Category: Press Releases

PRESS RELEASE : What is a Spending Review? [December 2024]
The press release issued by HM Treasury on 12 December 2024.

What is a Spending Review?

A Spending Review is the process the government uses to set all departments’ budgets for future years. This covers both the services the public uses every day, like the NHS, schools and transport, and how the government will invest in research, energy security and infrastructure to drive economic growth across the country.

In the same way that households budget what they spend, the government does this with public money. This is to ensure it is spent effectively.

How does the government spend money?

The total amount the government spends is known as Total Managed Expenditure (TME). This is made up of:
- Spending by departments – this is the amount that government departments have been allocated by the Treasury to spend each year and is known as Departmental Expenditure Limits (DEL).
- Money spent on things that are harder to plan for, usually because demand for them varies, so budgets are not fixed in advance. This includes welfare, pensions and debt interest payments. This is known as Annually Managed Expenditure (AME). The level of AME spending in the future is forecast by the Office for Budget Responsibility.
DEL budgets are split into two additional categories:
- Resource spending – which covers what the government spends on its day-to-day running and administration costs. These are generally goods and services, like nurses’ pay or medicines.
- Capital spending – which is funding for investment to improve the UK’s infrastructure and public services. For example, new roads, hospitals and military equipment.
What is the Spending Review process?

The Chancellor of the Exchequer and Chief Secretary to the Treasury lead the Spending Review.

First, the government identifies key priorities for all departments, which includes the key outcomes that public services should deliver.

All departments are then asked to submit their budget requests to the Chief Secretary to the Treasury, detailing how much money they will need and how it will be used. Collaboration across government is key to ensuring this process runs smoothly and everyone understands how budget requests across different departments will help deliver the government’s priorities.

The Chief Secretary and Treasury officials review these requests, assess how they align with the government’s priorities and make sure they offer good value for money for the taxpayer, working together with departments to understand the requests. The Chief Secretary then meets with Secretaries of State to discuss and agree a final budget, including how it will be spent and what outcomes it should deliver.

The government often uses a Spending Review to set budgets for several years. At Autumn Budget 2024, the government committed to setting resource budgets for three years and capital budgets for five years, with reviews every two years. This will enable better financial planning and help achieve value for money.

The Chancellor of the Exchequer then approves and allocates final budgets to each department.

What is happening in the current Spending Review?

Spending Review 2025 is taking place in two phases.

At the Autumn Budget on 30 October 2024, the Chancellor set out the outcome of Phase 1 of the Spending Review, which confirmed departmental budgets for 2024-25 and set budgets for 2025-26. She also announced the total level of funding planned for Phase 2 (‘the envelope’), which will conclude and be published in late spring of 2025.

Phase 2 will prioritise delivering the government’s missions. As part of this departments will be expected to make better use of technology and seek to reform public services, to support delivery of the government’s plans for a decade of national renewal.
January 2, 2025
PRESS RELEASE : Keir Starmer meeting with President of the European Council [December 2024]

The press release issued by 10 Downing Street on 12 December 2024.

The Prime Minister of the United Kingdom Keir Starmer and the President of the European Council António Costa met in Downing Street this afternoon.

In their first meeting, the two leaders affirmed the intention to strengthen the relationship between the United Kingdom and the European Union, agreeing on the vital importance of closer collaboration between like-minded partners at an increasingly volatile time for the world.

The President invited the Prime Minister to attend a session of the informal meeting of the EU leaders in Brussels on 3 February. The Prime Minister was pleased to accept the invitation and looked forward to discussing enhanced strategic co-operation with the EU, notably on defence.

The two leaders also discussed current geopolitical challenges. They reiterated their unwavering commitment to providing continued political, financial, economic, humanitarian, military and diplomatic support to Ukraine and its people for as long as it takes and as intensely as needed.

They also discussed the situation and the latest developments in the Middle East. Turning to Syria, they agreed on the importance of ensuring a peaceful transition towards long-term political stability following the fall of Assad’s brutal regime.

They reaffirmed that the Withdrawal Agreement, including the Windsor Framework and the Trade and Cooperation Agreement, are the foundation of relations between the UK and EU, and restated their joint commitment to the full and faithful implementation of those agreements.

