Tag: Press Release

PRESS RELEASE : Suspended prison sentence for Bounce Back Loan fraudster Ben Hamilton from Middlesbrough [November 2022]

The press release issued by HM Treasury on 16 November 2022.

Ben Hamilton, 34, from Middlesbrough, has been sentenced to 15 months imprisonment, suspended for 18 months, after being convicted under the Companies Act following abuse of the Bounce Back Loan financial support scheme in 2020.

Hamilton was director of Netelco Ltd, a telecommunications design and installation business based in Bishop Auckland.

The company had been incorporated in 2018 and in May 2020 Hamilton applied for a £25,000 Bounce Back Loan from his bank on behalf of his business. Under the Bounce Back Loan scheme, genuine businesses impacted by the pandemic could take out interest-free taxpayer-backed loans of up to £50,000.

The loan was paid into the company bank account on 14 May 2020 and the following day Hamilton filed paperwork with Companies House to have the business dissolved.

The striking-off application to dissolve the company was explicit that interested parties and creditors, such as a bank with an outstanding loan, must be notified within seven days of making an application to dissolve a company. The form also highlighted that failure to notify interested parties is a criminal offence, however Hamilton did not follow these rules.

The company was dissolved in December 2020, and was subsequently identified as likely Bounce Back Loan fraud as part of the government’s forensic counter-fraud work.

Hamilton did not co-operate with the Insolvency Service criminal investigation team, nor attend an interview when given the opportunity. Only when the Insolvency Service obtained a Proceeds of Crime Act restraining order on his bank accounts did he engage with the investigation, at which point he repaid the Bounce Back Loan in full.

He pleaded guilty to charges under the Companies Act 2006 at Teeside Magistrate’s Court on 14 October. He was sentenced on 15 November at Teeside Magistrate’s Court.

In addition to the suspended sentence, Hamilton was ordered to pay £2,500 in costs.

Julie Barnes, Chief Investigator at the Insolvency Service said:

This was a clear case of attempted fraud by a company director who thought he could abuse the Covid-19 financial support schemes and get away with it.

Even though Ben Hamilton has now repaid the loan, this sentence sends a clear warning to others that attempting to defraud taxpayers is not acceptable, and when prosecuting the Insolvency Service will use all of the tools in its armoury, including the Proceeds of Crime Act, to prevent criminals from retaining their benefit from crime”.

Ben Hamilton is of Middlesbrough and his date of birth is August 1988.

Netelco Ltd (company reg no. 11266825).

The sentence result was announced at Teeside Magistrate’s Court by judge Recorder Anthony Hawks.

November 16, 2022
PRESS RELEASE : Rishi Sunak call with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and President Zelenskyy [November 2022]

The press release issued by 10 Downing Street on 16 November 2022.

The Prime Minister and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau spoke to Ukrainian President Zelenskyy from the G20 in Indonesia today.

The Prime Minister and Prime Minister Trudeau expressed their condolences for the terrible loss of life as a result of Russian attacks on Ukraine overnight.

They underscored their enduring support for Ukraine’s resistance and updated President Zelenskyy on their discussions at the G20 on this issue.

The Prime Minister and Prime Minister Trudeau emphasised the importance of a full investigation into the circumstances behind missiles falling in Poland yesterday. They stressed that, whatever the outcome of that investigation, Putin’s invasion of Ukraine is squarely to blame for the ongoing violence.

President Zelenskyy thanked the Prime Minister and Prime Minister Trudeau for their support.

November 16, 2022
PRESS RELEASE : Rishi Sunak meeting with President Biden of the United States [November 2022]

The press release issued by 10 Downing Street on 16 November 2022.

The Prime Minister met US President Biden today at the G20 Summit in Indonesia.

The leaders agreed on the national and international importance of the strong UK-US relationship, particularly given the challenging economic times the world is currently facing.

The Prime Minister and President Biden underscored that the actions of President Putin and his regime are directly responsible for precipitating global economic issues including rising inflation. Maintaining international pressure to ensure Putin fails in Ukraine is in everyone’s interest.

