Tag: Press Release

  • PRESS RELEASE : New PM says government can bring back hope to Britain, and launches drive to end rough sleeping at the earliest opportunity [July 2026]

    PRESS RELEASE : New PM says government can bring back hope to Britain, and launches drive to end rough sleeping at the earliest opportunity [July 2026]

    The press release issued by 10 Downing Street on 20 July 2026.

    The Prime Minister used his first speech in office to launch an urgent national drive to end rough sleeping at the earliest opportunity, setting out a bold ambition to tackle one of the starkest injustices in the country. This will be backed from day one by an additional £340 million – taking overall funding to record levels.

    • In his speech on the steps of 10 Downing Street the Prime Minister announced a new national effort to end rough sleeping, backed by record investment
    • Prime Minister says government can bring back hope to Britain and rejects the claim that ending rough sleeping will take decades or that it can’t be done
    • Prime Minister says the crisis has been caused by years of national government failure and Westminster turning a blind eye
    • Mayors, councils, the NHS, public services and government departments will now be backed to provide urgent support for vulnerable people before the winter

    The Prime Minister used his first speech in office to launch an urgent national drive to end rough sleeping at the earliest opportunity, setting out a bold ambition to tackle one of the starkest injustices in the country. This will be backed from day one by an additional £340 million – taking overall funding to record levels. 

    The policy forms a key part of his pledge on the steps of Downing Street to help everyone to live well and build a more preventative state, investing in success rather than paying for failure. Crisis research shows that a year of rough sleeping costs an estimated £20,128 per person, versus £1,426 for a successful prevention intervention.

    The Prime Minister rejects the notion that ending rough sleeping will take decades or that it can’t be done at all. The experience of ‘Everyone In’ during the pandemic, showed that with the right political will, it can be done. He is clear that the rough sleeping crisis has been caused by years of systemic failure in national policy. Westminster has too often turned a blind eye to rough sleeping, which has been all too apparent to local leaders. Ambitious local leaders will now be backed with the full support of central government.

    Before walking up Downing Street to address the nation, the Prime Minister met people with experience of sleeping rough. He heard how it can trap people in a cycle of crisis, poor health and insecurity. He believes that thousands of people sleeping rough every night in our country is not inevitable, but a choice by politicians, and that he will take immediate action to change how the government treats the issue.  

    Urgent first steps will begin to help those sleeping rough over a long period to move into secure housing. This includes beginning the acquisition of suitable homes, identifying those most in need and starting to provide housing and support without delay.

    The new funding is the first phase of investment in a wider five-year programme that will provide homes and support for thousands of the people facing the most severe and long-term homelessness. Further steps will be set out before the autumn.

    This effort will benefit everyone: transforming the lives of people who have spent long periods on the streets, strengthening towns and communities, and reducing the pressure that repeated crisis interventions place on the NHS, the criminal justice system and other public services.  

    Local leaders will lead the delivery of the programme, building on proven local-led approaches that have helped to tackle rough sleeping in communities across the country. The new funding, which represents the opening investment, will provide 1,200 homes and intensive support for at least 3,000 people.

    Prime Minister Andy Burnham said:

    For too long, we’ve been told that ending rough sleeping will take decades or even that it’s impossible. I’m not having that. 

    This is something a government can fix if it chooses to. Today, I’m choosing to.

    On my first day as Prime Minister, I’m announcing this government’s commitment to finally end long-term rough sleeping across the UK at the earliest opportunity.

    We’ll get to work immediately, bringing together national and local government with the investment needed to get it done.

    This is the kind of Britain I want us to be – a country where everyone has the security of a roof over their head, and where no one is left behind or written off. Let’s bring back hope.

  • PRESS RELEASE : King Confirms Appointment of Andy Burnham as Prime Minister

    PRESS RELEASE : King Confirms Appointment of Andy Burnham as Prime Minister

    The press release issued by Buckingham Palace on 20 July 2026.

    His Majesty received in audience the Rt Hon Andrew Burnham MP and requested him to form a new Administration. The Rt Hon Andrew Burnham MP accepted The King’s offer and kissed hands upon his appointment as Prime Minister and First Lord of the Treasury.

    Ms Marie-France van Heel was also received by His Majesty.

  • PRESS RELEASE : Southern Water fined £7.1 million for sewage pollution [July 2026]

    PRESS RELEASE : Southern Water fined £7.1 million for sewage pollution [July 2026]

    The press release issued by the Environment Agency on 17 July 2026.