They also looked ahead to the first EU-UK Summit in early 2025, agreeing this would provide an important opportunity to make further progress on key areas to deliver tangible benefits for the people of the UK and the EU.

January 2, 2025
PRESS RELEASE : Universal Periodic Review 47 – UK Statement on Ethiopia [December 2024]
The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 12 December 2024.

Statement by the UK at Ethiopia’s Universal Periodic Review at the Human Rights Council in Geneva.

Thank you, Mr President,

We welcome the delegation from Ethiopia, led by Ministry of Justice State Minister, Belayihun Yirga Kifle. We welcome their election to the Human Rights Council.

The UK recognises the government of Ethiopia’s recent progress through the Transitional Justice policy and implementation roadmap, and we welcome the commencement of the Disarmament, Demobilisation and Reintegration programme.

However, it is clear that ongoing conflicts since the last review threaten progress on human rights.

We recommend the government of Ethiopia:
1. Ensures that all perpetrators of human rights violations and abuses are held to account;
2. Ensures too that the implementation of laws during a state of emergency is consistent with Ethiopia’s obligations under international human rights law; and
3. Resolves all internal conflicts in Ethiopia, with the most impact on human rights, through commitment to genuine political processes.
Thank you.
January 1, 2025
PRESS RELEASE : Appointment of the Suffragan Bishop of Aston [December 2024]

The press release issued by 10 Downing Street on 12 December 2024.

The King has approved the nomination of The Reverend Canon Esther Tamisa Prior, Vicar of St John the Baptist Egham and Honorary Canon at Guildford Cathedral, for appointment as Suffragan Bishop of Aston in the Diocese of Birmingham, in succession to The Right Reverend Anne Hollinghurst following her resignation and appointment as Principal of the Queens Foundation.

Background

Esther was educated at the University of Zimbabwe and trained for ministry at Trinity College, Bristol. She was ordained priest in 2004 and served her title at Redland Parish Church in the Diocese of Bristol, and St John’s, Deptford, in the Diocese of Southwark.

In 2008, Esther was appointed Associate Minister at St Matthew’s, Borstal, additionally serving as Chaplain at Blackheath Bluecoat Church of England School until 2009 and as Prison Chaplain for Cookham Wood from 2010. Esther was appointed Team Vicar at St John, Cove, in the Diocese of Guildford, in 2011 and in 2018 took up her current role as Vicar of St John the Baptist, Egham.

Esther is married to Matt, who is also ordained, and they have two teenaged children.

January 1, 2025
PRESS RELEASE : Search begins for a design team for the national Queen Elizabeth II Memorial [December 2024]
The press release issued by the Cabinet Office on 12 December 2024.

UK Government has launched an open search today for a team to create a design masterplan to honour The Late Queen.
- Competition welcomes architect-led multidisciplinary teams to submit details of profile, team composition, and experience. No design is required at first stage
- Finalist teams to create concept masterplans for site within St James’s Park, London
- Deadline 14:00 GMT, 20 January, 2025
Leading artists, architects and engineers can express their interest in designing the masterplan for the national memorial to Queen Elizabeth II.

The Queen Elizabeth Memorial will be one of the most significant design projects in recent British history and will provide the nation with a permanent memorial to the UK’s longest-serving monarch.

The Queen Elizabeth Memorial Committee, chaired by The Late Queen’s former Private Secretary, Lord Janvrin, is working with competition specialists at Malcolm Reading Consultants to identify a team of inspired and dedicated artists, architects, engineers, and landscape architects and other specialists who would be interested in designing the project.

The Committee is urging creatives interested in designing the masterplan for the Queen Elizabeth II National Memorial Masterplan Design Competition to submit a twelve-page Expression of Interest via the online form.

Full details of the project and how to enter the competition are available on the dedicated competition website: https://competitions.malcolmreading.com/queenelizabethmemorial

Details of the Selection Panel can also be found in the Competition Conditions available on the website.

The first stage of the two-stage competition opens today 12 December 2024 and closes at 14:00 on 20 January 2025. Subsequently, there will be a ten-week design stage for a shortlist of five competitors. No design work is required at stage one.

Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster Pat McFadden said:

Queen Elizabeth II was our longest reigning Monarch and Her Majesty dedicated her life to serving the people of the United Kingdom.

This National Memorial will provide a permanent tribute to The Late Queen’s legacy, offering space for reflection as well as celebration. We want the very best architects and designers to come forward with their ideas for how this historic project should look.

Committee Chair Lord Janvrin said:

We want to attract the finest teams of architects, artists, landscape architects, engineers and other specialists to work with us to create an outstanding design for the memorial site. We are looking for teams who thoroughly understand and connect with our ambitions for the project.

The challenge at the second stage for the finalists will be to evoke memories of Queen Elizabeth II’s outstanding contribution to national life and to tell the story of Her Majesty’s long reign through an original masterplan that is sensitive to the unique setting.

The memorial must be – simply – a beautiful place, somewhere to visit with family and friends, to enjoy and to reflect on an extraordinary life.

The Memorial will be located in St James’s Park, the UK’s oldest Royal Park, and close to Buckingham Palace.

The site includes the area of the Grade I listed Park adjacent to The Mall at Marlborough Gate, and the land surrounding the pathway down to the lake including the Blue Bridge and the land either side and across to Birdcage Walk.

The Committee is seeking a design that is beautiful, inclusive and sustainable. The competition brief sets out defining elements including a new bridge over the lake and opportunities for artistic interventions and enhanced landscaping.

The new memorial will be of outstanding design quality and an emotionally powerful place, with celebratory spaces as well as areas to encourage reflection. Integral to the Committee’s vision is the intention to place a standalone monument including a figurative representation of the late Queen at the Marlborough Gate entrance.

Post-competition, an artist/sculptor for the figurative element will be appointed by the winning lead designer in consultation and agreement with the Committee, ensuring a strong creative match and an integrated scheme.

As a national memorial to the country’s longest-serving and much-respected Monarch, the Government has identified a provisional construction budget of £23m-46m excluding VAT for the project. The provisional construction budget is required at this stage as a guide for designers to develop their proposals. The final cost will depend on the winning design and will be shared in due course. The Committee will judge all submissions against a value for money criteria.

This provisional construction cost includes the replacement of the Blue Bridge – an important public amenity in St James’s Park.

The shortlist is expected to be announced in spring 2025 and the winner in early summer 2025.

The final design will be announced to coincide with what would have been Her Late Majesty’s 100th birthday year in 2026, following approval from the Prime Minister and His Majesty The King.

The Committee has visited the four nations of the United Kingdom and engaged widely to ensure ideas and suggestions from the public, experts and key stakeholder groups inform the project scope and competition brief. The winning team will be expected to work with the Committee on their public engagement strategy.
January 1, 2025
PRESS RELEASE : Planning overhaul to reach 1.5 million new homes [December 2024]
The press release issued by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government on 12 December 2024.

An overhaul of the planning system to accelerate housebuilding and deliver 1.5 million homes over this Parliament.
- Security for hard working families as government sets mandatory higher housing targets for councils across the country
- Planning reform sees lower quality ‘grey belt’ land defined in national planning policy for the first time, with tough new ‘golden rules’ on development to guarantee affordable housing, local services and green spaces
- £100m additional cash for councils’ planning officers, along with 300 additional planning officers, will see faster decision making to turbocharge growth and get families onto the property ladder
- Comes as an immediate step to grow the economy and support government’s Plan for Change milestone of building 1.5 million homes
Hard working families locked out of owning their own home for far too long will benefit from government’s landmark planning changes.

Under the plans, councils will be told they must play their part to meet housing need by reaching a new ambitious combined target of 370,000 homes a year. This comes less than one week after the Prime Minister announced the Plan for Change that sets our milestone of delivering 1.5 million new homes over five years.

In a major boost for communities across the country, the government is today turbocharging growth with new, mandatory targets for councils to ramp up housebuilding across the country. The planning overhaul is set to tackle the chronic housing crisis once and for all and will mean hard graft at work will be rewarded with security at home.

