Tag: 2026

  • PRESS RELEASE : Europe’s largest drone testing centre opens in Swindon to boost defence innovation [June 2026]

    PRESS RELEASE : Europe’s largest drone testing centre opens in Swindon to boost defence innovation [June 2026]

    The press release issued by the Ministry of Defence on 12 June 2026.

    Defence Secretary Dan Jarvis MP opens Europe’s biggest drone testing centre in Swindon, learning lessons from the Ukraine and Iran conflicts.

    • Defence Secretary Dan Jarvis MP opens Europe’s biggest drone testing centre in Swindon, learning lessons from the Ukraine and Iran conflicts.
    • Uncrewed Systems Centre, based at new DroneTEX facility, will keep Armed Forces at edge of innovation, rapidly developing and fielding capabilities in weeks, not years.
    • Centre will support small British businesses, unlock exports and create jobs as part of largest sustained defence spending boost since the Cold War.

    Britain’s Armed Forces will be strengthened with the latest drone technology after the Defence Secretary opened Europe’s largest drone centre in Swindon today.

    As the conflicts in Iran and Ukraine show, drones are rapidly reshaping warfare, with cheap systems destroying high value targets and innovation cycles measured in weeks, not years. Ukraine uses roughly 200,000 drones a month and there were 700 drones launched per day at the height of conflict in Iran.  

    The new Uncrewed Systems Centre (USC), based at the DroneTEX facility in Swindon, will help the UK’s Armed Forces stay at the leading edge of innovation and take advantage of constantly evolving technologies.

    It will be the UK’s focal point for the development and testing of the latest drone technology and drive collaboration with industry, allies and partners. At 545,000 sq ft, DroneTEX is the size of more than 10 football pitches and will rapidly develop and field new capabilities.  

    The Defence Secretary Dan Jarvis MP met defence industry leaders, investors and military specialists as he toured the facility today.

    At the opening of the USC, Defence Secretary Dan Jarvis MP said:

    The character of warfare is changing, and it is changing fast. From Ukraine to the Middle East, we are seeing right now how uncrewed systems are rapidly evolving and reshaping conflicts – on land, in the air and at sea

    Our new DroneTEX facility at the heart of our Uncrewed Systems Centre is Europe’s largest drone test and development facility, and will help us ensure the UK embraces technologies that are redefining warfare.

    Where once new technology could take years from inception to reaching our Armed Forces, we will now be able to develop and field new tech in a matter of weeks – because in this new era, those who innovate fastest will win.

    This state-of-the-art centre will work with British companies, supporting SMEs, unlocking exports and creating high-skilled jobs.

    It will harness the power of data and digital integration as the UK embraces AI and autonomy, including through our new Task Force RAID (Rapid AI Delivery) which the Prime Minister and Chief of the Defence Staff announced earlier this week. 

    The Strategic Defence Review announced a major increase in autonomy investment of £2 billion in this parliament, taking total defence investment in autonomous systems to £4 billion.

    The MOD has spent over £450 million on uncrewed systems, including £300 million on their research and development since July 2024. In the last year, UK Defence Innovation has injected over £142 million in rapid investment to scale up production of drones and anti-drone weapons.

    UKDI is the focal point for innovation within the Ministry of Defence, backed by a ringfenced annual budget of at least £400 million, enabling UK companies to scale up innovative prototypes rapidly.

  • PRESS RELEASE : New champion to be appointed for Britain’s mutuals and co-operatives [June 2026]

    PRESS RELEASE : New champion to be appointed for Britain’s mutuals and co-operatives [June 2026]

    The press release issued by HM Treasury on 12 June 2026.

    Plans for a new champion for mutuals and co-ops have been unveiled in a speech by the Economic Secretary to the Treasury in Birmingham today.

    Rachel Blake gave her backing to the growth of the mutuals and co-ops sector and doubling its size at the Co-op Congress today – an annual event which brings together leaders, practitioners, and innovators to explore shared challenges and opportunities.

    Mutuals and co-operatives are businesses or organisations owned and run by their members, and they play an important role in strengthening local economies and giving people a stake in the places they live and work.

    The appointment of a new champion would help raise the profile of the sector and represent their interests across government.

    Across the UK, there are more than 8,400 registered co-operative and community benefit societies, collectively holding around £223 billion in assets and 12 million memberships.

    This is part of the Government’s plan to fulfil its commitment to doubling the size of the sector and follows the Department for Business and Trade’s call for evidence on co-operatives and non-financial mutuals earlier this year.

    It also comes shortly after the introduction of the Financial Services and Markets Bill to parliament which includes credit union common bond reforms. They will make it easier for credit unions to expand and broaden their membership which will allow more people access to affordable credit and a safe place to save.

    Rachel Blake MP, Economic Secretary to the Treasury, is expected to say today:

    We want to see the co-operative and mutual sector grow and thrive. 

    We are committed to unlocking the full potential of the sector to support inclusive growth across the UK economy. This has been a priority from the beginning.  

    We are making real progress.

    Minister for Small Business & Economic Transformation, Blair McDougall MP, said:

    Co‑operatives and mutuals have a vital role to play in our Small Business Plan, rebuilding pride in place in the UK and supporting workers and communities.

