we will not adopt all their recommendations on agriculture and peatland and will instead meet our targets in a way which works for rural Scotland, including supporting and protecting our iconic livestock industries.  

    “These Carbon Budgets keep Scotland at the forefront of efforts to protect the planet and our Climate Change Plan will ensure the action we take is fair, ambitious and capable of rising to the emergency before us.”

    Background

    Carbon budgets provide a reliable and consistent framework to measure progress to net zero and are used by other countries including Japan, France, England and Wales. They are less prone to fluctuations than the Scottish Government’s previous approach of interim and annual targets, which could be affected by annual variations such as unseasonable weather or a global pandemic.

    Each carbon budget period will run from 1 January of the start year to 31 December of the final year.

    The budgets would continue to include emissions from international aviation and shipping, and there are no provisions to ‘carry over’ emissions from one carbon budget period to the next.

    Carbon budget breakdown totals:

    • 175  mega tonne 2026 – 2030
    • 126  mega tonne 2031- 2035
    • 81  mega tonne 2036 – 2040
    • 24  mega tonne 2040 – 2045

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Engagement survey to improve communities

    Source: Scotland – City of Aberdeen

    The results of an extensive engagement focusing on multiple strategies will be used to shape plans to support communities across the city.  

    The results of the “Your Place, Your Plans, Your Future” engagement were presented to the Community Planning Aberdeen board yesterday (18 June) and saw 2087 participants share their insights to help Community Planning Partners set their priorities for the years ahead.  

    Aberdeen City Council Co-Leader Councillor Christian Allard said: “My thanks go out to everyone who gave us their views. Your feedback is invaluable in helping us to focus on the things that matter most to those living in our communities. 

    The engagement ran from 24 March to 18 May, with citizens able to contribute via an online survey for adults, a survey designed for children and young people and drop-in sessions where assistance was available with support from third sector organisations.  

    The engagement results and next steps can be viewed online. 

    The engagement focused on the Local Housing Strategy, Health and Social Care Strategic Plan, Community Learning and Development Plan, Visitor Levy, and the next Local Outcome Improvement Plan, Locality Plans, Children’s Services Plan, and Local Development Plan. 

    The engagement used the Place Standard tool, a nationally-approved tool to assist with long-term planning that promotes conversations about how to improve people’s health, wellbeing and quality of life.  

    The results are being used to inform the finalised Local Housing Strategy, Health and Social Care Strategic Plan, Community Learning and Development Plan and Visitor Levy proposal before submission for approval.  

    Community Planning Aberdeen, the Locality Empowerment Groups and Priority Neighbourhood Partnerships, are analysing the results to support the development of the Local Outcome Improvement Plan and Locality Plans 2026-36 which are to be consulted on in early 2026.  

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: External transformation of Poor Priests’ Hospital complete

    Source: City of Canterbury

    Home  »  Latest News   »   External transformation of Poor Priests’ Hospital complete

    Work is now complete on a dramatic external transformation of one of Canterbury’s most historic buildings.

    Poor Priests’ Hospital in Stour Street, which is owned by the city council and dates back to the 1200s, has been under scaffolding for the past 11 months, but is now once again on show in all its glory to the public following extensive repairs to the building’s external fabric.

    The key element of the project has seen the reroofing of the Kent Peg roofs and lead roofs.

    The existing Kent Peg roofs were stripped back to the roof structure in their entirety, with salvageable tiles consolidated on selected roof slopes, ,mainly the later parts of the building.

    The most significant parts of the Poor Priests’ Hospital – the main hall, solar and chapel – and some connected roofs were then completely recovered and carefully detailed to match the existing roofs using new, handmade Kent Peg tiles, including ridge tiles, bonnet hip tiles and valley tiles.

    The tiles used were selected through careful and extensive consultation with Historic England and other expert organisations. 

    And the roofs to historic parts of the building where the roof structure can be seen internally have been insulated using a fully breathable build up using wood fibre products and natural lime hemp plasters, which significantly improves the thermal performance of these roofs.

    Other aspects of the project include repair and renewal of lead valley gutters and lead flashings, as well as joinery repairs and redecoration, including windows, soffits and facias with replacements provided where needed.

    Stone repairs, replacement and cleaning, including flintwork and repointing, and brick repairs, cleaning and repointing, have also taken place.

    And there has also been a complete rebuild of the chimney stack and structural brickwork repairs to the building’s bay window area.

    All work has been carried out by highly skilled conservation contractors in accordance with Listed Building Consent and Historic England approvals, with the stonework carried out by the Cathedral Masons.

    The repairs, costing a total of £1.6 million, have been paid for using government money as part of the council’s Connected Canterbury: Unlocking the Tales of England project.

    Cabinet member for heritage, Cllr Charlotte Cornell, said: “This has been an absolutely fantastic project with stunning results. I am so pleased to see Poor Priests’ Hospital back on full show and enhancing the appearance of Stour Street once more.

    “As you would expect with such an historic building, it has not been without its challenges. When you get right into the fabric of something like we have, it throws up all sorts of things you were not anticipating.

    “But looking at it now, we can be proud of doing an exceptional and sensitive job, leaving the Poor Priests’ Hospital in a much improved condition and far better insulated to stand the test of time for many, many more years to come.

