Tag: Westminster

Scotland to ban combustible cladding

Materials barred from high-risk buildings over 11 metres

Legislation to improve fire safety and boost Scotland’s Net Zero ambitions has been laid before the Scottish Parliament.

Under the legislation, developers will be banned from using combustible cladding on high-rise buildings. Since 2005, new cladding systems on high rise blocks of flats have either had to use non-combustible materials or pass a large-scale fire test.

The building standards legislation removes the option of a fire test, completely prohibiting such materials from use on domestic and other high-risk buildings, such as care homes and hospitals, above 11m.

The highest risk metal composite cladding material will be banned from any new building of any height, with replacement cladding also required to meet the new standards.

The legislation also includes improvements to energy performance standards, aiming to make buildings easier to heat while ensuring they are well ventilated and comfortable to live in.

Building Standards Minister Patrick Harvie said: “This is the third set of changes made to fire safety standards for cladding in Scotland since the tragic Grenfell Tower Fire, requiring any cladding on domestic or other high risk buildings above 11m to be strictly non-combustible.

“Taken together with our new fire alarms regulations, covering all homes in Scotland regardless of ownership, this is yet another step on the Scottish Government’s mission to minimise the risk of deaths and injuries from fire.

“The energy improvements will deliver another important step toward improved energy and emission performance of our buildings, and we’ll be going further on this in 2024 with regulations requiring new buildings to use zero-emissions heating systems.”

The Building (Scotland) Amendment Regulations 2022 (legislation.gov.uk)

Changes to requirements on fire safety of cladding systems will be introduced on 1 June 2022, while improvements to energy and environmental standards will apply from 1 October 2022.

The changes have been brought in following public consultations in 2021 on the fire safety of cladding systems and on energy and environmental standards.

Supporting Technical Handbooks, which set out the full detail of changes, will be published from the start of May.

The combustible cladding ban will apply to all buildings with a storey 11m or more above the ground, and which contain:

  • a dwelling
  • a building used as a place of assembly
  • or as a place of entertainment or recreation
  • a hospital
  • a residential care building or sheltered housing complex or a shared multi-occupancy residential building.

MPs back TUC’s calls for asbestos removal from public buildings

On Thursday, MPs backed calls from the TUC for all asbestos to be removed from public and commercial buildings. 

Westminster’s Work and Pensions Select Committee published a report from its inquiry into asbestos management in which it cites TUC calls for stronger asbestos removal.  

Asbestos remains the biggest cause of work-related deaths in the UK according to the Health and Safety Executive (HSE), with 5,000 deaths recorded in 2019. And Britain has the highest rates of mesothelioma cases in the world. 

Asbestos is classed as carcinogenic, which means it can cause cancer and other serious lung conditions when fibres are inhaled.  

According to figures from the HSE asbestos is still found in around 300,000 non-domestic buildings despite a ban on the use of the substance in new buildings in 1999. 

Committee report  

The new report by MPs cites concerns that the likely dramatic increase in retrofitting of buildings in response to net zero ambitions means that more asbestos-containing material will be disturbed in the coming decades. 

The TUC says current asbestos management is not fit for purpose and has long called for new legislation requiring removal of all asbestos from public buildings. 

Today MPs have called for a 40-year deadline to remove all asbestos from public and commercial buildings. The TUC welcomes the news but says a 40-year deadline is not ambitious enough. 

The report also calls for more funding for the HSE to support this increased programme of work. 

Asbestos dangers 

There is no safe threshold of exposure to asbestos fibres – inhalation even of small quantities can lead to mesothelioma decades after exposure. 

This means that where asbestos is still present, it is not safe to assume there will be no disturbances that put working people in danger. 

The only way we will eradicate mesothelioma in Britain is with a legal duty to safely remove asbestos, and a clear timetable for its eradication. Only then can we ensure that future generations will not have to experience the same deadly epidemic from asbestos-related diseases that we suffer today. 

TUC General Secretary Frances O’Grady said: “Everyone should be safe at work. Asbestos exposure at work continues to cause thousands of deaths every year. Asbestos is still with us in workplaces and public buildings across the country. As a result, more than 22 years after the use of asbestos was banned, hundreds of thousands of workers are still put at risk of exposure every day. 

“The only way to protect today’s workers and future generations is through the safe removal of asbestos from all workplaces and public buildings.  

“Today’s report by MPs is welcome, but a 40-year deadline isn’t ambitious enough: hundreds of thousands of workers risk dangerous exposure in that time. Ministers must commit to removing all asbestos to keep future generations safe.” 

