Samantha Jones has been appointed as the new Permanent Secretary at the Department of Health and Social Care
Samantha Jones
The Cabinet Secretary, with the approval of the Prime Minister, has announced the appointment of Samantha Jones as the new Permanent Secretary at the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC).
Samantha is currently a non-executive director at DHSC, and the Chief Operating Officer for Xlinks, a renewable energy company.
Samantha began her career as a nurse in the NHS, and was a hospital Chief Executive before moving to NHS England to lead the New Models of Care programme. She has also led one of the largest primary care providers in England. Since her time in the NHS, Samantha served as an expert advisor to the PM on NHS Transformation and Social Care in 2021, before taking up post as the interim Permanent Secretary and Chief Operating Officer for 10 Downing Street.
Samantha will join DHSC at a critical time, as the government rebuilds the NHS as part of the Plan for Change. Samantha will be building a team to deliver this vital transformation which will include appointing a Chief Operating Officer.
Samantha will replace Chris Wormald, who left DHSC in December last year, to take up the role of Cabinet Secretary.
The Health and Social Care Secretary, the Rt Hon Wes Streeting MP, said:
I am delighted to welcome Samantha in her new role as Permanent Secretary.
Samantha brings a wealth of experience from the frontline of healthcare as a general and paediatric nurse – she knows what it is like to be working on wards and will translate that expertise to her work across the department.
Equally, her work in senior management roles across both Whitehall and the health and social care sector will prove invaluable as we reintegrate NHS England back into the department to cut red tape, reduce duplication and make it fit for the future as part of our Plan for Change.
Cabinet Secretary, Sir Chris Wormald, said:
I am delighted to see Sam take up the role of Permanent Secretary at DHSC, having worked with her closely during my time there. Samantha is an outstanding public servant, who has spent much of her career working to improve and enrich the lives of people across the country.
This is a critical time for DHSC, as they look to welcome their NHS England colleagues back into the department, and work to deliver the government missions and Plan for Change. Samantha is uniquely positioned to drive forward this work, and I look forward to working with her.
I also want to put on record my thanks to Professor Chris Whitty for his leadership of the Department since my departure.
Samantha Jones said:
It is an absolute privilege to be appointed Permanent Secretary at DHSC, working with colleagues across health and social care to support the government’s Plan for Change and deliver a rebuilt NHS, fit for the future.
Having worked alongside the brilliant team at DHSC over the past few years, serving on their board, I look forward to leading a department of committed public servants to improve the health of our nation.
Farewell to British High Commissioner Charles Moore: Tour of duty in Namibia ends
The British High Commissioner, Mr Charles Moore, bid a final farewell to Namibia in April after four years and three months in the country.
On 9 April 2025, outgoing British High Commissioner to Namibia, Mr. Charles Moore, paid a farewell courtesy call on President Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah at State House in Windhoek.
His diplomatic term has ended after an eventful four years and three months. President Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah expressed appreciation for Mr. Moore’s service, acknowledging that the recorded increase in trade between the two countries will go a long way in reducing the unemployment rate in Namibia.
President Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah also noted that she is looking forward to welcoming Mr. Moore’s successor, Mr. Neil Bradley, when his tenure begins. She remains hopeful for a continued positive trajectory in the bilateral relationship between Namibia and the United Kingdom.
On his end, H.E. Charles Moore stated that working in Namibia has been a privilege and a career highlight. He affirmed that even though his tour of duty has come to an end, he will continue to take a close interest in Namibia’s development and is excitedly looking forward to returning as a tourist in the future.
Full implementation of the 2016 Peace Agreement is essential for lasting peace in Colombia: UK statement at the UN Security Council
Statement by Ambassador James Kariuki, UK Deputy Permanent Representative to the UN, at the UN Security Council meeting on Colombia.
The UK is clear that full implementation of the 2016 Peace Agreement is essential for lasting peace in Colombia. Last year, following President Petro’s intervention in the Council in July, we welcomed the government’s announcement of a Rapid Response Plan, which committed to accelerate implementation and deliver real change in the territories most affected by the conflict.
Communities in these areas expect the government to deliver on their urgent needs. We welcome Foreign Minister Sarabia’s commitment to accelerate the delivery of the agreement. This will require a whole of government effort with close coordination with regional and local authorities and of course, Colombia’s security forces, so that the impact is felt by those communities.
We remain concerned by the security situation in those territories, particularly for women, children and indigenous groups. The violence in Catatumbo is a clear example. We call on the government to strengthen protection measures and safeguard communities. We welcome the launch of the Pact for Catatumbo, and we urge the government to prioritise the security of all vulnerable Colombians through mechanisms already established.
This includes convening the Commission for the Follow-up, Promotion, and Verification of the Implementation of the Final Agreement (CSIVI) and delivery of the Women, Peace and Security National Action Plan published last year. With 23 peace signatories killed this year alone, and hundreds displaced, the safety, security and reintegration of all signatories to the agreement remains paramount.
President, justice for victims remains at the heart of the 2016 Agreement, with its carefully designed system of complementary institutions focused on truth, justice and reconciliation. We call on the Special Jurisdiction for Peace (SJP) to accelerate its work to ensure the confidence of victims and signatories.
To assuage growing doubts about the SJP and its efficacy, now is the time to move forward to the issuing of sanctions and to hold to account those responsible for the most serious human rights violations. The government has an essential role to play in coordinating with the SJP on the implementation of reparative measures.
Beyond the 2016 Agreement, we recognise the Colombian Government’s efforts to extend the dialogue to other armed groups. Unfortunately, as the Secretary-General’s report notes, these dialogues have not delivered the desired results.
The UK, and this Council, have consistently called upon those groups to demonstrate a genuine commitment to peace, above all by respecting the rights of the communities whose interests they claim to pursue.
Those communities continue, however, to be affected by serious violence, gross human rights abuses, and coercive and predatory behaviour at the hands of armed groups. If there is to be any hope of sustainable progress through dialogue, the groups involved need to show that they are serious about a political process.
President, to conclude, the United Kingdom remains steadfast in our support for sustainable peace in Colombia.
Home » Latest News » Work starts on Hampton play area revamp
Work has started today (Tuesday 22 April) on an exciting upgrade of the Hampton play area in Herne Bay.
Some existing items – the play ship, hexagonal swings and a rotating rocker – will be retained, with several new pieces of play equipment added in a revamp representing an investment of £123,000.
The basketball area will also be relined.
The project will take around four weeks to complete, weather permitting, and the site will be closed while work takes place.
All being well, it will reopen in time for half term at the end of May.
Community sport and activity providers in Plymouth will gather for a conference later this week to find out more about the support and opportunities available to them.
The conference, organised by the Council and Active Devon, will bring grassroots clubs and organisations together with regional and national sports bodies to share knowledge on key issues such as sustainability, funding and partnership working.
It is being held at the new Hub at Foulston Park on the evening of Thursday 24 April and will focus on the themes of participation, places and pride. There will be presentations, seminars and workshops led by the Council, Active Devon and Plymouth Marjon University, as well as Argyle Community Trust, YMCA Plymouth and Sport England.
They will cover topics including:
co-designing facilities with the community
supporting community activities through health, education and events
supporting grassroots clubs
upcoming Sport England investment in Plymouth
identifying and applying for local funding support
improving sustainability and governance
safeguarding, welfare and supporting diverse groups
rehab and pre-hab opportunities for club athletes
recognising and celebrating the social value of sport.
Councillor Sue Dann, Cabinet Member with responsibility for sport and leisure, will open the conference. She said: “As part of the city’s Active to Thrive plan, we have a shared vision for Plymouth to be the most physically active coastal city in England by 2034.
“To do this we need quality clubs, top class facilities, active schools and accessible community opportunities for sport and physical activity. This can only be achieved through collaboration between local clubs and other providers.
“The conference will be a chance for those providers to come together, share their knowledge and experiences and look at ways to build on existing strengths, as well as tackle challenges. It will also be an opportunity to connect directly with organisations that can help them develop and thrive.”
The community sport conference will start at 5.30pm and finish at 8.30pm. A limited number of tickets are still available. To view the agenda and book your place visit the Eventbrite website.
The Right Honourable Lord Lieutenant and Lord Provost of the City of Edinburgh, Robert Aldridge, expresses condolences on behalf of the city.
He said:
It is with deep sadness that the City of Edinburgh extends its heartfelt condolences to all those in the Catholic Church, both here at home and across the world, on the passing of Pope Francis. He was a powerful voice for compassion, equality, and our shared humanity. I know many of our residents will come together in mourning and reflection during this time of great loss.
Alongside Council Leader Jane Meagher, I have written to the Archbishop of St Andrews and Edinburgh to offer our sympathies.
Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government Non-Ministerial Departments
News story
Appointments made to the Forestry Commission Board
Kate Cheetham has been appointed to the board and Jennie Price and Peter Latham are reappointed
A series of appointments and reappointments have been made to the Forestry Commission Board.
By Royal Warrant, His Majesty King Charles III has appointed Kate Cheetham as a Non-Executive Commissioner. Her appointment began on 1 April 2025 and will run for three years until 31 March 2028.
Jennie Price has been reappointed for a third term of two years as Non-Executive Commissioner. This will run from 1 April 2025 until 31 March 2027.
Peter Latham will continue as a Non-Executive Commissioner for an additional six months from 1 April 2025 until 30 September 2025.
All appointments have been made on merit and in accordance with the Ministerial Governance Code on Public Appointments.
Biographies
Kate Cheetham
Kate is the Chief Legal Officer and Company Secretary of Lloyds Banking Group (LBG), where she advises the Board and executive team on legal and governance matters and leads the Group’s Legal and Secretariat function. She joined LBG in 2005, having previously worked as a corporate lawyer at Linklaters and run a commercial art gallery in London. Kate is passionate about inclusion and diversity, and has been a champion for social mobility and women’s leadership within the Group. She also served as a trustee of the Lloyds Bank Foundation for seven years, supporting grassroots charities across the UK.
Jennie Price
Jennie Price was the CEO of Sport England. Jennie is a qualified lawyer and has previously been the CEO of WRAP, a Defra-supported environmental organisation specialising in recycling and resources management. She retains an active interest in sport and is Chair of the international supervisory board on integrity in tennis. She is also a trustee of the Canal and River Trust and until very recently was Chair of Trustees of the Scouts in the UK. Jennie brings considerable expertise in engaging wide sectors of the community in outdoor activities and has an excellent understanding of the links to health and wellbeing.
Peter Latham
Peter Latham is a director of Association Technique Internationale des Bois Tropicaux (ATIBT or the International Tropical Timber Technical Association) and a trustee of the Commonwealth Forestry Association. He was previously CEO and chair of the timber distributor James Latham Plc., and chair of the Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification International. Peter brings extensive knowledge of the timber industry and experience of successful stakeholder engagement on an international level.
Notes for Editors
The Forestry Commission increases the value of woodlands to society and the environment.
It is a non-ministerial department, supported by Forest Research and Forestry England.
Non-Executive Commissioners play a pivotal role in establishing a strong, sustainable future for the organisation.
In a year filled with centenaries of famous novels, including Virginia Woolf’s Mrs Dalloway, F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby and Franz Kafka’s The Trial, another novel also quietly turns 100. William was published in 1925 by the once-celebrated, now largely forgotten, E.H. Young.
