Category: Press Releases

PRESS RELEASE : Business and Trade Secretary launches landmark plan for UK Advanced Manufacturing backed by £4.5bn in Autumn Statement [November 2023]
The press release issued by the Department for Business and Trade on 26 November 2023.

Business and Trade Secretary Kemi Badenoch has launched the landmark Advanced Manufacturing Plan (AMP) backed by billions to boost Britain’s manufacturing sector.
- Kemi Badenoch launches Advanced Manufacturing Plan (AMP) with over £2bn earmarked for the automotive industry, including batteries, and £975m for aerospace.
- New plan set to build on recent investment wins including up to £2bn from Nissan, £600m from BMW and £4bn from Tata to build a gigafactory.
- Hundreds of thousands of UK jobs on offer in battery sector alone, as new Battery Strategy includes £50m newly allocated government funding to deliver a globally competitive battery supply chain by 2030.
- Plan backs British industry, ensuring the long-term success of the advanced manufacturing sector and reinforces the UK as one of best places in the world to invest and do business.
Plans to build on British excellence in advanced manufacturing to secure long-term private investment and create high-paid jobs have been unveiled by the Business Secretary Kemi Badenoch today (26 November).

The landmark Advanced Manufacturing Plan (AMP) sets out the government’s initiative to ensure the UK is the best place in the world to start and grow a manufacturing business.

As outlined by the Chancellor last week, the government will offer certainty to business by committing more than £4.5 billion in targeted funding to back the long-term future of the UK’s world-leading manufacturing industries – automotive, aerospace, clean energy and life sciences. This includes support for batteries and industries undergoing fundamental changes to remain at the forefront of the global transition to net zero.

The plan outlines the key measures to improve the business environment and attract investment, including faster grid connections, full expensing and more apprenticeships.

It will ensure the UK uses its competitive advantage in manufacturing to become a world leader in the development of zero emissions technology, taking advantage of the thousands of jobs on offer. Our world-leading track record of decarbonisation makes us well placed to seize opportunities in the new global green economy.

This package builds on recent investment wins including up to £2 billion investment from Nissan in Sunderland, the £4 billion Tata gigafactory, the £600 million Electric Mini investment from BMW and Boeing unlocking £80 million of aerospace manufacturing investment in Sheffield, and ensures that the government can continue to help create jobs, grow the economy, and secure the future of great British manufacturing.

Business Secretary Kemi Badenoch said:

The UK recently overtook France to become the world’s eighth largest manufacturing economy. The Advanced Manufacturing Plan will build on that success by targeting funding at where we have a competitive advantage.

Industry wants a stable, long-term plan that has support for cutting edge technologies and a trade policy that delivers. The Advanced Manufacturing Plan does precisely that, securing the highly-skilled jobs of the future and driving economic growth.

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said: 

We are going full throttle to back British businesses and make the UK a world leader in manufacturing – which already makes up over 43 percent of all our exports and employs 2.6 million people across the country.

Today’s plan will not only give the industry the long-term certainty they need to grow and invest further in the UK, but it will also lay the foundations to create more jobs and opportunities for people across the country.

As we bring together the world’s biggest CEOs and investors together for the global investment summit tomorrow, this plan – backed by £4.5 billion – and the record sums of investment we’ve already attracted, make undoubtedly clear that the UK is open for business and is a vital part of our plan to grow the economy.

The battery sector alone could create 100,000 highly paid and skilled jobs in the UK and the Government has also today published the UK’s first ever Battery Strategy, outlining our plan for the UK to attract investment and achieve a globally competitive battery supply chain by 2030.

Global companies are already choosing to invest in the UK and for every pound of Government investment in the future of manufacturing, we are leveraging five pounds of additional private sector investment, providing a welcome boost for industry ahead of next week’s Global Investment Summit.

The Advanced Manufacturing Plan will build on this success and ensure we’re creating the right conditions for manufacturing to flourish, and that bureaucracy does not get in the way of investment.

To boost growth in small and medium sized manufacturing businesses more widely, it has also been announced that the government will expand the Made Smarter Adoption programme, offering the scheme to all English regions in 2025-26 before working with the Devolved Administrations to explore expanding the programme further from 2026-27.

Industry Minister Nusrat Ghani said:

Growing the battery industry is vital to positioning the UK as the best location in the world to manufacture electric vehicles, and building on the confidence we’ve given our supply chain through recent successes such as the investments from Tata, BMW and Nissan, plus the wealth of government support available to businesses.