DWP-Select-cttee-asbestosDownload

Failing landlords to be named and shamed 

Westminster government steps up support for England’s social housing tenants

  • Sub-standard social landlords to be publicly shamed if failing to meet standards
  • Resident Panel will give tenants a voice to raise their complaints at the heart of government
  • Social housing reforms will transform the experiences of residents by tightening regulation and holding landlords to account
  • Measures will help ensure we meet target to half number of non-decent homes by 2030

The UK Government will “name and shame” failing social housing providers as part of major reforms to give residents a stronger voice and drive up standards.

Today’s move means social landlords providing sub-standard housing and services would be publicly called out on the government’s website and across social media channels.

Measures announced today also include a Resident Panel that will allow tenants who live in social housing to be heard directly by government. Around 250 social tenants from across England will be invited to share their experiences and help us ensure our reforms work to drive up standards.

As set out in the Social Housing White Paper, our reforms – due to be delivered through legislation – will transform the experiences of residents, with a major reform of the way in which social landlords are regulated and held to account for the homes and services they deliver.

The Westminster government has already set out a wide range of measures designed to drive up standards and fix a broken complaints system including by strengthening regulation of the sector, improving the Housing Ombudsman Service, and empowering residents to know and exercise their rights.

A package of measures announced today goes even further. It includes:

  • Publicising on social media where landlords have breached the Regulator’s consumer standards or where the Housing Ombudsman has made its most serious finding – severe maladministration – against them.
  • The launch of a Resident Panel, inviting residents to have their say on how to improve the quality of social housing. The Panel will allow residents to scrutinise and influence measures to strengthen the Decent Homes Standard, training and qualification for staff, a new Access to Information Scheme and other planned reforms.
  • Publishing draft clauses to legislation that will reform the regulation of social housing through tougher consumer powers, greater enforcement tools to tackle failing landlords and new responsibilities on social landlords.
  • A new factsheet explaining the role of the Regulator of Social Housing and Housing Ombudsman Service.
  • A single gov.uk page, setting out our progress on implementing the measures in the Social Housing White Paper and further measures being introduced to improve quality of social housing.

Minister for Social Housing Eddies Hughes MP said: “Everyone in this country deserves to live in a safe and decent home. It is unacceptable that anyone should have mould covering their walls, risk slipping on a wet floor or have water dripping from the ceiling.

“We have published draft legislation today to toughen up regulation of social housing landlords. This includes naming and shaming those landlords who fail to meet acceptable living standards and giving tenants a direct channel to raise their concerns with government.

“This package will help to deliver on our commitment in the Levelling Up White Paper to halve the number of non-decent rented homes by 2030.”

The UK Government’s ‘Make Things Right’ campaign helps residents raise complaints if they are unhappy with their landlord’s services and struggling to get problems resolved, with clear advice on how to progress issues to the Housing Ombudsman if necessary.

Adverts have run on digital and social media channels, as well as music streaming sites, to raise awareness of the complaints process and barriers to these being progressed.

Any social housing resident can submit an application to join the Panel, which will close on Friday 29 April.

Liz Truss updates Westminster on Ukraine situation

Foreign Secretary Liz Truss updated the House of Commons on the situation in Ukraine and on the NATO and G7 Leaders meetings in Brussels last week:

With permission, I want to update the House, on behalf of my Rt Hon Friend the Prime Minister, on the NATO and G7 Leaders meetings in Brussels last week.

Together with our allies, we agreed to keep the pressure up on Putin to end his appalling war in Ukraine: through tougher sanctions to debilitate the Russian economy; supplying weapons to Ukraine and boosting NATO’s Eastern Flank; providing humanitarian aid and dealing with the wider consequences of this crisis; and supporting Ukraine in any negotiations they undertake.

Strength is the only thing Putin understands.

Our sanctions are pushing back the Russian economy by years.

We owe it to the brave Ukrainians to keep up our tough approach to get peace. We owe it to ourselves to stand with them for the cause of freedom and democracy in Europe and across the world.

It is vital we step up this pressure.

We cannot wait for more appalling atrocities to be committed in Ukraine. We know that the impact of sanctions degrades over time.

That is why we need to act now.

Next week, NATO Foreign Ministers will meet to follow up on the statements of Leaders, and I will be pressing allies over the next week for all of us to do more.

On oil and gas, the UK has already committed to end imports of Russian oil by the end of this year.

We must agree a clear timetable with our partners across the G7 to end dependence on Russian oil and gas permanently.

On banks, we’ve already sanctioned 16 major Russian banks. We have hit Gazprombank and we have placed a clearing prohibition on Sberbank, Russia’s largest bank. We want to see others adopt these sanctions and go further.

On individuals, we’ve cracked down on oligarchs like Roman Abramovich. Last week we sanctioned the despicable Wagner Group of mercenaries.

On ports, Britain has banned entry to all of our ports by Russian vessels. I will be lobbying partners across the G7 to join us in stopping Russian ships.

We must maximise the flow of weapons that are being supplied to Ukraine under the UN Charter of self-defence.