William was Young’s most successful novel. It sold more than 68,000 copies and was reprinted 20 times before 1948. It was William which established Young’s reputation as a great writer.
It follows the life of William and Kate Nesbitt and their grown-up children, tracing their trials and tribulations as modern life butts up against traditional values. One of the daughters, Lydia, leaves her husband to live with a novelist. William, a shipowner and the family’s steady centre, supports her. Kate, steeped in traditional respectability, cannot.
Two issues lie at the heart of the novel: the role of women and domestic life. Through Kate and William’s relationship, Young breaks new ground as a writer. She explores a later stage of life, when children have grown up. The husband and wife spend time alone and find themselves at odds.
This kind of astute characterisation exemplifies Young’s writing. As with many of Young’s novels, romantic love plays a very small part. The narrative emphasis falls, instead, on other types of relationships.
Women are seen to bear the main burdens of marriage and family life. Again and again, her characters rail against the smallness of middle-class female life and its social conventions.
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Place and psyche
The novel’s central tension plays out not only in the family, but also in the city they inhabit. William spans the docks and suburbs of fictional Radstowe, a thinly disguised Bristol.
As in Mrs Dalloway, place and psyche are deeply connected. Young uses the physical and social geography of Bristol to examine how women move through a world of unspoken rules.
Young lived in Bristol for 15 years. Most of her novels are set there – or rather in “Upper Radstowe”, her fictional version of real life suburban Clifton. She turned the city’s bridges, rivers and steep class divides into metaphors for the pressures placed on women navigating early 20th-century life.
In William, her characters feel real because they are flawed. The conflict between Lydia’s modern values and Kate’s traditional ones doesn’t resolve cleanly. Young isn’t interested in moralising. Instead, she observes. Her sharp wit, psychological acuity and feel for the rhythms of domestic life make William both an engrossing family novel and a quietly radical one.
Modern day Clifton in Bristol. It became Upper Radstowe in E.H. Young’s novels. Sion Hannuna/Shutterstock
Who was the woman behind Radstowe?
Emily Hilda Young was born in 1880 and died in 1949. She wrote 11 novels and was widely read in her day. Four of her novels were made into BBC radio dramas. Her 1930 novel Miss Mole was televised by the BBC in 1980.
Like many of her characters, Young led an unconventional life. During the first world war she worked as a stable hand and in a munitions factory. Her husband, a solicitor named Arthur Daniell, went off to fight. After Daniell was killed at Ypres in 1917, Young moved to London and got a job in a school where her married lover, Ralph Henderson, was the headmaster.
She was also a keen mountaineer in an era when there were few women climbers. She even pioneered and led others along a route, now known as Hope, in the Carneddau mountains in Eryri (Snowdonia) in 1915.
This quiet radicalism filters into her fiction. Her characters are often sharp-tongued, independent and disillusioned by the roles they’ve been expected to play.
It’s hard to place Young in a neat category, however. Her novels can hardly be described as romances. Love is often portrayed as destructive or imprisoning. Young was a feminist and campaigned for votes for women, but she saw human failings in both men and women. She admired strength of character in spite of gender.
If anything, she’s a 20th-century Jane Austen. Her narratives are witty portrayals of social and family life with psychological depth. In Young, though, there’s a mixture of openness and coldness, and a sarcastic sense of humour which emerges spontaneously. At times, it catches you off guard.
Like the best realist writers, Young’s world and its characters are richly drawn. And yet unlike Thomas Hardy or Leo Tolstoy, for instance, Young isn’t interested in tragedy or melodrama. Small troubles are overcome and people make up, even if it doesn’t result in a traditional happy ending.
Young’s legacy has faded, perhaps because her novels sit between genres: not quite realist, not quite modernist, not quite romantic. But as literary anniversaries prompt readers to revisit old favourites, there’s room to bring back overlooked voices.
For readers interested in the inner lives of women, in family dynamics, in novels where place and psychology are intertwined, E.H. Young is worth discovering. This year, rather than returning to the worlds of Clarissa Dalloway and Jay Gatsby, you could instead take a detour to Upper Radstowe, where quiet, deeply human dramas still unfold.
Rebecca Hutcheon 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.
Overlooking Peel Bay on the Isle of Man. Clint Hudson
The production and use of toxic synthetic chemicals called polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) were banned internationally more than 40 years ago. There is a great deal of evidence that they are carcinogens and hormone disrupters in mammals and can cause birth defects.
PCBs can build up in the tissues in increasing amounts over time (bioaccumulate) in long-lived animals and people exposed to them. They also biomagnify in the environment meaning they build up in food chains – smaller animals take them into their tissues, those are then eaten by larger animals (such as fish), which themselves are eaten by humans and marine mammals such as dolphins and seals living in Britain’s waters.
Despite these risks, the Isle of Man government – by its own admission – has been dumping toxic silt containing PCBs into the waters of Peel Bay and unlined landfills over the past decade. This is despite the fact these waters have been declared a Unesco biosphere.
Here, Patrick Byrne, Professor of Water Science at Liverpool John Moores University, questions freshwater scientist Calum MacNeil about why he thinks it is so important that the world, and particularly Unesco, takes notice about what’s being dumped into the sea around the Isle of Man.
When did you live on the Isle of Man and what was your exact role?
I lived on the Isle of Man for nearly 15 years (2004 – 2019) and left at the end of 2019.
From 2004 – 2007, I was the Isle of Man government’s freshwater biologist. From 2007 – 2017, I was the freshwater biologist and enforcement officer, responsible for regulation and enforcement of environmental matters related to controlled waters (all inland waters and coastal waters).
Where is the Isle of Man and what is the Unesco status it has earned?
The Isle of Man is a small island in the middle of the Irish Sea, located almost an equal distance from England, Northern Ireland and Scotland. It is British but not part of the UK: it is a self-governing dependency of the British Crown with its own government and laws. It is not part of the EU but is signed up to various international agreements on the environment.
Unesco is the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation. It began the biosphere programme in 1991, concentrating on the care of land, sea and species, as well as culture, heritage, community and economy.
According to the island government’s own fact sheet, biospheres have three functions: promoting sustainable development, conservation and learning. The sea makes up 87% of the Isle of Man Unesco biosphere.
Despite earning this status, evidence in the public domain shows that pollutants have been dumped into the sea. What’s been going on?
The Isle of Man government has been accused of deliberately dumping 4,000 tonnes of toxic silt from harbour dredging, which included synthetic industrial chemicals known as PCBs and heavy metals, in the Irish sea in 2014.
Despite extensive evidence in the public domain, this dumping was not mentioned once in the biosphere nomination documents, dated 2015. The nation’s biosphere website says the nomination process was “several years” in the making and the Unesco biosphere designation occurred in 2016 – only a relatively short time after the deliberate dumping in the Irish Sea.
The government has also allegedly discharged toxic PCB-contaminated effluent – known as called leachate – from an old landfill, called the Raggatt, directly into Peel Bay, an area which has one of the most popular public beaches on the island. Peel is one of three beaches (technically designated as non-bathing areas) on the island that recently failed to meet minimum standards for bathing waters.
I wasn’t aware of the details of the sea dumping of toxic silt until June 2022 when the employment tribunal findings related to the Department of Environment, Food and Agriculture’s (Defa) ex-marine monitoring officer Kevin Kenningtonbecame public. This tribunal heard evidence that this was going on before, during and after the Unesco biosphere designation.
The Isle of Man is a signatory to the Oslo-Paris convention for the protection of the marine environment for the north-east Atlantic (Ospar). The convention specifies a maximum level of marine contaminants.
A decade on from its initial application, the Isle of Man is currently bidding to renew its Unesco Biosphere status in 2026.
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There does appear to be a lack of monitoring, at least in the public domain. Given the serious nature of the contaminants, I would expect the environmental regulator to monitor any PCBs detected in the environment and fully inform the public of any exposure risk.
The disposal of thousands of tonnes of contaminated silt into biodiverse waters could have had a serious negative impact on that bid. So, how did you discover that all was not as it seemed with the marine biosphere status?
Shortly after resigning from my post in 2017, I read an article in the local media about how the attorney general of the Isle of Man (the government’s senior legal advisor) believed it might be in the public interest to hold a full investigation into the discharging of potentially toxic material retrieved from an old landfill site that was being transported by tankers and taken to the sea. There were a number of statements made in that article that I found very concerning, such as the two below:
The then Environment Minister Richard Ronan told the House of Keys [the parliament of the Isle of Man] in July last year that levels of a range of metals, ammonia, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and 225 polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) identified in the leachate exceed environmental quality standards, making it unsuitable for direct discharge into the River Neb.
The government said the leachate is subject to a large degree of dilution [as] it enters the sea. Samples are analysed regularly and the leachate “does not pose a risk to people swimming in Peel bay”.
To be clear, I knew at the time of reading this article in 2017 that there was no UK or EU environmental quality standard to legally allow a deliberate discharge of PCBs into either freshwaters (rivers and lakes) or to the sea. I knew this because PCBs are massively hydrophobic (water-hating) – meaning you shouldn’t have them suspended in effluent anyway because all they want to do is settle out at the bottom of whatever they are suspended in as soon as possible.
So, if you can detect them suspended in actual effluent you should be very worried about how much is built up or buried in the sediment accompanying that effluent. I knew the deliberate discharge of this was internationally banned and that it shouldn’t be going on into rivers or the sea.
I was even more alarmed when the article quoted a government spokesperson saying the leachate “does not pose a risk to people swimming in Peel Bay”. The government needs to prove that statement legally and scientifically because in the US and Europe there is a “risk averse” approach to PCB release.
This story and the government’s response was very concerning to me as an internationally banned carcinogen was being discharged deliberately to Peel bay, a popular public beach area, while the public were being told it was fine, legal and safe. I didn’t see how this could possibly be legal as regards international agreements.
A few months later, I was concerned about further silt dredging at Peel bay and was curious how Defa as a regulator would deal with avoiding the risk of resuspending previously buried PCBs.
Ospar gives guidance on this, as this is important as PCBs remain toxic for decades and dredging could obviously further increase the risk to the public and environment – resuspending any PCBs that had been previously buried under layers of sediment for decades would result in releasing another source of PCBs into the bay.
Was anyone concerned about possible pollution at the time of the Unesco application?
The Isle of Man government says it spent a great deal of time on the nomination process and the publicly available nomination documents are long and detailed and Defa was heavily involved in the application process and the details provided so they would have to answer that.
I don’t know if any other scientists were raising a red flag at the time, but I do refer you to Kevin Kennington’s tribunal findings which involved dumping toxic silt at sea and Defa officers were aware of this dumping in 2014. None of this was mentioned in the nomination document as far as I have been able to ascertain.
The tribunal found the toxic silt exceeded Ospar guidelines.
When The Conversation put that to Isle of Man government, it did not accept it was in contravention of the rules. But a spokesperson for the UK regulator, Defra told us: “Defra’s internal analysis concluded that the incident constituted actions that were not in accordance with the Ospar convention (Articles 4, and Annex II Art 4) and the 1996 London protocol on the prevention of marine pollution by dumping of wastes and other matter.”
What laws are involved here?
The 252-page-long nomination forms refer to the Water Pollution Act 1993. This is an act that makes “new provision for the protection of inland and coastal waters from pollution, to control deposits in the sea and for connected purposes”.