    “I would like to thank all the highly-skilled craftsmen, masons, roofers, lead workers, scaffolders and carpenters who have joined us on this journey. Everybody has wanted to do right by this building and that has been excellent to see.”

    Alongside many companies who have worked on the building, the council also acknowledges the excellent external consultants it worked with, Purcell and the Moreton Partnership, as well as the support provided by Canterbury Archaeological Trust.

    Published: 19 June 2025

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI Australia: Update: Police seek identity of three suspects involved in a fire at Solomontown

    Source: New South Wales – News

    Police have released CCTV footage hoping to identify the occupants of a vehicle involved in a fire on Monday 16 June at Solomontown.

    Just after midnight, police were called to a report of a car on fire in Young Street, Solomontown.

    When police officers arrived, they discovered a car on fire and a fire burning at the front of a nearby residence, which they extinguished with a fire extinguisher.

    The occupants of the house were not injured during the incident.  The exterior of the house was charred by flames.

    As seen in the footage, three male suspects had attended an address in Young Street and doused the front of the residence with accelerant.

    The suspects then entered the vehicle, which became engulfed in flames.  They ran off, abandoning the car in the street.

    It is extremely likely they have suffered significant burns or injuries in the fire and police urge them to seek medical attention.

    Anyone with information about the identity or location of anyone involved in this incident is encouraged to contact Crime Stoppers immediately on 1800 333 000 or online at www.crimestopperssa.com.au

    MIL OSI News –

  • MIL-OSI Australia: North Motton man charged with murder

    Source: New South Wales Community and Justice

    North Motton man charged with murder

    Thursday, 19 June 2025 – 4:57 pm.

    Police have this afternoon charged a 46-year-old man with murder, attempted murder and aggravated assault after a police officer was fatally shot in Tasmania’s North West on Monday.
    The North Motton man recently appeared in a bedside court sitting. He will reappear in court at a later date.
    The man remains under guard in hospital where he is receiving medical attention for non-life-threatening injuries.
    Tasmania Police Commissioner Donna Adams thanked those involved in the ongoing investigation for their dedication and professionalism.
    “I want to sincerely thank all those who have played a part in this investigation,” she said.
    “Their diligent work in such difficult circumstances is to be commended.
    “The support our members have shown for Constable Keith Smith’s family and loved ones, and each other, is testament to the strength of our blue family.
    “I would also like to thank community members for the outpouring of support they have shown Keith’s family and friends, and Tasmania Police more broadly.”

    Picture: Members of the Tasmania Police investigation team on scene at the property on Allison Road, North Motton, this week. 

    MIL OSI News –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Millions more families to get £150 off energy bills this winter

    Source: United Kingdom – Government Statements

    Press release

    Millions more families to get £150 off energy bills this winter

    The Warm Home Discount will be expanded meaning 6 million households will receive £150 off their energy bills this winter.

    • 2.7 million extra households will receive £150 off their energy bills next winter as the Warm Home Discount is expanded – putting money directly into people’s pockets
    • this increases the number of households who are eligible to over 6 million in total – including 900,000 families with children and a total of 1.8 million households in fuel poverty
    • latest intervention follows a raft of cost of living support for those who need it most – from expanding free school meals to childcare support – which is only possible after government stabilised the economy and fixed the foundations through the Plan for Change

    Millions of households will see their energy bills cut by £150 this winter, as the government delivers another major package of support to ease the cost of living for working families through the Plan for Change.

    Over 6 million households will benefit this year – an increase of 2.7 million households, including 900,000 more families with children and a total of 1.8 million households in fuel poverty. Every billpayer on means-tested benefits will now qualify, removing restrictions that previously excluded many who needed help and providing peace of mind to millions more families.

    This major expansion of support for working families is the latest in a raft of cost of living support made possible because the government has stabilised the economy, fixed the foundations and repaired the public finances – deliberate choices which are helping provide security and more money in the pockets of working families through the Plan for Change.

    Since last summer, interest rates have been cut 4 times, lowering mortgage costs, free school meals have been rolled out for over half a million more children so that kids can focus on learning rather than hungry bellies, free breakfast clubs are being expanded to every child in the country, school uniform costs have been cut, the 30 hours of free childcare scheme has been extended to more working parents.

    Prime Minister Keir Starmer said: 

    I know families are still struggling with the cost of living, and I know the fear that comes with not being able to afford your next bill.

    Providing security and peace of mind for working people is deeply personal to me as Prime Minister and foundational for the Plan for Change. I have no doubt that, like rolling out free school meals, breakfast clubs and childcare support, extending this £150 energy bills support to millions more families will make a real difference.

    Energy Secretary Ed Miliband said:  

    Millions of families will get vital support with the cost of living this coming winter, demonstrating this government’s commitment to put money in people’s pockets through our Plan for Change.

    The energy price cap is also falling in July and today’s announcement adds a further £150 in direct support for millions.

    This expansion of the Warm Homes Discount means families can plan for winter in the knowledge that they will receive support, giving them certainty and peace of mind before summer.