The UK was the first European country to start sending lethal aid to Ukraine.

We are more than doubling our support with a further 6,000 missiles, including NLAWs and Javelin anti-tank weapons.

And we are now equipping our Ukrainian friends with anti-aircraft Starstreak missiles.

We are also strengthening NATO’s Eastern Flank, deploying troops to Bulgaria, and doubling the numbers in Poland and Estonia.

We are coordinating deliveries with our allies and we want others to join us in getting Ukraine what it needs.

The UK is providing £220 million in humanitarian support to help the people of Ukraine, from shelters to heaters to medicine.

Today we announced our partnership with Australia to fly out more relief, including blankets, cooking equipment and power generators.

And we are getting supplies directly into Ukraine’s encircled cities with £2 million of canned food, water and dried food.

As refugees come into countries like Poland, we are working with the UNHCR so they are informed about the UK’s Homes for Ukraine scheme.

This scheme has already got over 150,000 applications, thanks to the generosity of the British public.

We know Putin is not serious about talks. He is still wantonly bombing innocent citizens across Ukraine. And that is why we need to do more to ensure he loses and we force him to think again.

We must not just stop Putin in Ukraine, but we must also look to the long-term.

We need to ensure that any future talks don’t end up selling Ukraine out or repeating the mistakes of the past. We remember the uneasy settlement in 2014, which failed to give Ukraine lasting security. Putin just came back for more.

That is why we cannot allow him to win from this appalling aggression and why this Government is determined Putin’s regime should be held to account at the International Criminal Court.

We will work to restore Ukraine’s territorial integrity and sovereignty.

We have set up a negotiations unit to ensure the strongest possible support is available to the Ukrainians, alongside our international partners.

We have played a leading role alongside our G7 allies in driving the response to Putin’s war. And I want to ensure that unity continues.

Sanctions were put on by the G7 in unison and they shouldn’t be removed as long as Putin continues with his war and he still has troops in Ukraine.

That is not all. We need to ensure that Putin can never act in this aggressive way again.

Any long-term settlement needs to include a clear sanctions snapback which would be triggered automatically by any Russian aggression.

In the aftermath of Putin’s war, Ukraine will need our help to build back.

In these exceptional circumstances, we have a duty to step up with a new reconstruction plan for rebuilding Ukraine. And we will work with the international community to do this.

At this defining moment, the free world has shown a united response.

Putin is not making the progress he craves. And he is still not serious about talks.

President Zelenskyy and the Ukrainian people know that everybody in the United Kingdom stands firm with them.

We were the first European country to recognise Ukraine’s independence from the Soviet Union. Thirty years on, we are the first to strengthen their defences against Putin’s invasion, and lead the way in our support.

Over the next week, I will be working to drive forward progress in unison with our allies.

Together, we can secure a lasting peace, which restores Ukraine’s sovereignty. Together, we can ensure Putin fails and Ukraine prevails.

I commend this statement to the House.

A FAILURE OF LEADERSHIP: Shameless Johnson battles to save his political life following scathing report

PM Boris Johnson made a statement on the long-awaited Sue Gray report in the House of Commons yesterday:

Mr Speaker, with permission I would like to make a statement.

First I want to express my deepest gratitude to Sue Gray, and all the people who have contributed to this report, which I have placed in the Library of this House and the government has published in full today, for everyone to read.

I will address its findings in this statement – but firstly I want to say: sorry. Sorry for the things we simply did not get right and sorry for the way that this matter has been handled. It is no use saying that this or that was within the rules. It is no use saying that people were working hard.

This pandemic was hard for everyone. We asked people across this country to make the most extraordinary sacrifices, not to meet loved ones, not to visit relatives before they died, and I understand the anger that people feel.

But, Mr Speaker, it is not enough to say sorry. This is a moment when we must look at ourselves in the mirror and we must learn. And while the Metropolitan Police must yet complete their investigation – and that means there are no details of specific events in Sue Gray’s report – I, of course, accept Sue Gray’s general findings in full, and above all her recommendation that we must learn from these events and act now.

With respect to the events under police investigation, she says – and I quote – “No conclusions should be drawn, or inferences made from this other than it is now for the police to consider the relevant material in relation to those incidents.”

But more broadly she finds that – “There is significant learning to be drawn from these events which must be addressed immediately across Government. This does not need to wait for the police investigations to be concluded.”

That is why we are making changes now to the way Downing Street and the Cabinet Office run so that we can get on with the job, the job that I was elected to do and that this government was elected to do.

First, it is time to sort out what Sue Gray rightly calls the “fragmented and complicated” leadership structures of Downing Street which she says have not evolved sufficiently to meet the demands of the expansion of Number ten.