The leaders agreed to work together, and with allies, to address the economic consequences of Putin’s brutality. This includes action to protect the most vulnerable in our countries and around the world, and efforts to secure our long-term energy supply.

They stressed the importance of likeminded allies providing a counterpoint to authoritarian regimes, including ensuring developing countries can grow in a sustainable way.

The Prime Minister and President Biden both agreed on the importance of sustained engagement in the Indo-Pacific region and pointed to the AUKUS pact as an example of that. The Prime Minister outlined the UK’s Indo-Pacific priorities, including joining the CPTPP trade bloc.

The leaders looked forward to working together to take forward cooperation between the UK and the US on areas including trade, defence and upholding the Belfast (Good Friday) Agreement.

November 16, 2022
PRESS RELEASE : Health and Social Care Secretary sets out key priorities ahead of winter [November 2022]
The press release issued by the Department for Health and Social Care on 16 November 2022.
He is expected to set out his key priorities including a focus on what matters most to patients

Focus will be on delivering for patients and making it as easy as possible for NHS and social care frontline staff to do their jobs

The Health and Social Care Secretary Steve Barclay will today set out his plans to steer the health and care system through the upcoming winter and signal changes that will make the NHS better prepared for future “storms to come.”

Addressing the NHS Providers conference in Liverpool, Steve Barclay will say he will focus “on the areas that matter most to the patient experience” and measures which make it “as easy as possible” for frontline NHS and care workers to do their jobs.

In his first speech since returning to the role, Mr Barclay will outline his five key priorities for the months ahead:

Supporting the workforce including through more staff for NHS 111 and 999

Focusing on recovery plans across electives, urgent and emergency care

Tackling the issue of delayed hospital discharge

Improving access to primary care

Ensuring a stronger future for health including maintaining momentum on the New Hospital Programme and investing in technology to improve patient outcomes

He will say:

We face the twin threats of Covid and flu, external pressures around energy and cost of living, and we enter the colder months without the breathing space that we might have usually had due to covid pressures over the summer.

So there is a huge amount to do to steer health and care through this storm and crucially, make the changes that will better prepare us for the storms to come.

He will add:

My focus will be on the areas that matter most to the patient experience.

On tackling the Covid backlogs the Secretary of State will emphasise the importance of close working between the Department of Health and Social Care and NHS England to reduce variation in patient access and waiting times across the country. He will say he will be taking forward an approach that is “informed by the data” and “focuses attention where it is needed the most.”

He will also outline a need to invest in new technology and harness the opportunities of new ways of working shown by the pandemic including use of the NHS app to reduce pressures in primary care.

Looking beyond the immediate challenges of this winter, the Secretary of State will reiterate the need to ensure a stronger future for health and care including investment in NHS buildings and the need to modernise the way future hospitals are built as part of the government’s commitment to deliver 40 new hospitals by 2030.
November 16, 2022
PRESS RELEASE : Rishi Sunak call with President Andrzej Duda of Poland following reports of a missile strike in Poland [November 2022]

The press release issued by 10 Downing Street on 15 November 2022.

The Prime Minister spoke to Polish President Andrzej Duda today (16 November) from the G20 in Indonesia, following reports of a missile strike in Poland.

He reiterated the UK’s solidarity with Poland as a close ally and expressed condolences for the victims and their families.

President Duda updated on the Polish investigation efforts, and the Prime Minister offered any assistance needed to urgently establish what happened.

The leaders agreed to remain in close contact and continue coordinating with our international partners, including NATO Allies, on the next steps.