    The government has also protected working people’s payslips from higher taxes, frozen fuel duty and are increasing the minimum wage to give pay rises of up to £1,400 a year to millions of low-income workers. Everyone over the State Pension age in England and Wales with an income of, or below, £35,000 a year will benefit from a Winter Fuel Payment this winter, bringing the total to 9 million pensioners. 

    Today’s announcement goes even further than cutting energy bills by helping those who racked up debts during the energy crisis of 2022-2024. Backing Ofgem’s proposed debt strategy will cut consumers’ energy bills by reducing the cost of paying for energy debt, alongside other reforms.

    The expansion of the Warm Home Discount will be offset by new efficiency savings across the energy system. For example, Ofgem have confirmed a decrease in the operating cost allowance of the price cap for the average billpayer which will take money off bills.

    Ofgem’s plans to reduce the overall stock of consumer debt, which is currently recouped via a levy on all bills, will also produce savings that help to fund the Warm Homes Discount.

    These reforms complement the government’s drive to bring down bills in the long term by replacing the UK’s dependence on fossil fuel markets controlled by petrostates and dictators with clean homegrown power.  

    This is the Plan for Change in action – combining short-term help with a proper long-term strategy for change that lowers people’s energy bills and puts more money in their pockets.

    Notes to editors

    Today we have confirmed that following consultation, the Warm Home Discount scheme will be expanded to remove the high-cost-to-heat threshold in the current Warm Home Discount (England & Wales) Regulations 2022 (for winter 2025/2026) and increasing the level of spend available in Scotland for suppliers to allocate through the Broader Group.

    The change will mean that all households where the means-tested benefit recipient (or their partner or legal appointee) is named on the energy bill will now be eligible to receive the £150 electricity bill rebate.   

    The number of families who will receive the discount for the first time, broken down by region, include:  

    • North East England: 100,000
    • North West England: 280,000
    • Yorkshire and the Humber: 210,000
    • East Midlands: 160,000
    • West Midlands: 270,000
    • East of England: 250,000
    • London: 570,000
    • South East England: 350,000
    • South West England: 220,000
    • Wales: 110,000
    • Scotland: 240,000 

    The number of additional households supported under the expanded scheme in each region is calculated by applying the regional proportion of qualifying benefit recipients from DWP’s statxplore tool to the total additional 6.1 million households estimated in the Warm Home Discount Expansion consultation document.

    For the North West, for example, the proportion of qualifying benefit recipients is 13%, thereby 13% x 6.1m = 780,000 recipient households. Of these, 500,000 are already in receipt according to the most recent Warm Home Discount statistics (2023/2024), so around 280,000 are estimated to be additional.

    Updates to this page

    Published 19 June 2025

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-Evening Report: The 28 Days Later franchise redefined zombie films. But the undead have an old, rich and varied history

    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Christopher White, Historian, The University of Queensland

    The history of the dead – or, more precisely, the history of the living’s fascination with the dead – is an intriguing one.

    As a researcher of the supernatural, I’m often pulled aside at conferences or at the school gate, and told in furtive whispers about people’s encounters with the dead.

    The dead haunt our imagination in a number of different forms, whether as “cold spots”, or the walking dead popularised in zombie franchises such as 28 Days Later.

    The franchise’s latest release, 28 Years Later, brings back the Hollywood zombie in all its glory – but these archetypal creatures have a much wider and varied history.

    Zombis, revenants and the returning dead

    A zombie is typically a reanimated corpse: a category of the returning dead. Scholars refer to them as “revenants”, and continue to argue over their exact characteristics.

    In the Haitian Vodou religion, the zombi is not the same as the Hollywood zombie. Instead, zombi are people who, as a religious punishment, are drugged, buried alive, then dug out and forced into slavery.

    The Hollywood zombie, however, draws more from medieval European stories about the returning dead than from Vodou.

    A perfect setting for a ‘zombie’ film

    In 28 Years Later, the latest entry in Danny Boyle’s blockbuster horror franchise, the monsters technically aren’t zombies because they aren’t dead. Instead, they are infected by a “rage virus”, accidentally released by a group of animal rights activists in the beginning of the first film.

    This third film focuses on events almost three decades after the first film. The British Isles is quarantined, and the young protagonist Spike (Alfie Williams) and his family live in a village on Lindisfarne Island. This island, one of the most important sites in early medieval British Christianity, is isolated and protected by a tidal causeway that links it to the mainland.

    Aaron Taylor-Johnson and Alfie Williams star in the new film, out in Australian cinemas today.
    Sony Pictures

    The film leans heavily on how we imagine the medieval world, with scenes showing silhouetted fletchers at work making arrows, children training with bows, towering ossuaries and various memento mori. There’s also footage from earlier depictions of medieval warfare. And at one point, the characters seek sanctuary in the ruins of Fountains Abbey, in Yorkshire, which was built in 1132.

    The medieval locations and imagery of 28 Years Later evoke the long history of revenants, and the returned dead who once roved medieval England.

    Early accounts of the medieval dead

    In the medieval world, or at least the parts that wrote in Latin, the returning dead were usually called spiritus (“spirit”), but they weren’t limited to the non-corporeal like today’s ghosts are.