And we will do that, including by creating an Office of the Prime Minister, with a Permanent Secretary to lead Number ten. Second, Mr Speaker, it is clear from Sue Gray’s report that it is time not just to review the Civil Service and Special Adviser codes of conduct wherever necessary to ensure they take account of Sue Gray’s recommendations but also to make sure those codes are properly enforced.

And third, I will be saying more in the coming days about the steps we will take to improve the Number ten operation and the work of the Cabinet Office to strengthen Cabinet Government and to improve the vital connection between Number ten and parliament.

Mr Speaker, I get it and I will fix it. And I want to say to the people of this country. I know what the issue is, it is whether this government can be trusted to deliver and I say yes we can be trusted yes we can be trusted to deliver.

We said we would deliver Brexit and we did. We are setting up freeports across the whole United Kingdom, I’ve been to one of them today, which is creating tens of thousands of new jobs Mr Speaker.

We said we would get this country through Covid and we did, we delivered the fastest vaccine roll out in Europe and the fastest booster programme of any major economy so that we have been able to restore people’s freedoms faster than any comparable economy and at the same time as we have been cutting crime by fourteen per cent and building 40 new hospitals and rolling out gigabit broadband, and delivering on all the other promises of that 2019 agenda so that we have the fastest economic growth in the G7.

We have shown that we can do things people thought were impossible and that we can deliver for the British people.

The reason we are coming out of Covid so fast is at least partly because we doubled the speed of the booster rollout and I can tell the House and this country, that we are going to bring the same energy and commitment to getting on with the job to delivering for the British people and to our mission to unite and level up across the country.

And I commend this Statement to the House.

Opposition leader Keir Starmer’s response:

Thank you, Mr Speaker.

I would like to thank Sue Gray for the diligence and professionalism with which she has carried out her work.

It is no fault of hers that she only been able to provide an update. And not yet the full report.

The Prime Minister repeatedly told the House that all guidance were followed at all time.

We now know that 12 cases, 12 cases, have reached the threshold for criminal investigation – which I remind the House means that there is evidence of serious and flagrant breaches of lockdown, including:

The party on 20 May 2020, which we know the PM attended, and the party on the 13 November 2020 in the PM’s flat. There can be no doubt the Prime Minister is now under criminal investigation.

The PM must keep his promise to publish Sue Gray’s report in full when it is available, but it is already clear that the report discloses the most damning conclusion possible.

Over the last two years the British public have been asked to make the most heart wrenching sacrifices.

A terrible collective trauma. Endured by all, enjoyed by none.

Funerals have been missed. Dying relatives unvisited.

Every family has been marked by what we’ve been through.

And revelations about the Prime Minister’s behaviour have forced us all to relive and rethink those darkest moments.

Many have been overcome by rage, grief, and even guilt.

Guilt – that because they stuck to the law they did not see their parents one last time.

Guilt – that because they didn’t bend the rules their children went months without seeing friends.

Guilt – that because they did as they were asked they didn’t go and visit lonely relatives.

But people shouldn’t feel guilty. They should feel pride in themselves and in their country. Because by abiding by those rules. They have saved the lives of people they will probably never meet.

They have shown the deep public spirit. And the love and respect for others that has always characterised this nation at its best.

Our national story about Covid is one of a people that stood up when it was tested. But that will forever be tainted by the behaviour of this Conservative Prime Minister.

By routinely breaking the rules he set, the Prime Minister took us all for fools. He held people’s sacrifice in contempt. He showed himself unfit for office.

His desperate denials since he was exposed have only made matters worse.

First, the Prime Minister said there were no parties. Then he said he was sickened and furious about the parties.

Then it turned out he was there. Rather than come clean, every step of the way he has offended the public’s intelligence.

Finally, he’s fallen back on his usual excuse – it’s everybody’s fault but his. They go, he stays.

Even now, he is hiding behind a police investigation into criminality in his home, and in his office. He gleefully treats what should be a mark of shame as a welcome shield.

But, Prime Minister, the British public aren’t fools.

They never believed a word of it. They think the Prime Minister should do the decent thing and resign.

Of course, he won’t. Because he is a man without shame.

And just as he has done throughout his life. He is damaging everyone and everything around him along the way.

His colleagues have spent weeks defending the indefensible.

Touring the TV studios parroting his absurd denials. Degrading themselves and their offices.

Fraying the bond of trust between the Government and the public, eroding our democracy and the rule of law.

Margaret Thatcher once said: ‘The first duty of Government is to uphold the law. If it tries to bob and weave and duck around that duty when it is inconvenient, then so will the governed.’

To govern this country is an honour. Not a birth-right. It’s an act of service to the British people. Not the keys to a court to parade to your friends.

It requires honesty. Integrity. And moral authority.

I cannot tell you how many times people have said to me that this Prime Minister’s lack of integrity is somehow “priced in”.

That his behaviour and character don’t matter. I have never accepted that. And I never will accept that.