Some EU legislation is also applied to the Isle of Man, such as Ospar (the convention for protection of the marine environment of the north-east Atlantic) and the Basel convention which governs how nations, including the Isle of Man, should treat and dispose of hazardous waste, including PCBs, in an environmentally sound way.
What are the most worrying impacts of the pollution here?
In my view, the deliberate tanker discharge of PCBs to Peel bay is extremely worrying from both an environmental and public health risk perspective, as is the dredging up of PCB contaminated silt in Peel harbour.
I’m alarmed by the fact that the Isle of Man government decided that it was not in the public interest to pursue the case for the discharge into the sea, given that international agreements were broken.
What needs to change in terms of governance and law enforcement?
I feel there needs to be international scientific and legal scrutiny of all of this. I believe both Unesco and the UK government’s Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) have a responsibility here as well given the international agreements involved and the biosphere designation. Given the biosphere status surely the Isle of Man government should be acting not just to the letter of the law but the spirit of the law.
What should a biosphere reserve really look like and what needs to change?
Ideally, the government in the world’s only all-nation Unesco biosphere would fully abide by its own principlesand pledges and adhere to international agreements.
For instance, the Isle of Man government set its own environmental quality standards (EQS) for PCBs – now, those won’t be breached by the levels of existing discharges. EQS values for soil, sediment, freshwater and marine environments are derived from years of research showing the maximum concentrations (or quality standards) that cannot be exceeded in order to protect human and environmental health.
As far as I’m aware, there is still no EQS for PCBs in effluent agreed to by the EU. There are PCB guidelines for sediment and biota (animals and plants) at the end of pipelines but these are more concerned with monitoring legacy historic sources of PCBs. I don’t know legally how the Isle of Man was able to do this despite international laws.
The Isle of Man government should be taking a far more precautionary approach to PCBs and potential public exposure, environmental damage and public health risk. They should be doing this anyway, but in the world’s only entire nation Unesco biosphere, I think the moral and legal onus is on them to prove what they are doing is safe. If they are saying it is safe, they obviously need to prove it. I think the onus is also on Unesco to check what is going on in their only all-nation biosphere, especially in the “care” areas of that biosphere.
Calum MacNeil raises some important questions about the very nature of Unesco biosphere status and about the safety of the waters in and around the Isle of Man. The public has a right to clear answers and information. Here are some of the key issues from my perspective as a water scientist.
Long-term health effects
The point about PCB sorption to sediments is a good one. An important study from 2019 estimated that 75% of all PCBs manufactured since 1930 now reside in marine sediment. Marine sediment is literally the waste bin for PCBs. Dilution in rivers is commonly used as a convenient way of masking the mass transport of chemicals through rivers and ultimately to the oceans. So, yes, dilution decreases concentrations locally, but it does not reduce the volume of chemicals transported to or disposed of at sea.
The PCB discharge to Peel bay has been going on since the 1990s which is worrying given possible long-term public health risks and environmental impacts.
Some of the metabolites may leave your body in a few days, but others may remain in your body fat for months. Unchanged PCBs may also remain in your body and be stored for years mainly in the fat and liver, but smaller amounts can be found in other organs as well. Once in our bodies, they can have toxic long-term health effects. Some are associated with fertility issues and they are classed as probable human carcinogens.
Persistence in the environment
Since the 1970’s, the gradual phasing out and banning of PCBs has led to dramatic reductions in their release into the environment. However, despite this, PCBs remain one of the biggest chemical threats to humans and wildlife worldwide. Why is this? Well, we know PCBs are very persistent in the environment, which means they last for decades to hundreds of years. Because of this persistence, they accumulate in living things and we know that at certain concentrations they can be very harmful to us.
It is also because of the widely held belief that “dilution is the solution to pollution”. Sure, dilution of effluent in a river reduces concentrations locally and might allow a government or an industry to meet an environmental quality guideline.
But where have the pollutants gone? They have not disappeared – remember PCBs may persist for hundreds of years. They have gone out to sea where they accumulate in sediments and living things. And we see the evidence and impacts of this all around us. For example, PCBs and other harmful chemicals are routinely detected in apex predators like orcas and whales and polar bears and we know this is negatively impacting their physiology and reproductive health.
PCBs have been detected in the Arctic and Antarctica and even in the Mariana trench in the deep ocean. This is the cumulative result of decades of PCB discharge into the seas from all around the world. We cannot do anything about PCBs that are already in the sea, but with everything we now know about how harmful and long-lasting these chemicals are, we really cannot knowingly continue discharging them into the sea.
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Patrick Byrne receives funding from the UK Natural Environment Research Council.
Allenton is the latest community within Derby to become home to a mobility hub, joining Six Streets, Chaddesden and Normanton/Arboretum.
Building on the success of similar schemes elsewhere in the city, the new mobility hub will be installed at the Osmaston Road shopping precinct, giving citizens and local businesses greater choice when deciding how they travel around their local community.
Mobility hubs provide more opportunities for the local community to use sustainable and active travel methods – such as walking and cycling – making it easier for citizens to access local amenities. Not only do the hubs make it easier for residents to access local amenities, but it is hoped that they will draw more people into the area and enhance the local economy.
The hubs will also help the Council to learn more about the community’s travel needs and preferences, helping to shape future schemes.
Work on site to install the Osmaston Road mobility hub will begin later this spring, and will include:
Electric vehicle (EV) charging and dedicated parking for up to three EVs
An Enterprise Car Club location
An accessible seating area with bike storage, designed in consultation with local businesses, ward councillors and the Police
Interactive information totem with live travel updates
Councillor Carmel Swan, Climate Change, Transport and Sustainability said:
We’ve been working hard over the past few years to enhance and diversify Derby’s active and sustainable transport offer, giving citizens greater choice when it comes to deciding how to travel around the city.
This latest mobility hub will be a welcome addition to our ever-growing network, playing a key role in our combined efforts to combat climate change through reduced pollution and congestion in Derby.
Work on site to create the hub will begin later this spring and is expected to be completed in summer 2025.
The mobility hub will be funded by the Department for Transport (DFT)’s Future Transport Zones Fund, which was awarded to Derby City Council to trial new and exciting developments in transport.
Residents who would like to know more about the mobility hubs can get in touch with the Future Transport Zones team by emailing traffic.management@derby.gov.uk.
Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments
News story
Institute of Chartered Accountants in Ireland application to cease as a recognised professional body for insolvency practitioners
Institute of Chartered Accountants in Ireland has applied to the Secretary of State for Business to give up its status as a recognised professional body for insolvency practitioners.
Section 391N of the Insolvency Act 1986
Revocation of recognition at the request of a body
Notice in accordance with section 391N(3) of the Insolvency Act 1986
The Institute of Chartered Accountants in Ireland
On 13 November 2024, the Institute of Chartered Accountants in Ireland (otherwise known as Chartered Accountants Ireland ‘CAI’) asked the Secretary of State to consider a request made under section 391N of the Insolvency Act 1986 (‘the Act’), that it should cease to be a Recognised Professional Body (‘RPB’) for the purposes of section 391 of the Insolvency Act 1986.
CAI is listed within the Insolvency Practitioners (Recognised Professional Bodies) Order 1986 as a body recognised under Section 391 of the Act, for the purpose of authorising insolvency practitioners.
The Secretary of State for Business and Trade has considered this request and is satisfied that it is appropriate in all the circumstances to revoke this recognition in accordance with the procedure set out in section 391N of the Insolvency Act 1986.
Accordingly, the Secretary of State is making the Insolvency Practitioners (Recognised Professional Bodies) (Revocation of Recognition) Order 2025. This Order takes effect from 1 June 2025.
The reasons for making the Order in relation to the Institute of Chartered Accountants in Ireland (CAI) are:
CAI notified the Secretary of State that the low number of insolvency practitioners it authorised made it commercially unsustainable to continue as an RPB.
On 21 March 2024, the Council of the CAI approved the formal proposal to cease authorising insolvency practitioners from 1 January 2025.
CAI insolvency licence holders were informed of the intention to withdraw as an RPB on 2 June 2024.
CAI has completed all internal procedures to approve and implement the decision to withdraw as an RPB.
All insolvency practitioners licensed by CAI as at 31 December 2024 who wished to continue to practice are now authorised by another RPB.
Arrangements have been put in place for the investigation of complaints in the period between 31 December 2024 and the making of the Order formally revoking its recognition as an RPB, and in respect of any complaints made relating to conduct prior to 31 December 2024.
CAI has requested for its recognition as an RPB to be revoked.
A print version of the notice is available from the Insolvency Service, 16th Floor, 1 Westfield Avenue, Stratford, London, E20 1HZ.
Justin Madders, Parliamentary Under Secretary of State, Department for Business and Trade
Despatch of CRM12 forms for duty rotas starting 1 October begins
The sending out CRM12s to providers who have verified their tenders in stage 1 of the crime procurement process has begun.
Completed CRM12 forms must be returned to the LAA no later than Friday 23 May. However, if submitted by 9 May 2025, the form will be reviewed and there will be an opportunity to make corrections prior to the final deadline.
Only the form sent should be completed as it is specific to the 2025 Contract.
The LAA will continue to work with those providers who did not complete verification in time to join the October rota. They will be eligible to join the rota that commences in January 2026 if they complete their verification process by 31 July 2025. Their contracts will commence on 1 October 2025.
Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments
News story
DBS launches new manual ID guidance for DBS checks
DBS has launched refreshed manual ID guidance for Basic, Standard, and Enhanced DBS checks.
The Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) helps employers make safer recruitment decisions by processing and issuing DBS checks – and ID verification forms a key component of that process.
As of 22nd April 2025, the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) has implemented refreshed manual ID guidance for its DBS check service. This new guidance will be easier to understand and use for applicants and organisations conducting DBS checks.
Please note, the old guidance will continue to be useable until 1st November 2025, to take into account technical changes that Registered Bodies may need to make in line with the updated guidelines.
What’s changing?
The key changes in the guidance are:
there is no longer a different route for non-UK nationals to use. All applicants can have their ID verified using the 3-route process
we no longer require one of the documents to have the applicants current address on it
we have provided more guidance around how to view documents, making it easier for ID checks to comply with requirements
we have added the e-Visa, BRP and ARC to the list of group 1 documents to enable all applicants to validate ID
we have added 2 documents to the list of group 2b documents, broadening the range of supporting documents applicants can use. The documents are an HMRC self-assessment or tax demand letters and a European Health Insurance Card (EHIC) or Global Health Insurance Card (GHIC)
we have included example scenarios to illustrate how the process can be used
By streamlining application routes, adding more documents for applicants to choose from, and providing example scenarios, we hope to have improved the DBS check process for our customers and partners.
Where to find more information
If you would like to read the refreshed ID guidance in full, these can be found on the DBS website.
If you need any assistance with the new ID guidance, our Customer Services team will be happy to help you, as usual. You can reach them by calling 03000 200 190.
The Isle of Man government has said it is “fully committed to environmental protection and transparency” regarding its Unesco biosphere status – despite admitting that legacy landfill sites are discharging hazardous chemical contaminants into the sea.
The Isle of Man is a self-governing island in the Irish Sea between the UK and and Ireland. It is not part of the UK or the European Union, but has the status of “crown dependency” with an independent administration. Its population of about 84,000 people are British citizens.