Today’s changes tackle the dire inheritance faced by the government, in which 1.3 million households are on social housing waiting lists and a record number of households – including 160,000 children – are living in temporary accommodation.

Under new planning rules, updated via the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF):
- Councils will be told to play their part to meet housing need, with new immediate mandatory housing targets for councils to ramp up housebuilding and deliver growth across the country putting more money in working people’s pockets.
- Areas with the highest unaffordability for housing and greatest potential for growth will see housebuilding targets increase, while stronger action will ensure councils adopt up-to-date local plans or develop new plans that work for their communities.
- A new common-sense approach will be introduced to the greenbelt. While remaining committed to a brownfield first approach, the updated NPPF will require councils to review their greenbelt boundaries to meet targets, identifying and prioritising lower quality ‘grey belt’ land.
- Any development on greenbelt must meet strict requirements, via the new ‘golden rules’, which require developers to provide the necessary infrastructure for local communities, such as nurseries, GP surgeries and transport, as well as a premium level of social and affordable housing.
- To further tackle the housing crisis, councils and developers will also need to give greater consideration to social rent when building new homes and local leaders have greater powers to build genuinely affordable homes for those who need them most.
The government has been clear that it supports builders not blockers, as it makes the necessary decisions to deliver for working people across the country.

Prime Minister Keir Starmer said:

“For far too long, working people graft hard but are denied the security of owning their own home. I know how important it is – our pebble dash semi meant everything to our family growing up. But with a generation of young people whose dream of homeownership feels like a distant reality, and record levels of homelessness, there’s no shying away from the housing crisis we have inherited.

“We owe it to those working families to take urgent action, and that is what this government is doing. Our Plan for Change will put builders not blockers first, overhaul the broken planning system and put roofs over the heads of working families and drive the growth that will put more money in people’s pockets.

“We’re taking immediate action to make the dream of homeownership a reality through delivering 1.5 million homes by the next parliament and rebuilding Britain to deliver for working people.”

Reform is desperately needed if we are to build 1.5 million homes. Under the current planning framework just under one third of local authorities have adopted a local plan within the last five years and the number of homes granted planning permission had also been allowed to fall to its lowest level in a decade.

That has to change. Following consultation, areas must commit to timetables for new plans within 12 weeks the updated NPPF or ministers will not hesitate to use their existing suite of intervention powers to ensure plans are put in place.

Deputy Prime Minister and Secretary of State for Housing, Angela Rayner said:

“From day one I have been open and honest about the scale of the housing crisis we have inherited. This mission-led government will not shy away from taking the bold and decisive action needed to fix it for good.

“We cannot shirk responsibility and leave over a million families on housing waiting lists and a generation locked out of home ownership. Our Plan for Change means overhauling planning to make the dream of a secure home a reality for working people.

“Today’s landmark overhaul will sweep away last year’s damaging changes and shake-up a broken planning system which caves into the blockers and obstructs the builders.

“I will not hesitate to do what it takes to build 1.5 million new homes over five years and deliver the biggest boost in social and affordable housebuilding in a generation.

”We must all do our bit and we must all do more. We expect every local area to adopt a plan to meet their housing need. The question is where the homes and local services people expect are built, not whether they are built at all.”

Reflecting our commitment to the plan-led system, meaning where and how new development is built through local plans, ministers will provide local authorities with three months in which to progress local plans that are currently in development, subject to conditions that catch those which significantly undershoot the new targets.

But the government is introducing a new requirement that where plans based on old targets are still in place from July 2026, councils will need to provide for an extra year’s supply of homes in their pipeline – six years instead of five.

Where they do not, the strengthened presumption in favour of sustainable development would apply alongside the existing safeguards in national policy around provision of affordable housing, design quality, and sustainability of location.

Brownfield land must continue to be the first port of call for any new development and the default answer when asked to build on brownfield should always be ‘yes’. The government is also exploring further action to support and expedite the development of brownfield land in urban areas through ‘brownfield passports’ with more details to be set out next year.