Whatever your politics. Whatever party you vote for. Honesty and decency matter. Our great democracy depends on it. And cherishing and nurturing British democracy is what it means to be patriotic.

There are members opposite who know that. And they know the Prime Minister is incapable of it.

The question they must ask themselves is what are they going to do about it?

They can go on degrading themselves. Eroding trust in politics. And insulting the sacrifice of the British public.

They can heap their reputations, the reputation of their party, and the reputation of this country, on the bonfire that is his leadership.

Or they can spare the country from a Prime Minister totally unworthy of his responsibilities.

It is their duty to do so.

They know better than anyone how unsuitable he is for high office.

Many of them knew in their hearts that we would inevitably come to this moment.

And they know that as night follows day, continuing his leadership will mean further misconduct, cover-up, and deceit.

It is only they who can end this farce. The eyes of the country are upon them. They will be judged on the decisions they take now.

SUE GRAY’S INTERIM REPORT IN FULL:

Investigation_into_alleged_gatherings_on_government_premises_during_Covid_restrictions_-_Update-2Download

Searches for ‘Boris Resign’ soar 458% after Sue Gray report is released

Analysis of Google search data reveals that online searches for ‘Boris Resign’ exploded 458% in the UK on the 31st of January, hours after Sue Gray’s report was published on the Downing Street parties, held whilst lockdown restrictions were in place. 

A new finding by online tax calculator Income Tax UK reveals that online searches for ‘Boris Resign’ skyrocketed to almost five times the average volume in a matter of hours, an unprecedented spike in people Googling for the Prime Minister to leave his position in No.10.  

The report, published on Monday 31st January, detailed the breaches of lockdown rules by members of the government including the Prime Minister, resulting in calls for Boris Johnson to step down.

A spokesperson for Income Tax UK commented on the findings: “The Sue Gray report finds that events held by senior members of the government ‘shouldn’t have been allowed to take place’, leading Brits to question the leadership of those running the country. 

“These findings reveal the bitter taste that the public hold towards the actions of the Prime Minister and his cabinet, with the report prompting the highest rise in searches calling for the Prime Minister to resign in the last year. It will be fascinating to see if these searches will translate to votes in future elections.”  

Commons Speaker hosts Holocaust Memorial Day ceremony

The Speaker urged people to “learn the lessons of the past” as he hosted a special commemoration for Holocaust Memorial Day in the House of Commons. 

The international date remembers the six million Jews murdered under Nazi persecution, and the victims of subsequent genocides in Cambodia, Rwanda, Bosnia and Darfur. 

‘One Day’ is the theme chosen by the Holocaust Memorial Trust – which focuses on a moment in time that changed forever the lives of those affected by genocide. 

Sir Lindsay Hoyle, who was joined by faith leaders, MPs and the parliamentary community to light candles and read personal accounts from victims of past atrocities, urged colleagues “to remember, to learn and to hope there may be One Day in the future with no genocide.”

“Holocaust Memorial Day prompts us to learn the lessons of the past and recognise that genocide does not just take place on its own – it’s a steady process which can begin if discrimination, racism and hatred are not checked and prevented,” he said. 

“As we have heard, so much can happen in one day. Lives can be changed; they can be ended, but they must never be forgotten.”

Commons Leader Jacob Rees-Mogg, former minister Dame Margaret Hodge and shadow foreign secretary David Lammy, Rabbi Debbie Young-Somers and Laura Marks, chair of the Holocaust Memorial Day Trust, were among those taking part in the ceremony in Portcullis House led by Speaker’s Chaplain Revd Tricia Hillas. 

The House of Commons was among iconic buildings and landmarks across the country to be lit up in purple last night to commemorate Holocaust Memorial Day. 

Illegal and harmful content could evade new online safety law, warns Westminster committee

A new Report warns that draft UK Government legislation on online harms would fail to prevent the sharing of some of the most “insidious” images of child abuse and violence against women and girls.

Scrutiny by the DCMS Committee of the Government’s Draft Online Safety Bill has found that in its current form, the legislation is neither clear nor robust enough to tackle certain types of illegal and harmful content on user-to-user and search services.

In the Report published today, MPs call on the Government to address types of content that are technically legal – including parts of child abuse sequences like “breadcrumbing” and types of online violence against and women and girls such as tech-enabled “nudifying” of women and deepfake pornography – by bringing them into scope either through primary legislation or as types of harmful content covered by the duties of care.

MPs reject a recommendation made by the Joint Committee to include in the Bill the establishment of a permanent Committee of both Houses on the grounds that such a development would duplicate the existing constitutional role of the DCMS Committee.

Chair of the DCMS Committee Julian Knight MP said: “In its current form what should be world-leading, landmark legislation instead represents a missed opportunity.

“The Online Safety Bill neither protects freedom of expression nor is it clear nor robust enough to tackle illegal and harmful online content.