    By appointing a Co‑operatives and Mutuals Champion, we will shine a light on this model, breaking down barriers to businesses, and back our ambition to double the size of the sector.

  • PRESS RELEASE : When AI Leaves the Lab – Testing Frontier Models in Government Cyber Defence [June 2026]

    PRESS RELEASE : When AI Leaves the Lab – Testing Frontier Models in Government Cyber Defence [June 2026]

    The press release issued by the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology on 12 June 2026.

    The Government Cyber Action Plan aims to boost cyber resilience across the UK public sector by using emerging technologies to manage risk. The Government Cyber Coordination Centre (GC3) – a partnership between the NCSC and the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology – is leading this work, exploring how frontier AI can be applied safely to cyber defence across government.

    From frontier models to front-line impact 

    We know AI is disrupting the cyber threat landscape. Recently released frontier AI systems such as Claude Mythos and GPT-5.5 brought a step-change in cyber capabilities, and the UK AI Security Institute (AISI)’s evaluations show these models getting better at cyber tasks very quickly.  

    However, evaluation in synthetic environments gives a limited understanding of real-world use. A high score on a benchmark does not necessarily translate into finding and fixing real vulnerabilities.

    What we did 

    The Government Cyber Coordination Centre led a weekly, in-person series of hackathons which used frontier AI to scan public code repositories across government. Working closely with specialists from the AISI and NCSC, our goal was to find and mitigate previously unidentified vulnerabilities before they could be exploited. Rather than mandate a single approach, we gave teams model access and let them build their own tooling, noticing what worked each week and building on the best approaches. 

    The UK Government encourages new source code to be open by default, with specific and justified exceptions. In practice, that creates a degree of shared visibility that attackers can also exploit. However, this openness also limits duplication and leads to cleaner, more easily maintained code. 

    Code published in the open has also already passed extensive prepublication scrutiny, meaning it can be shared with frontier model providers with minimal additional review. This means that government departments can deploy new capabilities quickly and with confidence.

    An adversarial chain that challenges itself. One team ran each public repo through a six-stage AI agent pipeline: triage, validator, auditor, tracer, judge, summary. Each stage reads and challenges the last. In one case, the agent downgraded a finding once it established that a backup mechanism was in place. The pipeline was agentic, but the escalation was manual. This means a member of the team checked every line, re-verified exposure, and handled false positives.

    Deterministic scanners feeding a model. Another team ran traditional scanning tools first (including Gitleaks, Trivy, Semgrep and Hadolint) to generate a ranked findings document. Three model stages were then layered on top: a discovery stage that treated the scanner output as leads and read the source against OWASP and CWE frameworks, a chain-investigation stage that composed individual findings into attack paths via per-chain sub-agents, and a triage stage that confirmed the finding viability.

    Codifying a multi-service audit into reusable skills. Another department developed five domain-specific Claude Skills. The Skills distil an organisation wide audit across hundreds of services into something repeatable. Skills enabled a reusable, scoped, and consistent approach across every repository and operator.

    What we found 

    Participants identified 407 findings in total, including critical weaknesses exposing services to authentication bypass, data exposure and remote code execution. Some were already understood and mitigated by compensating controls while others were previously unknown. All critical weaknesses have been remediated, and no evidence of exploitation was identified for any finding. 

    AI models traced vulnerabilities across service boundaries, which traditional scanners can’t do, and linked business logic with technical detail. Departments prioritised validation and remediation through existing frameworks, patching critical and high-risk issues assessed as exploitable. 

    It cost us £13,000 in tokens to find these weaknesses, working across nine government organisations for the month.

    Identifying Critical vulnerabilities: One notable finding affected legacy GitHub Actions in a repository supporting a key government digital service. The issue allowed an external user to trigger a workflow chain by posting a specially structured comment on an open pull request. This bypassed the usual protections for pull requests from unknown contributors because the workflow was triggered by a comment, not by the pull request itself. 

    The impact was arbitrary remote code execution on the GitHub Actions runner. The workflow took content from the comment, passed it into deployment parameters, and used it in an environment substitution step that executed during the workflow. By placing executable content in the comment field, an external user could cause their input to run on the GitHub runner. 

    This created a route for malicious actors to potentially extract secrets and tokens available to the workflow, including the GitHub token used by the automation. With that level of access, the issue could support wider repository compromise, including manipulating pull requests, approving workflow activity, altering trusted contributor status, and exploit further secrets available to the automation environment.

    What we learnt 

    Across teams, the common thread was structure. Models were used as components, using Skills, running in parallel across repositories, and a human expert kept in the loop on anything that mattered. We learnt that: 

    • Architecture matters the most. The strongest results came from using frontier models as tightly scoped components inside a structured pipeline. Breaking traditional vulnerability management workflows into discrete, task-specific harnesses let teams scale while controlling false positives and hallucination. 
    • The model matters less than how it’s used. AISI’s research, borne out here, shows that with the right architecture and task design many near-frontier and frontier models perform comparably at scanning code. The best findings still lean heavily on human expertise in breaking the problem down and identifying wider context. 
    • Triage is essential. Agents generate candidate findings far faster than humans can validate them. Poorly scoped runs burn tokens on low-value targets; weak review dumps the load onto stretched security teams. Careful upfront scoping and structured internal filtering of low-confidence findings kept human review focused. As in traditional vulnerability management, it’s not how many issues are found, but whether triage points limited resource where it matters. 
    • Finding isn’t the same as fixing. Findings still had to enter the patch pipeline for remediation. AI shows promise here too, but today prioritisation, review and patch-generation all must integrate without overwhelming human-centred processes.

