Tag: Downing Street

The press release issued by Downing Street on 2 September 2022.

The Prime Minister spoke to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan this afternoon.

They welcomed increased UK-Türkiye trade and hoped to expand our existing free trade agreement to build on the growing economic momentum. The leaders also discussed exciting new opportunities to increase collaboration in defence technology and nuclear power.

The Prime Minister congratulated President Erdoğan on Türkiye’s indispensable global leadership, most recently in helping to end Russia’s grain blockade in Ukraine.

He emphasised the importance of continuing to support Ukraine against an unprovoked invasion, including by maintaining strong economic sanctions on Russia.

The leaders wished each other the best for the future and agreed that the relationship between the United Kingdom and Türkiye would continue to go from strength to strength.

The press release issued by Downing Street on 2 September 2022.

The Prime Minister has today confirmed the appointment of three political members to the Committee on Standards in Public Life. Jeane Freeman is appointed as the Scottish National Party Member, Baroness Finn is as the Conservative Party Member, and Margaret Beckett has been reappointed as the Labour Member for the Committee.

The Prime Minister has today confirmed the appointment of three political members to the Committee on Standards in Public Life (CSPL). Jeane Freeman will commence her role on 1st December 2022, Baroness Finn on 21st November 2022, and Margaret Beckett’s new term begins on 1st November 2022.

Jeane Freeman

Jeane Freeman OBE is the former SNP MSP for Carrick, Cumnock and Doon Valley constituency from 2016 to 2021.

Jeane Freeman was the Minister for Social Security 2016-2018 and the Cabinet Secretary for Health and Sport, 2018-2021 in the Scottish Government.

Outside of politics she has been appointed an honorary professor at Queen Margaret University (QMU) and appointed to a University of Glasgow role within the University’s College of Medical, Veterinary and Life Sciences.

Baroness Finn

Baroness Finn, of Swansea, became a Conservative peer in 2015, and has served as a special adviser in the Cabinet Office, the Foreign Office and Department of Business, Innovation and Skills, and to the Prime Minister in 10 Downing Street. She has been a member of the advisory council of Transparency International, a trustee of the think tank Demos, a Parliamentary Fellow at St Antony’s Oxford, a member of the advisory board of the Centre for Politics, Philosophy and Law, King’s College, London, and served as a Non-Executive Director of the Cabinet Office.

Margaret Beckett

The Rt Hon Margaret Beckett DBE MP was originally appointed to the Committee on Standards in Public Life on 1 November 2010 and was most recently reappointed on 31 October 2019.

Margaret Beckett has been Labour MP for Derby South since 1983. She was Secretary of State for Trade and Industry 1997-1998, President of the Council and Leader of the House of Commons 1998-2001, Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 2001-2006, Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs 2006-2007, and Minister for Housing and Planning 2008-2009. She has also been Chair of the Intelligence and Security Committee. Margaret is a member of the Labour National Executive Committee (1980-1981, 2012-) and is Chair of the Joint Committee on National Security Strategy.

Lord True, Minister of State at the Cabinet Office welcomed the new Members appointments, and Margaret Beckett for her continued work on the Committee saying:

“I would like to congratulate Jeane Freeman and Baroness Finn on their appointment to the Committee and I am grateful to Margaret Beckett for her continued service to the Committee. I have no doubt that all these appointees will continue to display their strong commitment to the principles of public life.”

Notes:

The Committee on Standards in Public Life:

• The Committee on Standards in Public Life (CSPL) is an independent advisory non-departmental public body that advises the Prime Minister on ethical standards across the whole of public life in the UK. It conducts broad inquiries, collecting evidence to assess institutions, policies and practices and makes recommendations to the Prime Minister where appropriate.
• The Committee promotes the Principles of Public Life, which outline the ethical standards those working in the public sector are expected to adhere to. The Principles apply to all public office holders and private and voluntary organisations delivering services paid for by public funds.

Political Members are appointed for three-year renewable terms.

The press release issued by Downing Street on 1 September 2022.

The Prime Minister has today confirmed the appointment of Harry Mount as an Independent Member of the House of Lords Appointments Commission.

Harry Mount has today been confirmed as the new Independent Member of the House of Lords Appointments Commission (HOLAC) from 11th September 2022.