I wanted to be ahead of the curve in working with Industry to produce a Battery Strategy. This will help businesses become more innovative and productive, future-proofing our economy and supporting our ambition towards a cleaner, greener future, and forms a crucial part of our Advanced Manufacturing Plan to back British industry for the long term.

The plan focuses on:

Investing in the future of UK manufacturing

A new Hydrogen Taskforce will maximise investment opportunities for the UK manufacturing of hydrogen propulsion systems. Hydrogen is expected to represent a crucial part of the UK’s future net zero energy system and is critical to supporting the UK’s energy security.

The Government’s Hydrogen Strategy sets out ambitions to reach up to 10GW of hydrogen production capacity by 2030, with at least half coming from electrolytic or ‘green’ hydrogen.

Building supply chain resilience

The prize in getting our battery industry right alone is worth 100,000 jobs by 2040, with thousands of further jobs available in the wider sector.

The UK’s Battery Strategy will seek to invest £50 million in developing the UK’s battery world-class capabilities, emphasising the importance of developing the batteries of the future by leveraging the UK’s world-leading research and innovation, securing a resilient UK manufacturing supply chain, and enabling the development of a vibrant and sustainable sector.

Reducing costs and barriers to business

At the Autumn Statement, the Chancellor announced further measures to back businesses and remove barriers to investment. This includes making the Full Expensing scheme permanent so businesses can invest for less – delivering an effective permanent tax cut of £11 billion a year for businesses who invest in IT equipment, plant and machinery. The move is set to boost business investment by £14 billion and help grow the economy.

With the tax cut now permanent, the UK will continue to have both the lowest headline corporation tax rate in the G7 and the most generous capital allowances in the OECD group of major advanced economies, such as the United States, Japan, South Korea and Germany. Since the introduction of the super deduction – the predecessor to full expensing – in 2021, investment in the UK has grown the fastest in the G7.

The Advanced Manufacturing Plan also builds on existing support for the sector that includes the British Industry Supercharger ensuring energy costs for key industries like steel, metals, chemicals, and paper producers are in line with other major economies around the world and the Industrial Energy Transformation Fund supporting the deployment of technologies that is enabling hundreds of businesses with high energy use to transition to a low carbon future.

Mike Hawes, SMMT Chief Executive said:

Decarbonising road transport is essential if net zero is to be achieved, and that transition must be ‘built in Britain’. The government’s Advanced Manufacturing Plan sets out measures to support the UK automotive supply chain as it undergoes the most significant transition in its history.

The plan, together with a new battery strategy to support the development and production of this critical technology, is essential if the UK is to compete in the face of fierce global competition. These initiatives can only help to attract the investment necessary to seize the growth opportunities a Net Zero economy offers.

Kevin Craven, CEO of ADS said:

ADS and our members welcome today’s Advanced Manufacturing Plan publication, reaffirming long-term backing for our world-leading advanced manufacturing sectors, including UK aerospace. This is a very timely intervention given the growing pace of aerospace recovery, huge aircraft order backlog and industries’ continued commitment to net zero.

Our aerospace sector provides high-skilled jobs throughout the country, and set against a backdrop of increasing global competition, the continued commitment towards aerospace R&D is significant. These measures will provide a boost to continued investment in innovation and advanced manufacturing in the UK, in turn securing the future advantage of our industry.

Stephen Phipson, CEO of Make UK said:

A battery strategy is very welcome and much needed. Having a joined-up battery plan in place will be critical for the UK economy to benefit fully from new technological opportunities going forward, and we must ensure that manufacturing involves the entire supply chain, right from design to manufacturing and recycling, closely connecting car and battery industries.

Recycling will also be very important to recover those critical materials that are essential for the low-carbon economy, and this joined up Advanced Manufacturing Plan will help deliver better coordination across the whole of the clean energy sectors. > Make UK and industry will continue to work with the government on the practicalities of this plan, including how to incorporate manufacturing supply chains. These supply chains have a key role in supplying components and services for clean energy in the future low-carbon economy and we must ensure that the full potential is delivered to enable our companies to compete on the global stage.

Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology Michelle Donelan said:

If we are to seize the enormous potential for advanced manufacturing to create jobs and grow the economy in every part of the UK, it is critical that we support our brightest minds in turning brilliant ideas into marketable products, and even entire businesses.

