Author Archives: HM Government

Trevor Woolley

Trevor Woolley spent most of his career in the Ministry of Defence, including as Director General Finance from 2003 to 2009, and also served in the Cabinet Office. Since retiring, he has been a non-executive director of the Oil and Pipelines Agency, a lay member of Hounslow Clinical Commissioning Group, and, since 2014, a member of the Advisory Council for National Records and Archives (deputy chairman since earlier this year). A keen cricketer and historian, in 2015 he published ‘Unnatural Selection – 50 Years of England Test Teams’.

Hillary Bauer OBE

Hillary Bauer OBE is an adviser on culture and heritage and was formerly Head of the International and Cultural Property Unit at the then DCMS, with considerable experience of handling Freedom of Information requests. She is currently a Trustee of the Towner Gallery Eastbourne and of the Ben Uri Museum and Gallery in London. She is also a member of the Board of Keep Britain Tidy.

Lesley Ferguson

Lesley Ferguson is Head of Archives and Engagement in Historic Environment Scotland and was previously Head of Collections in the Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Scotland. She has a range of experience in the heritage sector managing archives and collections, including in information management, the development of public access, and undertaking and facilitating research.

Michael Smyth CBE

Michael Smyth CBE is a member of the Legal Services Board and of the Fundraising Regulator. He is a Visiting Professor at Queen Mary University of London and is Queen’s Counsel honoris causa. He is former head of the government practice at Clifford Chance.

Sir John Ramsden

In 1975, after three years in finance, John Ramsden joined the FCO. He had postings to West Africa, Vietnam, Berlin, Geneva and the FCO in London, specialising in Europe and the EU. He was HM Ambassador to Croatia from 2004-08. On retirement, John joined the Ambassador Partnership LLP (2009-15). He has various pro-bono roles. He has been a member of the Advisory Council since 2015.

ACNRA Members are not remunerated.

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Britain’s famous Red Duster will fly proudly in new ports across the globe as part of our new trade drive after our exit from the EU.

The flag of the UK’s Merchant Navy, more properly known as the Red Ensign, is one of the most admired and well known emblems on the high seas with every vessel sporting it under the protection of the Royal Navy.

And now Shipping Minister John Hayes wants to increase the amount of trade carried under the Duster to showcase Britain’s trading and maritime might around the world.

The government is working to double the size of the UK Ship Register from 16 to 30 million gross tonnage after we leave and build a new partnership with the EU – propelling the UK from 15th place into the top 10 global maritime nations. This will be good for the UK, helping boost trade and exports, create jobs and ultimately boost the economy across the UK.

Maritime Minister John Hayes will use next week’s London International Shipping Week to start the drive for new business, selling the main benefits of flying the British flag including:

• international tax breaks for vessels flying the Duster
• British consular support for ships in foreign docks
• the protection of the Royal Navy

Shipping Week is expected to feature ministers from up to 50 nations around the world and up to 15,000 high level shipping delegates.

Maritime Minister John Hayes said:

In Britain’s post Brexit future we will grow the Red Duster, forging new global relationships.

Our ship register has a special significance and our flag is of distinct quality.

Unfurling the Red Duster shows Britain’s maritime leadership to the world. Once again Britannia rules the waves and the UK will be a dominant maritime force.

The UK Ship Register team has taken great strides to ensure the Red Ensign is more commercially attractive to a 21st century shipping community. For instance, the register’s customer account managers are available around the clock to registered vessels, meaning doing business has never been easier.

The register shows the size of our fleet, measured by the number of vessels and by gross tonnage. It grew by 11.5% between 2015 and 2017.

New-build vessels registered from companies such as Atlantic Container Lines, Stena and Stolt Tankers helped increase the UK’s gross tonnage from 14,470,895 to 16,067,921 over the last 2 years.

Overseen by the Maritime and Coastguard Agency, the ship register has a reputation for maintaining the highest international standards ever since it was established by an act of King George III in 1785.

On top of the prestige of donning the world’s most recognisable maritime flag, vessels carrying the Red Duster will benefit from British consular support, a world class tonnage tax regime and low registration, survey and certification costs with no annual renewal fees.

The news comes as the UK showcases the best of its maritime industry at London International Shipping Week 2017, which runs from September 11 to 15 2017.

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• Competition drives down the cost for consumers – new offshore wind projects will be delivered as low as £58/MWh from 2022-23
• Further boost to the UK’s low-carbon supply chain, as part of the government’s ambitious Industrial Strategy and upcoming Clean Growth Plan

Eleven new energy projects worth up to £176m per year have been successful in the latest competitive auction for renewable technologies, the government has announced today (Monday 11 September).

The projects, which are set to generate over 3GW of electricity, enough to power 3.6 million homes, demonstrate that the UK continues to be an attractive place to invest in clean energy.

The government is committed to investing in clean technology and driving economic growth as set out in our ambitious Industrial Strategy and upcoming Clean Growth Plan.