“Urgency is required to ensure that some of the most pernicious forms of child sexual abuse do not evade detection because of a failure in the online safety law.

“These are matters of important public debate to which we will return as the Bill makes its way through Parliament.”

ONLINE-SAFETY-REPORTDownload

State pension ‘shameful shambles’

“Shameful shambles” of DWP’s long term underpayment of state pensioners with “little interest” in consequences

The Department for Work & Pensions (DWP) estimates it has underpaid 134,000 pensioners, mostly women, over £1 billion of their State Pension entitlement, with some of the errors dating as far back as 1985.

In January 2021, DWP started an official exercise to correct the errors, the ninth such exercise since 2018.  The errors, which mostly affect widows, divorcees and women who rely on their husband’s pension contributions for some of their pension entitlement, happened because of the Department’s use of outdated systems and heavily manual processing.  Small errors that were not recognised each time added up over years to significant sums of money.  

DWP will only contact pensioners when it finds through these exercises that they have been underpaid, and admits that many more are not receiving their due – these “risk missing out on significant sums”, with “little guidance for those currently claiming State Pension who are concerned that they have been underpaid” and people left “in the dark over their entitlement”.  

There is currently no formal plan for contacting the next of kin where a pensioner who was underpaid is now deceased. 

DWP is only paying those it has identified as having a legal entitlement to arrears, in some cases many years after the event, and has been inconsistent in paying interest. It has shown little interest in understanding the further knock-on consequences, including on social care provision, for those it underpaid.   

Fixing DWP’s mistakes itself comes at great cost to the taxpayer – expected to cost £24.3 million in staff costs alone by the end of 2023. Experienced, specialised staff have been moved away from business-as-usual and as a result DWP is already experiencing backlogs in processing new applications.

The risk remains that the errors that led to underpayments in the first place will be repeated in the correction exercise, if not also in new claims.  

Dame Meg Hillier MP, Chair of the Public Accounts Committee, said: “For decades DWP has relied on a State Pension payment system that is clunky and required staff to check many databases – and now some pensioners and the taxpayer are paying in spades.  

“Departments that make errors through maladministration have a duty to put those it wronged back in the position they should have been. In reality DWP can never make up what people have really lost, over decades, and in many cases it’s not even trying. An unknown number of pensioners died without ever getting their due and there is no current plan to pay back their estates. 

“DWP is now on its ninth go at fixing these mistakes since 2018, the specialised staff diverted to fix this mess costing tens of millions more to the taxpayer and predictable consequences of delays in new pension claims. And there is no assurance that the errors that led to these underpayments in the first place will not be repeated in the correction exercise.  

“This is a shameful shambles. The PAC expects DWP to set out the step changes it will make to ensure it is among the last.” 

Smart motorway rollout to be paused as Government responds to Transport Committee report

  • Rollout of new All Lane Running smart motorway schemes will be paused until five years of safety data available 
  • Current stretches of smart motorway to be further upgraded with best-in-class technology and resources 
  • £900 million commitment to ensure drivers feel safe and confident, including extra £390 million to install additional emergency areas

The rollout of new smart motorway schemes will be paused until a full five years’ worth of safety data is available, as the Department for Transport invests £900 million to improve safety on existing All Lane Running (ALR) motorways.

In line with the Transport Committee’s most recent recommendations, the rollout of new ALR smart motorways will be paused until a full five years’ worth of safety data becomes available for schemes introduced before 2020. After this point, the Government will assess the data and make an informed decision on next steps.

Although available data shows smart motorways are comparatively the safest roads in the country in terms of fatality rates, while their rollout is paused, the UK Government will go further by ensuring current smart motorways without a permanent hard shoulder are equipped with best-in-class technology and resources to make them as safe as possible.

This will include investing £390 million to install more than 150 additional Emergency Areas so drivers have more places to stop if they get into difficulty. This will represent around a 50% increase in places to stop by 2025, giving drivers added reassurance.

The Department for Transport has welcomed the Transport Committee’s report, which endorsed its focus on further upgrading the safety of existing ALR smart motorways rather than reinstating the hard shoulder.

As concluded by the Committee, evidence suggests hard shoulders do not always provide a safe place to stop, and by reducing motorway capacity, they could put more drivers and passengers at risk of death or serious injury if they were to divert onto less safe local roads.

Transport Secretary Grant Shapps said: “One of my first actions as Transport Secretary was to order a stocktake of smart motorways and since then, I have worked consistently to raise the bar on their safety. I am grateful to the Transport Committee and to all those who provided evidence for its work.

“While our initial data shows that smart motorways are among the safest roads in the UK, it’s crucial that we go further to ensure people feel safer using them.

“Pausing schemes yet to start construction and making multi-million-pound improvements to existing schemes will give drivers confidence and provide the data we need to inform our next steps. I want thank safety campaigners, including those who have lost loved ones, for rightly striving for higher standards on our roads. I share their concerns.”