November 16, 2022
PRESS RELEASE : Rishi Sunak – the UK will be a firm friend to the Indo-Pacific [November 2022]
The press release issued by 10 Downing Street on 15 November 2022.
PM will emphasise the importance of Indo-Pacific security and prosperity at the G20 in Indonesia, announcing a new partnership with India

At today’s Summit the PM will meet the leaders of India, Australia and Indonesia as well as President Biden

PM will also meet Chinese President Xi to underline the need for a frank and constructive UK-China relationship

The Prime Minister will emphasise the importance of the Indo-Pacific region to global security and prosperity as he continues to hold talks with his counterparts at the G20 Summit in Indonesia today (Wednesday).

This week’s G20 meeting is the largest gathering of global leaders in the region since before the coronavirus pandemic. In the time since a British Prime Minister last visited Southeast Asia, the region and the Indo-Pacific as a whole has only become more important to the UK’s security and prosperity.

The UK has committed to building the broadest presence in the Indo-Pacific of any European country. We have already strengthened our ties with the region, including through our work with Japan to develop the next generation of combat aircraft, the AUKUS pact with Australia and the USA and Just Energy Transition Partnership with Indonesia.

The UK was the first country to achieve Associate Partner status in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations this century and has applied to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership.

Today the Prime Minister will meet regional leaders, including Indian Prime Minister Modi. In that meeting they will confirm a new bespoke, reciprocal route will open in early 2023 to give young professionals from the UK and India a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to take part in a professional and cultural exchange.

India is the first visa-national country to benefit from such a scheme, highlighting the strength of the UK-India Migration and Mobility Partnership agreed last year.

The Prime Minister said:

The Indo-Pacific is increasingly crucial for our security and our prosperity. It is teeming with dynamic and fast-growing economies, and the next decade will be defined by what happens in this region.

I know first-hand the incredible value of the deep cultural and historic ties we have with India. I am pleased that even more of India’s brightest young people will now have the opportunity to experience all that life in the UK has to offer – and vice-versa – making our economies and societies richer.

Under the new UK-India Young Professionals Scheme, the UK will offer 3,000 places annually to 18–30 year-old degree educated Indian nationals to come to the UK to live and work here for up to two years. The scheme will be reciprocal.

The launch of the scheme is a significant moment both for our bilateral relationship with India and the UK’s wider commitment to forging stronger links with the Indo-Pacific region to strengthen both our economies.

The UK has more links with India than almost any country in the Indo-Pacific region. Nearly a quarter of all international students in the UK are from India, and Indian investment into the UK supports 95,000 jobs across the UK.

The UK is currently negotiating a trade deal with India – if agreed it will be the first deal of its kind India has made with a European country. The trade deal would build on the UK-India trading relationship, already worth £24 billion, and allow the UK to seize the opportunities presented by India’s growing economy.

In parallel to the mobility partnership with India, we are also strengthening our ability to remove immigration offenders. A landmark Memorandum of Understanding was signed between the UK and India in May 2021 aimed at increasing mobility between our countries, returning those with no right to be in the UK and India respectively and sharing best practice on organised immigration crime.

Today at the G20 the Prime Minister will meet Chinese President Xi – the first British Prime Minister to do so in almost five years. He will be clear on the need for China and the UK, as permanent members of the UN Security Council and major global economies, to establish a frank and constructive relationship.

The challenges posed by China are systemic and they are long-term. China is a country with fundamentally different values to ours, with an authoritarian leadership intent on reshaping the international order.

But none of the issues the Prime Minister is discussing at the G20 – the global economy, the impacts of the war in Ukraine on food and energy security, climate change and global health – can be addressed without coordinated action by all the world’s major economies. That includes China.

The Prime Minister will encourage China to use its place on the global stage responsibly to resolve geopolitical tensions, ensure regional stability and play its part in tackling the devastating global impact of the war in Ukraine.

He will stress that the pre-condition for any UK-China engagement will always be the UK’s national security, including our economic security. And he will underline the importance the UK places on defending human rights and of speaking out and taking action where we have concerns – as we have done over Hong Kong and Xinjiang.

Work is currently underway on an update to last year’s Integrated Review to take account of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine and the evolving challenges posed by China.
November 15, 2022
PRESS RELEASE : Gangs Violence Matrix to be redesigned as focus on tackling violence continues [November 2022]

The press release issued by the Met Police on 15 November 2022.