    Medieval Latin Christians from as early as the 3rd century saw the dead as part of a parallel society that mirrored the world of the living, where each group relied on the other to aid them through the afterlife.

    Depiction of the undead from a medieval manuscript.
    British Library, Yates Thompson MS 13

    While some medieval ghosts would warn the living about what awaited sinners in the afterlife, or lead their relatives to treasure, or prophesise the future, some also returned to terrorise the living.

    And like the “zombies” affected by the rage virus in 28 Years Later, these revenants could go into a frenzy in the presence of the living.

    Thietmar, the Prince-Bishop of Merseburg, Germany, wrote the Chronicon Thietmari (Thietmar’s Chronicle) between 1012 and 1018, and included a number of ghost stories that featured revenants.

    Although not all of them framed the dead as terrifying, they certainly didn’t paint them as friendly, either. In one story, a congregation of the dead at a church set the priest upon the altar, before burning him to ashes – intended to be read as a mirror of pagan sacrifice.

    These dead were physical beings, capable of seizing a man and sacrificing him in his own church.

    A threat to be dealt with

    The English monastic historian William of Newburgh (1136–98) wrote revenants were so common in his day that recording them all would be exhausting. According to him, the returned dead were frequently seen in 12th century England.

    So, instead of providing a exhausting list, he offered some choice examples which, like most medieval ghost stories, had a good Christian moral attached to them.

    William’s revenants mostly killed the people of the towns they lived, returning to the grave between their escapades. But the medieval English had a method for dealing with these monsters; they dug them up, tore out the heart and then burned the body.

    Other revenants were dealt with less harshly, William explained. In one case, all it took was the Bishop of Lincoln writing a letter of absolution to stop a dead man returning to his widow’s bed.

    These medieval dead were also thought to spread disease – much like those infected with the rage virus – and were capable of physically killing someone.

    Depiction of the undead from a medieval manuscript.
    British Library, Arundel MS 83.

    The undead, further north

    In medieval Scandinavia and Iceland, the undead draugr were extremely strong, hideous to look at and stunk of decomposition. Some were immune to human weapons and often killed animals near their tombs before building up to kill humans. Like their English counterparts, they also spread disease.

    But according to the Eyrbyggja saga, an anonymous 13th or 14th century text written in Iceland, all it took was a type of community court and the threat of legal action to drive off these returned dead.

    It’s a method the survivors in 28 Years Later didn’t try.

    The dead live on

    The first-hand zombie stories that were common during the medieval period started to dwindle in the 16th century with the Protestant Reformation, which focused more on individuals’ behaviours and salvation.

    Nonetheless, their influence can still be felt in Catholic ritual practices today, such as in prayers offered for the dead, and the lighting of votive candles.

    We still tell ghost stories, and we still worry about things that go bump in the night. And of course, we continue to explore the undead in all its forms on the big screen.

    Christopher White does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

    – ref. The 28 Days Later franchise redefined zombie films. But the undead have an old, rich and varied history – https://theconversation.com/the-28-days-later-franchise-redefined-zombie-films-but-the-undead-have-an-old-rich-and-varied-history-247900

    MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

  • MIL-OSI Global: The 28 Days Later franchise redefined zombie films. But the undead have an old, rich and varied history

    Source: The Conversation – Global Perspectives – By Christopher White, Historian, The University of Queensland

    The history of the dead – or, more precisely, the history of the living’s fascination with the dead – is an intriguing one.

    As a researcher of the supernatural, I’m often pulled aside at conferences or at the school gate, and told in furtive whispers about people’s encounters with the dead.

    The dead haunt our imagination in a number of different forms, whether as “cold spots”, or the walking dead popularised in zombie franchises such as 28 Days Later.

    The franchise’s latest release, 28 Years Later, brings back the Hollywood zombie in all its glory – but these archetypal creatures have a much wider and varied history.

    Zombis, revenants and the returning dead

    A zombie is typically a reanimated corpse: a category of the returning dead. Scholars refer to them as “revenants”, and continue to argue over their exact characteristics.

    In the Haitian Vodou religion, the zombi is not the same as the Hollywood zombie. Instead, zombi are people who, as a religious punishment, are drugged, buried alive, then dug out and forced into slavery.

    The Hollywood zombie, however, draws more from medieval European stories about the returning dead than from Vodou.

    A perfect setting for a ‘zombie’ film

    In 28 Years Later, the latest entry in Danny Boyle’s blockbuster horror franchise, the monsters technically aren’t zombies because they aren’t dead. Instead, they are infected by a “rage virus”, accidentally released by a group of animal rights activists in the beginning of the first film.

    This third film focuses on events almost three decades after the first film. The British Isles is quarantined, and the young protagonist Spike (Alfie Williams) and his family live in a village on Lindisfarne Island. This island, one of the most important sites in early medieval British Christianity, is isolated and protected by a tidal causeway that links it to the mainland.

    Aaron Taylor-Johnson and Alfie Williams star in the new film, out in Australian cinemas today.
    Sony Pictures

    The film leans heavily on how we imagine the medieval world, with scenes showing silhouetted fletchers at work making arrows, children training with bows, towering ossuaries and various memento mori. There’s also footage from earlier depictions of medieval warfare. And at one point, the characters seek sanctuary in the ruins of Fountains Abbey, in Yorkshire, which was built in 1132.