The appointment follows a recent open campaign.

Harry Mount

Mr. Mount is a journalist and writer. Editor of the Oldie magazine and contributor to the Financial Times, Daily Telegraph, Spectator, Daily Mail and New York Times. He was a former media and libel barrister at Middle Temple and investment analyst.

Lord True, Minister of State at the Cabinet Office welcomed the new Member appointment, saying:

I would like to congratulate Harry Mount on his appointment as an Independent Member to the House of Lords Appointments Commission. Harry Mount brings a wealth of experience from his career, and has much to offer House of Lords Appointments Commission and I wish him the best in his role

Notes:

HOLAC has two main functions:

• to recommend individuals for appointment as non-party political life peers; and to vet nominations for life peers, including those nominated by the UK political parties, to ensure the highest standards of propriety.
• Independent Members are appointed for five year non-renewable terms. More information about HOLAC can be found on their website.
• The role was widely advertised, including on the Public Appointments website, from 8th June and closed on 12th July.

The press release issued by Downing Street on 25 May 2010.

The purpose of the Bill

Give full effect to the range of programmes envisaged in the Coalition agreement.

The main benefits of the Bill

• To give all schools greater freedom over the curriculum
• To improve school accountability
• To take action to tackle bureaucracy
• To improve behaviour in schools

The main elements of the Bill

• To provide schools with the freedoms to deliver an excellent education in the way they see fit.
• To reform Ofsted and other accountability frameworks to ensure that head teachers are held properly accountable for the core educational goals of attainment and closing the gap between rich and poor.
• To introduce a slimmer curriculum giving more space for teachers to decide how to teach.
• To introduce a reading test for 6 year olds to make sure that young children are learning and to identify problems early.
• To give teachers and head teachers the powers to improve behaviour and tackle bullying.
• We expect standards across the education sector to rise through the creation of more Academies and giving more freedom to head teachers and teachers. We will also ensure that money follows pupils, and introduce a ‘pupil premium’ so that more money follows the poorest pupils.

Existing legislation in this area

• The structure and functions of Ofsted are set out in the Education and Inspections Act 2006.  The duty to inspect and report on schools is set out in section 5 of the Education Act 2005.
• The law relating to the National Curriculum, the key stages and testing is set out in Part 6 of the Education Act 2002 and related secondary legislation.
• Much of the law relating to pupil behaviour is set out in Part 7 of the Education and Inspections Act 2006 and related secondary legislation.  The requirement to set up Independent Appeal Panels is in section 52 of the Education Act 2002.  There are provisions about home-school agreements in the School Standards and Framework Act 1998.
• Academies are currently governed by contracts entered into under section 482 of the Education Act 1996 as amended.

The press release issued by Downing Street on 25 May 2010.

Legislation will be introduced to enable more schools to achieve academy status and give them greater freedoms over the curriculum.

The purpose of the bill is to:

• the Academies bill will enable more schools to become Academies and give them the freedoms and flexibilities they need to continue to drive up standards
• the Government’s vision is to create a world beating school system in which every parent has access to a good school and all pupils achieve high standards. Our central aims are to raise standards for all children, while narrowing the gap between the attainment of the most and least advantaged

The main benefits of the bill would:

• allow maintained schools to apply to become academies and power for the Secretary of State to issue an Academy Order requiring the local authority to cease to maintain the school
• remove the requirement to consult the local authority before opening an Academy, thus simplifying and accelerating the process;
• require the consent of any existing (mainly church) foundations before a school applies to become an Academy.
• deem Academy trusts to be exempt charities;
• provide for secondary, primary and special schools to become Academies;
• ensure there is no change of religious character in the conversion process (such changes can be made through separate existing provisions);
• there will be no expansion of selection but grammar schools and other schools which select or partially select pupils will be able to continue to do so
• retain the existing legal requirement for funding agreements to last at least seven years (the agreement can still provide for intervention or termination, if the academy fails).