But polychlorinated biphenols (PCBs) – synthetic industrial chemicals once used to make electricals and other materials – continue to be released into the waterways and the sea.
Although the production of PCBs was banned globally in the 1980s, they still exist in many products, like electrical equipment, much of which lingers in landfills and so they continue to pose a risk to ocean health. Research has shown how legacy contaminants such as PCBs can be released from hundreds of thousands of coastal landfills across Europe – and the Isle of Man is no different.
Evidence has been accumulating for years about PCB discharges on the Isle of Man and much of it is on the government’s own website.
For example, 4,000 tonnes of toxic silt from harbour dredging – which included PCBs and heavy metals was dumped in the Irish sea in 2014. This “trial dump” was despite environmental and legal advice from its marine monitoring officer that this would be ignoring international agreements and would be damaging to the environment.
The Insights section is committed to high-quality longform journalism. Our editors work with academics from many different backgrounds who are tackling a wide range of societal and scientific challenges.
Then in 2015 – a time when it would have been putting together its Unesco application – the island government compiled a document, titled “the Peel Marina silt questions and answers” in which it discussed further toxic waste dumping options. It states:
Disposing of 18,000 tonnes of contaminated sediments from the marina directly to the sea bed would have had a negative impact on the species involved. Testing carried out by Defa [Department of Environment, Food and Agriculture] officers had already identified the likelihood that earlier disposal of 4,000 tonnes into the sea had contributed to rises in contaminants within commercial fisheries species to levels approaching EU food safety standards.
That batch of 18,000 tonnes of contaminated silt, collected after harbour dredging in Peel harbour, was eventually moved to a sealed pit.
But it is the ongoing situation with legacy landfills which is seeing PCBs continuing to leach into the sea – a situation that the island government admits will not be entirely solved until the construction of a wastewater treatment plant (building is due to start on the plant in April 2025).
But despite its pledges of being a destination with a “fantastic seascape…and coastline”, contaminated leachate from decommissioned landfill continues to drain into the marine environment.
The Isle of Man applied for the biosphere reserve status in 2013, which was awarded in 2016 based on the submission of a comprehensive 250-page nomination document. But there was no mention of toxic landfill leachate or the dumping of thousands of tonnes of contaminated harbour silt which later came to light.
The Isle of Man government told The Conversation that Unesco was aware of the discharges and that “biosphere status is not a hallmark of perfection”. It said its PCB discharges are in line with those of the UK.
But it raises the question of whether such pollution can be in line with the spirit of the biosphere status.
It is important to be clear that the Isle of Man is not unique in the British Islands in having managed disposal or unintentional discharges of legacy industrial wastes to the sea.
My team’s research (Patrick Byrne’s) documents thousands of coastal landfills in England and Wales, many of which discharge hazardous materials to the sea through leachates or erosion.
A Unesco biosphere reserve is not supposed to be perfect – almost nowhere is. But it should be a model for how we protect and sustainably manage our environment, including how we address legacy pollution. Why not highlight the issue of legacy industrial wastes as a challenge to be met?
The Isle of Man government rejects the idea that it misrepresented any of the facts around its environmental credentials.
But when The Conversation put the details to Unesco, it said it had not been made aware of previous dumping of toxic silt containing PCBs in 2014 and added that the first time the issue was raised with them was “in late 2023”.
A spokesperson said: “At the time of the nomination, the International Committee of the Unesco Biosphere Programme was not aware of this issue.”
The government told The Conversation it included “all information relevant for consideration by Unesco” when it made its application, but said certain discharges were not in the “zonation area” and that “nowhere is perfect”.
The major concern is about being open and honest with the public and Unesco about the environmental challenges and potential human health concerns associated with legacy pollutants like PCBs. It is entirely possible that the Isle of Man’s Unesco status would still have been granted if Unesco had been fully aware about the dumping at sea.
Landfills
The Conversation spoke to Calum MacNeil, a freshwater scientist who worked for the Isle of Man government for 13 years. He now works for a research institute in New Zealand but has been flagging concerns about contamination from toxic silt. Together with his help, we spent months gathering all of the evidence, checking the facts and joining the dots between silt dredged from a harbour, landfills and sealed pits aimed at temporarily dealing with this legacy pollution.
On the Isle of Man, historic landfills dating back to the 1940s are unlined so they are not sealed. After heavy rain, pollutants can wash away and leach out into the surrounding environment.
According to a 2017 news report, the government stated that the leachate “does not pose a risk to people swimming in Peel Bay” because it’s diluted by seawater. MacNeil insists that this is “a crucial admission” because he believes that the government cannot scientifically prove that any public exposure to PCB contamination is ever safe.
MacNeil said: “I feel there needs to be international scientific and legal scrutiny of all of this. I believe both Unesco and the UK government’s Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) have a responsibility here as well given the international agreements involved and the biosphere designation. Given the biosphere status, surely the Isle of Man government should be acting not just to the letter of the law but in the spirit of the law.”
Regulations
While various international regulations govern levels of chemical contamination in leachate in and immediately around old landfills, the same rules do not apply to anything that is deliberately dumped or discharged directly into rivers or the sea.
Isle of Man legislation called the Water Pollution Act 1993 outlines that any discharge or dumping must abide by any and all relevant international agreements that apply to the Isle of Man.
MacNeil argues that the onus should be on the Isle of Man government to prove that any discharge of PCBs is legal under international agreements.
Tourists and local residents swim all year round in bathing waters such as Peel Bay, and praise for this nation’s marine conservation achievements is vast. Last summer, the Isle of Man was even nominated for the “most desirable island in Europe” travel award hosted by magazine Wanderlust.
With goals to grow annual visitor numbers to 500,000, a thriving ecotourism industry could contribute an estimated £520 million by 2032. According to the island’s tourism agency, Visit Isle of Man, it aims to be “a leading British ecotourism destination that provides a range of opportunities for visitors to connect with our unique nature and wildlife”.
Contaminated silt was allegedly dredged from Peel harbour and dumped out at sea. Daniel Sztork/Shutterstock
As one 2022 study explains, biosphere reserves are “learning sites for sustainable development”. Researchers point out that a coherent and holistic approach on the Isle of Man is not necessarily easy to achieve, in part because the biosphere is managed by one government department (Defa) with a remit for environment, food and agriculture, resulting in “age-old tensions between farming and conservation”.
The Isle of Man government’s website states: “Our biosphere status encourages us to learn about and cherish what we have in the Isle of Man and safeguard it for the future by making good decisions, as individuals, as organisations and as an island. It tells potential new residents and visitors that we are a special place for people and nature and have a conscience.”
But without openly acknowledging the legacy pollution challenges, they are literally being buried for future generations. This ultimately undermines local, national, and international efforts to learn and move forward in a sustainable way, which is at the heart of the Unesco biosphere philosophy.
A spokesperson for the Isle of Man government said:
“The Isle of Man government remains fully committed to environmental protection and transparency regarding its Unesco Biosphere status. We reject any assertion that the government has acted to misrepresent environmental matters in its Unesco application.
“All relevant data and policies have been developed in line with scientific evidence and regulatory frameworks. The Isle of Man government conducts rigorous environmental monitoring, including assessments of water quality and potential contaminants, to ensure compliance with established safety standards.
“The Isle of Man has legacy landfill sites similar to those found in the UK, Europe and around the world which leach contaminants, including PCBs, into the marine environment. Details of PCB discharges from UK landfills can be found on the UK Pollutant Release and Transfer Register (PRTR) data sets where the pollutant threshold below which data is not required to be submitted for PCBs in water is stated as 0.1kg.
“The level of PCBs entering the marine environment in the Isle of Man is slightly lower than the average throughout the Irish Sea as determined by sediment and biota samples.
“The leachate discharge from the historic Raggatt landfill, which closed in 1990, is planned to be discharged to Peel Wastewater Treatment Plant which has recently received planning permission and construction expected to commence by April 2025.
“As stated on the Department of Environment, Food and Agriculture’s pollution control monitoring webpage: ‘Independent advice from Phoenix Engineering is that this would represent the best available technology to manage and control emissions of PCBs present in Raggatt landfill leachate to the marine environment in Peel.’
“Due to historic mining, heavy metals such as lead are known to flow down the river and accumulate in silt at Peel Marina, which has previously exceeded Cefas action level 2 where sediments are considered unacceptable for uncontrolled disposal at sea without special handling and containment. No further deposits to sea of Peel dredging silt have been made since 2014, and a catchment management plan is currently being developed to reduce this contamination at Peel Marina.
“The aim for all Unesco Biospheres is to improve our environment; something which the Isle of Man has consistently strived to achieve since accreditation in 2016.”
A spokesperson for Unesco said:
“Unesco first received information on this issue in late 2023, which was then relayed to the relevant government authorities for comments. Unesco was informed that the situation appeared to stem from the presence of a UK historic landfill which is being followed through a comprehensive monitoring programme.
“Following Unesco’s request, the UK Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs confirmed that ‘it is in line with the UK government’s responsibilities under the Ospar convention, and are satisfied the Isle of Man government is taking all possible steps to prevent and eliminate pollution of PCBs from land-based sources entering the marine environment in line with Article 3 of the Ospar convention’.
“In the original application dossier, the Isle of Man committed to ‘take responsibility for overseeing salvage and pollution counter-measures in order to comply with international conventions’. It also committed to observing a range of multilateral environmental agreements (MEAs).
“As the Isle of Man Biosphere Reserve was designated in 2016, its periodic review is scheduled for 2026. Unesco will make all information available to the Intergovernmental Committee in charge of examining the renewal of the status.”
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Patrick Byrne receives funding from the UK Natural Environment Research Council.
Anna Turns 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.
Periods can be painful, unpredictable and disruptive. And for autistic people, they can present additional challenges. From sensory sensitivities to barriers accessing healthcare, the experience of autistic menstruation remains under-explored in research.
Our new review highlights just how little we know about autistic experiences of periods – and why more inclusive research from autistic people themselves is needed.
Menstruation – the biological process in which blood is discharged through the vagina from the inner lining of the uterus – is often described as a negative experience. Periods can be irregular, heavy and painful. They may also affect a person socially and emotionally.
Despite 1.8 billion people across the world menstruating every month, period stigma still exists. For many, this leads to social isolation and negatively affects their access to appropriate menstrual education and products. And, while menstrual products and awareness have improved over the last few decades, many people across the globe are still unable to afford the products they need.
Incidences of structural sexism within education, the workplace and healthcare can negatively affect those who aren’t cisgender men. People assigned female at birth – including girls, women, transgender men and some non-binary people – who experience menstruation are affected by the historical focus on the male body in healthcare. For example, gynaecological conditions such as endometriosis are only now receiving attention within research, having previously been largely ignored.
Autism research has historically focused on cisgender men and boys. The experiences of autistic people assigned female at birth have only recently started to be researched, especially in relation to their reproductive care. What limited research does exist has shown poorer physical, mental and social wellbeing outcomes relating to their experiences of menstruation.
We reviewed existing studies that detail experiences of periods both from the point of view of autistic people and those who support them. We focused on research that had interviewed autistic people directly, and those within their social circle, about periods. Twelve sources, including research papers, articles and blogs, fitted our criteria, from which we identified the important themes.