The Metropolitan Police Service has reached a legal agreement with Liberty after proceedings were brought in relation to the Gangs Violence Matrix (GVM).

Tackling violence is one of the Met’s highest priorities and the use of data and intelligence sits at the heart of that mission.

Tools such as the GVM are essential in protecting the public but we also acknowledge that earning and maintaining the trust of the communities we police is just as important.

In recent years we have worked closely with the Mayor’s Office for Policing and Crime (MOPAC) to improve the working of the GVM.

The focus of that work has been on reducing – or ideally eliminating – disproportionality in the GVM while ensuring that the processes around its use are transparent. These are similar themes to those raised by Liberty in their judicial challenge.

While we have made progress in these areas, the most recent review by MOPAC published on 31 October showed that disproportionality remained.

As a result, we took the decision to remove more than 1,100 people from the lowest (green) category of the GVM. This has already been completed.

Moving forward we have committed to the complete redesign of the matrix, informed by academic research and engagement with partners and communities over the coming months.

As a result of these actions, a settlement was able to be reached between the Met and Liberty.

Assistant Commissioner Matt Twist said: “To effectively confront gang-related violence and protect those in our communities at risk of exploitation by criminal groups, we must make the best use of intelligence and data.

“It’s crucial that we hold, use and share that information in a responsible way that meets our legal requirements and maintains the confidence of communities.

“The GVM has been in use since 2012 and it has been an effective tool during that time, playing a part in results that have had a genuine impact on protecting the public.

“But we acknowledge that it does not have the full confidence of the public and that there have been improvements in statistical methods and technologies since its introduction. To keep pace with those changes and to ensure we maintain the trust of Londoners, the GVM needs to be redesigned.

“The redesign will be achieved in collaboration with partners and community groups, informed by the most relevant and leading academic research.

“This work will take time but we are not waiting for it to be completed before taking action.

“Having reflected on MOPAC’s most recent review and on the continuing disproportionality that it highlighted, we have already removed more than 1,100 of the lowest risk individuals, representing 65 per cent of those on the GVM.”

November 15, 2022
PRESS RELEASE : Volodymyr Zelenskyy held a meeting on stabilization measures in the de-occupied Kherson region [November 2022]

The press release issued by the President of Ukraine on 14 November 2022.

As part of a working trip to the Kherson and Mykolaiv regions, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy held a meeting on stabilization measures in the de-occupied territory of the Kherson region.

The Head of State listened to the report of the commander of the Kherson operational-strategic group of troops, Brigadier General Oleksandr Tarnavskyi about the situation in the region.

Head of the Kherson regional military administration Yaroslav Yanushevych informed the President about the state of the city’s critical infrastructure and life support systems.

70-80 thousand people currently live in Kherson. The city has a difficult situation with electricity supply and communication.

“Everything will return. Yes, unfortunately, the occupiers, who destroy everything on their path, destroyed the entire power supply network. But our services are working, and everything will return,” the President emphasized.

As Volodymyr Zelenskyy noted, points of assistance to residents will gradually appear in the city, as was the case in the Kharkiv region.

For his part, Yaroslav Yanushevych noted that, on the instructions of the Head of State, measures are being taken to restore the destroyed power transmission lines going to the Kherson region.

“We are working on this issue round the clock together with Ukrenergo. Our electricians are moving right behind the explosives technicians. And we hope that the electricity supply will be restored in the near future,” he said.

The participants of the meeting discussed the provision of assistance by neighboring regions, in particular Mykolaiv and Dnipropetrovsk regions, in the establishment of logistics and the return of normal life to the liberated territories of the Kherson region.

In Mykolaiv, Volodymyr Zelenskyy also visited the humanitarian headquarters that operates under the RMA and has been providing assistance to people in need since the first days of full-scale Russian aggression.