    What next 

    GC3 will kick off a second phase of this pilot, with more departments, additional models, and an extension from public code to closed-source estates. Identifying vulnerabilities early on, raising the consistency of defensive practice, and helping departments share on proven techniques is how we put the Government Cyber Action Plan into practice.  

    AISI and NCSC’s involvement will also deepen as we continue to evaluate AI as a tool for cyber defence in applied settings, closing the gap between a theoretical benchmark and a real reduction in risk. 

    This pilot was a test of how government can adopt new capabilities responsibly, learn quickly, and share what works.

  • PRESS RELEASE : Russia is not serious about peace and its war against Ukraine is increasingly unsustainable – UK statement to the OSCE [June 2026]

    PRESS RELEASE : Russia is not serious about peace and its war against Ukraine is increasingly unsustainable – UK statement to the OSCE [June 2026]

    The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 12 June 2026.

    Politico-Military Counsellor, Ankur Narayan, highlights E3 leaders’ reaffirmation of unwavering support for Ukraine’s defence, underscores the unsustainability of Russia’s war effort in the face of mounting casualties and minimal territorial gains, condemns continued Russian attacks on civilian infrastructure and irresponsible nuclear rhetoric, and calls on Russia to agree an immediate and unconditional ceasefire.

    On 7 June, the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, the President of France and the Chancellor of Germany met President Zelenskyy in London and reaffirmed their unwavering support for Ukraine’s defence against Russia’s illegal invasion and set out the conditions for a just and lasting peace. Ukraine’s is a State that is serious about ending this war. A war remember that it never wanted in the first place. It has consistently demonstrated its readiness to pursue peace through diplomatic means, including by agreeing to a full, immediate and unconditional ceasefire.

    Russia is not serious about peace, as has been the case throughout the war. Most recently, at the St Petersburg International Economic Forum last week, President Putin dismissed proposals for direct engagement. Russia continues to refuse a ceasefire and continues to call for Ukraine to withdraw from its own internationally-recognised territory. This land is Ukraine, not Russia. It is no coincidence that it contains the ‘Fortress Belt’ of cities vital for Ukraine’s defence; demands that they hand these over are effectively a demand for Ukraine’s surrender.

    While Russia demands that Ukraine withdraws from its sovereign territory, it is facing increasing setbacks on the battlefield. Still suffering 30,000 casualties a month, up to half of which are fatalities, Russia’s battlefield advances have slowed to a crawl. And Ukraine has demonstrated its continued ability to counterattack, as we have seen recently in Stepnohirsk. Having suffered 420,000 casualties to only occupy an additional 0.8% of Ukraine in 2025, Russia is on track to match these record casualty rates for an even smaller gain in 2026. Occupying less than 19.5% of Ukraine at the cost of 1.3 million casualties so far, this rate of loss will become increasingly unsustainable the longer Putin pursues this illegal invasion. As the United Kingdom said at the Permanent Council a fortnight ago, this is not to gloat at such tragic figures, it is to point out the utter futility of continuing this war as if it can be won.

    Russia has failed to take by force the Ukrainian land that it asks Ukraine to withdraw from through negotiations. Meanwhile, Russia continues to intensify its attacks, injuring and killing Ukrainian civilians. May saw the most drones fired into Ukraine since the invasion began, and the highest reported civilian casualty figures since April 2022. Regrettably, June looks set to continue this trend, with over 2,400 drones and 77 missiles fired between the 1st and 9th, killing 98 civilians and injuring over 680 more. The mass attack on the night of 1–2 June saw the largest ballistic and hypersonic missile strike of the entire war. The international community has condemned these attacks, including the repeated reckless use of Oreshnik nuclear-capable intermediate range ballistic missiles, on Ukrainian cities, as well as irresponsible and dangerous Russian drone incursions into NATO territory. This is the conduct of a state compensating for failure on the battlefield with violence against the people of Ukraine.

    Russia’s maximalist demands, coupled with its rejection of a full and unconditional ceasefire and the intensifying violence that is harming civilians, stand in clear contradiction to its commitments under the Helsinki Final Act, including respect for sovereignty, territorial integrity, and the peaceful settlement of disputes, as well as to its broader obligations under international law. Russia is neither engaging seriously in negotiations nor acknowledging the hard realities on the ground.

    The path to peace has been clearly set out, by Ukraine, by the E3 leaders in London, and by partners across the international community. Russia can choose to take it at any time, by agreeing to an immediate, unconditional and complete ceasefire and engaging meaningfully in negotiations. The United Kingdom will continue to support Ukraine’s inherent right to self-defence, to maintain pressure on the Kremlin, and to act in solidarity with Ukraine and with partners in this Forum.

  • PRESS RELEASE : Government welcomes hospitality and tourism sector plans to further strengthen its safety standards to prevent violence against women and girls [June 2026]

    PRESS RELEASE : Government welcomes hospitality and tourism sector plans to further strengthen its safety standards to prevent violence against women and girls [June 2026]

    The press release issued by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport on 12 June 2026.