    The medieval locations and imagery of 28 Years Later evoke the long history of revenants, and the returned dead who once roved medieval England.

    Early accounts of the medieval dead

    In the medieval world, or at least the parts that wrote in Latin, the returning dead were usually called spiritus (“spirit”), but they weren’t limited to the non-corporeal like today’s ghosts are.

    Medieval Latin Christians from as early as the 3rd century saw the dead as part of a parallel society that mirrored the world of the living, where each group relied on the other to aid them through the afterlife.

    Depiction of the undead from a medieval manuscript.
    British Library, Yates Thompson MS 13

    While some medieval ghosts would warn the living about what awaited sinners in the afterlife, or lead their relatives to treasure, or prophesise the future, some also returned to terrorise the living.

    And like the “zombies” affected by the rage virus in 28 Years Later, these revenants could go into a frenzy in the presence of the living.

    Thietmar, the Prince-Bishop of Merseburg, Germany, wrote the Chronicon Thietmari (Thietmar’s Chronicle) between 1012 and 1018, and included a number of ghost stories that featured revenants.

    Although not all of them framed the dead as terrifying, they certainly didn’t paint them as friendly, either. In one story, a congregation of the dead at a church set the priest upon the altar, before burning him to ashes – intended to be read as a mirror of pagan sacrifice.

    These dead were physical beings, capable of seizing a man and sacrificing him in his own church.

    A threat to be dealt with

    The English monastic historian William of Newburgh (1136–98) wrote revenants were so common in his day that recording them all would be exhausting. According to him, the returned dead were frequently seen in 12th century England.

    So, instead of providing a exhausting list, he offered some choice examples which, like most medieval ghost stories, had a good Christian moral attached to them.

    William’s revenants mostly killed the people of the towns they lived, returning to the grave between their escapades. But the medieval English had a method for dealing with these monsters; they dug them up, tore out the heart and then burned the body.

    Other revenants were dealt with less harshly, William explained. In one case, all it took was the Bishop of Lincoln writing a letter of absolution to stop a dead man returning to his widow’s bed.

    These medieval dead were also thought to spread disease – much like those infected with the rage virus – and were capable of physically killing someone.

    Depiction of the undead from a medieval manuscript.
    British Library, Arundel MS 83.

    The undead, further north

    In medieval Scandinavia and Iceland, the undead draugr were extremely strong, hideous to look at and stunk of decomposition. Some were immune to human weapons and often killed animals near their tombs before building up to kill humans. Like their English counterparts, they also spread disease.

    But according to the Eyrbyggja saga, an anonymous 13th or 14th century text written in Iceland, all it took was a type of community court and the threat of legal action to drive off these returned dead.

    It’s a method the survivors in 28 Years Later didn’t try.

    The dead live on

    The first-hand zombie stories that were common during the medieval period started to dwindle in the 16th century with the Protestant Reformation, which focused more on individuals’ behaviours and salvation.

    Nonetheless, their influence can still be felt in Catholic ritual practices today, such as in prayers offered for the dead, and the lighting of votive candles.

    We still tell ghost stories, and we still worry about things that go bump in the night. And of course, we continue to explore the undead in all its forms on the big screen.

    Christopher White does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

    – ref. The 28 Days Later franchise redefined zombie films. But the undead have an old, rich and varied history – https://theconversation.com/the-28-days-later-franchise-redefined-zombie-films-but-the-undead-have-an-old-rich-and-varied-history-247900

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI: Unaudited Interim Results

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    19 June 2025

    HARGREAVE HALE AIM VCT PLC
    (the “Company”)

    Unaudited Interim Results

    The Company announces its half-year results for the six months ended 31 March 2025.

    These half-year results will be available on the Company’s website at  https://www.hargreaveaimvcts.co.uk/document-library/.

    In accordance with UK Listing Rule 6.4.1, a copy of this document will also be submitted to the UK Listing Authority via the National Storage Mechanism and will be available for viewing shortly at https://data.fca.org.uk/#/nsm/nationalstoragemechanism.

    Additionally, the interim report can also be found here:  HHV 2025 Interim Report

    Financial highlights

    Net asset value (NAV) per share   NAV total return   Tax free dividends paid in the period   Share price total return   Ongoing charges ratio
    34.48p   -8.19%   2.75   -6.28%   2.45%
    • £3.6m invested in Qualifying Companies in the period.
    • 92.29% invested by VCT tax value in Qualifying Investments at 31 March 2025.
    • Offer for subscription launched on 9 October 2024 to raise up to £20m. At the date of this report 14m Shares have been issued raising gross proceeds of £5.4m.
    • Final dividend of 1.25 pence and special dividend of 1.50 pence per Share paid 14 February 2025.
    • Interim dividend of 0.75 pence and special dividend of 0.50 pence per Share approved by the Board.
    Summary financial data Six months

    ending

    31-Mar-25

    		 Six months

    Ending

    31-Mar-24

    		 Year

    ending
    30 Sept-24
    NAV (£m) 126.75 155.74 148.01
    NAV per Share (p) 34.48 43.64 40.55
    NAV total return (%) -8.19 -2.59 -3.86
    Market capitalisation (£m) 124.25 150.60 142.34
    Share price (p) 33.80 42.20 39.00
    Share price discount to NAV per Share (%) 1.97 3.30 3.82
    Share price 5 year average discount to NAV per Share (%) -5.52 -5.83 -5.79
    Share price total return (%) -6.28 1.63 0.00
    Loss per Share for the period (p) -3.39 -1.22 -1.86
    Dividends paid per Share (p) 2.75 1.50 4.00
    Ongoing charges ratio (%) 2.45 2.45 2.43