The £61 million investment we are making in battery R&D will help UK manufacturers grow this burgeoning industry, by ensuring they can access the skills, infrastructure and early investment that they need to flourish.
December 4, 2023
PRESS RELEASE : Up to £600 winter support for pensioners arriving in bank accounts [November 2023]
The press release issued by the Department for Work and Pensions on 25 November 2023.

Payments of up to £600 are landing directly in the bank accounts of around 11.5 million UK pensioners for the second year running.
- Comes as part of extensive Government package helping people of all ages, including recent £300 Cost of Living payments to more than seven million eligible households.
- After meeting our pledge to halve inflation, the Government this week also confirmed an 8.5 percent increase to the State Pension next year.
Pensioners across the country have started to receive up to £600 to help with energy bills this winter.

Winter Fuel Payments – boosted again this year by an additional £300 per household Pensioner Cost of Living payment – will land in bank accounts over the next two months, the vast majority automatically.

Work and Pensions Secretary Mel Stride said:

We have delivered on our promise to halve inflation and will continue to support people right across the country, including pensioners who may be facing particular challenges over the colder months.

As well as up to £600 to help our pensioners stay warm this winter, we’re boosting pensions through the Triple Lock – increasing the full rate of the New State Pension by over £900 next year.

The money will appear in bank statements with the payment reference starting with the customer’s National Insurance number followed by ‘DWP WFP’ for people in Great Britain, or ‘DFC WFP’ for people in Northern Ireland.

The overwhelming majority of Winter Fuel Payments are paid automatically but some people need to make a claim, such as those who qualify but do not receive benefits or the State Pension and have never previously received a Winter Fuel Payment. The payments deliver additional support to pensioners, the majority of whom are on fixed incomes and also are unable to raise their incomes through fixed employment.

The start of the Winter Fuel Payments season comes hot on the heels of the recent £300 Cost of Living payments made by the DWP to more than seven million eligible households across the UK.

This latest payment is the second of up to three Cost of Living Payments being made this financial year. These payments – which are all tax-free and will not have any impact on existing benefit awards – demonstrate the Government’s commitment to supporting low-income families with financial pressures.

Pensioners getting Pension Credit also qualify for this extra support. The average Pension Credit award is now worth £3,900 per year and there is still time for those who are eligible to apply and receive the £300 Cost of Living payment.

This is because an eligible claim for Pension Credit can be backdated by three months provided the entitlement conditions are met throughout that time.

Including measures announced in the Autumn Statement this week, our total commitment to ease cost of living pressures has risen to £104 billion. That includes paying around half the cost of the average energy bill since last October and amounts to an average of £3,700 per household.
December 4, 2023
PRESS RELEASE : Environment Secretary Steve Barclay – UK stands shoulder-to-shoulder with Ukraine to protect global food security [November 2023]

The press release issued by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs on 25 November 2023.

Environment Secretary addresses Kyiv conference and announces further support for Ukraine food security initiatives.

Environment Secretary Steve Barclay set out a package of support for Ukraine while addressing the international community at the Kyiv International Summit: Grain from Ukraine today – showing the UK’s solidarity with Ukraine in the face of Russia’s unprovoked assault.

In his video address to the conference, the Secretary of State reaffirmed the UK’s support for President Zelenskyy’s Grain from Ukraine initiative, with £3 million of additional funding to enable shipments of Ukrainian grain to Nigeria in 2024, coordinated through the World Food Programme. This follows £5 million that the UK contributed to the initiative in 2022, which facilitated lifesaving grain shipments to Kenya.

The event comes on the day Ukraine marks Holodomor Memorial Day – the famine caused by the Soviet government forcibly seizing grain and other food from Ukrainians in 1932-33 leading to the deaths of at least 3.9 million people.

After tearing up the Black Sea Grain Initiative, Russia destroyed over 280,000 tonnes of grain in one month, which could have fed over 1.25 million people for a year. In the face of these relentless and targeted attacks on ports and grain infrastructure, the initiative ensures Ukrainian grain still reaches those most in need while protecting global food security, keeping prices down and strengthening markets.

Environment Secretary Steve Barclay said:

From our government to our farmers, our solidarity with the people of Ukraine remains cast iron. The UK is committed to ensuring Ukraine can continue to export grain to those most in need.

I am also proud we will be able to share the UK and Defra’s expertise to help Ukraine’s farmland and nature recover from the destruction of the Nova Kakhovka Dam and the impact of the conflict.