    At a meeting of leading figures from the UK’s hospitality, tourism and night-time economy sectors, ministers heard the industry’s plans to further bolster safety standards across the industry.

    UKHospitality and its members have driven forward a proactive programme of further work to promote the safety and security of women and girls, including enhancing guidance on guest safety.

    Government and industry agreed to work together to build on existing partnership work at both national and local level to protect guests and teams, as well as share best practice to prevent any opportunities for perpetrators in or outside of venues.

    An updated guest safety protocol, developed by UKHospitality, is currently out for consultation with the sector and will set out guidance covering room access procedures, protection of guest privacy and the responsibilities of staff.

    The framework will also highlight additional vulnerability training and safety protocols available, in order to complement other safety procedures and support teams on the frontline.

    Businesses will be supported by third-sector organisations including Rape Crisis and the Suzy Lamplugh Trust in how to identify and report abuse.

    The roundtable, held at 11 Downing Street, was attended by representatives from across accommodation, short-term lets, bars, nightclubs, and charities dedicated to tackling violence against women and girls.

    It was chaired by Stephanie Peacock, Minister for Sport, Tourism, Civil Society and Youth, and co-hosted by Kate Dearden, Minister for Employment Rights and Consumer Protection; Catherine Atkinson, Minister for Victims and Tackling Violence Against Women and Girls; and Natalie Fleet, Minister for Safeguarding and Violence Against Women and Girls.

    Tourism Minister Stephanie Peacock said:

    It is vital that everyone, whether a visitor, a guest or a member of staff, feels safe and secure.

    I am encouraged by the ambition shown by businesses building on the work the sector is already doing to protect guests and visitors and look forward to seeing these further commitments translate into meaningful, measurable change.

    Minister for Safeguarding and Violence against Women and Girls, Natalie Fleet, said:

    Women should be able to sleep at night knowing they are safe. 

    As Minister for Safeguarding – and as a Mum and Nana – I am excited about the work we are doing to halve violence against women and girls in a decade. We’re working cross-government to deliver our ambitious strategy, but we cannot keep women safe alone, that’s why this meeting was so important. 

    It was great to talk to representatives from across the hospitality sector to reflect on how we had got here, and what we can do to avoid this happening again.

    I really did leave the meeting feeling optimistic about next steps. Violence against women and girls is a national emergency that every one of us has a responsibility to tackle.

    Kate Nicholls, Chair of UKHospitality, said:

    The safety of our guests is our utmost priority, and it’s a responsibility that the entire hospitality sector takes incredibly seriously.

    Together with our members, we have been enhancing existing guidance on guest safety and we’ve been pleased to share our plans with Ministers.

    It’s positive to hear recognition of the sector’s ongoing work in this area and it’s critical we work together to support our teams on the frontline, including the need to expand protections for retail staff to hospitality.

    Currently out for consultation with the sector, we look forward to finalising this in the coming weeks and continuing our dialogue with the Government on this issue.

    Victims and Tackling Violence Against Women and Girls Minister Catherine Atkinson said:

    Every woman should be able to check into a hotel, enjoy a night out or dinner, or book a short-term let without fear for her safety.

    I am pleased to see major businesses stepping up alongside expert organisations to ensure that staff at every level are equipped to identify abuse and take action.

    That kind of joined-up approach is exactly what tackling VAWG demands and this Government will pull every lever at its disposal.

    Kate Dearden, Minister for Employment Rights and Consumer protection, said:

    We’re showing how government and the hospitality sector can work together so that everyone, including women and girls can enjoy the nighttime economy whilst feeling safe and supported. Working with our tourism and hospitality sector is essential in keeping our towns and cities safe.

    Initiatives delivered by the sector include the Ask Angela, Best Bar None, Pubwatch and Purple Flag. 

    Businesses also agreed to continue to promote the government’s Enough campaign and to deepen existing co-operation with specialist third sector organisations.

    In the year ending March 2025, around 5.1 million people experienced domestic abuse, sexual assault or stalking – approximately 10.6% of adults aged 16 and over. 

    The Government is treating tackling VAWG as a top priority, committing £550 million into victim support over the next three years and setting out its ambition to halve VAWG within a decade through its strategy published in December 2025.

    The hospitality and tourism sector – which contributed £64.3 billion to the UK economy in 2024 and employs 1.3 million people, over half of whom are women – has a critical role to play in meeting that ambition.

    The roundtable marks the beginning of an ongoing dialogue between government and the sector.

  • PRESS RELEASE : Change of Governor of St Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha: Belinda Lewis [June 2026]

    PRESS RELEASE : Change of Governor of St Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha: Belinda Lewis [June 2026]

    The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 12 June 2026.

    Ms Belinda Lewis has been selected to become the next Governor of St Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha in succession to Mr Nigel Phillips CBE, who will be retiring from the Diplomatic Service. Ms Lewis will take up her appointment during September 2026.