    Beaches forced to close, local trade hit, equipment failure and lack of oversight by company.

    Southern Water has been fined £7.1m after repeated illegal sewage pollution incidents forced the closure of beaches, harmed coastal communities. Serious failures were exposed in the company’s management of wastewater.

    Sentencing Southern Water at Canterbury crown court today, Mr Justice Johnson KC heard how preventable equipment failures and poor operational oversight led to repeated discharges of untreated sewage between 2019 and 2021, some at the height of summer.

    The prosecution comes almost exactly five years after Southern Water received a record £90 million fine for nearly 7,000 illegal sewage discharges.

    Across five major pollution incidents, Southern Water repeatedly failed to maintain critical pumping equipment, delayed reporting pollution to regulators and allowed untreated sewage to enter coastal waters.

    In July 2019, an Environment Agency investigation found that around 10m litres of sewage was discharged for almost 24 hours. It could have been prevented but staff showed a lack of system knowledge.

    Southern Water is legally obliged to report pollution to the Environment Agency as soon as possible, but they failed to do so until the next day. It meant Thanet District Council couldn’t warn people against getting into the water.      

    More discharges

    Little over a year later, around the August bank holiday in 2020, in the middle of the pandemic, another illegal discharge.

    A failed pump at Margate pumping station was out of order for weeks, leading to the release of sewage into the sea. A second pump then failed. At least 16m litres of sewage were released into the sea across two days. Like earlier, the Environment Agency was only told by Southern Water about the pollution a day later.

    On that same August day six years ago, untreated wastewater and human waste was also discharged into seawater from a pumping station at Broadstairs, in the region of 1.6m to 3.2m litres, for more than two hours.        

    Late reporting

    Southern Water only told the Environment Agency weeks later. Their failure to report it sooner meant Thanet District Council was again unable to warn the public. 

    Lindsay Faulkner, environment manager for the Environment Agency in Kent, said:

    Southern Water allowed this repeated pollution to happen. Stronger oversight by the company is needed, and plain to see from their track record. These preventable incidents harmed the environment and local communities, but like so much pollution caused by water companies, they were avoidable and should never have happened.

    The Environment Agency demands much more from Southern Water. Our inspections of sewage treatment sites, including pumping stations at fault in this case, will continue. We are holding them to account.

    Skip to February 2021, another pumping station fault, more pollution. Now a computer broke down at Broadstairs, as did a back-up. This time, the Environment Agency was told about sewage and debris off the coast, and both they and the council gave advice to swimmers to stay away from a 5km-stretch of Kent coastline for 24 hours.

    The Environment Agency told the court Southern Water should have picked up the fault earlier, a fairly basic diagnosis.   

    Possibly the most damaging of the five main incidents leading the Environment Agency’s case, as far as the impact on beaches and bathing waters, came in June the following summer. Again, simultaneous failures at Margate and Broadstairs pumping stations, when after lockdown, everyone was desperate to get outdoors.  

    As the sun rose, Thanet District Council closed 11 of them. Advice to keep out of the sea for a week at the height of summer was also posted on Swimfo, the Environment Agency’s online guide to bathing water quality.

    Equipment breakdown sent more sewage and debris into the sea for hours. A poorly-maintained circuit board caused the power supply to stop, causing a domino effect for the rest of the plant.

    October 2021, and more badly-managed equipment caused a power shutdown at the Broadstairs plant, with more untreated sewage and sanitary towels pumped into the sea. In all, 10 beaches were closed by the council. 

    Southern Water also admitted to another 35 illegal discharges also between 2019 and 2021, and that a pump used to move sewage around its network was out of action for more than a year. They were fined £7,127,083, with costs to the Environment Agency of £149,000, and a victim surcharge of £181.

  • PRESS RELEASE : First groups designated as threat to national security [July 2026]

    PRESS RELEASE : First groups designated as threat to national security [July 2026]

    The press release issued by the Home Office on 17 July 2026.

    Today (17 July), the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), the Islamic Movement of Companions of the Right (IMCR), and Russia’s GRU Volunteer Corps have formally been designated under the National Security (State Threats) Act 2026 after Parliament approved an order laid by the Home Secretary on Monday (13 July), in order to protect the safety of the UK.

