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Tag: 2025

  • PRESS RELEASE : The UK is working to tackle the root causes of displacement, including war, instability and repression – UK statement at the UN Security Council [April 2025]

    PRESS RELEASE : The UK is working to tackle the root causes of displacement, including war, instability and repression – UK statement at the UN Security Council [April 2025]

    The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 28 April 2025.

    Statement by Ambassador James Kariuki, UK Deputy Permanent Representative to the UN, at the UN Security Council briefing by the UN High Commissioner for Refugees.

    I want to start by underlining our wholehearted support for UNHCR and High Commissioner Grandi’s passionate leadership. You have steered the organisation through a decade of global change.

    A decade of increasing conflict, climate shocks and instability.

    All these factors continue to push people from their homes, driving displacement ever higher.

    In the world today, over 123 million people are forcibly displaced.

    In the face of such challenges, we must focus on solutions.

    I will highlight three that are priority areas for the UK.

    First, we will continue to do all we can to tackle the root causes of displacement, including war, instability, and repression.

    We will work at all levels, including through this Council to protect the rules-based international system and promote peace.

    We will work with international partners to tackle people smuggling and human trafficking, which exploits vulnerable people for financial gain.

    Just this month, the UK led a successful Border-Security Summit, where we secured agreements between participating countries, to drive efforts to disrupt organised immigration crime and save lives.

    Second, we will seek solutions to regional and country-specific crises.

    Many of which, from Ukraine to the Middle East, are the focus of this Council.

    This month, the UK hosted a conference on Sudan with humanitarian and political objectives, including support for an end to the conflict and easing the impact on the region and we were grateful for the participation of Commissioner Grandi along with other parts of the UN leadership.

    In Cox’s Bazar, we have funded UNHCR to support refugees’ access to healthcare, clean water and hygiene.

    We will continue to advocate for safe, dignified and sustainable solutions for refugees, including at the UN Rohingya Conference in September.

    And third, we continue to push for innovative approaches to addressing displacement.

    We support the High Commissioner’s Sustainable Responses Initiative, which supports refugee inclusion and self-reliance, and ownership of solutions by host countries.

    We look forward to the Global Compact for Refugees meeting in December – a key moment to review progress on pledges we made in 2023, to deliver better outcomes for displaced people and host communities.

    And we encourage others to join and sustain our collective efforts to achieve the Compact’s goals.

    In conclusion, President, to reverse the growing trend of displacement, we need to focus on solutions to the causes we have all discussed today.

    The UK is committed to working with UNHCR and other international partners and institutions to achieve this.

  • PRESS RELEASE : Secretary of State Extends Timeframe for Legacy Investigation Reports [April 2025]

    PRESS RELEASE : Secretary of State Extends Timeframe for Legacy Investigation Reports [April 2025]

    The press release issued by the Northern Ireland Office on 28 April 2025.

    The Secretary of State has today signed a six month extension to a transitional provision made under the Northern Ireland Troubles (Legacy and Reconciliation) Act 2023, to allow investigating bodies to carry out post-investigative tasks until 31st October 2025.

    A transitional provision was made under the Act which specified that, where all that remains to be carried out by the investigating body is the preparation of the investigation report or something subsequent to that, it may carry out those post-investigative tasks until 30th April 2025.

    The Government received requests from the Police Ombudsman for Northern Ireland, KENOVA and the Police Service of Northern Ireland to extend that provision in order to allow remaining post-investigative tasks to be carried out.

    The Government is committed to ensuring families receive information as soon as possible about what happened to their loved ones, so has agreed to extend the provision until 31st October 2025.

    The Government is committed to repeal and replace the Act. On 4 December 2024 the Secretary of State began this process by laying a proposed draft Remedial Order under the Human Rights Act. If adopted by Parliament, the Order will remedy all of the human rights deficiencies in the Act identified by the Northern Ireland High Court in February 2024 in the case of Dillon and Others and one issue from the Court of Appeal judgment in September 2024.