    Curriculum vitae

    Full name: Belinda Lewis 

    2025 to 2026FCDO, Director Special Projects and pre-posting preparation  
    2021 to 2025Kuwait City, His Majesty’s Ambassador  
    2018 to 2021FCO, Deputy Director, Human Resources (followed by maternity leave)  
    2016 to 2018Karachi, Deputy High Commissioner and Trade Director for Pakistan (followed by maternity leave)  
    2014 to 2016Baghdad, Deputy Head of Mission  
    2012 to 2014Lashkar Gah, Director Rule of Law and Operations, later Head of Helmand Provincial Reconstruction Team  
    2010 to 2012MoJ, Deputy Director, International Justice Policy  
    2009 to 2010MoJ, Deputy Director, Information Rights Policy  
    2008 to 2009Immigration Service, Border Security and Visa Policy 
    2007Washington, Secondment to US Department of Homeland Security 
    2006 to 2007MoJ, Head of EU and International Data Policy  
    2005 to 2006MoJ, Team Leader, Information Rights Department  
    2003 to 2005DCMS, Fast Stream policy roles  
    2001 to 2003Edinburgh, Milan and London, HSBC Bank 
  • PRESS RELEASE : Britain powers ahead on AI with billions of pounds of new investment and thousands of jobs secured as London Tech Week wraps up [June 2026]

    PRESS RELEASE : Britain powers ahead on AI with billions of pounds of new investment and thousands of jobs secured as London Tech Week wraps up [June 2026]

    The press release issued by the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology on 12 June 2026.

    More than £6 billion of new investment and around 8,000 new jobs have been announced this week, as companies from around the world choose to build, hire and scale here.

    More than £6 billion of new investment and around 8,000 new jobs have been announced this week, as companies from around the world choose to build, hire and scale here – reinforcing Britain’s position as a global hub for AI.  

    From AMD’s £2 billion commitment for next generation AI compute, to Nebius investing £1.7 billion in new infrastructure, to homegrown companies like Oxford Quantum Circuits securing record funding – this is Britain’s AI leadership turning into real jobs, investment and opportunities across the country. 

    These deals span the full breadth of the AI economy – from chips and cloud infrastructure to autonomous vehicles and open-source development – showing the UK isn’t just keeping pace in the global AI race but helping to shape its direction.  

    The momentum has been matched by government action throughout the week to strengthen the UK’s tech sector – backing the skills, infrastructure and innovation needed to unlock growth. That includes new support for young people to seize the opportunities of AI, the first-ever AI Adoption Summit, a landmark £1.1 billion AI Hardware Plan, plus new backing for open-source AI builders, and a data centre design challenge – so Britain builds with taste.  

    Technology Secretary Liz Kendall said: 

    Britain is seizing the opportunities of tech and AI to create jobs, improve lives and grow businesses.

    Companies from across the globe are choosing to invest here and hire here, bringing billions of pounds and thousands of new jobs with them.

    And this Government is backing them with our £1.1billion hardware plan and our investment in skills and training.

    We are rebuilding Britain for the modern age and creating a future that works for all.

    A range of major investments have been announced, totalling over £6 billion of investment and around 8,000 new jobs – from global leaders and frontier companies choosing to grow here. This includes:

    • AMD commits up to £2 billion of investment over five years to Accelerate AI Innovation and Research in the United Kingdom.  
    • Nebius, the AI cloud company, announced it is investing approximately £1.7 billion to build out capacity in the UK with three new deployments of advanced NVIDIA compute, as the company continues to expand its commercial and AI R&D hub in London. 
    • Amazon opened a new fulfilment centre in Northampton and announced plans for a second major site in Kettering, committing more than £1 billion and up to 4,000 jobs in a single county as part of its planned £40 billion UK investment. 
    • British unicorn Ark has announced an investment of £807m in the expansion of its Longcross Park campus. The expansion supports the deployment of leading AI cloud provider Nebius, which is also increasing its footprint in the UK as well as an additional data centre facility with 36MW of future capacity. 
    • Eros Innovation is investing £265m and establishing a sovereign British Cultural AI capability, supporting 3,000+ jobs across 15 productions over five-years (2 films shooting in the UK in 2026), licensing its $1.7bn cultural dataset to its UK operation and launching an AI Studio to develop Large Cultural Models trained on British creative heritage and governed by British law. 
    • Quantum computing scale-up Oxford Quantum Circuits (OQC) securing a £260 million investment – the largest quantum funding round in the UK, backed by the British Business Bank.  
    • Silicon Valley investors Playground Global are launching a new fund backed by up to £150 million from the British Business Bank – the largest fund investment the bank has ever made – to invest in UK-based hardware companies and help them scale.  
    • Arlequin AI investing up to £45 million in the UK over the next 5 years with capital deployed across local hiring, UK R&D, and sovereign deployment capability for government and critical national infrastructure clients. 
    • Midlands Mindforge has now entered its active investing stage, thanks to the support of the Mayors of the East and West Midlands, UK Research and Innovation (UKRI), the Rigby Group and the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) via the Invest in UK University R&D Midlands Campaign. This will help to unlock an initial £30m of capital into the region making its first round of investments into spinout companies. 
    • Cosine announced the formation of a coalition of major UK institutions including, BAE Systems, BT, Lloyds Banking Group, NatWest, PwC and Leonardo UK, to co-design Lumen Sovereign, Britain’s first fully sovereign frontier AI model. Backed by the Government’s Sovereign AI Fund, Lumen Sovereign will be trained entirely on UK soil using Isambard-AI. 
    • AI coding startup Cursor announced plans to open its European headquarters in London. 
    • Fynd, the AI-native unified commerce platform serving brands and retailers across India, the Middle East, Africa and Southeast Asia, has opened its first UK office in London. This investment is projected to create 70 jobs across London, Manchester and the wider UK by 2028. 
    • General Intuition — the frontier research lab dedicated to foundation models for spatial and temporal reasoning — has opened a UK office in London King’s Cross. The lab will invest some of its recent $133M seed round into expanding its London-based research team, drawing on the UK’s strong talent base. 
    • Legora, the AI platform for legal professionals, is expanding its European footprint with a dedicated engineering hub in London in a major vote of confidence in the UK’s AI capabilities.  
    • Multiverse announced the opening of a new technology hub in Edinburgh and plans to create 200 jobs in the next year across the new office and its London headquarters. 
    • German AI unicorn n8n will expand its investment into the UK by delivering up to 200 high-skilled jobs over the next three years, a strong endorsement of the UK’s AI talent ecosystem. 
    • PhysicsX secured a $300 million Series C investment, taking its valuation to approximately $2.4 billion. The funding will accelerate PhysicsX’s global expansion, platform development, and frontier physics AI research. 
    • Reflection, the US-based open-source AI lab founded by former Google DeepMind researchers Misha Laskin and Ioannis Antonoglou, is expanding its UK footprint with plans to hire more than 100 highly skilled employees within the next 12 months, growing to over 1,000 roles within three years. 
    • US tech company Replit will be opening up an office in London this year.
  • PRESS RELEASE : Tough US-style courts to crack down on repeat offenders [June 2026]