National Highways CEO Nick Harris said: “We have listened to public concerns about smart motorways and we are fully committed to taking forward the additional measures the Transport Committee has recommended.

“While we pause those all lane running schemes yet to start construction we will complete the schemes currently in construction, we will make existing sections as safe as they can possibly be and we will step up our advice to drivers so they have all the information they need.

“We are doing this because safety is our absolute priority and we want drivers to not just be safer, but also to feel safe on our busiest roads.” 

Independent road safety campaigner, Meera Naran, whose 8-year-old son Dev, died in a motorway crash on the M6 in 2018, said: “Conventional and smart motorways both have their risks and benefits. I welcome this pause in the rollout of smart motorways which will give us all a positive opportunity to assess the future of our motorway network.

“I’m encouraged by the commitment of £900 million to improve the safety of our motorways, following my campaigning since Dev died. However, I’ll continue to both challenge and work alongside the Department for Transport to ensure even more is done, including calling for legislation to be looked at for Autonomous Emergency Braking and further support for on-going driver education.”

The Government’s response to the Transport Committee builds on the significant progress already made against the Department’s 18-point Action Plan to improve smart motorway safety, announced in March 2020, including adding emergency areas and upgrading cameras to detect Red X offences. 

The measures in the Stocktake and Transport Committee response represent over £900m of improvements in total, including £390m of new money for extra emergency areas, with the remainder of the funding delivering other measures such as Stopped Vehicle Detection and concrete central reservation barriers.

National Highways will also ‘ramp up’ communications so drivers have better information about how to drive on smart motorways. 

While the Department for Transport will be taking forward all the recommendations set out in the Committee’s recommendations, it does not agree with the view that smart motorways were rolled out prematurely or unsafely. All ALR smart motorway schemes are, and will continue to be, subject to high standards of design, risk assessment and construction, followed by detailed monitoring and evaluation once opened to traffic. 

While further data is being collected, National Highways will continue work to complete schemes that are currently in construction, which will all open with technology in place to detect stopped vehicles.

These schemes are all more than 50% completed and halting progress on them now would cause significant disruption for drivers. Design work will also continue on those schemes already being planned, so they are ready to be constructed depending on the outcome of the pause. No preparatory construction work will take place.

Also, in line with the Committee’s recommendations, National Highways will pause the conversion of Dynamic Hard Shoulder (DHS) motorways – where the hard shoulder is open at busy times – into All Lane Running motorways, while it investigates alternative ways of operating them to make things simpler for drivers. National Highways will also install technology to detect stopped vehicles on these sections.

Political parties unite over the pain of crabs and lobsters

One step closer to being included in UK law

It’s rare to hear about cross-party consensus in UK politics, but last week this happened in the House of Lords at Westminster and for a most unusual reason – crabs and lobsters!

The ten-legged crustaceans were debated late into the night, with Lords agreeing to support a government amendment declaring that animals like crabs, lobsters and prawns experience feelings such as pain and should be included in the Animal Welfare (Sentience) Bill.

The amendment was laid on behalf of the government by Conservative peer Lord Benyon, and sponsored by opposition Labour peer Baroness Hayman of Ullock and Liberal Democrat peer Baroness Bakewell of Hardington Mandeville. It is believed to be only the second time this has happened in recent history.

Following Brexit, the UK government launched an Action Plan for Animal Welfare, including the Animal Welfare (Sentience) Bill which is currently making its way through UK Parliament.

After the debate in the House of Lords it will now include decapod crustaceans (animals like crabs, lobsters and prawns) and cephalopod molluscs (animals like octopus and squid).

If passed into law their welfare would have to be considered in any future policy decision-making. It would also pave the way for their inclusion into other UK animal welfare legislation such as the Animal Welfare Act.

The UK will be joining countries who already have protections for these animals in law, including Norway, Austria, Switzerland, New Zealand and various Australian territories and cities in Germany, Netherlands and Italy.

The issue is particularly relevant for the UK, where approximately 420 million crabs, lobsters and langoustines are landed in UK ports by UK vessels each year.

On the 19th November 2021 an independent report was released that reviewed the evidence for sentience in decapod crustaceans and cephalopod molluscs. The report was commissioned by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra).

The review, led by Dr Jonathan Birch of the London School of Economics (LSE), analysed over 300 scientific studies over several months. The team concluded that there is strong scientific evidence of sentience in decapod crustaceans and cephalopod molluscs, and recommends that they should be included in animal protection legislation.

The government amendment that was supported by the House of Lords, was drafted directly in response to the findings and recommendations of this report.

Crustacean Compassion, the leading group campaigning for the humane treatment of animals like crabs and lobsters, has welcomed the news. They have shown this issue to be of public concern and to have significant expert support.