    The Secretary of State has also committed to introduce primary legislation when parliamentary time allows, which will reform and strengthen the independence, powers and accountability of the Independent Commission on Reconciliation and Information Recovery (ICRIR).

  • PRESS RELEASE : Cost of living boost for millions as prescription charges frozen [April 2025]

    PRESS RELEASE : Cost of living boost for millions as prescription charges frozen [April 2025]

    The press release issued by the Department of Health and Social Care on 28 April 2025.

    Millions of patients are getting a cost of living boost as the government freezes prescription charges for the first time in three years.

    • NHS prescription charges in England will be frozen for the first time in three years, keeping the cost of a prescription below a tenner.
    • The decision means £18 million saving to help with cost of living for millions who regularly pay for prescriptions as the government delivers security for working people through its Plan for Change.
    • Freeze comes weeks after this government agreed record investment for community pharmacies to fund local services for patients.

    Millions of people across the country will see the cost of their prescriptions frozen for the first time in three years from today – as the government puts money back into the pockets of working people as it delivers on the Plan for Change.

    The move will save patients around £18 million next year – keeping prescriptions under the cost of a tenner, at £9.90 for a single charge. Those who are already exempt from paying their prescription will continue to be so.

    Three month and annual prescriptions prepayment certificates will also be frozen for 2025/26.

    Annual charges can be made in instalments meaning those requiring regular medicines will be able to get them for just over £2 a week.

    The prescription charge freeze builds on wider government action to tackle the cost of living crisis, including the rollout of free breakfast clubs, expanded childcare through 300 new school-based nurseries, lowering the cost of school uniforms, and extending the fuel duty freeze – all aimed at easing financial pressures on families across the country.

    Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, Wes Streeting, said:

    This government’s Plan for Change will always put working people first, and our moves today to freeze prescription charges will put money back into the pockets of millions of patients.

    Fixing our NHS will be a long road – but by working closer with our pharmacies we’re saving money and shifting care to the community where it’s closer to your home.

    We made the difficult but necessary choices at the Budget to fund moves like this and change our NHS so it can once again be there for you when you need it.

    The announcement follows news last month of the government agreeing funding with Community Pharmacy England worth an extra £617 million over 2 years.

    And the investment comes alongside reforms to deliver a raft of patient benefits, as part of the government’s agenda to shift the focus of care from hospitals into the community, so that people can more easily access care and support on their high streets.

    This freeze is only possible thanks to the government’s difficult but necessary choices at the Budget to bring in a £26 billion boost to the health service.

    Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rachel Reeves, said:

    We promised to build an NHS fit for the future, and that started with the £26 billion funding boost I delivered at the Budget, to repair and improve the many vital services it provides.

    Since then, waiting lists are falling, staff are better paid and supported, and today, £18 million has been kept in patient’s pockets by freezing prescription charges – easing the cost of living through our Plan for Change, delivering for all.

    Jonathan Blades, Head of Policy at Asthma + Lung UK, said:

    The freezing of prescription charges is a welcome first step and will provide some short-term relief for people with lung conditions during the ongoing cost of living crisis. Living with a long-term lung condition like asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is expensive and rising prescription costs only make it harder for people to manage their condition and stay well.

    Around 89% of prescriptions in England are already dispensed free of charge to children, over-60s, pregnant women, and those with certain medical conditions. This freeze will not impact that scheme.

    In addition to the freeze on charges, the NHS low income scheme offers help with prescription payments, with free prescriptions for eligible people in certain groups such as pensioners, students, and those who receive state benefits or live in care homes.

    Alongside action to rebuild the NHS, the government’s Plan for Change is focused on growing the economy to improve living standards across the country. This further freeze will only improve that.