    PRESS RELEASE : Tough US-style courts to crack down on repeat offenders [June 2026]

    The press release issued by the Ministry of Justice on 12 June 2026.

    The public will be better protected from crime under a major expansion of tough Texas-style courts which will see thousands of offenders monitored by judges.

    • New £9 million funding to more than double number of problem-solving courts
    • Repeat offenders to be strictly monitored by one judge or risk time in prison
    • World-recognised approach has been shown to reduce reoffending by a third

    A £9 million funding boost announced today (12 June) will help to more than double the number of Intensive Supervision Courts, an innovative approach to sentencing which aims to cut reoffending by tackling the root causes of crime.

    The model recognises that factors like addiction and trauma can be the root causes of repeat offending. It forces low-level offenders to attend weekly sessions and regularly appear before the same judge who will track their behaviour, reserving prison spaces for the dangerous criminals who need them.

    Those who fail to attend hearings, continue to misuse substances or refuse to engage in mandatory treatment courses will face tough consequences such as tagging or even time in prison for breaching strict conditions.

    These problem-solving courts have reduced reoffending across the world, with countries using this model seeing a reduction in further arrests of one third compared to offenders serving standard sentences – ending the revolving door of prison and cutting crime. 

    In Texas alone, the approach helped drive a significant reduction in the prison population and contributed to a 29 per cent drop in crime.  

    The expansion will see the number of these pioneering courts rise from 5 to 11 sites across the country, with a specific focus on prolific offenders, women and those with substance misuse issues.

    Deputy Prime Minister and Lord Chancellor, David Lammy said:

    Prolific offending often goes hand in hand with addiction and trauma, and tackling that can help cut crime.  

    These tough new courts ensure offenders are held to account while giving them the tools they need to turn their lives round for good, reducing reoffending and making our streets safer in the process.

    Evidence shows offenders on probation are far more likely than the general public to experience addiction and mental health issues, which are proven to increase the likelihood of reoffending.

    Further studies show how more than two thirds of women in custody report being victims of domestic abuse, a factor which is a known indicator of crimes. They also reveal how more than half of female offenders have sustained brain injuries while roughly the same percentage have drug addictions.  

    Tackling these underlying issues and addressing the root causes of crime helps to prevent more victims and reduce the £18 billion overall cost of reoffending to the taxpayer.

    Baroness Gillian Merron Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Women’s and Mental Health said:

    We know that custody alone does little to rehabilitate offenders, particularly those whose crimes are driven by addiction or mental health issues.

    This initiative will help them turn their lives around by unpacking these issues and giving them the support they need to turn their backs on crime for good.

    Through this we can cut reoffending and make communities safer, while getting those often left behind back on their feet and contributing to society again.

    The expansion builds on the success of four existing pilot courts in Birmingham, Bristol, Liverpool and Teesside which have seen hundreds of offenders receive tough supervision in a bid to help them leave behind a life of crime. A fifth court has been announced and is due to open in Liverpool later this year.

    A recent evaluation of the pilot scheme showed two thirds of offenders did not breach their orders while those with significant addiction issues received a clean drug test two-thirds of the time, clear evidence that the model is working. 

    Additionally, probation staff, the judiciary and local services like drug treatment providers have reported that offenders’ drug and alcohol use has reduced and those requiring help with their mental health were now receiving the right support to help cut their offending.

    Dr Tom McNeil, CEO of The JABBS Foundation for Women and Girls 

    Too many people are trapped in a revolving door of prison, at substantial cost to the taxpayer and public services. The system isn’t working for them, and it’s not working for society.

    That’s why today’s announcement is a significant step in the right direction and follows the evidence on what works to divert women away from custody. In our work with partners across the justice system, we’ve seen first-hand the positive impact these courts have on tackling underlying issues.