Environment Secretary Steve Barclay also updated the conference on the development of our Grain Verification Scheme, which is being backed with £2 million in UK funding. The scheme will use cutting edge science to determine where grain has been grown and harvested – supporting Ukraine’s efforts to trace and stop theft of grain from occupied regions. Further information on the scheme will be unveiled early next year.

Russia’s illegal invasion of Ukraine has also had a disastrous impact on Ukraine’s natural environment. During his speech, the Secretary of State noted the UK’s support to help restore contaminated agricultural land and nature in Ukraine that have been devastated from both flooding and conflict. This includes in June when the Environment Agency provided £16 million of flood equipment, including pumps and temporary barriers, following the destruction of the Nova Kakhovka dam which led to widespread flooding and damage.

As part of the Grain from Ukraine programme, Ukraine has sent 170 thousand tonnes of grain to countries experiencing the greatest food insecurity, including Ethiopia, Somalia, and Yemen. The programme is planned to be expanded to other countries in need with the UK providing a further £3 million, which was previously announced by the Prime Minister at the G20 Summit, to fund a shipment of Ukrainian grain to Nigeria.

The Kyiv International Summit: Grain from Ukraine brought together more than 60 leaders of countries and organisations, covering strengthening Ukraine’s humanitarian role with global food security, expanding the Grain from Ukraine initiative, both in terms of funding and recipient countries, encouraging business involvement in the initiative, coordinating activity to end blockage of and attacks on Black Sea ports by Russia.

December 4, 2023
PRESS RELEASE : North Korea missile launch on 22 November – FCDO statement [November 2023]

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 24 November 2023.

Following North Korea’s ballistic missile launch on 22 November, a Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) spokesperson gave a statement.

An FCDO spokesperson said:

North Korea’s ballistic missile launch on 22 November is, again, a breach of multiple UN Security Council resolutions (UNSCRs). Unlawful ballistic missile launches continue to destabilise the peace and security of the Korean Peninsula.

The UK strongly urges North Korea to refrain from further provocations, return to dialogue and take credible steps towards denuclearisation.

December 4, 2023
PRESS RELEASE : Changes to data protection laws to unlock post-Brexit opportunity [November 2023]
The press release issued by the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology on 24 November 2023.

Common sense changes to the Data Protection and Digital Information Bill will safeguard the public, prevent fraud, and unlock post-Brexit opportunities.
- Data Protection and Digital Information Bill amendments tabled to further improve data security, bolster national security and prevent fraud
- changes include better use of data to identify fraud – tackling benefits cheats intent on ripping off the taxpayer
- new measures also brought forward around preserving the data of deceased children, supporting bereaved families and coroner investigations
A raft of common-sense changes to the Data Protection and Digital Information Bill will build an innovative data protection regime in the UK, crack down on benefit fraud cheats, and allow the country to realise new post-Brexit freedoms which are expected to deliver new economic opportunities to the tune of at least £4 billion.

The changes include new powers to require data from third parties, particularly banks and financial organisations, to help the UK government reduce benefit fraud and save the taxpayer up to £600 million over the next five years. Currently, Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) can only undertake fraud checks on a claimant on an individual basis, where there is already a suspicion of fraud.

The new proposals would allow regular checks to be carried out on the bank accounts held by benefit claimants to spot increases in their savings which push them over the benefit eligibility threshold, or when people send more time overseas than the benefit rules allow for. This will help identify fraud take action more quickly. To make sure that privacy concerns are at the heart of these new measures, only a minimum amount of data will be accessed and only in instances which show a potential risk of fraud and error.

Another measure offers vital reassurance and support to families as they grieve the loss of a child. In cases where a child has died through suicide, a proposed ‘data preservation process’ would require social media companies to keep any relevant personal data which could then be used in subsequent investigations or inquests.

Current rules mean that social media companies aren’t obliged to hold onto this data for longer than is needed, meaning that data which could prove vital to coroner investigations could be deleted as part of a platform’s routine maintenance. The change tabled today represents an important step for families coming to terms with the loss of a loved one, and takes further steps to help ensure harmful content has no place online.

The use of biometric data, such as fingerprints, to strengthen national security is also covered by the amendments, with the ability of Counter Terrorism Police to hold onto the biometrics of individuals who pose a potential threat, and which are supplied by organisations such as Interpol, being bolstered.

This would see officers being able to retain biometric data for as long as an INTERPOL notice is in force, matching this process up with INTERPOL’s own retention rules. The amendments will also ensure that where an individual has a foreign conviction, their biometrics will be able to be retained indefinitely in the same way as is already possible for individuals with UK convictions – this is particularly important where foreign nationals may have existing convictions for serious offences, including terrorist offences.