Our sources included contributions from autistic people who were mostly teenagers and young adults, alongside parents, siblings, and medical and educational professionals. While the themes discussed depended on who was being spoken to, many autistic reflections focused on the need for information and practical support ahead of periods starting.
Some interviewees described having autism-specific experiences during menstruation, such as increased sensory sensitivities and burnout (a state of exhaustion and personal withdrawal). These were often unseen by the people around them.
Parental and professional comments typically focused on the need for tailored support for their autistic children who were menstruating, with the end-goal of independence. Often, their comments set the child against neurotypical standards, the social norms of the majority.
Menstruation was described as a predominantly negative experience by everyone who was spoken to. But mentions of period stigma affected how comfortable autistic people were discussing this topic with others.
They were also less likely to access social networks and peer support in social environments such as schools. Very often because of this, autistic people weren’t provided with the knowledge they needed to compare their experiences with those of other people.
Pain
The dismissal of pain emerged as a significant issue. Many autistic people reported that their pain was normalised by those around them, including parents, siblings and school staff, regardless of its severity. They were told their level of pain was something everyone else also experienced and dealt with. Autistic people were also likely to internalise these messages until they became their own opinions and beliefs.
Since autistic people often perceive and communicate pain differently, this can lead to delays in seeking help – and being rejected when they do so.
The lack of autistic voices in research influences the kind of support that is developed. If resources are designed based on the priorities of parents or professionals rather than autistic people themselves, these resources may fail to meet the needs of the people having periods.
There are specific autism-related experiences of menstruation that we know less about because of the lack of research. Our review suggests autistic people are often held to neurotypical standards of menstrual management – without recognition of autism-specific factors such as sensory sensitivities, communication differences and the ways in which information is best conveyed.
We argue that future research on menstruation should include autistic voices, speaking to people of different ages and backgrounds about their experiences.
By prioritising autistic perspectives, we can develop more accessible resources and communication strategies that ensure this knowledge is transferred in ways that make sense for those who need it most. Tailored support could also help parents, carers and professionals better understand and respond to autistic experiences of menstruation.
If we want to create meaningful change, we need to start by listening to autistic people themselves.
Aimee Grant receives funding from the Wellcome Trust, Medical Research Council and the Morgan Advanced Studies Institute. She is a non-executive director of Disability Wales.
Monique Craine owns & runs Neurodivergent Matters. They are a member of Welsh Labour. They are part of the Independent Advisory Group for Dyfed Powys Police. Monique is also a community councillor for Tawe Uchaf Community Council.
Rebecca Ellis 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.
Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments
News story
Two new Board Members appointed to the Charity Commission for England and Wales
The Secretary of State has appointed Tasnim Khalid and Alan Mather as Board Members to the Charity Commission for England and Wales for a 3 year term commencing 23 April 2025 to 22 April 2028.
Tasnim Khalid
Tasnim Khalid, Solicitor, is the founder and Managing Partner of “Private Client Solicitors” which is a boutique law firm that specialises in private wealth planning, charity law and practice. Tasnim is ranked in leading legal directories such as “Chambers HNW Guide” and “Legal 500”. Tasnim was listed in the “100 Female Entrepreneurs to Watch” in the Telegraph list and won the Northern Power Woman Award 2024 and the Legal 500 “Private Client Partner of the Year” for the Northern Powerhouse award 2025.
Alan Mather
Alan Mather is an experienced digital transformation leader with a strong track record in leading complicated technology programmes across the public and private sectors. He is a recognised pioneer of UK digital government launching the first transactional services such as Self Assessment, UK online, the Government Gateway and Direct.gov.uk; more recently he has delivered and/or designed digital services for organisations including Defra, Livestock Information Ltd, National Physical Laboratory and the Home Office. He has held CEO, CIO and COO positions in large organisations and led the turnaround of major programmes. He has previously been a Non-Executive Director in the hospitality and energy sector.
Remuneration and Governance Code
Trustees of the Charity Commission are remunerated £350 a day. This appointment has been made in accordance with the Cabinet Office’s Governance Code on Public Appointments.
The appointments process is regulated by the Commissioner for Public Appointments. Under the Code, any significant political activity undertaken by an appointee in the last five years must be declared. This is defined as including holding office, public speaking, making a recordable donation, or candidature for election. Tasnim Khalid and Alan Mather have not declared any significant political activity.
Ana Stewart appointed as Chief Entrepreneur as Ecosystem Fund reopens.
Businesswoman and investor Ana Stewart has been appointed the Scottish Government’s new Chief Entrepreneur.
Ms Stewart, who also co-authored a landmark “Pathways” report on supporting women in entrepreneurship in 2023, will take up the role until July 2026.
The Chief Entrepreneur’s remit includes:
acting as the chief advisor to Government on growing the start-up and scale-up economy. This includes key priorities such as implementing the Pathways report, optimising existing programmes and initiatives, growing Scotland’s risk capital market and working with universities to increase the number of spinout companies who reach scale.
engaging closely with investors and entrepreneurs, ensuring that Government policy and delivery is shaped by business.
making sure entrepreneurship is instilled in the education and skills systems, with clear routes established to setting up a business
Deputy First Minister Kate Forbes and Ms Stewart visited the offices of Inspirent, a social enterprise based in Hamilton, to mark the appointment and launch a new round of the Scottish Government’s Ecosystem Fund.
Inspirent will be the delivery partner of this year’s £700,000 fund, which is focused on developing the strength and impact of Scotland’s start-up community by funding organisations and programmes that support new companies to start and grow.
The application process is being fully digitised from this year through a dedicated online portal, enabling faster funding decisions and expanding opportunities for grassroots initiatives and community-led projects across Scotland.
£2.6 million has been awarded to 75 innovative projects through the Ecosystem Fund since it launched in 2021-22.
Deputy First Minister Kate Forbes said:
“It is vital to Scotland’s economic resilience that we support our business community – particularly those taking their first steps. Ana Stewart is an exceptional talent with deep experience of starting, scaling and investing in some of Scotland’s best companies, and will ensure we are well-placed to deliver this support.
“Scotland is home to some of the world’s brightest business minds, ideas and innovators. The Scottish Government is committed to helping deliver an end-to-end support network that nurtures this talent and helps this and future generations of business founders to thrive.
“To deliver truly meaningful, strategic support, it is vital we continue to listen to and learn from entrepreneurs and the wider business community. Ana Stewart brings the insight, lived experience and connections needed to shape and accelerate our policies and deliver for Scotland’s start-up talent.”
The Scottish Government’s Chief Entrepreneur Ana Stewart said:
“Leveraging my own lived experience as an entrepreneur and investor, I am looking forward to contributing to the development and optimisation of the Scottish Government’s entrepreneurship strategy.
“Entrepreneurship is the engine room for economic growth and it’s essential that we provide more pathways, increased access and accelerated funding to current and future founders, whilst ensuring private and public sector are aligned in making that happen.”
Founder of Ecosystem Builders Network, a previous Ecosystem Fund recipient, Bruce Walker said:
“The Ecosystem Fund has been a vital catalyst for Scotland’s entrepreneurial community, enabling grassroots organisations to provide meaningful support to founders. It has allowed us to deliver targeted programmes to help entrepreneurs build resilient businesses, scale their impact and connect with global networks, as well as strengthen ecosystem builders across Scotland.
“For many early-stage founders, this support comes at a critical time, bridging the gap between ambition and action. Beyond individual ventures, the fund has helped strengthen the connective tissue of the wider ecosystem, empowering local leaders to foster inclusive, sustainable growth across sectors. Its impact continues to ripple through the community, creating a more collaborative, vibrant entrepreneurial landscape in Scotland.”
Background
Applications for the 2025-26 Ecosystem Fund are open until Monday 20 May. The application portal and further information can be found on a new dedicated Ecosystem Fund website: www.ecosystemfund.co.uk
The Chief Entrepreneur role was established in 2022 as a commitment to delivering the National Strategy for Economic Transformation. Ms Stewart has elected not to be paid for the role. She has agreed with Ministers that funds earmarked for her remuneration will be reinvested in the Scottish start-up economy.
The Scottish Government will invest £34.7 million across entrepreneurship, innovation and social enterprise in 2025-26 – a 50% increase on 2024-25.
The Scottish Government’s Economic Development Directorate has awarded a £50,000 grant to Pathways Forward, a non-profit organisation established by Ana Stewart to drive the private sector’s contribution to the implementation of Pathways. The grant will enable the organisation to continue its work in Ana’s day-to-day absence.
National rollout of new Scottish benefit for pensioners
Pension Age Disability Payment is now open for applications across Scotland. The national rollout follows successful pilots in 18 local authority areas, which began in October.
It is the fifteenth benefit to be delivered by the Scottish Government and it is replacing the UK Government’s Attendance Allowance, delivered by the Department for Work and Pensions.
Pension Age Disability Payment is for disabled people or those with a long-term health condition that means they need help looking after themselves or supervision to stay safe. It is available to people of State Pension age and is also available to pensioners who are terminally ill.
People currently getting Attendance Allowance do not need to take any action; the transfer will happen automatically in phases throughout 2025. Everyone will continue to receive their payments on time and in the right amount.
Social Justice Secretary Shirley-Anne Somerville said:
“The national launch of Pension Age Disability Payment is an important milestone in the development of our social security system, that will treat everyone with dignity, fairness and respect.
“The pilot phases have allowed us to put our different approach into practice, learning and improving before rolling the benefit out across Scotland.
“It is vital older people who are disabled, terminally ill or those who have care needs get the money they need to help them look after themselves, stay safe and live with dignity.
“The Scottish Government is committed to ensuring everyone gets the financial support they’re entitled to and this has not changed following the UK Government’s announcement on benefit reforms.”
Chief Executive at Age Scotland, Katherine Crawford said:
“Pension Age Disability Payment will be a vital means of support for older people who have a disability or long-term health condition.
“With rising bills and cost of living stretching many beyond their means, it’s vital that older people are not missing out on any financial support.
“If you are unsure of your eligibility or looking for support with an application, please don’t hesitate to get in touch with the Age Scotland helpline on 0800 12 44 222, use our online benefits calculator at www.age.scot/benefitscalculator, or book a place on one of our new workshops which are designed to support and give guidance to anyone who is considering an application for themselves or someone else www.age.scot/benefitsworkshops.”
Lynda O’Neill, Project Manager at The Daffodil Club in Easterhouse, said “I know from working with older people with disabilities how costly it can be. I’ve helped people to apply for support and would encourage anyone who thinks they could be eligible or knows someone who could be eligible to apply.”
More information about Pension Age Disability Payment including who is eligible and how to apply can be found at: www.mygov.scot/pensiondisability
Background
On 22 April 2025 the benefit extended to 14 more areas – Dumfries and Galloway, East Dunbartonshire, East Lothian, East Renfrewshire, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Inverclyde, Midlothian, North Lanarkshire, Renfrewshire, Scottish Borders, South Lanarkshire, West Dunbartonshire and West Lothian.
Pension Age Disability Payment is replacing Attendance Allowance in Scotland. People in Scotland who are getting Attendance Allowance from the Department for Work and Pensions do not need to do anything as their award transfer will happen automatically. Social Security Scotland will write to people to let them know when this is happening and when this is complete. Social Security Scotland aims to complete case transfer for everyone by the end of 2025. Until people receive the letter from Social Security Scotland to tell them their transfer is complete, they should continue to report any change in circumstances, including a terminal illness diagnosis, to the Department for Work and Pensions.
