Author Archives: HM Government

Highways England is responsible for operating, maintaining and improving more than 4,300 miles of motorways and main trunk roads throughout England and is currently delivering the Government’s £15bn Road Investment Strategy.

Colin said:

Over the past three years, Highways England has concentrated on safety, customer service and delivering the Government’s first five-year Road Investment Strategy. We have made good progress, and much remains to be done in the second half of the period. We are already preparing for the second five-year investment period, fully aligned with the Government’s aims for our roads to be safer, smoother, and more sustainable by 2040 for the 4 million drivers who use them each day.

Colin was first appointed chairman of Highways England in December 2014, having previously served as chairman of the company’s predecessor, the Highways Agency since July 2014. Prior to that he was chief executive officer of Heathrow Airport Holdings, formerly BAA. His career also saw him serve as Chief Executive of Severn Trent Water PLC and of Hays PLC; Managing Director of Transco Ltd and Engineering Director of British Airways PLC.

He holds a MA in engineering, an MBA and is a Chartered Engineer. He is also Non-Executive Chairman at Renewi PLC with effect from 1 April 2016 and Non-Executive Director at Johnson Matthey PLC.

Colin, who has been reappointed for three years, will continue to be paid £130,000 for a minimum of 78 days’ work per annum. The remuneration for Colin’s role, and that of other non-executive and senior executive posts, are published within the Highways England’s annual report each year.

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

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

A key metro extension linking Birmingham city centre with Edgbaston and the city’s growing Westside area has been given the go-ahead thanks to a multi-million pound funding pledge from the Department for Transport.

Five new stops will be served by up to 10 trams an hour at peak when the 2 kilometre extension of the Midland Metro, from Grand Central, outside Birmingham New Street station, to Edgbaston opens in March 2021.

The £59.8 million boost from the Department for Transport completes the total £149 million funding for the project, with another £84 million having already been raised locally through the West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA), Birmingham City Council, Greater Birmingham & Solihull Local Enterprise Partnership and others.

On a visit to see the route of the new extension yesterday (Thursday 31 August 2017), Transport Minister Paul Maynard also met with Cllr Bob Sleigh OBE, Deputy West Midlands Mayor and Laura Shoaf, Managing Director of Transport for the West Midlands (TfWM), part of the WMCA.

Mr Maynard said:

Midland Metro is already a success story, with passenger journeys up nearly a third this year compared to last year. This new extension will be a further boost to Birmingham businesses, and make travelling to work easier for commuters.

But just as importantly, it will help ease the pressure on the roads as it will provide an alternative for getting in and out of the city centre. This is a vital project and one which we are delighted to be able to support.

Cllr Sleigh said:

We are delighted that government funding is now in place to help get the Midland Metro extension to Edgbaston built. The metro is a real success story for this region and that will continue as new routes are rolled out over the next few years across Birmingham and the Black Country.

It is not just these areas that will benefit though as the Metro is key to the WMCA’s vision for strategic growth and regeneration across the West Midlands, bringing huge benefits to everyone who lives and works here.

The extension will see new stops at the Town Hall, Centenary Square, Brindley Place, and at 2 further stations either side of the Five Ways roundabout in Edgbaston. The new route will also offer a direct metro link to Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery, the International Convention Centre and Symphony Hall.

Preliminary groundworks started in the summer but now final funding for the scheme has been secured from central government, major project works could be set to get underway within weeks.

To limit the impact on Birmingham’s historic city centre and iconic buildings, parts of the route will be built without overhead lines. When this happens, hi-tech batteries fitted to the trams will mean they can run on their own power.

Accompanying a diverse business delegation showcasing the strength of British business and sectors including financial services, life sciences, defence and cyber, Dr Liam Fox hailed the visit as a vital opportunity for British businesses to further engage with Japanese buyers and investors and encourage inward investment back into the UK.

The International Trade Secretary also met with the Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry, Hiroshige Seko to discuss the potential for future growth as we leave the EU through a new trade and investment working group, and the agreement that the EU-Japan Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) will form the basis of our future bilateral trade relationship.