The main elements of the bill will:

• provide schools with the freedoms to deliver an excellent education in the way they see fit, within a broad framework where they are clearly accountable for the outcomes they deliver
• enable all maintained schools to apply to become an Academy. For the first wave of applications, the key test for approving an academy conversion will be that the school is currently rated outstanding by Ofsted – the Secretary of State normally expects he will approve applications from outstanding schools unless they have a substantial financial deficit (more then £100,000) or other exceptional circumstances apply
• allow primary and special schools to apply to become an Academy in their own right for the first time and will benefit from the increased freedoms and flexibilities that this will offer
• make the process of applying to become an Academy as simple as possible without a requirement for Local Authorities to be consulted;
• allow schools which apply to become Academies to keep any surplus balance they hold
• the bill will automatically make all new Academies charities

We expect standards across the education sector to rise through the creation of more Academies. We expect a significant number to open in September and for the number to continue to grow each year;

NB. Academies will continue to be funded at a comparable level to maintained schools but will also get their share of the central funding that their LAs used to spend on their behalf. They will have freedom to allocate this funding in a way that focuses on the needs of their own pupils.

Existing legislation in this area

Section 482 of the Education Act 1996, as amended by Section 65 of the Education Act 2002, provides for the establishment of Academies and specifies the core characteristics of Academies.

Devolution

The provisions of the Academies Bill will only apply in England and will therefore only permit an Academy to be established in England.

England and Wales is a single legal jurisdiction and so all laws passed are part of the law of England and Wales. The application of laws can apply to only one country or the other but the provisions of the Academies Bill will have no practical impact on, or application to, the organisation of schools in Wales.

The press release issued by 10 Downing Street on 31 August 2022.

The Prime Minister spoke to German Chancellor Olaf Scholz this afternoon.

The leaders thanked one another for their friendship and cooperation for the past few months. The Prime Minister pointed to the staunch opposition to Putin’s actions and the historic support for Ukraine galvanised through Germany’s Presidency of the G7 as evidence of the strong UK-German partnership. He paid tribute to Chancellor Scholz’s leadership on this issue and encouraged him to stay the course in his political, military and economic support for Ukraine.

The Prime Minister noted the extreme pressure, particularly in terms of energy prices, the people of the UK, Germany and elsewhere have come under as a result of Putin’s barbarism. Chancellor Scholz thanked the Prime Minister for everything he has done for Ukraine in his role.

The Prime Minister expressed his confidence that the UK and Germany will continue to be close partners on a huge range of issues. He pointed to climate change and defence as areas where our countries are working together to make the world a better and safer place.

The Prime Minister and Chancellor Scholz concluded by wishing one another all the best for the future.

The press release issued by 10 Downing Street on 31 August 2022.

The Prime Minister will today (Wednesday 31st August) join new police officers working on the frontline to make our streets safer.

After joining on operations, he will speak to officers from one of the 20 Violence Reduction Units set up by this government and see first hand the work they are doing to prevent crime in the community by intervening earlier and working closely with health and education partners.

His visit comes as new Home Office figures will show a 90% satisfaction rate among new recruits brought in under the government’s recruitment drive, with almost 80% reporting that the job met or exceeded their expectations.

So far, over 13,790 extra police officers have been hired across England and Wales as part of the manifesto commitment to put 20,000 additional officers on our streets.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson said:

“Making our streets safer has always been central to my mission to level up this country, because everyone should have the security, confidence and opportunity that comes from having a safe street and a safe home, wherever they live.

We are cracking down on vile gangs and putting dangerous offenders behind bars for longer – and at the heart of these efforts are the 20,000 new officers who will be out on the streets providing the firepower for years to come in the fight against crime.”

Located in the areas hardest hit by violent crime, Violence Reduction Units bring together key local partners, including health, education and policing organisations, to target the underlying causes of violence and prevent children and young people being exploited by criminal gangs – helping rid communities of the long lasting impacts of violent crime.

Backed by £170m of government funding and combined with targeted enforcement activity, they have prevented over 49,000 violent offences in their first two years, and supported over 260,000 vulnerable young people in their second year alone.

Since 2019 the police have removed over 72,000 knives and dangerous weapons through stop and search, surrender programmes and other targeted police action.

The government has also significantly stepped up action against county lines gangs and launched a first of its kind Drug Strategy – backed by record investment – to deliver a whole system approach to tackling supply and demand. Since November 2019, more than 2,400 drug dealing lines have been shut down, 8,000 arrests made, and supported over 9,500 individuals at risk of exploitation.