The competitive approach is continuing to drive cost reductions in the renewable energy industry – the cost of new offshore wind projects starting to generate electricity from 2022-23 are now 50% lower than the first auction held in 2015 (1). The other successful technologies, Advanced Conversion Technologies and Dedicated Biomass with Combined Heat and Power, also achieved significant savings.

Competition has also driven down the costs for consumers. The capacity delivered in this auction cost up to £528m per year less than it would have in the absence of competition.

Projects are to be delivered across Great Britain from Wales, to the Scottish Highlands and the West Midlands from 2021.

Minister for Energy and Industry, Richard Harrington, said:

We’ve placed clean growth at the heart of the Industrial Strategy to unlock opportunities across the country, while cutting carbon emissions.

The offshore wind sector alone will invest £17.5bn in the UK up to 2021 and thousands of new jobs in British businesses will be created by the projects announced today. This government will continue to seize these opportunities as the world moves towards a low carbon future, and will set out ambitious proposals in the upcoming Clean Growth Plan.

This investment will help the UK meet its climate targets while supporting jobs in Britain’s growing renewable industry. The UK has the largest offshore wind capacity in the world and low carbon businesses have a combined turnover of £43 billion, employing 234,000 people.

Notes to Editors

The Contract for Difference auction results can be found here.

Contracts for Difference, which provide long-term certainty for investors, are designed to drive investment in a new generation of clean, secure electricity supplies. This is the second round of Contracts for Difference auctions, with the first held in 2015. Successful projects receive 15 year contracts.

(1) The cost of offshore wind projects are now 50% lower than the first auction held in 2015 when comparing the lowest clearing price for successful offshore wind projects commissioning in 2018/19 and the lowest clearing price for offshore wind projects commissioning in 2022/23.

Total budget impact for contracts allocated in the second CFD auction round is forecast by National Grid at up to £176.2m/year (in 2012 prices). However, actual annual spend will depend on how wholesale prices and project-specific operational factors change over time.

The Low Carbon Contracts Company (LCCC) now has 10 working days in which to make an offer to successful developers. Developers then have 10 working days after the offer is made to return signed contracts.

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An historic signing ceremony took place today (Monday, September 11) to ratify the development of a compound semiconductor industry cluster in South-East Wales.

The signing followed an agreement in May by the Cardiff Capital Region (CCR) Regional Cabinet to contribute £37.9 million from the CCR City Deal’s Wider Investment Fund towards the establishment of a major, cutting edge facility, as an anchor in the region for high end production of compound semiconductors.

The aim being to support the development of a compound Semiconductor Industrial cluster in the region, with the potential to:

• lever £375m of private sector investment,
• create up to 2,000 high skilled jobs,
• return the investment for use on other regional schemes, and
• create hundreds more jobs in the wider supply chain cluster

It is the first such investment since the £1.2 billion CCR City Deal programme was formally signed by the leaders of the ten local authorities in the region on March 1.

The facility at Newport will be owned by the 10 Councils in the Regional Cabinet under the special purpose vehicle ‘CSC Foundry Limited’ / ‘LDC Ffowndri’ and the space leased to IQE plc for compound semiconductor manufacturing and applications development, helping the establishment of the world’s first Compound Semiconductor Cluster, CS connected, in the region.

The project is not a grant or a loan – it is a commercial investment with ownership of the foundry shared between the 10 Councils. The proposal seeks to return the original investment plus interest over the life of the project.

The project was formally confirmed in a signing ceremony today at IQE’s headquarters in Cardiff by Secretary of State for Wales, The Right Hon. Alun Cairns MP, Welsh Economy and Infrastructure Secretary Ken Skates, CSC Foundry directors Councillors Bob Greenland (Monmouthshire) and Andrew Barry (Merthyr), and IQE chief executive Dr. Drew Nelson.

The CCR City Deal seeks to position the region as the global leader in compound semiconductor-enabled applications, which was initiated by a £12 million investment from the Welsh Government.

In 2016, Innovate UK – the UK Government’s innovation agency – announced a £50million investment to establish a new Compound Semiconductor Applications Catapult in South-East Wales. This new Catapult will build on existing investment by Cardiff University, IQE, and Welsh Government.

Councillor Peter Fox, Leader of Monmouthshire County Council, and Deputy Chair of the CCR City Deal Regional Cabinet, said:

The objective of this commitment is to create a complete compound semiconductor eco-system in South Wales to take advantage of the growing prominence of compound semiconductor technologies.

The opportunity this investment creates, to help the establishment of the world’s first compound semiconductor cluster in South East Wales, should not be underestimated

It has the potential to place our region at the heart of this cutting edge sector and will require the development and integration of a compound semiconductor supply chain in South Wales, with the economic and social benefits that will bring.

Secretary of State for Wales Alun Cairns said:

Compound semiconductors are at the heart of many devices we use today, from smart phones to tablets and satellite communication systems. It is an area of UK strength and today’s confirmation of the development of a cluster of excellence in Wales reinforces our own strong position in the growth of this important and growing technology.