    Investment Manager’s report

    Overview

    What would Harold Wilson, who famously quipped that a week was a long time in politics, have made of the extraordinary times we are living through? If JD Vance’s Munich speech signalled that the new administration was unconstrained by red lines, established protocols or strategic alliances, few truly anticipated the confusion and chaos that would follow on ‘Liberation Day’.

    The tumultuous reaction to Trump’s Rose Garden speech reflected the upending of the principles that had underpinned global trade for decades. Uncertainty swept through markets as analysts assessed the implications for the global economy, a task that was made considerably more difficult by the rapidly evolving nature of the proposed tariff regime and, more broadly, US trade policy. With future outcomes very difficult to predict and price in, significant volatility emerged in a huge range of financial assets. In the medium term, there are potentially profound implications for the value of invested capital as companies review their business models and supply chains.

    Spectacular as this has been, the impact on AIM has been relatively muted. Whilst risk assets in the US were overdue a correction, the same was not true of companies listed on AIM. The early part of the financial year was difficult with the 2024 UK Autumn Budget preceded by some unhelpfully stark messaging from the government. GDP, employment reports and PMI surveys all highlighted a notable softening in the UK economy through the second half of the 2024 calendar year. Measures of UK consumer and business confidence dipped, suggesting that households and companies were becoming increasingly cautious. Both the Office for Budget Responsibility and Bank of England reduced their GDP forecasts for 2025.

    Although UK fiscal policy is seen as being negative to growth and positive for inflation, a very significant increase in public spending is expected to support a pick up in UK economic activity in 2025 with the market consensus for GDP growth in 2025 currently +1.0%. While the Bank of England is currently forecasting 3.5% inflation in 2025, significantly above the 2.0% target, the downside risks to the global economy that have subsequently emerged, along with falling energy prices, are expected to reduce CPI to comfortably below 3.0% by early 2026. As a result, the outlook for interest rate cuts has significantly improved with the market now pricing in up to four interest cuts in 2025. For context, the market was expecting just one cut as we entered into 2025.

    You might reasonably expect all of this to heap more selling pressure onto UK equities. Whilst that was the case within the period under review, it is not so more recently. Although the constantly evolving narrative threatens to undermine the current dynamic, as it stands UK equity markets are going through a mini renaissance. As we have previously observed, UK markets are cheap, both in relative and absolute terms. As the US economy falters and the US exceptionalism narrative comes under pressure, investors are starting to look elsewhere. With a high weighting to more defensive companies, an expectation that the UK economy should emerge relatively unscathed from the new tariff regime, stable politics and low valuations, there is clear interest in UK equities from investors rotating away from US equities. This is yet to result in fund inflows to the IA UK Small Cap sector; however, the flow picture has improved. For now, at least, the market’s focus has shifted away from UK fiscal policy to international trade and the impact of tariffs.

    Returning to events within the six months to 31 March 2025, we regrettably report that AIM was again notably weak, with the Deutsche Numis Alternative Market (ex IC) returning -7.51% over the period on a total return basis. This was not specific to AIM, the domestically focused FTSE 250 Index also endured a difficult period as business and financial markets returned a withering assessment of the 2024 Autumn Budget. Ultimately, pressure on UK government borrowing costs forced the Chancellor to announce spending cuts in her 2025 Spring Statement. More will need to be done and we expect the government to come forward with new initiatives to promote growth, contain spending and/or increase taxes. It will be a difficult balancing act.

    Performance 

    In the six months to 31 March 2025 the unaudited NAV per Share decreased from 40.55 pence to 34.48 pence. A final dividend for FY24 of 1.25 pence and a special dividend of 1.50 pence were paid on 14 February 2025, giving a NAV total return to Shareholders of -3.32 pence per Share, which translates to a loss of -8.19%.

    The Qualifying Investments made a net contribution of -2.70 pence per Share whilst the Non-Qualifying Investments returned -0.25 pence per Share. The contribution to net asset performance is split out in further detail below.

    Qualifying Investments 

    Positive Contributors 

    In November 2024, Aquis Exchange (+95.8%, +£1.71m) received a takeover offer from its larger Swiss peer SIX Exchange at 727p, equivalent to an enterprise value of £194m. The offer price, which was at a 120% premium to the previous closing price and slightly above the 2021 share price high, resulted in an exit multiple of 4.7x book cost. The deal was approved by Aquis shareholders on 18 December 2024 and is expected to complete in July 2025.