To support councils to update their local plans and review their current greenbelt land, areas will receive an additional £100 million of cash next year that can be used to hire more staff and consultants as well as more resources to carry out technical studies and site assessments. This is on top of bolstering local resources with increased planning fees to cover costs and an additional 300 planning officers, making sure they have the staff and capacity needed to approve homes for local people.

The new growth focused NPPF also includes requirements to ensure homes are high-quality and well-designed without stalling growth. The government has also committed to updating the National Design Guide and National Model Design Code in Spring next year.

On the NPPF consultation:

The government has published its full response to the National Planning Policy Framework consultation.

The new annual housing targets continue to total an ambitious 370,000 across England, with higher mandatory targets in those places facing the most acute affordability.

Drawing on over 10,000 responses to the consultation and extensive engagement across the housing sector, the NPPF published today contains a number of refinements to the proposals set out in the summer.

The government also consulted on increasing planning fees for householder applications and other applications, alongside allowing local authorities to set their own fees.

Eligible local planning authorities are invited to submit an Expression of Interest by 17 January 2025 to request a share of the £14.8 million grant funding, supporting them with local plan delivery and green belt reviews.

As part of its relentless focus to get Britain building again, the government has already:
- Launched a New Homes Accelerator to unblock thousands of homes stuck in the planning system.
- Set up an independent New Towns Taskforce, as part of a long-term vision to create large-scale communities of at least 10,000 new homes each.
- Awarded £68 million to 54 local councils to unlock housing on brownfield sites.
- Awarded £47 million to seven councils to unlock homes stalled by nutrient neutrality rules.
- Announced an additional £3 billion in housing guarantees to help builders apply for more accessible loans from banks and lenders.
- Extended the existing Home Building Fund for next year providing up to £700 million of vital support to SME housebuilders, delivering an additional 12,000 new homes.
The government has published its first working paper for the Planning and Infrastructure Bill, seeking views from a range of planning, housing and local experts before finalising proposals details for planning committees.

This will be followed by a formal public consultation on these detailed proposals to coincide with the Bill’s introduction next year.

Golden rules:
- Brownfield first.
- Grey belt second.
- Affordable homes.
- Boost public services and infrastructure.
- Improve genuine green spaces.
January 1, 2025
PRESS RELEASE : International Human Rights Day: joint statement to the OSCE [December 2024]

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 12 December 2024.

UK joins statement at the OSCE which says Russian measures are tools of authoritarianism and control – creating a climate of fear, impacting the human rights and freedoms of all Russians.

Madam Chair,

I am delivering this statement on behalf of Liechtenstein, Iceland, Norway, the United Kingdom, the United States and my own country Canada.

December 10th, Human Rights Day, commemorates the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights by the United Nations General Assembly in 1948. The UDHR laid the foundation for a series of widely ratified human rights treaties, which form much of the structure of international human rights law today. These are the rules. commitments, and obligations to which states bound themselves with a view to respecting and protecting the inherent dignity of the human person.

In 1975, in the Helsinki Final Act, participating States reaffirmed their commitment to respect human rights and fundamental freedoms and acknowledged the intrinsic link between human rights and security. The signing of the Helsinki Final Act had a profound impact on human rights activism, sparking the creation of “Helsinki Committees” and “Helsinki Watch” groups which monitored their governments’ compliance with human rights principles. We have seen in our region how increased respect for human rights can bring tangible change and benefit for people.

We are also seeing how a disregard for human rights can bring not only suffering for individuals but also undermine security and stability for communities and societies.

In the OSCE region, we are reminded of this daily by the terrible abuses of human rights committed by Russia in the context of their war of aggression against Ukraine.

But human rights abuses and violations are not limited to the context of this war.

We are alarmed by reports this week of a new wave of raids conducted in clubs and bars in Moscow, described by the Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs as part of the “fight against LGBT propaganda.” In some establishments clients were forced to lie face down on the floor, other clients were reportedly given summonses to the military registration and enlistment office, while others were fined for hooliganism. Individuals have even been charged with “organizing extremist activity” simply for providing business services to LGBTQIA+ people.