    Notes to editors:

    • NHS prescription charges apply in England only
    • A 3-month prescription prepayment certificate (PPCs) will be frozen at £32.05 and a 12 month PPCs will remain at £114.50.
    • Groups exempt from prescription charges include:

    o   Children under 16 and those in full-time education aged 16-18

    o   People aged 60 and over

    o   Pregnant women and those who have had a baby in the last 12 months

    o   People with specified medical conditions like diabetes or cancer and have valid exemption certificates

    o   Those receiving qualifying benefits including Universal Credit (with criteria)

    o   NHS inpatients

    • The freeze will also apply to NHS wigs and fabric supports; these prices will remain at current levels:

    ·       Surgical brassiere                        £32.50

    ·       Abdominal or spinal support    £49.05

    ·       Stock modacrylic wig                 £80.15

    ·       Partial human hair wig £212.35

    ·       Full bespoke human hair wig    £310.55

    • Patients on a low income, who do not qualify for an exemption, can apply for help with help costs through application to the NHS Low Income Scheme. People can check whether they are eligible for help here.
  • PRESS RELEASE : Director of education support companies jailed after spending £200,000 in Covid loans ‘as he saw fit’ [April 2025]

    PRESS RELEASE : Director of education support companies jailed after spending £200,000 in Covid loans ‘as he saw fit’ [April 2025]

    The press release issued by the Insolvency Service on 28 April 2025.

    Bounce Back Loan fraudster convicted after Insolvency Service investigations.

    • Ricky Harrison fraudulently obtained four Covid Bounce Back Loans, including three for dormant companies
    • Money from the loans was used by Harrison for his own personal benefit and he attempted to avoid having to make any repayments by applying to have all four of his companies struck-off the Companies House register
    • Harrison has been sentenced to more than three years in prison following Insolvency Service investigations into his conduct

    A director who secured maximum-value Covid loans for three dormant companies and overstated his turnover to secure a fourth during the pandemic has been jailed.

    Ricky Harrison received a total of £200,000 in Bounce Back Loans during 2020, when he was entitled to just £16,000 at most. He also spent the money for personal purposes, not for business use as was required.

    Three of his companies, Hackney Works Ltd, Tower Hamlets Works Ltd and Ricky Harrison Holdings Ltd, were not trading at the time he made his fraudulent applications to the bank.

    The 41-year-old also exaggerated his turnover by more than £150,000 for a fourth company, Newham Works Ltd.

    Harrison, of Beacon Court, Hertford Heath, Hertfordshire, was sentenced to three years and two months in prison when he appeared at St Albans Crown Court on Friday 25 April.

    He was also disqualified as a director for 10 years.

    David Snasdell, Chief Investigator at the Insolvency Service, said:

    Ricky Harrison’s actions were deeply cynical. He exploited an opportunity to help himself to taxpayers’ money during what was a national emergency.

    Harrison did not co-operate with Insolvency Service investigations, failing to attend a pre-arranged interview and instead producing a typed statement where he implausibly claimed he was entitled to all the loans and was at liberty to spend the funds as he saw fit.

    The reality is that Harrison was not entitled to the vast majority of the money he received and was required to spend the funds for the economic benefit of his business.

    This was public money and we will continue to prosecute those who made such obvious false representations to secure Covid support.

    Harrison’s four companies were incorporated within a three-week period in December 2018 and January 2019.

    Hackney Works, Tower Hamlets Works, and Newham Works were all described on Companies House as providing “educational support services”. Ricky Harrison Holdings was described as a holding company.

    Only Newham Works appeared to have any trading income in 2019.

    Harrison himself admitted to an accountant that Hackney Works and Tower Hamlets Works were dormant and that there was no need to prepare any accounts for them.

    Analysis of the accounts of Ricky Harrison Holdings revealed no evidence that the company had begun trading in its own right.

    Despite this, Harrison falsely declared the companies had an annual turnover of £245,000, £232,000, and £315,000 respectively when he made the applications for three £50,000 Bounce Back Loans across a two-day period in May 2020.

    At the same time, Harrison made a fraudulent application for a £50,000 Bounce Back Loan for Newham Works. He declared on the application form that the company’s turnover was £215,000 when it was actually only £64,000.

    Harrison transferred some of the money he received to his other companies, including Newham Works, and paid a percentage into his own personal account.

    A total of £85,000 also appeared to be used for the purchase of a vehicle in June 2020.

    Harrison told the bank he would repay the funds, as was required under the terms of the scheme.