    It is now a criminal offence to express support for these bodies – meaning anyone who glorifies or encourages their activity which threatens the safety of the UK can be prosecuted. It is also now a criminal offence to assist or to accept or obtain a material benefit, such as payment, from any of these bodies. Anyone found guilty of these offences could face up to 14 years imprisonment.

    Anyone committing other acts, such as sabotage, on behalf of these groups could be prosecuted for other offences under the National Security Act 2023, in which they could face life imprisonment.

    All 3 groups are the first to be designated under these landmark new powers, and they have now been added to the list of designated bodies in the UK.

  • PRESS RELEASE : Historic UK-India Free Trade Agreement is now in effect [July 2026]

    PRESS RELEASE : Historic UK-India Free Trade Agreement is now in effect [July 2026]

    The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 17 July 2026.

    UK and India total trade, worth £48 billion in 2025, is set for an immediate boost with consumers now enjoying cheaper, quicker, and easier access to the best of British and Indian products and services across both countries.

    To celebrate this historic occasion, a special package of select British goods arrived at the British Deputy High Commission in Mumbai on the morning of 15 July aboard a British Airways flight. This package was unveiled by Harjinder Kang, His Majesty’s Trade Commissioner for South Asia, and David Wright, British Airways’ General Manager in India to signal the arrival of new opportunities unlocked under the agreement for both countries.

    The package contained goods from the UK benefitting from reduced tariffs, including cosmetics, food products, and alcoholic beverages.

    Harjinder Kang, His Majesty’s Trade Commissioner for South Asia and British Deputy High Commissioner for Western India, said:

    This is a watershed moment for the UK-India partnership. As the landmark trade deal comes into force, what better than having select British products arriving in one of the very first UK flights into India this morning – with thanks to support from British Airways. Our landmark trade deal is designed to benefit businesses and consumers from day one with cheaper, quicker and easier trade. We are all excited to take full advantage of it.

    David Wright, British Airways’ General Manager in India, said:

    India is one of British Airways’ most important markets and we have a long history of connecting people, businesses, and cultures across the UK and India. With 63 flights each week going up to 70 by the end of summer, we play an important role in strengthening economic and cultural ties between our two countries.

    The UK-India Free Trade Agreement marks a significant milestone in the relationship between the UK and India and reinforces the long-term potential of one of the world’s most dynamic international corridors. We are proud to support this landmark agreement and the opportunities it will create for trade, investment and tourism.

    As the UK’s flag carrier, we look forward to deepening our links with India and connecting customers and communities across our global network for years to come.

    Starting 15 July, 99% of Indian goods entering the UK and 90% of UK goods entering India will either be duty free or reduced in tariffs. It will benefit a wide range of sectors on both sides including automotive, manufacturing, consumer goods, creative industries, and medical technology as it marks the biggest milestone in the bilateral economic partnership.

    To mark this major milestone, a number of celebratory events and activations will be hosted by the UK Government across India and the UK including business receptions in New Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, and at Lancaster House in London.

    In the long run, the deal is expected to boost bilateral trade by £25.5 billion, Indian GDP by £5.1billion, and UK GDP by £4.8billion every year.

  • PRESS RELEASE : Ministers launch crackdown on vapes targeting kids [July 2026]

    PRESS RELEASE : Ministers launch crackdown on vapes targeting kids [July 2026]

    The press release issued by the Department of Health and Social Care on 10 July 2026.

    Ministers have launched a crackdown on vapes marketed at kids with a shift to plain white packaging.

    • Plans to keep vapes out of sight in shops and airports
    • Plain packaging for all tobacco products, including cigars and cigarette papers

    Plans to stop vapes being marketed to children have been unveiled today (10 July 2026) as part of a UK-wide consultation to introduce plain packaging and restrictions on flavour description rules, and keep vapes out of sight in shops.

    Action on Smoking and Health (ASH) reports that around one million 11 to 17 year olds in Great Britain reported trying vaping in 2025. Evidence suggests that colourful packaging, prominent retail displays and child-appealing flavours are among the factors driving young people to take it up.

    The UK government and the devolved governments have launched a consultation that includes proposals to reduce the appeal of vapes to young children, including white packaging with restrictions on text colour, imagery and branding, as well as standardised product information.

    There will also be restrictions on flavour names – to simple recognisable descriptions – and vape devices – to be white, black or grey.

    Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, James Murray, said:

    The evidence is clear: there are too many young people experimenting with vapes, attracted by the array of flavours, bright colours and marketing displays.