International Trade Secretary Dr Liam Fox said:

As an international economic department, it’s important that we’re building upon our already strong trade relationships with global partners like Japan as we leave the EU, and it is our intention that we will lay the ground for an ambitious trade deal based on the EU-Japan agreement.

The UK is world-renowned for our innovation and expertise across a range of sectors including financial services and life sciences, and we must seize the many commercial opportunities and partnerships ahead of us.

Leading the UK business delegation to engage with Japanese buyers and investors is a key part of showcasing what the UK offers the world now and as we leave the EU, and every penny of investment secured boosts local economies and creates new jobs back in the UK.

Following the UK-Japan Business Forum attended by over 200 CEOs of British and Japanese companies, DIT and JETRO (Japan External Trade Organisation) signed a Memorandum of Cooperation (MoC) outlining practical ways of support to help UK and Japanese businesses. This includes running joint events and promotion in sectors where the UK is looking to attract Japanese investment, such as renewable energy and pharmaceuticals, and where the UK is looking to trade with Japan, such as defence and security and fintech.

A MoC was also signed with the Japan Bank for International Cooperation to support energy infrastructure investment from Japan into the UK.

As part of the visit, the International Trade Secretary also welcomed over £519 million worth of commercial deals secured by UK companies, creating 186 new jobs in the UK.

This includes a £500 million export and investment package by Aston Martin comprising of:

• exports from its UK Gaydon and St Athan plants to Japan
• investments in a new headquarters in Tokyo
• further growth of its dealer network across Japan

British life sciences company Heptares and Japanese corporation Sosei also announced today a pioneering industry-academia collaboration with the prestigious Juntendo University in Tokyo to design new therapies for hard-to-heal wounds (such as diabetic foot and pressure ulcers).

After reaching $1 billion of transactions, London based fintech cryptocurrency firm WIREX, announced the opening of a new Asian headquarters this week in Tokyo. The move, which will also create 30 new jobs back in the UK, showcases the strength of the UK fintech sector, creating demand through exporting expertise around the world.

Contact the DIT Media Team on 0207 215 2000.

Follow us: @tradegovuk or gov.uk/dit.

Tourists from around the globe will soon be able to step foot on the longest coastal walking route in the world as work is officially underway along every stretch of the England Coast Path.

Natural England is now working on 100 per cent of this 2,700 mile walking route, which when completed will allow people to explore new and improved routes along the entire length of the English coastline – taking in iconic sights like the White Cliffs of Dover, the beaches of Norfolk and the picturesque North Yorkshire coast.

England’s spectacular coastline already attracts 300 million visits a year, with people spending up to three times more than at any other holiday destination.

And with the South West stretch already worth £400 million to the economy, by offering new and improved access to some of the country’s best tourist hot spots, the England Coast Path will bring a huge boost to tourism – an industry already worth £106 billion.

Rural Affairs Minister Lord Gardiner said:

We have some of the most spectacular coastland in the world, with iconic sites such as the White Cliffs at Dover and the picturesque beaches at Whitby attracting millions of tourists and walkers every year.

The England Coast Path is a hugely significant project – helping people across the country to access our stunning coastline and providing a significant boost to the economy of our coastal communities.

By working closely with landowners, farmers and local communities, we are well on track to creating the world’s longest coastal path by 2020.

Natural England’s Chairman Andrew Sells added:

We are now working on all sections of our beautiful and varied coastline so the ability to walk the longest, continuous coastal walking route in the world is on the horizon.

I’m extremely proud of the strides we have taken to reach this point. We will continue to work closely with landowners, communities and local authorities to create the best possible route, to bring more people closer to nature, and benefit local economies.

So far Natural England has opened just over 300 miles of coastline, helping thousands of people access some of England’s most spectacular coastal scenery.

The new routes link up the best existing coastal paths, create new ones where there were none before, and in some cases move paths nearer the sea so walkers have a better opportunity to properly enjoy the country’s coastal views and beaches.

Most recently, routes have opened in North Yorkshire and Norfolk, with further stretches set to open in Kent, the north east and Cumbria over the coming months.