Maintaining the UK’s high standards of data protection is central to both the wider Bill and the proposed amendments which have been laid today.

Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, Michelle Donelan, said:

Britain has seized a key Brexit opportunity – boosting small businesses, protecting consumers and cracking down on criminal enterprises like nuisance calling and benefit fraud.

These changes protect our privacy and data while also injecting common sense into the system – whether it is cracking down on cookies, scrapping pointless paperwork which stifles productivity, tackling benefit fraud or making it easier to protect our citizens from criminals.

These changes help to establish the UK as a world-leading data economy; one that puts consumers and businesses at the centre and removes the ‘one-size-fits-all’ barriers that have held many British businesses back.

The Bill’s focus is to create an innovative and flexible data protection regime which will maintain the UK’s high standards of data protection, streamline processes for companies, strengthen national security, and support grieving families. Making it easier to use personal data which will improve efficiency, lead to better public services, and enable new innovations across science, innovation, and technology.

Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, Mel Stride MP, said:

These new powers send a very clear message to benefit fraudsters – we won’t stand for it. These people are taking the taxpayer for a ride and it is right that we do all we can to bring them to justice.

These powers will be used proportionately, ensuring claimants’ data is safely protected while rooting out fraudsters at the earliest possible opportunity.

Home Secretary, James Cleverly, said:

My priority is to continue cutting crime and ensuring the public is protected from security threats. Law enforcement and our security partners must have access to the best possible tools and data, including biometrics, to continue to keep us safe.

This Bill will improve the efficiency of data protection for our security and policing partners—encouraging better use of personal information and ensuring appropriate safeguards for privacy.

The amendments tabled today show the practical steps being taken by the UK government to improve how the nation uses and accesses personal data, capitalising on the UK’s departure from the European Union to introduce measures which will protect the public purse, strengthen national security, and offer important support to grieving families.

These amendments will also help the Bill realise its ambition of bulldozing burdens for businesses and removing restrictions for researchers, ensuring new advances in science, innovation, and technology can be fuelled by more practical ways to access data.
December 4, 2023
PRESS RELEASE : On the 90th anniversary of the Holodomor: UK statement to the OSCE [November 2023]

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 24 November 2023.

Ankur Narayan, UK Delegation to the OSCE, marks the 90th anniversary of the Holodomor, paying tribute to all those who lost their lives, and condemning Russia’s current weaponisation of food against Ukraine.

On this 90th anniversary, we remember the Holodomor as one of the darkest chapters in Ukrainian and European history. A vast and horrific man-made disaster that killed millions of innocent people. I regret to say that the period we are in now is also one of darkness, a chapter of premeditated and unprovoked Russian aggression.

The UK pays tribute to all those who lost their lives. We also pay tribute to our Ukrainian friends, who continue to work to ensure that the truth of the Holodomor is recognised, after decades of suppression by the Soviet Union. We also commend the bravery of other organisations and individuals who have sought to expose these Soviet-era atrocities, particularly in Russia. We condemn their persecution by Russian authorities for trying to expose the truth.

We must never stop learning from the horrors inflicted on the Ukrainian people during the Holodomor, nor allow the millions who perished to be forgotten.

While marking the 90th anniversary of the Holodomor, Ukraine continues to face Russian aggression. Since its illegal full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Russia has used food as one of its many weapons of war. Alongside Russia’s withdrawal from the Black Sea Grain Initiative, Russia has conducted hundreds of strikes against Ukraine’s ports, clearly intended to prevent Ukraine from exporting its grain. Ukrainian grain exports are crucial to ensuring global food security and resilient global markets.

The UK Foreign Secretary’s visit last week to Odesa on the Black Sea coast underlined the UK’s support to Ukrainian efforts to defend itself from Russian attacks against its grain exports and infrastructure, including Ukraine’s new export corridor. The Foreign Secretary marked the launch of the new ‘Unity Facility’ between Marsh McLennan and the Ukrainian government which will provide affordable shipping insurance for companies’ grain and other critical food supplies from Ukraine’s Black Sea ports. We would also like to welcome Ukraine’s Summit on 25 November, which will drive support for the ‘Grain from Ukraine’ initiative and consider concrete steps to counter the damage of Russia’s illegal invasion on global food security.