Thus, over 4 million tons of humanitarian aid was distributed among the communities of the region in 9 months. The population is regularly supplied with food and non-food kits, warm clothes, medicines and building materials for repairing houses damaged by shelling.

The humanitarian headquarters has already sent aid to Kherson, which was recently liberated from the Russian occupiers. This includes, in particular, more than 25 tons of food kits, 26 pallets of food products, and 3 tons of hygiene products. Also, an ambulance, more than 6 tons of medicines, including insulin and other critical medicines, as well as medical supplies that were purchased for the Kherson region and stored in Mykolaiv until de-occupation were transferred from the Mykolaiv region to Kherson.

November 15, 2022
Volodymyr Zelenskyy – 2022 Speech on the Implementation of the EU Solidarity Lanes Initiative

The speech made by Volodymyr Zelenskyy, the President of Ukraine, on 11 November 2022.

President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy delivered a video message on the implementation of the EU Solidarity Lanes Initiative.

This initiative was launched on May 12, 2022. Its purpose is to promote the establishment and improvement of alternative routes for the export of Ukrainian agricultural products given the blockade of the Black Sea ports, as well as to ensure the possibility of importing necessary goods to Ukraine.

The initiative envisages the implementation of a set of measures to eliminate transport delays at the borders of Ukraine with the states of the European Union, improving road, rail and river connections between our country and the EU in the future.

Today, the European Commission together with the European Investment Bank and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development announced the allocation of additional 850 million euros in the framework of the initiative, and the World Bank – 100 million euros to support Ukrainian exports, in particular through the implementation of targeted joint projects.

In his address, Volodymyr Zelenskyy thanked the entire united Europe for the constant support that Ukraine has been receiving since the first hours of the Russian invasion.

“Please, know that your defense assistance, as well as financial, political and humanitarian support, saved millions of lives. This is the solidarity that clearly demonstrates the strength of the European values. When Europe is truly united, not a single tyranny can take the freedom of the Europeans away,” the President emphasized.

The Head of State noted that by starting the full-scale war in Ukraine, Russia blocked Ukrainian ports on the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov, and a bigger part of Ukrainian export and import stopped.

“But we were able to open a new way of economic life through the territory of the European Union. Along this road of life, we established a supply that is critically important not only for Ukraine but also for the whole Europe and many other countries – partners of Europe,” he said.

“On the eve of the half-year anniversary of the Solidarity Lanes Initiative, I confirm our readiness to continue working together with you in order to further strengthen our Europe. Strengthen economically and socially. To strengthen our states, our companies, our people,” the President of Ukraine added.

The video address of the Head of State together with the speeches of President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen and the leaders of neighboring countries was broadcast by Europe by Satellite, the main television resource of the institutions of the European Union, and other EU information channels.

November 15, 2022
PRESS RELEASE : Securing peace, stability and prosperity for Libya [November 2022]

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 15 November 2022.

Thank you President, and I would like to thank SRSG Bathily for taking time away from his important engagement with Libyan stakeholders to brief the Council today. I welcome your continued engagement with all Libyan stakeholders, including women and youth, across the country.

Let me once again express the United Kingdom’s support for SRSG Bathily and his efforts to reinvigorate Libya’s stalled peace process. Stability in Libya can only be achieved through a UN-facilitated, Libyan-led and owned process that leads to Parliamentary and Presidential elections as soon as possible. All Libyan parties have an obligation to work with SRSG Bathily to achieve this and deliver elections for the Libyan people.

We are concerned by reports that armed groups prevented a meeting of the High State Council in Tripoli yesterday. Any attempt to obstruct civilian institutions from carrying out their responsibilities is unacceptable.

President, the United Kingdom reaffirms our commitment to working with Libya and our international partners to secure peace, stability and prosperity for Libya. The unanimous adoption of the 12-month UNSMIL mandate renewal was a welcome demonstration of the Council’s support, and I look forward to engaging with SRSG Bathily again during the mandated Council meeting next month.

And I thank you.

November 15, 2022