    However, in July 2020, just weeks after securing the loans, Harrison applied to have Hackney Works and Tower Hamlets Works struck-off the Companies House register.

    Harrison subsequently attempted to strike-off Ricky Harrison Holdings and Newham Works in 2021 but was unsuccessful.

    No loan repayments were made by Harrison aside from a single payment of £833.

  • PRESS RELEASE : Alex Ely has been appointed as Chair of the Museum of the Home [April 2025]

    PRESS RELEASE : Alex Ely has been appointed as Chair of the Museum of the Home [April 2025]

    The press release issued by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport on 28 April 2025.

    The Secretary of State has appointed Alex Ely as the Chair of the Museum of the Home for a term of four years, which commenced on 23 March 2025.

    Alex Ely

    Alex is Founder Director of Mæ, an architecture and urban design studio based in London. Alex is a RIBA Chartered Architect and a Member of the Royal Town Planning Institute, he graduated from the Royal College of Art. Under his leadership, Mæ has gained international recognition for its innovative and socially responsive design approach, delivering acclaimed projects across masterplanning, housing, healthcare, and cultural buildings.

    Alex oversees Mæ’s design direction, and has won numerous accolades including the RIBA Stirling Prize 2023. He is a leading voice in the built environment, and has shaped national housing policy having advised the Government and the Mayor of London on urban and planning policy promoting an agenda of design excellence. He has taught at a number of UK Schools of Architecture, written several books, and exhibited internationally.

    Alex Ely quote:

    “I am delighted to be appointed by the Secretary of State as Chair of the Museum of the Home. The Museum plays a crucial role in the advancement of education and promoting debate about the importance of home in and for societies. As one of our foremost cultural institutions I look forward to helping advance its mission and build on its purpose to reveal and rethink the ways we live, in order to live better together.”

    Remuneration and Governance Code

    The Chair of the Museum of the Home is 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. Alex has not declared any significant political activity.

  • PRESS RELEASE : Education Secretary appoints new chair of Child Safeguarding Practice Review Panel [April 2025]

    PRESS RELEASE : Education Secretary appoints new chair of Child Safeguarding Practice Review Panel [April 2025]

    The press release issued by the Department for Education on 28 April 2025.

    Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson has appointed Sir David Holmes as the new Chair of the Child Safeguarding Practice Review Panel.

    The independent panel of experts provides national leadership and learning on child protection and safeguarding. Established in July 2018 to review serious child safeguarding incidents, when children have died or suffered serious harm due to abuse or neglect, the panel aims to improve the safeguarding system by identifying national learning from these tragedies.

    David Holmes has 19 years’ experience in the development and provision of high-quality services for children and families as a CEO in the voluntary sector, currently as CEO of Family Action – a frontline charity which supports families through change, challenge or crisis. Prior to that he served as a Deputy Director of Children’s Services in local government, a senior civil servant in the Department of Health and Department for Education, and as a practising solicitor. He will serve a 4-year term from 23 June 2025.

    This appointment builds on the announcement that the panel will form the foundation from which to build the Child Protection Authority (CPA) in England. The CPA will be established to make the child protection system clearer and more unified, and ensure ongoing improvement for child and youth victims of abuse and neglect through effective, evidence-based support for practitioners.

    Under Sir David’s leadership, work to expand the role of the panel by increasing its analytical capacity and to provide high-quality material for practitioners will begin immediately. Later this year, the government will develop a roadmap to establishing the CPA and launch a consultation on the development of the new CPA.

    Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson said:

    Sir David Holmes’ track record in working on the ground with children and families, supporting them through the toughest times, makes him well-placed to help us build a system where background does not determine destiny.

    I am grateful to Annie Hudson for her stewardship of the panel, bringing forth ambitious recommendations that are now informing our work to improve child protection across England and deliver our Plan for Change.

    As we move towards creating a new Child Protection Authority, I look forward to working with Sir David Holmes in a shared ambition to protect and defend the most vulnerable children in our society.