Madam Chair, it is vitally important that we work collectively to promote global food security, to ensure that suffering such as that experienced during the Holodomor is not repeated. Thank you.

December 4, 2023
PRESS RELEASE : New Quantum Missions launched as Science Minister visits new advanced quantum lab [November 2023]
The press release issued by the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology on 24 November 2023.

Science Minister Andrew Griffith made his first ministerial visit yesterday to the National Physical Laboratory following the announcement of five Quantum Missions at the Autumn Statement.
- The government has launched five new Quantum Missions, building on UK’s £2.5 billion Quantum Strategy
- missions aim to galvanise academics, industry and private investors to commit time and resource towards hitting significant milestones, like embedding quantum sensing into the NHS
- new Science Minister Andrew Griffith makes first visit to National Physical Laboratory, to see new Advanced Quantum Metrology Lab
Science Minister Andrew Griffith made his first ministerial visit yesterday (Thursday 23 November) to the National Physical Laboratory and its new state-of-the-art lab. The visit marks the launch of five new Quantum Missions aimed at securing the UK’s status as a world leader in the technology, by setting clear milestones for inward investment and research in areas like computing, healthcare and navigation.

On Wednesday, (22 November) the Chancellor launched the five new Quantum Missions as part of the Autumn Statement, with the stated aim of galvanising academics, industry and private investors to commit time and resource towards achieving specific key milestones over the next decade and a half.

With the biggest impacts for quantum technologies expected in the long-term, these Missions will help crystallize the activity and investment needed in the public and private sectors to achieve ambitious milestones for this technology. The advent of quantum technology could see faster and more successful financial modelling that reduces risk for businesses, new sensors detecting cancers and other diseases more quickly and the creation of batteries far more efficient than ever before.

The Missions, backed by our £2.5 billion Quantum Strategy, are:
- By 2035, there will be accessible, UK-based quantum computers capable of running 1 trillion operations and supporting applications that provide benefits well in excess of classical supercomputers across key sectors of the economy.
- By 2035, the UK will have deployed the world’s most advanced quantum network at scale, pioneering the future quantum internet.
- By 2030, every NHS Trust will benefit from quantum sensing-enabled solutions, helping those with chronic illness live healthier, longer lives through early diagnosis and treatment.
- By 2030, quantum navigation systems, including clocks, will be deployed on aircraft, providing next-generation accuracy for resilience that is independent of satellite signals.
- By 2030, mobile, networked quantum sensors will have unlocked new situational awareness capabilities, exploited across critical infrastructure in the transport, telecoms, energy, and defence sectors.
The Science Minister visited the National Physical Laboratory in Teddington, home to their Advanced Quantum Metrology Lab, a new, state-of-the-art facility used for the test and evaluation of clocks, which provides super-accurate timing that researchers and companies can access to test their own technology and validate their research.

On the visit the Minister met with some of the leading quantum scientists and engineers in the country, as well as toured the state-of-the-art facilities, including those which provide the UK’s own exact time, as well as a 3 metres tall quantum refrigerator that is colder than deep space.

Minister Griffith was appointed as Science Minister last week following a sterling career in the City of London and recently serving as City Minister within the Treasury.

The Minister will leverage this experience to ensure the UK’s burgeoning science sector can secure both the domestic and foreign investment it needs to build scalable industries of tomorrow, including quantum technologies.

Minister of State for Science, Research and Innovation, Minister Andrew Griffith said:

Quantum technology has the potential to revolutionise the way modern economies work through an exponential increase in processing speed and power.

I want to ensure the UK is in a position to be one of the first and biggest beneficiaries of this game-changing technology, which is why we are investing £2.5 billion in quantum over the next ten years, and launching these Quantum Missions to focus the minds of investors and researchers on the key concrete steps we can take.

The announcement of the Five Quantum Missions at the Autumn Statement comes alongside further support for UK compute, including an investment of £500 million into using compute for artificial intelligence (AI), spread over two years.

Quantum technologies – one of the government’s five critical technologies – are devices and systems using quantum mechanics to provide capabilities that ‘classical’ machines like binary computers cannot. They could bring enormous benefits to the economy, such as making it possible to solve complex problems impossible to solve with even the most powerful high-performance classical computers, and opening entirely new frontiers in sensing, timing, imaging, and communications.

Dr Peter Thompson, CEO, National Physical Laboratory (NPL) said:

Our science and engineering facilities at National Physical Laboratory (NPL), which the Minister has seen today, are directly contributing to the realisation of the Quantum Missions. The significant investments at NPL in quantum, focus on ensuring that the UK sees the benefits to our economic prosperity, national security, and wellbeing.