    Intensive Supervision Courts target prolific low-level offenders whose needs are better addressed in the community, helping to break the cycle of repeat offending. However, prison will continue to play an important role for serious offenders who pose the highest risk to the public.

    The Government is increasing probation funding by up to £700 million extra by 2028/29, including the recruitment of at least 1,300 additional probation officers over the next year. This will help deliver tougher, more effective supervision of violent offenders and better protect the public.

    This includes the biggest expansion of tagging in British history, with thousands more domestic abusers, thieves and burglars now subject to GPS and alcohol monitoring as part of a £100 million crackdown on crime.

  • PRESS RELEASE : UK statement on Ukraine to IAEA Board of Governors [June 2026]

    PRESS RELEASE : UK statement on Ukraine to IAEA Board of Governors [June 2026]

    The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 10 June 2026.

    Delivered to the International Atomic Energy Agency Board of Governors meeting on June 2026.

    I thank the Director General for his sobering report, and for the continued professionalism and courage of IAEA staff on the ground. Their presence remains indispensable in reducing risks and providing independent, credible reporting under extraordinarily difficult conditions. 

    The report points to a progressively degrading operating environment across Ukraine’s nuclear sites. However, developments since its issuance underscore that these risks are not static. They are worsening. 

    It is Russia’s illegal invasion and ongoing aggression against Ukraine that has created these conditions, forcing the Agency into the role of negotiating military pauses around nuclear facilities.  

    Chair, we are deeply alarmed by the recent drone strike against the Centralised Spent Nuclear Fuel Storage Facility at Chornobyl. That a strike of this nature could occur without immediate radiological consequences should not reassure us; it underlines how narrow the safety margins have become, and how dependent they now are on circumstance rather than control. 

    This facility sits within a vast exclusion zone, well outside any immediate military necessity. Striking nuclear infrastructure in such an environment is not coincidence – it is reckless and wilful irresponsibility. 

    This is reinforced by the detail of the Director General’s report: persistent and widespread military activity across all of Ukraine’s nuclear sites, including ZNPP; ongoing grid instability; attacks on energy infrastructure; and repeated reliance on emergency systems to compensate for those failures. 

    The sheer volume of incidents is striking: 

    • One power line to Rivne NPP remained disconnected throughout the reporting period following earlier military damage; 
    • On 26 February, Chornobyl NPP lost off-site power, while Khmelnytskyy (and South Ukraine NPP each lost an off-site power line; 
    • On 14 March, Chornobyl experienced a prolonged disconnection requiring activation of emergency diesel generators; 
    • At ZNPP, continued reliance on a single power line and repeated losses of off-site power on 14, 16 and 26 April, and 28 May. 

    This brings the total number of LOOP events at ZNPP to sixteen since the start of the conflict. 

    Chair, these incidents do not need to result in an immediate radiological release to be serious: each loss of off-site power and each disruption to grid stability further erodes defence-in-depth and reduces the safety margins on which secure nuclear operations depend. 

    IAEA reports of a drone strike on the turbine hall at ZNPP further demonstrate how even incidents without immediate radiological impact contribute to worsening risk environment driven by Russia’s illegal invasion. 

    We commend the Director General for his sustained efforts to broker temporary ceasefire arrangements to enable critical repair work at ZNPP. These are important and necessary measures to reduce immediate nuclear risk. 

    However, let me be clear: we should not be in this position at all. 

    The simplest way to reduce nuclear risk is for Russia to cease its aggression and withdraw from Ukraine. Nothing less will deliver the conditions required for safe and secure nuclear operations. 

    Thank you.

  • Fiona Twycross – 2026 Speech on Libraries

    Fiona Twycross – 2026 Speech on Libraries

    The speech made by Baroness Fiona Twycross, the Libraries Minister, at Libraries Connected in Kenilworth on 10 June 2026.

    Thank you, and I’d like to say a massive thank you for the invitation for me to speak here today. I’m absolutely delighted to be here, I’ll just say a few words at what I hear has been a brilliant and at times very moving conference.

    I’ve been the Libraries Minister responsible for Libraries for just over a year and as someone who always has at least one book on the go, it is an absolute delight and privilege. And I’ve been very much enjoying meeting a number of you when I’ve been on visits around the country.

    It’s great to see skilled and experienced people in the libraries sector coming together to share your insights and expertise. I know you work tirelessly – and enthusiastically – to deliver great services to your communities.

    I understand you have been covering a range of topics that are important for the sector – censorship, access, trust and reading for pleasure. I am also really pleased to see there has been a session on data as that is another priority for me, as it helps me sell what the sector does across Government.

    These are all issues that we are taking seriously in the centre of Government too and I would like to talk briefly today about how I will be carrying them forward into the forthcoming libraries strategy. And I think we had hoped that we’d be able to unveil the strategy today. We’re not quite there, but hopefully we’ll get there soon.

    I want to start by saying – and I don’t need to say this to you – but libraries matter. From the pop-up site I saw in Grimsby last month to the civic hub that is Liverpool Central, every time I visit a library I hear such enthusiasm from staff and users about the work you do and the impact you have, from supporting health and wellbeing, building businesses and showcasing arts and cultural experiences, libraries offer so much.