    We want a healthier future for the next generation, so we must act now to reduce the appeal of addictive vapes to our children.

    Vapes are less harmful than cigarettes and can play an important role in helping adult smokers to quit, but they should never be designed or marketed in ways that tempt children. These proposals are about striking the right balance and I urge everyone to have their say.

    Standardised packaging has helped reduce the appeal of smoking since its introduction for cigarettes and hand-rolling tobacco in 2017.

    The consultation proposes to extend these requirements for all tobacco products, including cigars and cigarette papers.

    Further proposals include introducing positive quit-themed inserts directing smokers to resources to quit and health warnings for all tobacco products, as well as removing displays for tobacco products in duty-free settings and airports.

    The consultation follows the passage of the Tobacco and Vapes Act, which received Royal Assent on 29 April 2026 and sets out proposals to create the UK’s first smoke-free generation, protecting children from nicotine addiction while ensuring adult smokers can still access vaping products to help them quit.

    There is also growing awareness and use among young people of other nicotine products, including nicotine pouches, which are covered by several of the proposed measures.

    Scotland Public Health Minister, Maree Todd, said:

    Scotland has been a world leader on a range of tobacco control measures, and while there has been a steady reduction in smoking rates, we know it still damages lives and kills more than 7,000 people a year in Scotland.

    The use of vapes has increased in recent years, particularly among children and young people – with almost 1 in 5 children saying they have tried vaping.

    We know that colourful packaging and displays are used as an enticement to children and young people, which is why we are taking action and consulting on options to address this issue. We urge everyone to have their say on how these products are marketed and sold in the future to help protect children and young people and reduce preventable harm in Scotland.

    Northern Ireland Health Minister, Mike Nesbitt, said:

    The rise in vaping among children and young people concerns me. Restricting the visibility of these products will lessen their appeal, which in turn will reduce youth vaping and prevent future generations from nicotine addiction.

    I consider it vital that we get the views from the public on the future of displaying and packaging of these products. I would encourage everyone to take the time to respond to this consultation.

    Wales Deputy Minister for Preventative and Public Health, Nerys Evans, said:

    Vapes are being deliberately designed and marketed to appeal to children – with bright colours, cartoon branding and sweet-sounding flavour names that have no place in products containing addictive nicotine.

    It is simply unacceptable and I would urge everyone to support our efforts to protect children’s health.

    Professor Steve Turner, President of the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health (RCPCH), said:  

    Any measures that improve child health are welcome and much needed. As paediatricians, we are deeply concerned by the insidious marketing practices used by tobacco and vaping companies to target our future generations.   

    For those of us working with children every day, it is clear that only strong and meaningful regulation will protect them from the harms associated with nicotine addiction. We welcome this consultation as an important step towards creating a healthier future for children and young people.

    Hazel Cheeseman, Chief Executive of ASH, said:

    Protecting children from harmful vape marketing is the right thing to do. Attractive, colourful branding and images have driven the appeal of vapes to children leading to an increase in use. At the same time there is a careful balance to strike with regulations. While vapes are not harm free, they are significantly less harmful than smoking, and vapes have helped millions of people successfully stop smoking in recent years.

    The task now is to thread the needle of making vaping less appealing to children without making it less effective for adults who want to quit smoking. Get that balance wrong, and we risk slowing progress against smoking, the leading cause of preventable death.

    The consultation seeks views on proposals for vapes and nicotine products including:

    • introducing plain white packaging with restrictions on text colour, imagery, limited branding and standardised safety information
    • restricting flavour names to only simple recognisable descriptions (such as ‘apple’), banning concept and sensory names as well as names relating to confectionery, sweets, desserts and alcohol
    • mandating manufacturers of vape devices to make them white, black or grey, with no images, limited branding, no cosmetic lights and screens only displaying safety information (for example, battery level)
    • restrict shop displays in the same way as tobacco products

    Further measures in the proposals for tobacco products include:

    • extending existing plain packaging requirements and health warnings for cigarettes across all tobacco products, herbal smoking products, cigarette papers and heated tobacco devices
    • introducing positive quit-support messages inside all tobacco products, including cigarettes, hand-rolling tobacco, herbal smoking products and heated tobacco devices
    • extending existing tobacco display restrictions to all tobacco-related products, cigarette papers and herbal smoking products
    • removing an existing display exemption for bulk tobacconists, including duty-free shops and airports, meaning that tobacco products would be restricted from display in these settings
    • restricting heated tobacco devices to a drab brown colour the same as tobacco packaging, with no images, limited branding, no cosmetic lights and screens only displaying safety information (for example, battery level)