    Shares in Cohort (+26.1%, +£1.12m) continued to perform strongly as European nations announced plans to significantly boost defence spending. The UK government announced plans to increase spending to 2.5% of GDP by 2027, an additional spend of £13.4bn p.a. from current levels. The company announced its subsidiary MASS Consultants received a two-year extension to its Joint Command and Staff Training contract for UK Strategic Command worth over £17.5m. Cohort also completed the acquisition of Australian-based satellite communications company EM Solutions.

    Oberon Investment Group (+43.3%, +£0.49m) raised a further £2.5m in February 2025, providing additional investment to accelerate growth across corporate broking, wealth management and fund management. We used the opportunity to increase our investment in the company. H1 2025 results showed revenue growth of 78% to £4.8m, coupled with a reduction in EBITDA losses. Current trading remains positive with like for like revenue growth of over 30% expected for FY25 (March YE).

    Ilika (+56.5%, +£0.48m) continued to make technical progress with Goliath, its solid state battery technology for electric vehicles (EV). In partnership with the UK Battery Industrialisation Centre, the company built a prototype battery using industrial equipment and processes, demonstrating the scalability of key steps in the manufacturing process. Goliath has achieved energy density parity with current lithium-ion cells, successfully reached its D6 milestone of testing 10Ah cells, and expects to achieve minimum viable product for EV applications within 2026. The company also successfully completed the transfer of its Stereax micro-battery production to US-based partner Cirtec Medical and expects this partnership to generate revenues in H2 2025.

    Intelligent Ultrasound (+30.0%, +£0.41m) received a takeover offer from Swedish medical simulation company Surgical Science at 13p in December 2024. The transaction valued Intelligent Ultrasound at an enterprise value of £4.7m. Adjusting for the sale of the Clinical-AI business to GE Healthcare in October 2024 for £40.5m, the offer placed a relatively low value on the simulation division. Whilst we voted against the scheme due to the low valuation, the transaction was approved by shareholders on 6 February 2025 and completed on 18 February 2025.

    Negative Contributors 

    Despite reductions to its overheads, a difficult retail environment undermined Kidly (-100.00%, -£1.26m) in its attempts to establish a fundable pathway to profitability. Kidly was placed into administration on 4 March 2025 following a formal sales process. Although the company was subsequently sold from administration, the proceeds did not result in any recoverable value to the Company.

    Zoo Digital (-74.3%, -£1.14m) issued a disappointing year-end trading update with FY25 revenues growing 24% to $50.5m (consensus: $55m) and EBITDA of at least $1m. Cash was also below expectations at $1m. Whilst the film and TV industry has begun to recover from the 2023 strikes, the company has been impacted by project delays and cancellations as streaming platforms continue to evaluate their commercial models.

    On 31 March 2025, Equipmake (-40.0%, -£0.93m) announced a £5m strategic investment from Caterpillar Ventures and a development agreement with Caterpillar. We view this outcome as a significant achievement for a company that was operating with limited working capital . The company also announced a development agreement with JCB, and post period-end, a £650,000 development agreement with CorPower Ocean. A new CFO was appointed.

    Team Internet (-54.8%, -£0.86m) shares fell sharply in Q4 2024 as the company announced that revenues at a recently acquired online marketing business, Shinez would fall short of expectations. This was followed by the negative news in Q1 2025 when the company announced that 2025 would be impacted by changes being made by Google, with a major impact on revenues in the company’s online marketing business. The company also confirmed that it was no longer in talks regarding a potential takeover offer. The year end trading update confirmed 2024 net revenues of $188m (-2% vs prior year) and an operating profit of $8.2m following a $36m impairment to the value of Shinez.

    Eagle Eye (-21.3%, -£0.85m) issued a profit warning in January 2025, cautioning that FY25 revenues would be below market expectations due to lengthening sales cycles. The warning was exacerbated by the company’s decision to make a strategic shift away from professional services work. More promising was the announcement of a major new partnership with a large software vendor where Eagle Eye will be directly integrated into the vendor’s product. Whilst this opportunity will take time to generate revenues, the partnership could become a very material profit generator in time. H1 2025 results reported revenues of £24.2m (unchanged year on year), and adjusted EBITDA of £5.9m.

    Recurring revenue represented 82% of the total with annual recurring revenue increasing by 16% to £41m. The company continues to benefit from a strong balance sheet with net cash of £11.7m.

    Non-qualifying Investments

    Within the non-qualifying portfolio, the IFSL Marlborough UK Micro-Cap Growth Fund and IFSL Marlborough Special Situations Fund declined by £1.27m over the period. We reduced our investments in both to release liquidity ahead of scheduled dividend payments.

    Within the non-qualifying direct equities portfolio, the weaker outlook for the UK economy following the 2024 Autumn Budget impacted WH Smith and Hollywood Bowl. Bodycote struggled with weak end markets, notably automotive and aerospace, and we sold the position. BAE Systems performed well as the outlook for defence spending in the UK and Europe strengthened and TP ICAP rose as the company announced plans to spin-out its data business Parameta Solutions alongside good results. We exited BAE Systems and took profits in Chemring following strong share price performance and initiated a new position in Trustpilot. The direct equity holdings returned -£0.14m (-1.3%). The losses were offset by gains in the non-qualifying fixed income portfolio, which returned +£0.35m.