    Incoming chair of the panel, Sir David Holmes, said:

    I am honoured to have been chosen to undertake this role. No child should suffer harm, abuse or neglect and the panel’s role in working with the whole safeguarding system to review practice, identify learning and encourage and enable improvement is crucial.

    I look forward to working with everyone to improve the safeguarding of children and I will do everything I possibly can to make a positive difference in this role.

    Outgoing chair of the panel, Annie Hudson, said:

    I feel immensely privileged to have served as Chair of the Child Safeguarding Practice Review Panel for the past 5 years.

    The panel has worked hard to ensure that, as a nation and as safeguarding professionals, we learn from tragic incidents where children have died or been seriously harmed because of abuse and neglect.

    There is much important work to do over the coming period to improve how agencies work together to help and protect children. With his wealth of experience, I know that Sir David Holmes is very well placed to lead the panel in taking forward plans to create a stronger, evidence-based system that puts children’s needs at the heart of all we do.

  • PRESS RELEASE : Universal Periodic Review 49 – UK Statement on Kyrgyzstan [April 2025]

    PRESS RELEASE : Universal Periodic Review 49 – UK Statement on Kyrgyzstan [April 2025]

    The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 28 April 2025.

    Statement by the UK’s Permanent Representative to the WTO and UN, Simon Manley, at Kyrgyzstan’s Universal Periodic Review at the Human Rights Council in Geneva.

    Let me welcome the Minister and his delegation, and salute his government’s efforts to implement the recommendations from its last review. Not least, we commend its efforts on gender equality and welcome their constructive role on this Council.

    Let me also urge his Government to uphold its obligations under the ICCPR and the commitments accepted at its last review.

    We recommend that the Kyrgyz Republic:

    1. Ensure the treatment of NGOS is in line with international human rights obligations, and that it removes regulations for NGOS to provide information not stipulated by the ‘Law on Non-Commercial Organisations’.
    2. Maintain the National Centre for the Prevention of Torture as an independent and separate National Preventative Mechanism and provide adequate resources to the Centre to continue to effectively carry out its mandate.
    3. Adhere to the principles enshrined in the Kyrgyz Constitution by amending the Code of Offences to decriminalise defamation and insult, and instead use civil litigation in line with international human rights obligations.

    Thank you, Mr President.

  • PRESS RELEASE : Change of British High Commissioner to Malta – Victoria Busby [April 2025]

    PRESS RELEASE : Change of British High Commissioner to Malta – Victoria Busby [April 2025]

    The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 28 April 2025.

    Mrs Victoria Busby OBE has been appointed British High Commissioner to the Republic of Malta in succession to Ms Katherine Ward LVO OBE who will be transferring to another Diplomatic Service appointment. Mrs Busby will take up her appointment during September 2025.

    Curriculum vitae

    Full name: Victoria Alice Markland Busby

    Year Role
    2020 to present FCDO, Director of Protocol and Vice-Marshal of the Diplomatic Corps
    2019 to 2020 Cabinet Office, Chief Operating Officer, COP26
    2012 to 2019 No10, Deputy Director, Events and Visits
    2010 to 2012 DCMS, Head of Communication, Government Olympic Executive
    2009 to 2010 Home Office, Senior Communications Manager, Office for Security and Counter-Terrorism
    2008 to 2009 Ministry of Defence, Senior PR Manager
    2006 to 2008 Department for Work and Pensions, Marketing Manager
    2006 Joined Civil Service
    2005 to 2006 Head London (communications consultancy), Account Manager
    2003 to 2005 Christie’s (auction house), Proposals Writer
  • PRESS RELEASE : Reappointment of a Non-Judicial Member of the Sentencing Council [April 2025]

    PRESS RELEASE : Reappointment of a Non-Judicial Member of the Sentencing Council [April 2025]

    The press release issued by the Ministry of Justice on 28 April 2025.

    The Lord Chancellor has approved the reappointment of Richard Wright KC as a non-judicial member of the Sentencing Council with special expertise in criminal defence.

    The reappointment is for 3 years from 1 August 2025 to 31 July 2028.

    The Sentencing Council for England and Wales was set up in April 2010 to promote greater transparency and consistency in sentencing, while maintaining the independence of the judiciary.