    This consultation is part of wider action to tackle youth vaping. It follows a ban on single-use vapes (1 June 2025), and comes ahead of:

    • the introduction of a Vaping Products Duty (1 October 2026)
    • future bans on the sale of vapes from vending machines and their free distribution (29 October 2026)
    • an end to the advertising and sponsorship of vapes (1 June 2027)

    Councillor Dr Wendy Taylor MBE, Chair of the Local Government Association’s Health and Wellbeing Committee, said:

    Reducing the appeal of vapes to children with tighter controls on flavours, packaging and promotion, will be key to addressing the concerning rise in youth vaping.

    There is no legitimate reason for nicotine products to come in neon packaging, feature cartoon images or use flavours and branding designed to catch a child’s eye. Products designed, packaged and promoted in ways that appeal to children have likely contributed to one in five 11 to 17 year-olds having now tried vaping.

    Councils have long called for an end to vapes being dressed up like sweets and sold within arm’s reach of the pick and mix. This consultation is the moment to close the loopholes that have enabled these products that appeal to children to remain on sale.

    Ailsa Rutter OBE, Director of Fresh and Balance, said:

    We welcome measures in the Tobacco and Vapes Act that support our vision of ending the death and disease caused by tobacco and preventing future generations from taking up lethal smoking.

    We support standardised packaging of all tobacco products. This would have the biggest impact if it is alongside public awareness campaigns on the harms of tobacco and benefits of quitting.

    We know that nicotine vapes are playing a very important role in helping people quit smoking, but it is right that action is taken to reduce youth appeal. It is vital that regulations do not increase harm misconceptions about vaping compared with smoking, and that the impact of all these policies on health inequalities is closely monitored.

    Dr Ian Walker, Executive Director of Policy and Information of Cancer Research UK, said:

    Evidence so far shows that legal vapes are far less harmful than tobacco, but we still don’t know their long-term impact, so it’s absolutely right that the UK government is taking steps to reduce the appeal and availability of vapes to young people and those who have never smoked.

    As vapes are an effective cessation tool, any new regulation must make sure they are still accessible to people trying to stop smoking. Tobacco remains the biggest cause of cancer in the UK, so we’re also pleased to see plans to extend plain packaging to all tobacco products, which is proven to help shield children from a deadly addiction.

    Thanks to the world-leading Tobacco and Vapes Act becoming law, a future free from the devastating harms of tobacco is firmly within reach. Governments across the UK must now ensure the act is implemented fully in every nation.

    Andrew McCracken, Director of External Affairs at Asthma + Lung UK, said:

    This is an important first step to reduce the appeal of vaping products to children and young people. The brazen marketing of vapes to children is reprehensible and needs to be stopped.

    We do not want to see anybody vaping, other than for smoking cessation. Vapes do play an important role to smokers looking to quit, but if you don’t smoke, don’t vape.

    Dr Charmaine Griffiths, Chief Executive at the British Heart Foundation (BHF), said:

    Eye-catching branding, bright colours and enticing names have no place on vaping products that should never be used by children.

    Too many lives are still cut short by tobacco-related heart attacks and strokes, so the government is right to look at ways of making tobacco and vaping products less attractive to young people.

    Having already taken the historic step of stopping future generations from ever being legally sold cigarettes, the government must now press ahead with confidence and urgency to create a smoke-free generation sooner than any thought possible.

    Alison Challenger, Policy Co-Lead for Addiction at the Association of Directors of Public Health, said:

    We are pleased to see this consultation launched to support stronger restrictions on tobacco and vape product packaging. These products are designed to attract and keep our communities, and more worryingly our children and young people, hooked on these health-harming products, often through eye-catching marketing, youth-friendly messaging and strategic placement.

    That is why we need standardised, plain packaging, particularly across vapes, that strips away the branding and promotional design used to make these products enticing. Alongside this, we need to better support people to quit smoking and make the harms of tobacco clearer.

    Only by reducing the appeal and accessibility of these products can we stop the harms of smoking and create a smoke-free future where everyone, especially our children and young people, have the freedom to live healthier lives.

    Background information

    This consultation is UK-wide and runs for 12 weeks from launch.