Pension Age Disability Payment launched on 21 October 2024 in five pilot areas – Aberdeen City, Argyll and Bute, Highland, Orkney and Shetland. It rolled out to 13 more areas on 24 March – Aberdeenshire, Angus, Clackmannanshire, Dundee City, East Ayrshire, Falkirk, Fife, Moray, Na h-Eileanan Siar (Western Isles), North Ayrshire, Perth and Kinross, South Ayrshire and Stirling. The payment is available throughout Scotland from 22 April 2025.
It is not means-tested and is worth between £295 and £441 a month depending on the needs of the person who gets it.
Social Security Scotland has started transferring the awards of 169,000 people in Scotland who currently receive Attendance Allowance to the new benefit.
Eligible people who have been diagnosed with a terminal illness are automatically entitled to the higher rate of care and can apply under special rules for terminal illness. This means that Social Security Scotland will prioritise their application. People who are already getting Pension Age Disability Payment and later receive a terminal illness diagnosis can also report this diagnosis to Social Security Scotland under the special rules for terminal illness to ensure they get the support they are entitled to.
Social Security Scotland’s accelerated application process for people who are terminally ill is open to any eligible person who has a terminal illness diagnosis, no matter how long they’re expected to live. This is different to the Department for Work and Pensions, who only class someone as terminally ill if they are expected to live for 12 months or less.
Pension Age Disability Payment was designed with the people who will be eligible for the benefit and those who support them. Improvements include a streamlined process for people to nominate a third-party representative who can support them in their interactions with Social Security Scotland – something that older disabled people told us was important to them.
Social Security Scotland can help people to apply, with face-to-face support available from advisers based in communities across the country.
Help is also available from independent advocacy service Voiceability who are funded by the Scottish Government to help disabled people applying for devolved benefits.
Housing Allocation Policy for 2025 to 2028 approved by Salford City Council.
The policy underpins the council’s wider strategic priorities of its Corporate Plan 2024 to 2028 and commitment to ‘a good home for all’.
Housing options available will be dependent upon the level and type of housing need, in addition to the size, type and location of available properties. Each application is assessed on its own merits.
Salford City Council’s cabinet has approved its Housing Allocation Policy for 2025 – 2028, which sets out how social rented housing is allocated within the area and how residents on the housing register are prioritised taking into account local considerations and needs.
The need and strong demand for social housing currently outweighs the availability of social housing, with around 4,500 people on the council’s housing register, at any one time. This includes many of the 787 households currently housed in temporary accommodation. However, fewer than 900 properties are advertised or let every year, through the register.
Furthermore, the city faces a number of challenges in the form of increasing homelessness, temporary accommodation use and costs. This policy, therefore underpins the council’s wider strategic priorities which are: homelessness prevention, making the best use of housing assets, supporting the councils corporate parenting role/responsibilities, reducing the impact of domestic abuse including the cycle of abuse and an anti-poverty approach.
The policy is based on:
A fair system for the allocation of housing accommodation, which is transparent and easy to understand.
Making best use of increasingly scarce social housing stock (Homes available for rent below market rate to households whose needs cannot be met by the commercial housing market – Housing and Regeneration Act 2008).
Preventing homelessness and reduce the usage and length of stay in temporary accommodation.
Giving priority to applicants with the greatest housing need.
Managing customer expectations by supporting people to make realistic and informed choices about where they live.
Creating sustainable tenancies in the light of welfare reform.
Creating balanced and stable communities.
A first stage public consultation took place in March 2024, to review the existing policy criteria, which included members of the public, local organisations, key stakeholders and partners. A second stage public consultation was held in December 2024, to further explore the suggested and proposed policy changes – including engagement with vulnerable people who shared their real-life experiences.
The outcome of this review and public consultation recommended 16 changes to be implemented within the new Allocation Policy (Adobe PDF format). A further review will take place in 2027/28 or earlier if required by new legislation or government guidance.
The housing options available to a household will be dependent upon the level and type of housing need. Each application will be assessed on its own merits and exceptional circumstances will also be taken into consideration. Housing options and advice aim to achieve:
Help and support to remain in current accommodation.
Advice on securing alternative private rented accommodation.
Advice on mobility schemes that may help a household move out of the area.
Advice to current social housing tenants on mutual exchange.
Advice on low-cost home ownership options.
Access to the housing register to obtain social housing.
Councillor Tracy Kelly, Lead Member for Housing and Anti-Poverty at Salford City Council said: “The policy enables the council to deliver a consistent and equitable approach to the allocation of social housing in Salford, to help us meet the housing needs of residents in our communities.
“We recognise that social housing is in high demand, both in Salford and across the country, which is why we are continuing to deliver on our pledge to build good quality homes as well as truly affordable homes for social rent alongside support for people at risk of or experiencing homelessness.
“The need for affordable housing options in Salford means that it’s vital we continue to work to create long-term solutions to turn the situation around and provide truly affordable housing in our city which local people need and deserve.”
Residents and businesses are being invited to share their views on a proposal to expand York’s existing Smoke Control Area to cover all areas within council boundaries.
In a Smoke Control Area, it is an offence to emit smoke from a chimney of a building. Correctly seasoned wood, timber or logs should only be burnt in a Defra approved appliance and authorised ‘smokeless’ fuels must be used in any other appliances that are not Defra approved.
Most residential areas within York’s outer ring road and Haxby and Wigginton, are already included within York’s Smoke Control Area.
The new proposal to expand the area across York will not ban people from burning solid fuel. Instead, it will require all residents and businesses to take responsibility for the fuel they burn – to minimise smoke and air pollution and improve health and wellbeing.
Houseboats are not covered by the existing Smoke Control Areas and are not proposed to be covered by the expanded area. Garden bonfires, outdoor barbecues, chimineas and firepits are also not covered by Smoke Control Area rules.
The Council has previously consulted on measures to improve local air quality and reduce the impact of burning solid fuels such as wood (AQAP4). Burning of wood contributes to a type of pollution called fine particulate matter (PM2.5) both inside and outside the home. Around a third of PM2.5 emissions in York are caused by burning wood for heating.
Cllr Jenny Kent, Executive Member for Environmentand Climate Emergency, said:
“Everyone can be affected by air pollution, but children, older people and those with heart and lung conditions are especially at risk.
“We are committed to improving the health and wellbeing of the local community and improving local air quality is one way in which we are working to achieve this.
Cllr Steels-Walshaw, Executive Member for Public Health, said:
“Emissions of fine particulate matter present in smoke are particularly harmful to health as their size means they can get deep into the lungs and enter the bloodstream to be transported around the body.
“Expanding the Smoke Control Area willprovide cleaner air for all and provide a level playing field across the city.”
Any complaints of chimney smoke will be investigated in line with the Council’s current enforcement policy, which initially requires the Council to provide advice on the use of suitable appliances and fuels. Residents struggling with the cost of heating will be signposted to advice on accessing financial and practical help on heating their homes.
Following advice, Council officers can issue penalties of up to £300 where they witness the emission of smoke from a chimney in a Smoke Control Area. Those found to be selling or buying unauthorised fuel for use in an appliance that’s not approved by Defra can also face fines of up to £1,000.
Over the past few years, support for Welsh independence has grown in ways not seen before. A recent poll commissioned by YesCymru, a pro-independence campaign group, found that 41% of people who’ve made up their minds on the issue would now vote in favour of independence.
The striking finding is that the number jumps to 72% among 25-to-34 year olds. Meanwhile older generations, particularly those aged 65 and up, remain firmly in the “no” camp, with 80% opposed.
This does seem a big shift in public mood. But does it mean Wales is becoming more nationalist? Not exactly.
The relationship between constitutional attitudes and nationalism is complicated, as research by myself and colleagues shows. Many people back independence for reasons that have less to do with feeling strongly Welsh or waving flags, and more to do with wanting better decision-making closer to home.
During 2021, as part of a broader research project on Welsh people’s views on the COVID pandemic and vaccination, we spoke to people from different ages, backgrounds and locations. Some were vaccinated, others weren’t. Some had voted in elections while others hadn’t voted in years, if ever.
Many people we talked to felt the Welsh government had done a better job than Westminster at handling the pandemic. They saw the decisions made in Wales – like keeping stricter rules in place when England relaxed theirs – as more sensible, more caring, and more in line with what they personally wanted from a government. And with that came a confidence that Wales could handle even more control over its own affairs.
Historically, Welsh nationalism was tightly linked to the Welsh language and culture. Self-government was always a part of the conversation, but not necessarily the main driver. That started changing in the late 20th century.
In 1979, Wales voted against devolution. In 1997, it narrowly voted in favour. After that, things slowly began to shift. And now, more than 25 years into devolution, support for some form of self-government is the mainstream view. Independence is no longer such a fringe idea.
Interestingly, younger generations are far more open to it – and many of them aren’t what you’d typically think of as nationalists. They may not speak Welsh or see themselves as “political” in the traditional sense. Their support often comes from practical concerns about the economy, democracy and how decisions are made.
External events like Brexit have clearly played a role. In fact, the YesCymru campaign was formed just before the EU referendum in 2016. Independence support surged afterwards, especially among Remain voters.
Many saw the Brexit fallout, as well as austerity, as proof that Westminster didn’t reflect their values or priorities. This showed how disruptive events can reshape the way people see their place within the UK.
Independence without nationalism?
One of the more surprising findings in our research – echoed in the 2025 polling – is that support for independence doesn’t always come from people who are politically engaged or pro-devolution. In fact, some support came from people who hadn’t voted in years, or felt completely disillusioned with the political system.
They expressed their support for independence through statements like: “They [the Welsh government] all need to go, but if I pay tax in Wales I want it to stay in Wales and be spent here.”
We also found a lot of people sitting on the fence. They weren’t against independence, but they had big questions about it. Would it mean isolation? Would it lead to more division?
One person told us: “I’m a little bit nationalistic, but I didn’t want the UK to leave the EU. So why would I want Wales to leave the UK?” Another said: “I don’t believe in borders, but I do think the Welsh government should run things.”
These aren’t black-and-white views. People’s feelings about independence – and nationalism – are often full of contradictions. And this reflects the wider truth that ordinary political views are often messy. Most of us don’t live in the extremes, and this is a good thing.
What’s also worth noting is that nationalism takes many forms. Some people who strongly oppose Welsh independence do so from a very rightwing populist-nationalist perspective, where calls to abolish the Senedd (Welsh parliament) sit alongside demands for hard borders and less immigration. So, the assumption that “independence equals nationalism” isn’t always true – and nor is the reverse.
Could independence really happen?
Wales isn’t alone in debating big questions about its future. In places such as Scotland, Catalonia and Flanders, political and economic crises can fuel movements for independence. In all these cases, trust in central government and a desire for more local fiscal control have played a major role.
For Wales, the question often comes back to the economy. While faith in Wales’s ability to govern is growing, many still worry whether an independent Wales could stand on its own financially. And for a lot of undecided voters, that remains the sticking point. For this reason, granting Wales more powers through devolution might do more to stave off demands for independence than anything else.
But the conversation is shifting. Support for independence is no longer just about nationalist grievances. It’s about how people want to be governed, and about trust and responsiveness.