    The primary role of the council is to issue guidelines on sentencing, which the courts must follow unless it is in the interests of justice not to do so. The council consists of judicial and non-judicial members with specialist knowledge of particular aspects of the criminal justice system.

    The appointment of non-judicial members of the Sentencing Council is regulated by the Commissioner for Public Appointments and recruitment processes comply with the Cabinet Office Governance Code on Public Appointments.

    Biography

    Richard Wright was called to the Bar in 1998 and took silk in 2013. He has practised from 6 Park Square in Leeds since, 1998, where he has been Head of Chambers since 2013.

    Specialising in murder and manslaughter cases, Richard has prosecuted and defended in some of the highest profile cases across the North of England.

    Since 2020 he has been Leader of the North Eastern Circuit; leading the professions’ response to the Covid-19 emergency and, in 2022, he was invited to join the legal team of the UK Covid-19 Inquiry.

    Richard Wright was appointed Deputy District Judge (Magistrates’ Courts) in 2006, Recorder of the Crown Court in 2012 and Deputy High Court Judge in January 2023. He has been a non-judicial member of the Sentencing Council since 1 August 2022 with experience of criminal defence.

  • PRESS RELEASE : Buckinghamshire events director sentenced for Covid fraud [April 2025]

    PRESS RELEASE : Buckinghamshire events director sentenced for Covid fraud [April 2025]

    The press release issued by the Insolvency Service on 28 April 2025.

    Bounce Back Loan fraudster convicted following Insolvency Service investigations.

    • William Blenkarn claimed he did not know he was not entitled to a second Bounce Back Loan for MJB Events Limited
    • Blenkarn obtained double the amount of Covid support his company was entitled to as a result of his fraudulent declaration
    • Money from the loan was then transferred to a new company Blenkarn had set up just weeks into the pandemic

    The owner of two Buckinghamshire-based events companies has been handed a suspended sentence after receiving £100,000 in Covid support funds when he was only entitled to half that figure.

    William Blenkarn secured two Bounce Back Loans worth £50,000 each for his MJB Events Limited company, breaking the rules of the scheme which specifically stated that businesses could only have a single loan.

    The 48-year-old then transferred £41,000 from the company’s bank account to his second business – MJB Entertainment Group Ltd – which had only been set up weeks before his fraudulent application.

    Blenkarn, formerly of London End, Beaconsfield, but now living in Spain, was sentenced to two years in prison, suspended for 18 months, at Aylesbury Crown Court on Thursday 24 April.

    He was also ordered to complete 200 hours of unpaid work.

    David Snasdell, Chief Investigator at the Insolvency Service, said:

    William Blenkarn’s company received double the amount of public money it deserved due to his false declaration when applying for a second Bounce Back Loan.

    This was taxpayers’ money and Blenkarn made matters worse by moving a significant proportion of the loan over to his new company which had only been trading for a few months.

    MJB Events was incorporated in January 2016 and was described as an events company. MJB Entertainment Group was set up in early April 2020.

    Blenkarn told the Insolvency Service that MJB Entertainment Group was created to manage and book artists but developed into organising a range of charity events.

    The company also described itself as providing additional services such as marquee design and wedding planning.

    Blenkarn applied to two different banks for £50,000 Bounce Back Loans – the maximum allowed under the scheme – on behalf of MJB Events in May 2020.

    For his second application, Blenkarn ticked the online declaration to certify that this was the only application made on behalf of the business.

    Despite this, Blenkarn claimed he did not know that he could only apply for one loan for each company.

    Two payments of £25,000 and £16,000 were then made to MJB Entertainment Group from the bank account belonging to MJB Events in July 2020.

    These transactions left the MJB Events account overdrawn by around £25,000 at the time liquidators were appointed in June 2021, depriving creditors of the funds.

    Blenkarn also breached his duties as a director by failing to deliver accounting records for MJB Events to the liquidator as he was required to do by law.

    The Insolvency Service is seeking to recover the fraudulently obtained funds under the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002.

    Further information