Their petition calling for decapod crustaceans to be protected in law has been signed by almost 60,000 people to date, and their open letter was signed by scientists, veterinary organisations and public figures, including the British Veterinary Association, RSCPA and wildlife broadcaster Michaela Strachan.

Claire Howard of Crustacean Compassion said: “There is no longer debate about whether or not animals like crabs, lobsters and prawns can feel pain. The scientific review published by London School of Economics has shown the evidence is clear and compelling.

“In the UK this has now led to government recognition of their sentience for the first time. It would be great to see this inspire legal protection for these animals in countries around the world.”

Juliette Booker of Crustacean Compassion said: “It is fantastic to see this cross-party support resulting in crabs, lobsters and prawns being included in the UK Sentience Bill.

“The peers have reviewed the extensive scientific evidence in the LSE report and taken the findings seriously. Knowing that these animals can feel pain, we now need to ensure that inhumane practices such as boiling them alive are stopped.”

Prime Minister pays tribute to Sir David Amess MP

PM Boris Johnson paid tribute to Sir David Amess MP in the House of Commons yesterday:

The passing of 72 hours has done little to numb the shock and sadness we all felt when we heard of the tragic and senseless death of Sir David Amess. This House has lost a steadfast servant, we have lost a dear friend and colleague and Julia and her children have lost a loving husband and devoted father.

Nothing I or anyone else can say will lessen the pain, the grief, the anger they must feel at this darkest of times. We hold them in our hearts today, we mourn with them and we grieve alongside them.

Sir David was taken from us in a contemptible act of violence, striking at the core of what it is to be a Member of this House and violating the sanctity both of the church in which he was killed and the constituency surgery that is so essential to our representative democracy.

But we will not allow the manner of Sir David’s death to in any way detract from his accomplishments as a politician or as a human being. Because Sir David was a patriot who believed passionately in this country, in its people, in its future.

He was also one of the nicest, kindest, and most gentle individuals ever to grace these benches.

A man who used his decades of experience to offer friendship and support to new members of all parties. Whose views often confounded expectation and defied easy stereotype. And who believed not just in pointing out what was wrong with society but in getting on and doing something about it.

It was that determination to make this country a better place that inspired his outstanding record on behalf of the vulnerable and the voiceless. The master of the private members bill and 10-minute rule bill he passed legislation on subjects as diverse as animal welfare, fuel poverty and the registration of driving instructors.

He was a prodigious campaigner for children with learning disabilities and for women with endometriosis, a condition in which he became an expert after meeting a woman at one of the constituency surgeries.

Behind the famous and irresistible beam lay a seasoned campaigner of verve and grit whether he was demanding freedom for the people of Iran or courting votes in the Westminster Dog of the Year contest whether he was battling for Brexit or fighting his way to the front of the Parliamentary Pancake Race.

And as every member of this House will know, and you just confirmed Mr Speaker, he never once witnessed any achievement by any resident of Southend that could not, somehow, be cited in his bid to secure city status for that distinguished town.

Highlights of that bulging folder included a world record for playing most triangles being played at once; a group of stilt-walkers travelling non-stop from the Essex coast to Downing Street; and a visiting foreign dignitary allegedly flouting protocol by saying he liked Southend more than Cleethorpes.

A compelling case, Mr Speaker, and as it is only a short time since Sir David last put that case to me in this chamber, I am happy to announce that Her Majesty has agreed that Southend will be accorded the city status it so clearly deserves. That Sir David spent almost 40 years in this House but not one day in ministerial office tells everything about where his priorities lay.

He was not a man in awe of this chamber, nor a man who sought patronage or advancement. He simply wanted to serve the people of Essex, first in Basildon, then in Southend. And it was in the act of serving his constituents that he was so cruelly killed.

In his recent memoir, Sir David called surgeries a part of “the great British tradition of the people openly meeting their elected politicians”. Even after the murder of Jo Cox and the savage attacks on Stephen Timms and Nigel Jones he refused to accept that he should be in any way deterred from speaking face to face with his constituents.

And so when he died he was doing what he firmly believed was the most important part of any MP’s job: offering help to those in need. In the awful moments before we knew the full horror of the tragedy a member of Sir David’s constituency association, her voice breaking with emotion, told an interviewer that “we need him, the country needs him”. And we do.

This country needs people like Sir David, this House needs people like Sir David, our politics needs people like Sir David. Dedicated, passionate, firm in his beliefs but never anything less than respectful for those who thought differently.

Those are the values he brought to a lifetime of public service.There can be few among us more justified in their faith in the resurrection and the life to come. And while his death leaves a vacuum that will not and can never be filled, we will cherish his memory we will celebrate his legacy and we will never allow those who commit acts of evil to triumph over the democracy and the Parliament that Sir David Amess loved so much.