Andy’s time as a reservist has been in addition to a full-time career, beginning as an electronics engineering apprentice before his time in Bosnia prompted the move to the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (Dstl). In 16 years at Dstl, Andy has worked in a number of areas, beginning with the replacement of the ‘Wheelbarrow’ – a bomb disposal remote control vehicle (RCV), then focusing on electronic countermeasures and IEDs and, most recently, undertaking a Masters in International Security and Strategy while at the Royal College of Defence Studies, with a focus on artificial intelligence.

Working for a defence executive agency can have natural parallels with reservist duties and Dstl recognises the value of reservists, providing 15 days’ special paid leave for annual training commitments. Andy said:

Dstl’s strength lies in its people and their individual knowledge, skills and experience. As the UK’s leading government agency in applying science and technology to the defence and security of the UK, reservists are able to leverage their military experience to the benefit of Dstl. Quid pro quo, the Regular Armed Forces benefit from Dstl reservists, given their specific defence-related roles.

He also conveyed how operational service, both as reservists and as civil servants, highlights what a difference Dstl staff can make on the ground. Equally, as the first reserve officer to command a troop on live bomb disposal tasks, Andy brought back real insight to Dstl for what is needed on the front line in Bosnia, adding:

When I was deployed as a bomb disposal officer, I wasn’t dealing with IEDs (like those deployed in Iraq and Afghanistan). My team and I were dealing with air dropped weapons (large unexploded bombs), unexploded mortars, booby-trapped grenades, rockets that had malfunctioned and thousands of mines, both anti-vehicular and anti-personnel left over from the War. Our biggest threat came from booby-trapped mines.

As a reservist, Andy received the same training as his regular counterparts and when commanding troops the same high standards are necessary for safety and mutual trust:

Needless to say the sense of ‘belonging’ and team work in the Army is very strong, and arguably more so within explosive ordnance disposal.

He is still proudly representing the Army Reserve Force and he recently found himself at a 10 Downing Street breakfast reception with the Secretary of State for Defence, Gavin Williamson, to mark Reserves Day. After an impressive 36 years as a reservist, Andy takes up a new role next year as Deputy Director of Land Warfare Centre in Warminster.

Please find below the Highways England statement in response to the tragic bridge collapse in Genoa, Italy.

Highways England Chief Highways Engineer Mike Wilson said:

Our deepest sympathies are with everyone involved in the tragic bridge collapse in Genoa, Italy.

We can reassure drivers that safety is and always will be our top priority.

We have detailed design standards and quality control processes to ensure bridges are designed and constructed to provide safe and comfortable journeys for road users. This is supported by a thorough and regular regime for inspecting all structures, including bridges, on England’s motorways and major “A” roads and taking any necessary action to help ensure they stay safe.

A very small proportion of our structures are suspension or cable stayed bridges but none of them are of similar construction to the one in Genoa.

We’re committed to continually improving our network to make every journey the safest it can be. So when the causes of the Genoa bridge collapse have been investigated and reported, we will carefully assess any lessons to be learnt and will bring in any required changes to standards and processes.

Background

• there are more than 21,000 structures on England’s network of motorways and major “A” roads, none of which are of similar design to the one in Italy
• Highways England has a rigorous inspection regime for all structures, which takes into account design, age and likely maintenance needs
• general inspections are undertaken every two years with more detailed principal inspections typically every six years which involve close inspection of all parts of a structure

General enquiries

Members of the public should contact the Highways England customer contact centre on 0300 123 5000.

Media enquiries

Journalists should contact the Highways England press office on 0844 693 1448 and use the menu to speak to the most appropriate press officer.

Insider fraud is committed by someone involved within your charity, whether a trustee, an employee or volunteer. The National Fraud Intelligence Bureau (NFIB) has released a national alert highlighting the insider threat from fraudsters and cyber criminals.

Their alert identifies that over 50% of organisations have suffered an insider threat attack in the previous year and that 90% of businesses feel vulnerable to a cyber-attack from within their own organisation. Charities are as vulnerable to insider threats as the private or public sector.

NFIB highlight that insider fraud poses a greater threat than external fraud due to differing access levels to proprietary data and knowledge of an organisation’s inner workings.

NFIB warn that insiders with access to confidential data can utilise basic operating system functions to steal data from organisational systems. Incidents sometimes go undetected due to lack of proper auditing or data control measures.

Charity Commission research about insider fraud found these crimes were enabled because of:

• poor challenge and oversight
• no internal controls or, where controls did exist, not applying them consistently
• too much trust and responsibility placed in one person

You can read our guidance to help you protect your charity from fraud. This includes insider fraud prevention advice and information about cyber-crime.

Protection and prevention advice

• when stored electronically, access to sensitive files should be restricted to relevant staff only. You should also consider encrypting the documents

• monitor your employees for abuse of IT systems. Minor misdemeanours have the potential to escalate to serious frauds if they go undetected

• have clear policies and procedures in place for dealing with fraud and ensure that that all of your staff are familiar with them. Make it clear that any criminal breaches of your policies will be reported to the police and other relevant authorities

If your charity has fallen victim to insider fraud, or any other type of fraud, you should report it to Action Fraud by calling 0300 123 2040, or visiting the Action Fraud website.

Charities affected by fraud should also report it to the Charity Commission as a serious incident, using the dedicated email address rsi@charitycommission.gsi.gov.uk

Serious incident reporting helps the Commission to assess the volume and impact of incidents within charities, and to understand the risks facing the sector as a whole. Where appropriate, the Charity Commission can also provide timely advice and guidance.

Notes

The Charity Commission, the independent regulator of charities in England and Wales, is issuing this alert to charities as regulatory advice under section 15(2) of the Charities Act 2011.

Joel Bamford and Colin Raftery have been appointed to the roles as part of the Competition and Markets Authority’s (CMA) preparation for the UK exiting the EU, when it is expected there will be a significant increase in the number and complexity of the merger inquiries it will conduct.

As well as strengthening its senior management team, the CMA will also be recruiting a number of extra personnel to work on mergers cases.

The appointments of Joel and Colin, both previously directors of mergers at the CMA, follow an open recruitment process that attracted applications from a strong field of candidates.

Together with Andrea Gomes da Silva, Executive Director for Markets and Mergers, Joel and Colin will take decisions in the more complex Phase 1 merger cases. In addition, they will oversee the merger group’s work across both the phase 1 and 2 portfolios, leading the CMA’s multi-disciplinary teams investigating mergers across a wide range of sectors.

They take up their appointments on 1 September 2018 and will report to Andrea Gomes da Silva.

Notes to editors

1. Joel Bamford joined the CMA in 2016, and prior to that was at the New Zealand Commerce Commission where he had led several high profile investigations as a Senior Economist and then managed the Commission’s advocacy, policy and international functions. Joel previously served as Economic Adviser to both the UK Office of Fair Trading and the UK Department for Work and Pensions.

2. Colin Raftery also joined the CMA in 2016, and prior to that was a Senior Associate at Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer (London), where he advised a wide range of clients on all aspects of UK and EU competition law. Before that, he was an Associate at Cleary Gottlieb Steen and Hamilton (Brussels and Washington DC), advising on EU competition law.