The government’s Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act, which passed into law last year, equips the police with the powers and tools they need to crack down on crime, including through lifting restrictions on stop and search and introducing new court orders to help target known knife carriers.

The Act has also brought in tougher sentences to keep serious sexual and violent offenders behind bars for longer, so that they pay the full price of their crimes.

 

The press release issued by Boris Johnson, the Prime Minister, on 24 August 2022.

The Prime Minister has travelled to Kyiv today in a show of strength and solidarity with Ukraine as he tells President Zelenskyy his country ‘can and will win the war’.

As part of the visit, his third to the city since the invasion, the Prime Minister also called on the international community to stay the course in Ukraine, as it continues to valiantly defend its sovereignty six months on from Putin’s brutal and illegal invasion.

While meeting President Zelenskyy in Kyiv today to mark 31 years of Ukraine’s independence from the Soviet Union, the Prime Minister also outlined the UK’s next major package of new support, including unmanned surveillance and anti-tank loitering munitions requested by the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

This package of unmanned air systems will be a step up in the Ukrainian’s current capability, improving their long range surveillance and defensive targeting ability.

It includes 850 hand launched Black Hornet micro-drones, which are specifically designed for use in towns and villages, and are deployed to detect approaching enemy forces.

Military personnel can be trained to fly the helicopter drones, which are smaller than a mobile phone, in under 20 minutes. Each drone feeds back live video and still images to allow forces on the ground to defend urban areas safely.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson said:

“For the past six months, the United Kingdom has stood shoulder-to-shoulder with Ukraine, supporting this sovereign country to defend itself from this barbaric and illegal invader.

Today’s package of support will give the brave and resilient Ukrainian Armed Forces another boost in capability, allowing them to continue to push back Russian forces and fight for their freedom.

What happens in Ukraine matters to us all, which is why I am here today to deliver the message that the United Kingdom is with you and will be with you for the days and months ahead, and you can and will win.”

The leaders also held talks on the challenges of the winter ahead for the country, and the Prime Minister reiterated the UK’s all-encompassing and unwavering support for the Ukrainian people, from humanitarian aid to supporting the investigation of war crimes and rebuilding the country’s economy.

In his final visit to the country before leaving Downing Street, the Prime Minister also received Ukraine’s highest award that can be bestowed on foreign nationals, ‘The Order of Liberty’, for the UK’s staunch support of Ukraine’s freedom.

Today’s £54 million military package comes as the UK also prepares to give minehunting vehicles to Ukraine to help detect Russian mines in the waters off its coast. Ukrainian personnel will be trained how to use them in UK waters in the coming weeks.

The UK also continues to expand the training of Ukrainian military personnel.

Eight other countries have signed up to the major training programmes, which trains civilians to become soldiers, since the Prime Minister announced the programme on his previous visit to Ukraine in June.

Partners contributing expertise and trainers to the rapidly expanding programme include Canada, Denmark, New Zealand, The Netherlands, Norway, Finland, Sweden and Lithuania.

The UK has also helped to drive continued international momentum on funding for defensive lethal aid to Ukraine. Since the Prime Minister announced an additional £1 billion to provide military aid to Ukraine at NATO in June, a further £1.2 bn worth of financial pledges from allies were secured for Ukraine at the Copenhagen Conference, co-hosted by the UK and Denmark earlier this month.

The UK has committed more than £2.3bn of military and financial aid to Ukraine since the invasion began in February.

The press release issued by Downing Street on 22 August 2022.

The Prime Minister spoke to the leaders of the United States, France and Germany this afternoon to discuss cooperation on matters of international security and diplomacy.

On a joint call, the Prime Minister, President Biden, President Macron and Chancellor Scholz underlined their steadfast commitment to supporting Ukraine in the face of Russia’s invasion.

They stressed the importance of ensuring the safety and security of nuclear installations and welcomed recent discussions on enabling an IAEA mission to the Zaporizhzhia facility.

They also discussed other shared priorities, including Iran and joint efforts to prevent nuclear proliferation and deter Iran’s destabilizing regional activities.

The Prime Minister welcomed the opportunity to speak, and the leaders agreed their teams would continue working closely together in the coming weeks.

The press release issued by Downing Street on 15 August 2022.