    Proposed regulations in this consultation stem from powers within the Tobacco and Vapes Act 2026, which received Royal Assent on 29 April.

    No immediate changes to law are being made at this stage. Regulations will be developed following analysis of consultation responses.

    Medicinally licensed nicotine products are exempt from these proposals and are subject to different legislation.  

    Tobacco products include:

    • cigars
    • cigarillos
    • pipe tobacco
    • waterpipe tobacco (for example, shisha)
    • nasal tobacco (snuff)
    • chewing tobacco
    • heated tobacco
    • blunts

    Cigarettes and hand-rolling tobacco are already covered by plain packaging legislation and will have pack inserts introduced in due course. The consultation will cover all tobacco products, meaning it is futureproofed for any tobacco new product that is developed.

    Proposed plain packaging legislation in line with existing cigarette packaging is for all tobacco products, herbal smoking products, heated tobacco devices and cigarette papers.

    Proposed quit-themed pack inserts for all tobacco products, herbal smoking products and heated tobacco devices but not cigarette papers due to their small size.

  • PRESS RELEASE : UN Human Rights Council 62 – UK General Comment on the draft resolution on child, early and forced marriage [July 2026]

    PRESS RELEASE : UN Human Rights Council 62 – UK General Comment on the draft resolution on child, early and forced marriage [July 2026]

    The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 7 July 2026.

    UK General Comment on the draft resolution on child, early and forced marriage. Delivered by UK Human Rights Ambassador, Eleanor Sanders.

    Thank you, Mr President,

    Child, early and forced marriage is a harmful practice and a form of gender-based violence. The UK supports efforts to tackle the root causes of the practice, including discriminatory social norms, gender inequality and violence against women and girls.

    It is in this context, that we thank the core group and in particular Switzerland, the pen holder, for their efforts to bring this resolution forward. The UK joined the previous request for the OHCHR to develop guidelines to prevent and redress child, early and forced marriage and we thus wholeheartedly support the core group’s request to implement these guidelines.

    The core group held an open, transparent and lengthy process to take into consideration a broad set of views. We welcome this approach and congratulate them for delivering a strong text which focuses on impact. Indeed, education, empowerment and the promotion of the rights, agency and autonomy of women and girls remain central to preventing and ending child, early and forced marriage.

    We regret that several amendments have been tabled with the aim of challenging key agreed human rights language on comprehensive sexuality education, sexual and reproductive health and rights, bodily autonomy, and violence. These concepts are firmly grounded in existing international commitments. Attempts to replace or redefine this language risk undermining the resolution’s objective and weakening protections for women and girls.

    Mr President,

    The UK has co-sponsored this draft resolution. We urge all members of the Council to join us in fully supporting without reservation this initiative and to reject the amendments which have been tabled.

    Thank you.

  • PRESS RELEASE : UN Human Rights Council 62 – UK General Comment on the draft resolution on women in humanitarian settings [July 2026]

    PRESS RELEASE : UN Human Rights Council 62 – UK General Comment on the draft resolution on women in humanitarian settings [July 2026]

    The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 7 July 2026.

    UK General Comment on the draft resolution on women in humanitarian settings. Delivered by UK Human Rights Ambassador, Eleanor Sanders.

    Thank you, Mr President.

    We join others in taking this opportunity to pay tribute to Colombia’s role as penholder in these difficult circumstances and wish to honour once again the memory of Ambassador Gustavo Gallon.

    The United Kingdom is pleased to join consensus on this important resolution and thanks the Core Group for its leadership throughout the negotiations. 

    As humanitarian needs continue to grow in scale and complexity, women and girls remain disproportionately affected by conflict, displacement, disasters and other crises. This resolution places the protection, participation and leadership of women and girls at the centre of humanitarian responses and reinforces the need for a comprehensive, human rights-based approach.

    We particularly welcome the references to preventing and responding to gender-based violence. Indeed, conflict-related sexual violence continues to have devastating consequences for survivors, families and communities. Preventing these crimes, supporting survivors, and ensuring perpetrators are held to account must remain a central part of efforts to build sustainable peace and security.

    The resolution also highlights the importance of ensuring uninterrupted and non-discriminatory access to healthcare, including sexual and reproductive health services, maternal healthcare, and mental health and psychosocial support. These services are essential to safeguarding the dignity, health and wellbeing of women and girls in crisis situations.