Innovative UK companies of all sizes are working with us to test their quantum technologies’, leading to greater investment and scale up, and accelerating both their ability to get technologies to market quicker, and to trade more effectively.

The National Quantum Strategy, published in March 2023, commits a further £2.5 billion to developing quantum technologies in the UK over the ten years from 2024 which will aim to generate at least an additional £1 billion of private investment into the programme.

This announcement comes off the back of continued support for the sector from the government. In October, Science and Technology Michelle Donelan opened PsiQuantum’s new state-of-the-art research and development (R&D) facility at Sci-Tech Daresbury, which is supported with £9 million from the Government. In June, Minister Freeman announced £45 million in funding to support universities and businesses working in the UK’s quantum technologies sector.
December 4, 2023
PRESS RELEASE : Iron Age gold brooches at risk of leaving UK [November 2023]

The press release issued by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport on 24 November 2023.

Export bar placed on Iron Age gold brooches to allow time for a UK institution to acquire them.

Arts and Heritage Minister Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay has placed an export bar on a set of Iron Age gold brooches dating back to the first century BC, so that a domestic buyer can be found.

The brooches, valued at £260,000 (plus VAT of £52,000), are at risk of leaving the UK permanently.

They are a rare set of exceptionally preserved jewellery, consisting of two brooches and three chains connected by a pendant, made entirely from gold. The form of the two brooches and the style of gold working on the chain and pendant suggest they were made between 80–20 BC.

The brooches are similar to the Winchester Hoard, which was discovered in Hampshire in 2000 and is now on display at the British Museum. In both examples, the makers used pre-Roman Mediterranean craft techniques on object forms particular to France during the time of the Gallic wars and Roman invasions of southern Britain.

Arts & Heritage Minister Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay said:

This intricate and rare jewellery, more than two thousand years old, demonstrates the quality craftsmanship of the British Isles in the late Iron Age.

I hope this beguiling and well-preserved set can remain in the UK so that it can be studied and enjoyed for many years to come.

The minister’s decision follows the advice of the Reviewing Committee on the Export of Works of Art and Objects of Cultural Interest.

Committee Member Tim Pestell said:

This exquisite and rare set of brooches and chain is a remarkable survivor of the period when Roman rule was being exerted over the British Isles in the first century BC. First recognised when being sold in an English antiques shop, the set bears similarity to the pair of gold pins and linking chain found by a metal-detectorist near Winchester in 2000, now in the British Museum.

Together, these brooch and chain sets provide an intriguing reminder of the wealth and sophistication of elite jewellery, and the strength of Roman cultural and political influence on native Iron Age peoples on both sides of the Channel.

Despite their lack of provenance, the rarity and completeness of this brooch suite makes it an important example of Late Iron Age jewellery with few parallels and great research potential. I hope that a museum or private individual may come forward to enable it to be retained in the UK and made available to the public.

The committee made its recommendation on the basis that the brooches met the second and third Waverley criteria for their outstanding significance for the study of goldwork and the Roman empire during the 1st century BC.

The decision on the export licence application for the brooches will be deferred for a period ending on 23 February 2024 (inclusive). At the end of the first deferral period owners will have a consideration period of 15 Business Days to consider any offer(s) to purchase the brooches at the recommended price of £260,000 (plus VAT of £52,000 which can be reclaimed by an eligible institution). The second deferral period will commence following the signing of an Option Agreement and will last for three months.

Offers from public bodies for less than the recommended price through the private treaty sale arrangements, where appropriate, may also be considered by the Minister. Such purchases frequently offer substantial financial benefit to a public institution wishing to acquire the item.

December 4, 2023
PRESS RELEASE : We’re putting veterans at the heart of government [November 2023]

The press release issued by the Cabinet Office on 24 November 2023.

An Op-Ed by Johnny Mercer, Minister for Veterans’ Affairs, originally published in The Express.

Every week I speak to veterans across the country about what we’re doing in government to make this the best place in the world to be a veteran.

While in the past, services for veterans have often been lacking, now, under this Prime Minister, what it feels like to be a veteran is being fundamentally transformed.