Of course, government does not create innovation, but it can be a catalyst to getting the scientists and engineers, the designers and the entrepreneurs together to make it happen.

This collaboration is important because innovation is a shared endeavour and I look forward to seeing the cluster take shape and create a lasting engineering and manufacturing legacy in Wales.

Economy Secretary Ken Skates said:

It is hugely encouraging that Welsh Government’s initial £12m investment in developing the cluster back in 2015 has been the catalyst for today’s announcement that IQE plans to expand into the City Deal’s new facilities. Not only is it extremely exciting news for the Welsh economy, securing additional jobs and investment, but it further cements Wales as a world leader in this state of the art technology.

With the world’s first compound semiconductor cluster located here in South East Wales, we are punching well above our weight in developing technology which not only plays an increasingly vital role in the way we live our lives today but will drive innovation which will shape the world we live in tomorrow.

Dr Drew Nelson, Chief Executive of IQE plc said:

Compound semiconductors are rapidly defining 21 century technologies and Wales is uniquely positioned to be centre stage of this global, high-tech industry sector.

This dedicated compound semiconductor facility between Cardiff and Newport will act as a key component of the burgeoning cluster that is already cementing Wales reputation for for technology leadership.

The initiative is a shining example of what can be achieved through collaboration. The Welsh and UK governments, along with the ten councils that form the Cardiff Capital Region, have worked closely with academic institutes and industry to build an innovation infrastructure that will support and nurture the region as a true global player in new and emerging technologies.

The facility will become the base for a number of compound semiconductor related activities, including IQE, where we expect to rapidly expand our production capacity to meet increasing demand for our technology.

Notes to editors:

• The Compound Semiconductor Cluster builds on Wales’ recognised company strengths to create critical mass and commercial value in the supply chain by bringing together next-generation semiconductor materials and end-user applications such as 5G smart phones, the Internet of Things, tele-health and autonomous vehicles
• Compound semiconductors are more complex than silicon technology and offer lower power consumption, higher operating speeds and temperatures, light-emitting and detecting properties

• Four translational infrastructure pillars are already operational and bridge the so-called “valley of death”, pulling through early stage academic research into commercial activity. They include:

  1. Institute for Compound Semiconductor Technology, at Cardiff University, part-funded by Welsh Government.
  2. Compound Semiconductor Centre – a joint venture between IQE plc and Cardiff University
  3. Compound Semiconductor Applications Catapult, funded by InnovateUK
  4. Future Compound Semiconductor Manufacturing Hub at Cardiff University, funded by EPSRC
  5. The Cardiff City Deal is a £1.2 billion deal to unlock significant economic growth across the Cardiff Capital Region (CCR)
  6. The specific aims of the CCR City Deal can be summarised to: improve productivity; tackle worklessness; build on foundations of innovation; invest in physical and digital infrastructure; provide support for business; and ensure that any economic benefits are felt across the region

• The Shadow Regional Cabinet comprising the leaders of the 10 local authorities in south east Wales was set up in 2016 to provide the leadership, vision and strategic direction for the Cardiff Capital Region; help shape and manage the City Deal programme and structure; integrate and align the City Deal agenda with the Metro; prioritise projects which demonstrate the potential to achieve real economic improvements across the region; establish a secure platform for development encouraging alignment of relevant functions and activities and strategic application of funds as part of a fully integrated City Region approach; engage with wider stakeholders to encourage and support a collaborative approach to make the Cardiff Capital Region a success.

• The ten local authorities are: Blaenau Gwent, Bridgend, Caerphilly, Cardiff, Merthyr Tydfil, Monmouthshire, Newport, Rhondda Cynon Taf, Torfaen, The Vale of Glamorgan.

• The City Deal includes funding of £734m for the South Wales Metro, of which over £500 million is provided by the Welsh Government and £125m from the UK Government.

• The CCR Deal was formally signed on March 1, 2017, and the Regional Cabinet came out of shadow, and the programme entered a transition phase

• The Cardiff Capital Region Transition Plan will detail key activity to be undertaken, including establishing a Regional Office to drive the delivery of the Regional Cabinet’s work programme in anticipation of receiving proposals. This includes the creation of a bespoke impact assessment model for those proposals.

• The transition phase will also see the creation and development of three advisory bodies to the Regional Cabinet – the CCR Economic Growth Partnership, a region-wide business representation organisation, and an Employment and Skills Board, and one delivery body, the Regional Transport Authority.

• The ten partnering Councils approved the Cardiff Capital Region City Deal (CCRCD) Wider Investment Fund (WIF) totalling £495 million, consisting of £375 million grant from HM Treasury, passported via Welsh Government over the next 20 years. The remaining £120 million will be contributed by the ten partnering councils based on their respective population base and is currently modelled as being 100% capital in nature.

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