    Libraries matter because they are places where everyone can build their knowledge and skills. People depend on libraries for trustworthy information in the face of misinformation and a rapidly changing world. They also support freedom of speech, a core value of our society. I know that this is a lively topic of debate for the sector, not least here in Warwickshire, and I want to support you to see library collections continue to represent a variety of perspectives and topics.

    I am clear that the tone in which politicians talk about our public libraries can also have a chilling effect, and I am also clear that our libraries should be for everyone. When I was reading through my speech on the train, I thought it actually makes me sad and angry that I even feel I have to say that out loud.

    Throughout the year, it is great to see themed displays of books celebrating the diversity across our communities. Books about so many topics are at the heart of what libraries offer and it is always good to see you celebrate projects centred around reading.

    I was really pleased to see last weeks’ Libraries Change Lives Week focused on supporting the National Year of Reading through initiatives like ‘Discover Your Library Day’.

    I’m also proud that DCMS gave a £150,000 funding boost to 72 library authorities covering 100 places, providing opportunities to extend reading projects and activities. These are all places which are disadvantaged by high deprivation, weak social infrastructure and low library engagement.

    I look forward to finding out and hearing more about the impact of projects to deliver increased membership and use of libraries in those places, during 2026 and beyond.

    I’m also delighted that some of the regional winners of the Library of the Year award are here today. They were recipients of an £1,000 cash prize from DCMS with the money going towards continuing local reading projects.

    But the value of libraries – and why libraries matter – is often only available to people if they are members. I’m keen to see even more people signing up and using their local library, and getting the benefits that come with membership. Libraries are essential services in any neighbourhood. After all, public libraries in England have 6 million members and around 143 million physical visits a year.

    That is four times the number of people who attend the Premier League, Championship and EFL Leagues 1 and 2 annually!

    A third of adults regularly use their library, but there’s still more we can do to open up library services to more people, particularly those from underrepresented groups.

    I want everyone to find something of value at their local library. I want to support you in your work removing barriers to library membership such as worries about the affordability of fines. And I also want to increase active use and share the brilliant practice we see in so many places.

    I would like to see every child as a member of their local library so the next generation can enjoy the lifelong benefits libraries bring. The benefits they brought to me, in other words. We will work with the Local Government Association and others to consider how places like Best Start Family Hubs, schools, and other local public services can be supported to promote children’s library membership.

    I know the Culture Secretary, Lisa Nandy, wants to make a difference in the places that need it the most. This is why DCMS has published our Culture Priority Places. These will help us prioritise and target investment in those areas to build social and community cohesion and to enhance opportunity where outcomes are poorest.

    We have also committed to continuing the Libraries Improvement Fund until 2030. From this year LIF assessments will integrate our Culture Priority Places. And over the course of this parliament, we will invest up to £27.5 million in the Fund, supporting library services to upgrade physical and digital infrastructure to meet changing user needs.

    I would like to see us collectively work together to ensure public libraries are well run, well used and well connected. And, more than anything, have an impact in their local communities.

    I will continue to promote the critical contribution public libraries can and do make to so many important Government strategic objectives. For example, I recently met with Ministers in the Department for Education to talk about how we can build stronger partnerships between libraries, schools and Best Start Family hubs.

    When I or the Libraries Team have these discussions, it is always valuable to have robust data and evidence on library usage and impact that we can use to help to make your case and inspire policy makers across Government.

    Public libraries have always been engines to deliver change and I want to shine a spotlight on how libraries support the government to provide opportunities for all.

    I do recognise the difficult context that libraries are working in, and the constraints that this creates. Our view is not that libraries should deliver more without resource, but that it can be highly effective and cost effective to maximise libraries’ role in communities.

    I know that you are all waiting quite patiently for the forthcoming government libraries strategy. Many of you have already shared your views and feedback to help shape it, so thank you for that. And I hope I have given you a flavour of some of the things you can expect to see in it. I really value the input you have provided and those conversations I have had with people when on visits. I’d especially like to thank those of you who provided excellent case studies on the impact your library services have on your communities. They’re a really inspiring read. From Oldham, who are placing local data at the centre of service design, to Leicester who are working seamlessly across public and academic libraries. We have been blown away by the response.

    The examples and all of the case studies underline what we absolutely know to be true: that you are making a difference in people’s lives in the communities you serve through your work.

    I am committed to support you from central government to do that the best you can. We all have a part to play in ensuring that our public libraries continue to be the gateway to opportunity.

    One thing I did want to say ahead of us publishing the Libraries Strategy formally is to give you some assurance about the national development agency function. After consideration and discussion with the Arts Council, sector bodies and the British Library, and with a number of representations from some of you in the room, we have decided to retain the function with the Arts Council. [Applause] The Arts Council are really keen to keep this function as well.

    We know that there is work to be done together to understand what the sector wants from its development agency and to build a refreshed offer that serves your needs. But I hope that this allays any concerns you may have had and we look forward to taking the next steps on this together.

    Over the next five years I want the ambitions outlined in our strategy to shape our work plan for the future. I want us to work together to realise these ambitions. You are the guardians of a system that can, in my case and the case of so many others, turn a weekly choice of five books into a lifetime of opportunity. Long may that be the case! And thank you so much for everything you do, sometimes in hugely difficult circumstances. It really is genuinely appreciated, thank you.