Over the last year we have seen £5m given to fund new healthcare innovations, a commitment to end veteran homelessness this year through Op Fortitude, including through a substantial investment in housing, and a new dedicated health pathway for the physical needs of veterans, called Op Restore. This will run alongside the dedicated veterans mental health pathway, Op Courage. And today’s Autumn Statement will also see more stepped up support for our veterans, with £10 million for mental health services, including those who are homeless, isolated or elderly.

Sometimes in my conversations with veterans though, I hear frustration that the services that our ex-military are trying to access, can be too complicated, confusing and too slow.

Whether it’s finding out about employment and skills, accessing healthcare, or looking for information on their Armed Forces pension, finding your way around the network of support services can be challenging.

So that’s why, for the first time we asked an independent review to look back and take stock on the totality of veteran support available and look at how we can make it more effective and efficient.

Today (Tuesday 21st Nov) I updated the House of Commons on how we will take improvements forward, accepting most of the review’s recommendations.

The first major change is that the Veterans UK brand will be phased out and retired next year, with a replacement to be announced in due course. Many great staff work very hard delivering welfare services for veterans under this banner, but they have sometimes been held back by old fashioned processes. I know this has caused frustration in the veteran community and so we’ll deliver an improved service for them.

So this change marks a vital step forward in better communicating the variety of services that the Ministry of Defence provides to not only veterans, but those in the military, their families and the bereaved community. The MOD’s digitisation programme, backed by £40 million in government funding, will also improve the services available to veterans.

Second, to provide clarity on the roles and responsibility for veterans affairs, the word “Veterans” will be removed to the Minister for Defence People, Veterans and Service Families – now renamed Minister for Defence People and Families. This will further help veterans and stakeholder groups know that the Office for Veterans’ Affairs, which I head up, is responsible for coordinating veterans policy across government.

And thirdly, we will improve the Veterans Gateway, which over one million veterans have already used to access support. The OVA is leading a project to refresh the Gateway, and we are already working with veterans on trials to make this service better.

These changes – which we are making a start on now – will help veterans’ services become more effective, efficient and clear. I am focused on making the right changes which will benefit all veterans across the UK, step by step.

December 4, 2023

PRESS RELEASE : Two Trustees reappointed to the National Gallery [November 2023]

The press release issued by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport on 24 November 2023.

The Prime Minister has reappointed Catherine Goodman and Stuart Roden as Trustees of the National Gallery.

Catherine Goodman LVO

Reappointed for a four year term commencing 01 November 2023.

Catherine Goodman is an artist, educator, and the Founding Artistic Director of the Royal Drawing School, which she co-established in 2000 with the former The Prince of Wales, now His Majesty King Charles III.

She trained at Camberwell School of Arts & Crafts and at the Royal Academy Schools for her MA. In 1987 she won the Royal Academy Gold Medal and in 2002, she won First Prize in the BP Portrait Award at the National Portrait Gallery. She was made Lieutenant of the Royal Victorian Order for services to the Royal Drawing School in 2014.

Catherine is represented by Hauser & Wirth and has had numerous solo exhibitions including ‘Portraits from Life’ at the National Portrait Gallery in 2014 and ‘the last house in the world’ at Marlborough Fine Art London in 2016; in 2019 she exhibited at Hauser & Wirth Somerset following five months as Artist in Residence, and at Marlborough Gallery New York with her solo exhibition, ‘the light gets in’. Goodman’s paintings are held in numerous private and public collections including the National Portrait Gallery, the Fitzwilliam Museum Cambridge, and the Royal Collection Trust. Goodman is included in ‘Great Women Artists’ published by Phaidon Press in 2019.

Stuart Roden

Reappointed for a four year term commencing 01 November 2023.

Until January 2019 Stuart was Chair of Lansdowne Partners having previously co-managed the Developed Markets Fund since their inception in 2001. Stuart is non-Executive Chair of Hetz Ventures, Tresidor Investment Management and Chair of Lewis Advisors.

On the non-profit side, Stuart is Chair and Founder of Unlocking Potential and Chair of The Design Museum. He is a trustee of The National Gallery, The Centre for Social Justice and the London School of Economics.

Stuart started his career in the City in 1984, joining SG Warburg & Co, then McKinsey and prior to joining Lansdowne in 2001, was a Managing Director at Merrill Lynch. He received a first-class honours degree in Economics (BSc) from the London School of Economics.

Remuneration and Governance Code

Trustees of the National Gallery are not remunerated. 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. Catherine Goodman has not declared any significant political activity. Stuart Roden has declared that he has previously made a recordable donation to The Labour Party.

December 4, 2023