So, does supporting Welsh independence make you a nationalist? Not necessarily. For many, it’s not about nationalism at all.
Robin Mann receives funding from the Economic and Social Research Council and the British Academy. He is a Reader in Sociology at Bangor University and also Co-director of the Wales Institute of Social and Economic Research and Data (WISERD).
In some parts of the world, a person may be secreted away or imprisoned by the government without any advanced notification of wrongdoing or chance to make a defense. This has not been lawful in the United States from its very inception, or in many other countries where the rule of law and respect for individual civil rights are paramount.
In an April 7, 2025, decision in a habeas corpus case brought by lawyers from the American Civil Liberties Union representing Venezuelans who faced deportation, the Supreme Court reaffirmed that the government must give those it aims to deport the opportunity to legally challenge their removal from the U.S. This chance for due process when deprived of liberty is what habeas corpus is and does.
The Magna Carta itself was, as the U.K. parliament describes it, “the first document to put into writing the principle that the king and his government was not above the law.”
Although the writ originally was a means of enforcing the king’s power over his subjects, as noted by the Supreme Court in reviewing the writ’s long history, English judges over time issued habeas corpus “to enforce the King’s prerogative to inquire into the authority of a jailer to hold a prisoner.”
The idea crossed the ocean to play an important part in the formation of the U.S. constitutional form of democracy. As the Supreme Court emphasized in a 2008 case holding that the habeas corpus privilege existed even for “aliens” designated as enemy combatants and detained at Guantanamo Bay: “Protection for the privilege of habeas corpus was one of the few safeguards of liberty specified in a Constitution that, at the outset, had no Bill of Rights.”
In the Federal Judiciary Act of 1789, which created lower federal courts following the ratification of the Constitution, Congress gave immediate power to the federal courts to issue habeas corpus relief.
States and some tribes also have their own habeas corpus statutes. Congress also extended habeas to allow federal challenges to detention by tribal officials via the Indian Civil Rights Act of 1968, which made many of the constitutional rights held by individuals applicable to official action by federally recognized Native American tribes. In fact, habeas corpus is the sole remedy under the Indian Civil Rights Act for challenging any of the enumerated rights in that act.
When is habeas corpus used?
The principal use of habeas corpus, historically and in more modern times, has been “to seek release of persons held in actual, physical custody in prison or jail,” as Justice Hugo Black wrote in a 1962 Supreme Court opinion.
Its scope extends well beyond imprisonment, however. Habeas has been the vehicle for challenging interference with child custodial rights, involuntary commitment to inpatient treatment or psychiatric care, military induction, restrictive conditions of pretrial release, probation or parole, and banishment from tribal lands, to name a few examples.
Besides securing the physical release of imprisoned persons, habeas corpus may result in dismissal of criminal charges, new trials or appeals, the appointment of legal counsel, and court orders directing remediation of cruel or inhumane conditions of confinement.
The idea that no person shall be deprived unjustly of liberty formally dates back to the 39th Clause of this document, the Magna Carta, signed by England’s King John in 1215. The National Archives
Critical safeguard of liberty
Detained individuals have been blocked from using habeas corpus less than a handful of times in American history.
In the words of the Constitution’s Article I, which governs congressional power: “The Privilege of the Writ of Habeas Corpus shall not be suspended, unless when in Cases of Rebellion or Invasion the public Safety may require it.”
For example, it was suspended by President Abraham Lincoln during the Civil War; in Hawaii after the 1941 bombing of Pearl Harbor; during rebellions in 11 South Carolina counties overtaken by the Ku Klux Klan during Reconstruction in the years just after the Civil War; and in certain provinces of the U.S.-controlled Philippines in 1905.
Significantly, however, habeas relief has remained vital to challenges to presidential orders and congressional enactments even during times of war and other national security concerns.
The Supreme Court reaffirmed the validity of using habeas corpus in many efforts to suspend or limit the writ in cases stemming from the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.
In November 2001, President George W. Bush issued a military order authorizing the indefinite detention of noncitizens suspected of being connected to terrorism. Under that order, Yaser Hamdi, who was an American citizen, was detained in U.S. military facilities without being charged, without legal counsel or the possibility of court hearings after being accused of fighting for the Taliban against the United States.
In a 2004 ruling on Hamdi’s case against the government, the Supreme Court upheld the right of every American citizen to use habeas corpus, even when declared to be an enemy combatant.
In the 2004 landmark case of Rasul v. Bush, the Supreme Court reaffirmed limits on when habeas corpus can be suspended – and when it cannot. The justices said that even foreign detainees captured in countries around the world and brought to Guantanamo Bay on suspected ties to terrorism had the right to challenge their detention in U.S. courts.
Habeas corpus is a critical safeguard of liberty. In the words of Chief Justice John Marshall in the seminal 1803 case, Marbury v. Madison, the “very essence” of civil liberty is “the right to claim the protection of the laws, whenever he receives an injury.”
Andrea Seielstad does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.
It follows a spate of deliberate fires sparked in Hanley Park, which has led to damage and endangered wildlife habitats.
Stoke-on-Trent City Council is teaming up with Staffordshire Fire and Rescue to remind visitors to parks and outdoor spaces of the dangers of starting fires.
It follows a spate of deliberate fires sparked in Hanley Park, which has led to damage and endangered wildlife habitats.
The most recent vandalism at Hanley Park included a “dead” hedge row being set on fire. These structures are carefully built by the park’s team and dedicated volunteers to increase biodiversity and create habitats for wildlife. They play a vital role in supporting birds, insects and small mammals – and in making the park a thriving, natural space for everyone to enjoy.
Councillor Amjid Wazir OBE, cabinet member for city pride, enforcement and sustainability at Stoke-on-Trent City Council, said: “This kind of reckless damage isn’t just dangerous, it undoes hours of hard work aimed at protecting and improving our local environment.
“Parks are meant to be a place to get lost in nature, to relax, or to exercise and to spend time with friends and family.
“The most recent dry spell has also made the land more prone to fires. Please talk to your children, even friends and family members about the importance of looking after nature.
“Our Park’s Team work tirelessly in all weathers, year in and year out to ensure not only visitors have the best visit, but that nature is thriving. Let’s not undo that hard work.
“Bin your rubbish, make sure cigarettes are extinguished and binned and remember, absolutely no fires or BBQs in the parks.”
Visitors are also reminded to respect the plants and flower beds throughout the parks. Hanley Park hosts award-winning displays each year; however, recently flowers have been picked and thrown across the floor.
“Fires not only cause significant damage to our natural environment, but also place a considerable strain on emergency resources that may be needed elsewhere.
“We are asking members of the public to refrain from lighting bonfires or barbecues in public spaces such as parks and open countryside. These activities can quickly become dangerous and get out of control, particularly in dry or windy conditions.
“Visitors are reminded to always dispose of rubbish responsibly using the bins provided, and to ensure cigarettes are fully extinguished before discarding them.
“We thank the public for their cooperation in keeping our communities and green spaces safe.”
“Our PCSOs are regularly patrolling the area to keep visitors safe. We would also like to remind people that we hold a weekly police surgery at Hanley Park every Saturday and would urge local residents to talk to us about their concerns.”
Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments
Press release
One year until Making Tax Digital for Income Tax launches
Making Tax Digital for Income Tax starts in April 2026 for sole traders and landlords with qualifying income over £50,000.
Making Tax Digital for Income Tax goes live on 6 April 2026 – supporting the government’s Plan for Change to deliver economic growth
Eligible taxpayers encouraged to sign up to a testing programme now to get ahead of the changes
Digital record-keeping will deliver time-saving benefits for taxpayers
There is less than a year to go until sole traders and landlords with an income over £50,000 will be required to use Making Tax Digital (MTD) for Income Tax.
The launch on 6 April 2026 marks a significant and ultimately time-saving change in how these individuals will need to keep digital records and report their income to HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC).
By keeping digital records throughout the year, sole traders and landlords can save hours previously spent gathering information at tax return time – allowing them to spend more time focusing on their business activities and in turn, driving economic growth as part of the government’s Plan for Change.
Quarterly updates will spread the workload more evenly throughout the year, bring the tax system closer to real-time reporting and help businesses stay on top of their finances and avoid the last-minute rush.
James Murray MP, Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury, said:
MTD for Income Tax is an essential part of our plan to transform the UK’s tax system into one that supports economic growth.
By modernising how people manage their tax, we’re helping businesses work more efficiently and productively while ensuring everyone pays their fair share.
This is a crucial step in this government’s decade of national renewal and our Plan for Change, as we clear away barriers that hold back growth.
Craig Ogilvie, HMRC’s Director of Making Tax Digital, said:
MTD for Income Tax is the most significant change to the Self Assessment regime since its introduction in 1997. It will make it easier for self-employed people and landlords to stay on top of their tax affairs and help ensure they pay the right amount of tax.
By signing up to our testing programme now, self-employed people and landlords will be able to familiarise themselves with the new process and access dedicated support from our MTD Customer Support Team, before it becomes compulsory next year.
From April 2026, individuals with qualifying income above £50,000 will need to keep digital records, use MTD-compatible software and submit quarterly summaries of their income and expenses to HMRC. These digital requirements will help businesses save time through more efficient record-keeping, reduce errors in tax calculations, and provide a clearer picture of their tax obligations throughout the year.
Qualifying income includes gross income from self-employment and property before any tax allowances or expenses are deducted. Those with qualifying income above £30,000 will also be required to use MTD for Income Tax from April 2027. The threshold will then decrease to £20,000 from April 2028.
The phased introduction of MTD for Income Tax follows the successful implementation of MTD for VAT, which now helps more than two million businesses reduce errors and save time on their tax affairs. Businesses which joined the MTD for VAT testing phase were better prepared for the move to quarterly reporting.
An independent report published in 2021 found that 69% of mandated businesses experienced at least one benefit from MTD for VAT, while 67% reported that it reduced the potential for mistakes in their record keeping.
Further information
MTD was first introduced for VAT-registered businesses in April 2019, with all qualifying businesses required to join from April 2022.
Penalties for late quarterly updates will not apply during the testing phase, providing an ideal opportunity to get used to the new process without risk.
Around 780,000 self-employed individuals and landlords will be required to use MTD for Income Tax from April 2026, with a further 970,000 joining from April 2027.
Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments
News story
UK-Ukraine TechBridge Industry Third Steering Board Communiqué
The Industry Steering Board for UK-Ukraine TechBridge met on 20 March 2025.
The Industry Steering Board for the UK-Ukraine TechBridge met on 20th March 2025. The meeting was hybrid with UK board members attending from techUK’s office, 10 St Bride Street, London, EC4A 4AD and Ukrainian board members from British Embassy Kyiv.
The meeting was co-chaired by Ukrainian Deputy Minister for Digital Transformation Oleksandr Bornyakov and UK Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Services, Small Business and Exports Gareth Thomas MP.
The Board meeting was attended by:
Vladimir
Mnogoletniy
CEO
Genesis
Valery
Krasovsky
CEO
Sigma Software
Marta
Romaniak
VP
Avenga
Andrew
Pavliv
CEO
N-iX
Liam
Maxwell
Director, Government Transformation
Amazon Web Services
Matt
Evans
Director of Markets
techUK
Eric
van der Kleij
Co-founder
EdenBase
Simon
Godfrey
Senior Director of External Engagement & Business Growth
BT
The Board reviewed progress under the UK-Ukraine TechBridge initiative over the last six months, noting key achievements such as the significant investment generated by Ukrainian SMEs who developed their knowledge of UK markets during participation in the UK-Ukraine TechBridge Investment Accelerator.