    Equally important is its emphasis on the meaningful participation and leadership of women and girls, including women-led organisations, in humanitarian preparedness, response and recovery. Women and girls must be able to shape the decisions that affect their lives and communities.

    The United Kingdom is proud to support this resolution.

    Thank you.

  • PRESS RELEASE : UN Human Rights Council 62 – UK Explanation of Position on the draft resolution on human rights and climate change [July 2026]

    PRESS RELEASE : UN Human Rights Council 62 – UK Explanation of Position on the draft resolution on human rights and climate change [July 2026]

    The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 7 July 2026.

    UK Explanation of Position on the draft resolution on human rights and climate change. Delivered at the 62nd Human Rights Council in Geneva.

    Mr President,

    The UK thanks the Core Group, led by the Philippines, for their hard work this session.  We appreciate their engagement with us.

    The UK particularly welcomes the focus of this year’s resolution on the needs and interests of future generations. It is entirely appropriate to that theme that this resolution underscores the importance of efforts to limit the global temperature increase to 1.5 Degrees Celsius.

    The need and urgency for greater mitigation action and ambition is clear.  So, we are firmly of the view that mitigation should be more prominent in this resolution and we are disappointed that it is not. A just, orderly and equitable transition away from fossil fuels is integral to mitigation efforts, as the cross-regional General Comment has just set out.

    There is no dispute from the UK that climate change can and does impact the enjoyment of human rights.  That is properly a matter for this Council.  However, the Human Rights Council should not be used as a forum to renegotiate the climate treaties or to misrepresent the independent legal nature of the Paris Agreement.  Accordingly, the UK does not support any text in this resolution that does not accurately reflect obligations under the Paris Agreement or the decisions taken under it, including those in paragraph 28 of the Global Stocktake.  Nor should the principles of equity and common but differentiated responsibilities be applied in a manner inconsistent with that already agreed in UN climate negotiations, so we likewise do not support any such text that does so here.  

    Whilst we appreciate the rationalisation of the text on loss and damage, we remain deeply concerned by this resolution’s framing of the provision of climate finance and loss and damage. The New Collective Quantified Goal, adopted at COP29 and which establishes the framework for climate finance through to 2035, represents a clear consensus on climate finance. It is simply unhelpful for this resolution to be inconsistent with that agreed outcome.  So, we do not support the parts of this resolution that elide obligatory and voluntary actions and introduce new terms that are not used in the UNFCCC and Paris framework.

    The UK remains strongly committed to international climate action. So, we would welcome the Core Group and others working closely with us on the scope, focus and framing of the next iteration of this resolution over the coming year.

    Thank you.

  • PRESS RELEASE : UN Human Rights Council 62 – UK General Comment on the draft resolution on independence and impartiality of the judiciary [July 2026]

    PRESS RELEASE : UN Human Rights Council 62 – UK General Comment on the draft resolution on independence and impartiality of the judiciary [July 2026]

    The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 7 July 2026.

    UK General Comment on the draft resolution on independence and impartiality of the judiciary. Delivered at the 62nd Human Rights Council in Geneva.

    Mr President,

    The UK is proud to cosponsor Resolution L.15 on the independence and impartiality of the judiciary, jurors and assessors, and the independence of lawyers: the mandate of the Special Rapporteur on the independence of judges and lawyers. 

    All legal professionals should be able to discharge their professional duties without fear of reprisals.  An independent legal profession and an independent and impartial judiciary are at the heart of the rule of law.  They play a vital role in promoting and protecting human rights.  That role is only enhanced by the balanced representation of men and women at all levels of the legal profession and the UK was proud to cosponsor a side event on “Women in Law” this Session.

    We welcome this resolution’s focus on robust judicial selection and appointment processes and the UK was a proud cosponsor of a side event on that topic this Session too.  Rigorous judicial selection and appointment contributes to public trust in the judiciary as an organ of the State, thereby enhancing the rule of law and helping to discharge human rights obligations effectively.  We consider these principles are equally important at the international level, including in the selection of judges to bodies such as the International Court of Justice, where independence, impartiality and expertise are essential. That standard underpins the UK’s support for Professor Dapo Akande’s candidacy.

    Finally, we welcome the rationalisation efforts made by the core groups to merge and streamline these two resolutions. 

    Happily, this resolution already benefits from wide cosponsorship and we hope it will pass by consensus, as has happened in the past.  We thank Hungary and the Core Group for their leadership on this important issue.

    Thank you.