Press release: Do you want to make a difference to flood risk in the South West?

The Environment Agency is looking for enthusiastic applicants from all walks of life to fill a vacancy on the South West Regional Flood and Coastal Committee (RFCC). Being an RFCC member is an exciting opportunity to help guide local flood and coastal management across the whole region.

The South West RFCC covers Devon, Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly.

The successful applicant will play an important role in:

  • deciding on local priorities
  • approving programmes of work
  • supporting the Environment Agency and lead local flood authorities in working with communities and other partners.

They will have a key role in balancing local priorities and making sure that investment is co-ordinated at the river catchment and shoreline scale, as well as promoting the consideration of climate change impacts in local decision making.

The Environment Agency is recruiting for one member to represent nature, conservation and wider environmental issues. This member will need to provide an environmental perspective at meetings, helping the committee to understand the conservation impact of specific plans or projects.

The member will also:

  • monitor and review programmes of flood and coastal risk management work and the conservation issues to be addressed
  • provide a link between the committee, Natural England and other conservation organisations in the committee’s area.

A key role will be ensuring the aims of the National Flood and Coastal Erosion Risk Management Strategy are embodied within the committee’s decisions and to ensure consistency between strategic and local plans.

People from a wide range of backgrounds are invited to apply for this post, especially those from black and minority ethnic backgrounds and women who are currently under-represented on regional flood and coastal committees.

Further information and an application form is online, or from sarah.harding@environment-agency.gov.uk or call 0203 025 32478 or 07976 256 299.

The closing date for applications is on Wednesday 12 April 2017 at 5.30pm.



Press release: Baroness Anelay at UN to build on PSVI progress

The Rt Hon Baroness Anelay of St Johns, Foreign and Commonwealth Office Minister for the UN and the Commonwealth and the Prime Minister’s Special Representative on Preventing Sexual Violence in Conflict, will travel to New York this week, during the final days of the UK’s Security Council presidency.

The Minister will use her two-day visit to signal UK support for more women mediators within the UN system. She will outline the UK’s next steps on the Preventing Sexual Violence in Conflict Initiative (PSVI) and discuss UN peacekeeping performance and reform.

On Monday, the Minister will meet with a range of senior representatives within the UN system. She will co-host events focused on increasing the number of women mediators within the UN and tackling sexual exploitation and abuse within peacekeeping missions. She will also meet with NGOs to discuss modern slavery.

On Tuesday, she will host an event to mark five years of the UK-led Initiative to end sexual violence in conflict , at which she will promote draft Principles for Global Action aimed at tackling the stigma attached to sexual violence in conflict. She will meet the new US Permanent Representative, Nikki Haley, participate in a number of meetings on sustainable peace, and will host Permanent Representatives from other Commonwealth countries, ahead of the UK-hosted Commonwealth Summit in April 2018.

Speaking ahead of the visit, Baroness Anelay said:

This visit to New York will allow us to make real progress on a range of UK priority issues at the UN.

As the UN increases its focus on gender and conflict prevention, I will be pushing for an increase in the number of women mediators in the UN system. Involving women in peace processes increases the chances for reconciliation and leads to stronger, more sustainable peace.

I will mark the five-year anniversary of the UK-led initiative on Preventing Sexual Violence in Conflict Initiative during my visit. We must continue to build on progress to better support victims, and address stigma.

I also welcome the opportunity to discuss next steps in tackling sexual exploitation and abuse, to restore trust between peacekeepers and those they serve. I welcome the new UN Secretary General’s leadership on this issue.

Further information



Statement to Parliament: Bus Services Bill: English votes for English laws

Analysis of English votes for English laws in relation to government amendments made at report stage to the Bus Services Bill.

I am pleased to announce the publication of analysis of English votes for English laws in relation to government amendments made at report stage to the Bus Services Bill.

The English votes for English laws process applies to public bills in the House of Commons. To support the process, the government has agreed that it will provide information to assist the Speaker in considering whether to certify that Bill or any of its provisions for the purposes of English votes for English laws. Bill provisions that relate exclusively to England or to England and Wales, and which have a subject matter within the legislative competence of one or more of the devolved legislatures, can be certified.

This analysis reflects the position should all the government amendments be accepted.

The memorandum can be found on the Bill documents page of the Parliament website and I have deposited a copy in the Libraries of the House.



News story: Track worker near miss incidents at Camden Junction South

Shortly after 01:00 hrs on 28 February 2017, two track workers narrowly avoided being struck by the 22:42 hrs passenger train service from Wolverhampton to London Euston. The incident took place close to Camden Junction South, as the train was on its final approach to Euston station. It was travelling on a line that the workers believed had been blocked to traffic to allow engineering work to take place.

The train was rounding a curve at approximately 47 mph (76 km/h) when the driver became aware of a track worker, who had been installing a possession limit board associated with the engineering work, moving quickly off the line ahead of him. The driver stopped his train and contacted the signaller to report a near miss with the track worker.

The signaller then authorised the driver to continue into Euston station. The driver had accelerated the train to 24 mph (39 km/h) when he again applied the brake in response to seeing a second track worker on the line ahead. The train stopped approximately 300 metres beyond its original stopping point, adjacent to the track worker who had also been installing equipment associated with the engineering work. The track worker moved off the line when he became aware of the approaching train, but did not have time to reach a position of safety (at least 1.25 metres from the nearest line) before the train reached him because he was working in an area some distance from the nearest position of safety.

There were no injuries.

Our investigation will determine the sequence of events. It will also include consideration of:

  • the way in which information about engineering possessions is published and disseminated
  • the management of information about engineering possessions within signal boxes
  • any related issues associated with signaller workload and fatigue; and
  • any relevant underlying management factors

Our investigation is independent of any investigation by the railway industry, the British Transport Police or by the industry’s regulator, the Office of Rail and Road.

We will publish our findings, including any recommendations to improve safety, at the conclusion of our investigation. This report will be available on our website.

You can subscribe to automated emails notifying you when we publish our reports.



Corporate report: NDA: Quarterly Performance Report Quarter 2 status for 2016-17

Specific targets sit behind the planned activity in our Business Plan. This report includes the status of progress against business plan targets. The report is based on reporting at the end of Quarter 2 2016 (end of September 2016).