    We released £0.99m of liquidity through the sale of the Next 3.0% 2026 bond, again to support scheduled dividend payments. The average maturity of the current portfolio of six investment grade corporate bonds is just over two years with an average yield to maturity of 4.9%. This part of the Company’s portfolio is expected to generate annual income of approximately £0.85m.

    Portfolio structure 

    The VCT is comfortably through the HMRC defined investment test and ended the period at 92.29% invested as measured by the HMRC investment test.

    The market for new Qualifying Investment remained very subdued with just two VCT qualifying IPOs within the 12 months to 31 March 2025. Within the period under review, AIM VCTs invested £27.2m across 17 companies. We were measured in our deployment of capital, investing £3.6m into five companies. The new Qualifying Investments included follow on investments into Rosslyn Data Technologies and Oberon Investments Group. We invested in one IPO, RC Fornax, in addition to two new equity investments into existing AIM companies, Feedback and IXICO.

    Feedback. The company provides software solutions for the NHS which deliver secure, compliant clinical workforce tools and data management. The company’s flagship product, Bleepa, is a secure, cloud-based platform that enables healthcare professionals to share and view medical images, as well as notes and other records between primary and secondary care settings. The company has secured partnerships with both a primary care record provider and an IT consultancy to implement the solution. The VCT invested as part of a £6.1m fundraise in November 2024.

    IXICO. The company is a contract research organisation which provides tech-enabled imaging analysis services to pharma companies conducting clinical trials in neurological diseases, with a focus on Huntingdon’s disease, Alzheimer’s disease and Parkinson’s disease. The company has a network of more than 1,000 qualified sites and currently works with 18 pharma clients across 26 studies. The VCT invested as part of a £4m fundraise in October 2024.

    RC Fornax. The company is an engineering consultancy founded by former RAF engineers which serves the defence industry. The VCT invested as part of the AIM IPO in February 2025 which raised £3.7m.

    Within the qualifying portfolio, we exited through takeover Equals Group, Intelligent Ultrasound and Learning Technologies Group. The Equals Group exit valuation of £277m resulted in a gain of 141% over book cost. The Learning Technologies Group exit valued the company at £858m, a gain of 376% over book cost. We also sold our investments in Gfinity and Surface Transforms following poor performance and reduced our holding in Cohort following a period of strong share price performance.

    By market value, the VCT had an increased 58.4% (Sep 24: 56.0%) weighting to Qualifying Investments, an increased 14.2% (Sep 24: 12.9%) weighting to non-qualifying fixed income, a reduced combined 11.9% (Sep 24: 13.4%) weighting to the IFSL Marlborough UK Micro-Cap Growth Fund and IFSL Marlborough Special Situations Fund following disposals, and a reduced 7.3% (Sep 24: 8.1%) weighting to non-qualifying direct equities. New investment into Qualifying Companies and the return of capital through dividend distributions resulted in a reduced weighting to cash of 7.6%(1) (Sep 24: 9.3%(1)) of net assets despite inflows from the offer for subscription and the sale of Qualifying and Non-Qualifying Investments.

    The HMRC investment tests are set out in Chapter 3 of Part 6, ITA , which should be read in conjunction with this Investment Manager’s report. Funds raised by VCTs are first included in the investment tests from the start of the accounting period containing the third anniversary of the date on which the funds were raised. Therefore, the allocation of Qualifying Investments as defined by the VCT Rules can be different to the portfolio weighting as measured by market value relative to the net assets of the VCT.

    Outlook

    Although tail risks remain, broadly speaking the US appears to be inching towards a more moderate and workable position on trade policy. Whilst equity markets have quickly moved to price in a benign outcome, other measures such as borrowing costs and exchange rates continue to signal concern about the medium and long term impact on the US. Historically, this would be perceived as a major risk for the global economy; however, in a multi-polar world, there is potential for a moderate decoupling.

    Back at home, the government has completed two reviews that have shown increased support for defence, healthcare and housebuilding. We have good exposure to the first two. There continues to be much discussion about the outlook for the UK as a leading financial hub and the manner in which we support our growth companies. This debate will continue for some time; however, we draw comfort from the level of engagement by a variety of stakeholders. Greater and more coordinated support for the broader growth ecosystem, even if in areas that are adjacent to where we operate, will provide welcome second order benefits.

    This has fed through to AIM, which has been strongly positive since the post ‘Liberation Day’ correction with the index moving higher as investors react to the growth and value opportunity. It remains too early to comment on the durability of the rally but the foundations are being laid. Whilst government spending, as recently outlined, will support the UK growth story for several years to come; we will need to wait until the 2025 Autumn Budget to see whether this is offset by further changes to tax policy.

    We continue to see signs that deal flow is improving, albeit slowly. UK fund flows remain negative; that is the missing piece that must fall into place before investors can finally feel that a corner may have been turned.

    END

    For further information, please contact:

    Canaccord Genuity Asset Management
    Oliver Bedford    		  +44 20 7523 4837
    JTC (UK) Limited
    Uloma Adighibe
    Alexandria Tivey    		 HHV.CoSec@jtcgroup.com
    +44 203 832 3877
    +44 203 832 3891

    LEI: 213800LRYA19A69SIT31        

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