The incompatibility of Russia’s “anti-LGBT propaganda” laws with its human rights obligations was confirmed by the European Court of Human Rights. Furthermore, UN experts and the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights have raised serious concerns about the dangerous precedent set by declaring the “international LGBT movement” as “extremist.” Since the adoption of these laws, we have seen the tangible impact of these designations in the repeated use of the state apparatus to harass and persecute LGBTQIA+ individuals in Russia.

Moreover, the measures Russia has introduced are tools of authoritarianism and control – creating a climate of fear and ultimately impacting the human rights and freedoms of all Russians.

Regrettably, we have seen other participating States move to replicate this approach by restricting LGBTQIA+ content in media, education, and public spaces.

We urge those participating States, and those considering such legislation, to reconsider. We urge this not based on our opinion or perspective but rather based on the standards that we have all agreed – on the basis of the UDHR, on the basis of our human rights obligations, and on the basis of our OSCE commitments.

This is not a culture war. It is not a question of West of Vienna versus East of Vienna, because there is no difference in the human dimension commitments that we all, as participating States, have accepted. The best way to protect values is to ensure that the human rights of all individuals are respected.

Madam Chair

No country or society is free from discrimination and intolerance. All participating States must work to ensure respect for the human rights of their populations.

In marking this Human Rights Day, let us recommit ourselves to respecting and protecting the inherent dignity of the human person everywhere in this region.

Thank you.

January 1, 2025
PRESS RELEASE : Advice accepted on spring 2025 COVID-19 vaccination programme [December 2024]
The press release issued by the Department of Health and Social Care on 12 December 2024.

The government has accepted advice from the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) for the spring 2025 COVID-19 vaccination programme.

Minister for Public Health and Prevention, Andrew Gwynne, said:

We are committed to making sure the most vulnerable people are protected from COVID-19, and have accepted the independent advice from the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation for the spring 2025 vaccination programme.

I urge those eligible who are yet to come forward for a COVID-19, flu or RSV vaccination this winter to get vaccinated as soon as possible to protect themselves, their family, and the NHS.

Background information

The aim of the COVID-19 immunisation programme is to prevent serious disease (hospitalisation and/or mortality) arising from COVID-19.

JCVI advises that the following groups should be offered COVID-19 vaccination in spring 2025:
- adults aged 75 years and over
- residents in a care home for older adults
- individuals aged 6 months and over who are immunosuppressed (as defined in the ‘immunosuppression’ sections of tables 3 or 4 in the COVID-19 chapter of the green book)
The government is considering JCVI’s advice for autumn 2025 and spring 2026 programmes and will respond in due course.
January 1, 2025
PRESS RELEASE : Security and trade top agenda on Foreign Secretary’s visit to the Caribbean [December 2024]
The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 12 December 2024.

David Lammy begins his first visit to the Caribbean as Foreign Secretary, where he will launch new partnerships to strengthen national security.
- UK announces new programme to tackle organised crime, corruption and drug trafficking
- Foreign Secretary will visit Guyana and Barbados, 2 of the most dynamic economies in the Caribbean
- major infrastructure deal for British business on the agenda, highlighting the government’s commitment to opening new overseas markets for UK firms and driving up prosperity
David Lammy begins his first visit to the Caribbean as Foreign Secretary, where (on Thursday 12 December) he will launch a new partnership to help tackle organised crime, boost economic growth and adapt to the climate crisis, all key to strengthening national security.

While in Barbados, the UK will finalise agreements aimed at preventing organised crime and reducing violence, making people in the Caribbean and the UK safer. The government will offer British expertise – to help regional authorities investigate and disrupt criminal networks to strengthen law enforcement, tackle gangs and keep drugs out of the Caribbean Sea and off UK streets – a part of this government’s mission for making safer streets and so British people can live their lives without fear of crime. He will make the announcement at the IDB Latin America & Caribbean Security Ministers Conference.

The Foreign Secretary will then travel to Guyana, the world’s fastest growing economy, to strengthen ties between both countries. On Friday 13, he will visit a maternity hospital in Guyana’s capital Georgetown, which is being constructed using steel manufactured in Yorkshire. This underscores how UK exports are improving Guyana’s healthcare provision, while creating jobs back in Britain to help build the foundations of a stronger economy and deliver on this government’s Plan for Change.