The discussions focused on fostering deeper UK-Ukraine collaboration in technology while exploring opportunities for strengthening public-private partnerships. Core themes addressed included:
Enhancing connections between UK and Ukrainian businesses.
Driving investment and trade through platforms like Code.UA.
Promoting technology innovations through future TechBridge events.
Deputy Minister Bornyakov shared plans for Ukrainian representation at London Tech Week, including a Ukraine Pavilion.
Follow-up actions were identified, including preparations for London Tech Week and Lviv IT Arena, promotion of Code.UA as a platform for connecting UK businesses with Ukrainian IT companies, and facilitating sponsorships for upcoming events. The Board remains committed to leveraging the UK-Ukraine TechBridge to drive innovation, trade, and investment.
The Board will reconvene within the next six months.
Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments
News story
Independent review turns to tackling Britain’s biggest crime
Jonathan Fisher KC has begun work on part 2 of his Independent Review of Disclosure and Fraud Offences.
Photo: Getty Images
Better protections for the British public against fraud, and tougher enforcement against the perpetrators, will be the goals of the first independent review carried out in 40 years into the UK’s fraud laws.
Jonathan Fisher KC has begun work on part 2 of his Independent Review of Disclosure and Fraud Offences which marks the first independent review of fraud legislation in the UK since 1986. During this time, the nature and scale of fraud has evolved considerably, with fraud now constituting over 40% of all offences recorded by the Crime Survey for England and Wales.
Where Lord Roskill’s 1986 review focused mostly on the serious fraud committed by corporate entities, the huge increase in fraud offences over the last decade has come at the expense of ordinary consumers and small businesses, targeted by highly organised gangs, many of them based overseas.
The resulting harm to society is severe, with fraud against individuals in England and Wales alone recently estimated to cost more than £6.8 billion every year.
Fraud has also been transformed by the impact of modern technology, with the increasing use of artificial intelligence to create scambots, deepfakes, and websites impersonating established businesses and public authorities. Fraud gangs have the ability to target tens of thousands of Britons every hour through social media, email and telephone, and only need to persuade a small fraction of those individuals to fall for their scams in order to make millions of pounds.
The Home Office will place these emerging threats at the heart of its new, expanded fraud strategy to be published later this year, but it will also be vital to have the independent analysis provided by Jonathan Fisher KC to inform the response required from government, law enforcement and industry. And with international cooperation to disrupt threats a key national security commitment within its Plan for Change, the government is also building a united global response as part of its strategy to tackle fraud.
Part 2 of the Fisher Review will therefore examine the largest challenges faced by law enforcement in bringing criminals committing fraud offences to justice in England and Wales. Specifically, it will consider key issues in each following stage of the fraud life cycle:
detection and reporting
disruption
investigation
prosecution and offences
courts
penalties
rehabilitation
This follows the publication of part 1 of Jonathan Fisher KC’s review, Disclosure in the Digital Age, which recommended a range of measures to modernise the disclosure system and free up police time, and which is now being taken forward by the Home Office, the Ministry of Justice and the Attorney General’s Office.
Fraud Minister Lord Hanson said:
Fraud is a crime which can devastate lives, and I am determined to do everything possible to bring these criminals to justice.
I welcome Jonathan Fisher KC’s review which will help us expand our knowledge base about how to better detect, disrupt and deter fraudsters and deliver a swifter justice for the victims, as part of our Plan for Change.
The government is determined to continue our fight against this appalling crime, and I look forward to the outcome of this important review.
Attorney General Lord Hermer KC said:
Fraud is one of the most pernicious crimes. The criminals driving these schemes are using ever more sophisticated tactics to scam their victims. It is crucial that our criminal justice system keeps pace.
Fraud doesn’t discriminate against age, gender or sex and it leaves victims suffering financial loss and emotional distress. I welcome this independent review of fraud and look forward to considering any findings as part of our Plan for Change.
Independent Review Chair, Jonathan Fisher KC said:
With the advances in digital technology, it has become much easier for fraudsters to avoid detection, and indeed prosecution, outright.
This review aims to scrutinise the main challenges in detecting, investigating, and prosecuting fraud offences, and what can be done to better equip law enforcement to deliver swifter justice for victims.
I am greatly appreciative of the criminal justice system-wide engagement since the launch of this independent review and for the continued encouragement as I turn my focus to examine fraud offences.
Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments
News story
UK-Ukraine TechBridge Industry Second Steering Board Communiqué
The Industry Steering Board for UK-Ukraine TechBridge met on 20 March 2025.
The Industry Steering Board for the UK-Ukraine TechBridge met on 20th March 2025. The meeting was hybrid with UK board members attending from techUK’s office, 10 St Bride Street, London, EC4A 4AD and Ukrainian board members from British Embassy Kyiv.
The meeting was co-chaired by Ukrainian Deputy Minister for Digital Transformation Oleksandr Bornyakov and UK Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Services, Small Business and Exports Gareth Thomas MP.
The Board meeting was attended by:
Vladimir
Mnogoletniy
CEO
Genesis
Valery
Krasovsky
CEO
Sigma Software
Marta
Romaniak
VP
Avenga
Andrew
Pavliv
CEO
N-iX
Liam
Maxwell
Director, Government Transformation
Amazon Web Services
Matt
Evans
Director of Markets
techUK
Eric
van der Kleij
Co-founder
EdenBase
Simon
Godfrey
Senior Director of External Engagement & Business Growth
BT
The Board reviewed progress under the UK-Ukraine TechBridge initiative over the last six months, noting key achievements such as the significant investment generated by Ukrainian SMEs who developed their knowledge of UK markets during participation in the UK-Ukraine TechBridge Investment Accelerator.
The discussions focused on fostering deeper UK-Ukraine collaboration in technology while exploring opportunities for strengthening public-private partnerships. Core themes addressed included:
Enhancing connections between UK and Ukrainian businesses.
Driving investment and trade through platforms like Code.UA.
Promoting technology innovations through future TechBridge events.
Deputy Minister Bornyakov shared plans for Ukrainian representation at London Tech Week, including a Ukraine Pavilion.
Follow-up actions were identified, including preparations for London Tech Week and Lviv IT Arena, promotion of Code.UA as a platform for connecting UK businesses with Ukrainian IT companies, and facilitating sponsorships for upcoming events. The Board remains committed to leveraging the UK-Ukraine TechBridge to drive innovation, trade, and investment.
The Board will reconvene within the next six months.
The Happy Wanderer pub on Green Lanes was subject to arson attacks and anti social behaviour since closing in 2017 due to poor trade.
It was demolished by the previous owner in September 2021, with the site aligned to City of Wolverhampton Council’s Vacant Properties Taskforce work to bring derelict sites back into use.
Black Country Housing Group (BCHG) seized the opportunity to purchase the land for affordable housing to rent, with Keon Homes constructing 13, 2 and 3 bedroom houses, and 6, 1 bedroom flats.
This week, the first 9 houses were handed over to BCHG ready for the first tenants to move in at the end of this month.
Mayor of Wolverhampton, Councillor Linda Leach, was invited to see the first of the finished homes alongside City of Wolverhampton Council Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for City Housing, Councillor Steve Evans.
Councillor Evans said: “This is a prime example of the work we are doing through our vacant properties taskforce to bring derelict sites back into use to create a better environment for all.
“Our planners worked hard with the previous owners of this site, encouraging them to make it safe and remove the risk of further anti social behaviour for the benefit of the local community in Bilston.
“We were delighted to see Black Country Housing Group and Keon Homes come on board to progress the site for much needed affordable housing and seeing the first completed homes being handed over is great for everyone; supporting residents and boosting the local economy.”
Black Country Housing Group Chief Executive Designate, Adrian Eggington, said: “We are pleased to have built 19 brand new homes in Bilston, Wolverhampton, working in partnership with Keon Homes and City of Wolverhampton Council, supported by grant funding from Homes England.
“The mixture of 1, 2 and 3 bedroom affordable rented homes provide high quality, much needed homes which are highly energy efficient, giving the new occupiers a comfortable and affordable living experience as well as reducing overall environmental impact. Our new customers are thrilled to be moving in over the next few weeks.”
Jim Woodsford, Planning and Pre-Development Manager at Keon Homes, said: “Providing much needed affordable homes on an otherwise redundant site is fantastic news for the area, especially given the site’s previous issues of anti social behaviour.
“We have worked with the planning team at Wolverhampton Council from an early design inception stage to create a family friendly development that we can all be proud of. Delivering affordable family homes is at the very heart of what we do at Keon Homes and we hope future residents enjoy the fruits of everyone’s hard work.”
The development has also been supported by West Midlands Police’s Secured by Design (SBD) initiative to meet high standards in preventing crime.
West Midlands Police Force Design Out Crime & Crime Reduction Manager, Mark Silvester, said: “Bilston Green Lanes is another fantastic new housing development and is testament to the support and collective work we have done with Wolverhampton Council, highlighting their continued dedication to creating safe and sustainable communities within the city.
“Secured by Design offers numerous benefits by focusing on integrating security measures from the outset of building projects, leading to reduced crime rates, increased public confidence, and cost effective solutions.”
People did not alter their behaviour to follow enhanced local restrictions during the pandemic and they may have been more effective if based around factors other than just Covid-19 cases according to new research from the University of Aberdeen.
People did not alter their behaviour to follow enhanced local restrictions during the pandemic and they may have been more effective if based around factors other than just Covid-19 cases according to new research from the University of Aberdeen.
The study published in Translational Behavioral Medicine looked at people’s behaviour during the Covid-19 pandemic in Scotland.
The team examined adherence to restrictions introduced during the pandemic including social distancing, mask-wearing, staying at home and hand washing.
They compared people’s behaviours before and after local restrictions were implemented. They also compared behaviours of those living in areas with increased restrictions to those living in areas without.
Results showed that people did not change their behaviour when restrictions were tightened and that applied to all behaviours including social distancing and mask wearing.
They also found people in high or low restriction areas behaved no differently to each other.
Led by Dr Chantal den Daas, Senior Lecturer in Health Psychology, in collaboration with the Covid Health and Adherence Research in Scotland (CHARIS) project, the team interviewed individuals across Scotland at random from March to November 2020, to get a representative sample of the Scottish population.
The respondents answered questions about their behaviours from the past week, including if they had left their home, if they had adhered to the two-metre social distancing rule, if they had worn a mask in a shop or on public transport and if they washed their hands as soon as they got home.
Dr den Daas said: “When local restrictions were introduced in 2020 due to an increase in Covid-19 case numbers, we thought we would see a change in behaviour after they were implemented. But this was not what we found.
“It is really important to build an understanding of what could have been done differently and how we can effectively influence public behaviour in the future should we be faced with another public health crisis.
“This research provided insight on the type of information we should aim to collect in future pandemics, to see if we can find better measures to predict cases, examine the need for restrictions and the effect of any restrictions put in place.
“Future research in acute outbreaks should assess behaviour and beliefs about the virus, risk on an ongoing basis and identify the need for intervention even before cases rates start to go up.”
