Author Archives: HM Government

It will take place on Saturday 7 October 2017, from 9am to 3pm.

No-one ever knows where or when the next flood will occur, but with 1 in 6 properties at risk across the UK, the public are being urged to check if their property is one of them, and do everything they can to prepare if it is. This day aims to give the people of Kent the opportunity to find ways of reducing the impact of flooding both to their homes and their communities.

Local residents will be able to see a range of practical events. These will include demonstrations of the Environment Agency’s demountable defences and building sand bag walls. There will also be lively talks, workshops and an exhibition area where practitioners, including Kent Emergency Planners, Kent Police, Kent Fire and Rescue and many more, will be on hand to give expert advice. The day will take place at:

Steve Scully, Senior Resilience Officer with the Kent Resilience Team, said:

This event brings together the network of support organisations that exist to warn and inform people but that also provide training and infrastructure to help build robust local community plans that we action if and when it floods.

Jenny Newham, Environment Agency Engagement Officer added:

This event has been designed around feedback from our volunteer community flood wardens across Kent and aims to inform and enthuse individuals and community groups about the local roles they can undertake to help be prepared.

For more information or to register for this event, please e-mail krf.events@kent.fire-uk.org or via jenny.newham@environment-agency.gov.uk.

For all media enquiries, please call 0800 141 2743.

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The UK Government has offered to contribute military assets to EU operations, cooperate on sanctions and agree joint positions on foreign policy as part of a deep security partnership with the EU after Brexit.

In a renewed demonstration of the UK’s commitment to European security, the latest future partnership paper signals the Government’s willingness to partner with the EU in the face of ever-growing global threats.

It makes clear the UK will seek to use our assets, capabilities and influence to combat the shared challenges facing the continent —- including illegal migration, terrorism, cyber and state-based threats and amounts to a security partnership ‘that is deeper than any other third country and that reflects our shared interest’.

There is a significant amount of collaboration between the UK and EU on defence, security and development.

The paper lays out how Britain will want to build a new partnership with the EU that goes beyond existing third country arrangements, and reflects our shared interests and values of upholding democracy and protecting peace across Europe and the world.

Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union David Davis said:

After we leave the European Union we will continue to face shared threats to our security, our shared values and our way of life. It’s in our mutual interest to work closely with the EU and its member states to challenge terrorism and extremism, illegal migration, cyber-crime, and conventional state-based military aggression.

Today’s paper highlights Britain’s world class diplomacy and defence capabilities, our leading contribution to international development, and our desire to continue to use these as part of a deep and special partnership with the EU.

Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson said:

As we leave the EU, the UK’s commitment to European security is undiminished. We will pursue a global foreign policy, and continue to work in partnership with our neighbours to promote peace, democracy and security in our continent and across the world.

In recent years, the European Union has helped achieve crucial foreign policy goals – from bringing Iran to the negotiating table, to uniting in response to Russian aggression in Ukraine. We want this EU role to continue after we leave.

This is why, in addition to stronger relations with EU member states, we also envisage a strong UK-EU partnership on foreign and defence policy following our departure. This will allow us to continue our work in tackling the shared challenges we face worldwide.

Defence Secretary Sir Michael Fallon said:

At a time of increased threats and international instability the UK remains unwavering in its commitment to uphold European security. With the largest defence budget in Europe, the largest Navy British troops and planes deployed across land, air and sea in Europe, our role in the continent’s defence has never been more vital.

As we leave the EU, the UK and our European allies will ensure a close partnership that meets these shared challenges head-on.

The paper highlights the UK’s successful military cooperation with the EU on tackling piracy off the Horn of Africa, to joint defence projects with the EU — including the Eurofighter Typhoon aircraft.

The UK has the largest defence budget in Europe, and is the only European country that meets both the NATO target of spending 2 per cent of GDP on defence, with 20 per cent of this on equipment, and the UN target of spending 0.7 per cent of gross national income (GNI) on international development.

The UK has also committed to invest at least 50 per cent of development spend in fragile states and regions. The UK and France are the two European permanent members of the UN Security Council and the only European countries with an independent nuclear deterrent, while UK proscriptions and asset freezes are the basis of many of the EU sanctions on terrorist organisations.

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We are delighted to announce that Professor Lynda Warren, former Deputy Chair of the Committee on Radioactive Waste Management (CoRWM), was awarded an OBE in the Queen’s Birthday Honours in June 2017 for services to environmental protection in the UK and abroad.

Lynda is Emeritus Professor of Environmental Law at Aberystwyth University and Honorary Professor at Bangor and Birmingham Universities. She had been a member of CoRWM since it was established in 2003, and was latterly Deputy Chair until she left in November 2016.

Professor Warren said:

I am, of course, extremely pleased to have been given this award especially because it has been made in recognition of my work on radioactive waste, an area of environmental management that does not always receive the attention it deserves.

Lynda has over 25 years’ experience of radioactive waste management policy. Before she joined CoRWM she was a member of the Radioactive Waste Management Advisory Committee, chairing its working group on Dounreay. She has been a member of the Royal Commission on Environmental Pollution; the Board of Natural Resources Wales; Defra’s Science Advisory Council and the Board of British Geological Survey. She is an associate of Integrated Decision Making Ltd, a consultancy engaged in environmental policy advisory work, mainly in the nuclear sector.

Professor Laurence Williams, CoRWM Chair, said:

I am delighted that Lynda has been awarded an OBE. Her contribution to environmental protection in general and to the work of CoRWM in particular has been outstanding. It is fitting that Lynda’s dedication to finding a solution to the management of UK’s radioactive waste has been rewarded.

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A community drop-in is being held in Marston Moretaine for the public to find out about the Environment Agency’s role in the energy from waste (EfW) incinerator facility proposed at Rookery Pit, Stewartby.

The Environment Agency will be asking people for comments on the applications for an environmental permit it has received from Covanta Energy Limited.

The event is being held at Forest of Marston Vale Centre, Station Road, Marston Moretaine, Bedford, MK43 0PR on Wednesday 20 September, 1:00pm – 7:00pm.

The Environment Agency’s role is to make sure that energy from waste facilities are designed, built and run to meet legal environmental standards ( the Industrial Emissions Directive) and to meet the conditions of their environmental permit (the Environmental Permitting Regulations 2016).

If a permit were to be issued the Agency would be the regulator for on-going compliance monitoring of the incinerator.

The Environment Agency will only issue a permit if it is satisfied that the plant will be designed, built, operated and maintained in such a way that the requirements of the relevant EU Directives are met and that human health and the environment are protected. This will be decided following consultation with the relevant Local Authorities and their Health Departments, the Food Standards Agency, Public Health England, the Health and Safety Executive and other identified statutory consultees.

The public consultation period will run from 11 September to 23 October 2017.

The start of the consultation period has also been advertised on the Environment Agency website on gov.uk.

On-line option

People unable to attend the drop-in or wanting to provide formal comments to be considered during the determination by the Environment Agency, should send them to psc@environment-agency.gov.uk or write to: Environment Agency, Permitting Support Centre, Land Team, Quadrant 2, 99 Parkway Avenue, Sheffield, S9 4WF. Please quote permit application number EPR/WP3234DY/A001.

To provide comments online and to view the documents that form part of this consultation, follow this link

Interested parties can also make an appointment to view a copy of the draft permit and draft decision document at the local Environment Agency office, located at: Bromholme Lane, Brampton, Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire, PE28 4NE.

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