He will also seek to push forward a major infrastructure deal for British construction businesses to help in the expansion of Guyana’s main international airport. This highlights the government’s commitment to opening new overseas markets for UK firms, driving up prosperity and deliver national renewal.

Foreign Secretary David Lammy said:

As the son of Guyanese parents, I am living proof of the ties the UK shares with the Caribbean. Building our ties with these fast-growing economies in the region will make the UK and the Caribbean safer, stronger, more prosperous and more resilient against the climate crisis.

Growth and prosperity in the UK rely on security and stability around the world – which is why we are helping to tackle organised crime and corruption, keeping drugs off UK streets and hitting the criminal networks involved in the narcotics trade in the Caribbean. The government’s plan to smash the gangs means working with our partners to bolster our national security.

Following the devastation caused by Hurricane Beryl, the Foreign Secretary will travel with Barbados’ Prime Minister Mia Mottley to areas damaged by the storm and see firsthand how climate change is having a real impact on the Caribbean and island states.

David Lammy will announce new UK funding to help countries in the region harness green energy resources and move away from fossil fuel use. He will set out a new programme to help protect forests and tackle illegal logging, helping protect vital natural habitats.

UK minister for the Caribbean, Baroness Chapman will also be part of the UK delegation meeting Prime Minister Mia Mottley in Barbados. She will accompany the Foreign Secretary around the island alongside the Prime Minister.

The minister will then join the Foreign Secretary at the Regional Security System (RSS) headquarters in Barbados, where they will be shown how the UK is supporting the fight against drug trafficking and organised crime across the region.

In Guyana, the fastest growing economy in the world and the UK’s biggest trading partner in the region, the Foreign Secretary will hold talks with President Ali to discuss how to boost commercial ties between both countries, alongside tackling issues of common concern, including the climate crisis. He will also show the UK’s steadfast support for Guyanese territorial integrity, in the face of illegitimate Venezuelan claims to Essequibo.
January 1, 2025
PRESS RELEASE : Government announces COVID-19 Day of Reflection 2025 [December 2024]

The press release issued by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport on 12 December 2024.

A UK-wide Day of Reflection will take place on Sunday 9 March 2025.

Communities across the country will be invited to come together to remember loved ones and reflect on the impact of the pandemic
Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy has confirmed that next year a COVID-19 Day of Reflection will take place on 9 March to remember the pandemic and its impact on communities across the UK.

The COVID-19 Day of Reflection is one of the ten recommendations set out by the UK Commission on Covid Commemoration.

To mark the fifth anniversary of the pandemic, people across the UK are invited to come together to remember and reflect on this unique period of our history as well as their own experiences.

The day will be an opportunity for the public to remember and commemorate those who lost their lives during the pandemic, reflect on the sacrifices made and the impact on our daily lives, and pay tribute to the work of health and social care staff, frontline workers, researchers and all those who volunteered and showed acts of kindness during this unprecedented time.

Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy said:

The COVID-19 pandemic had a profound impact on all of us. This Day of Reflection is an opportunity to remember the friends and loved ones that we lost, as well as the sacrifices that so many people made.

There are lots of ways to take part in the Day of Reflection, whether it’s organising or attending a community event, or remembering in your own way at home. It’s important that people take part in the way that is right for them.

Chair of the Covid Commemoration Commission Baroness Morgan of Cotes said:

As each year passes since the height of the pandemic it can feel as if Covid is more and more of a distant memory. And yet I know from the conversations the UK Covid Commemoration Commissioners had, that those who lost loved ones appreciate a day when many others will also remember those who lost their lives with them. Today’s announcement of the 2025 Day of Reflection is therefore very welcome.

The announcement of next year’s date follows this year’s commemoration in March that saw people come together to pay tribute to those affected and those who sadly lost their lives. The UK Commission on Covid Commemoration, headed by Baroness Morgan of Cotes, worked with bereaved families to find appropriate ways to remember those who lost their lives during the pandemic. It presented its recommendations in September 2023, including that an annual UK-wide Day of Reflection should be established.

The Government’s wider response to the Commission’s report will be published in due course.

January 1, 2025