Press release: Africa Minister visits Mali as UK deepens efforts to stabilise the region
Minister Harriett Baldwin visited Mali on 8-9 November discussing development, humanitarian and stabilisation efforts.
Minister Harriett Baldwin visited Mali on 8-9 November discussing development, humanitarian and stabilisation efforts.
Faith Minister, Lord Bourne today (14 November 2018) urged people and faith groups across the country to reach out to one another and build local networks to support their communities and to bridge divides and extend understanding.
The call came as the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government published a new report to mark Inter Faith Week, championing the role faith groups play in their communities and highlighting the valuable inter faith work taking place around the country.
The report, Belief in communities: bridging the divide, follows the Minister for Faith, Lord Bourne’s second national faith tour, which saw him visit places of worship around the country to better understand their role bringing people of different faiths and backgrounds together.
From Holy Island in Northumberland to Canvey Island in Essex, Lord Bourne travelled far and wide to witness the work many religious institutions do alongside other faith groups from their communities to support the most vulnerable, help make their areas safer and cleaner, and tackle social issue such as loneliness.
Minister for Faith Lord Bourne said:
Over the past year I have travelled across the country meeting many religious communities, which have established hugely impressive interfaith networks, where religious groups come together to bridge divides and raise awareness.
As we mark Inter Faith Week, there is no better time to celebrate faith groups around the country who are making a profound impact on their communities, and to encourage people of all faiths to support and lead inter faith activity in their area.
The report details how inter faith networks can encourage social mixing and play a key role in building strong, resilient communities. Reflecting on this evidence, Lord Bourne issued a call for individuals and religious institutions around the country to:
Read the full report, Belief in communities: bridging the divide.
To see where Lord Bourne visited use #FaithTour2 on Twitter.
Lord Bourne visited approximately 55 places of worship/faith projects during Faith Tour 2 – see below for a full list.
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People and faith groups urged to reach out to one another and build local networks to support their communities and to bridge divides and extend understanding.
Rogue waste crime operators could be slapped with new fines if they mislabel their waste to dodge tax rules, an independent review ordered by Environment Secretary Michael Gove has recommended.
The review also concluded that compulsory electronic tracking of waste could help clamp-down on illegal movements of waste at home and abroad, and that there should be financial penalties for producers if their waste is found to be deposited illegally.
The recommendations come from a major independent review ordered in June. It looked at the government’s approach to tackling waste crime, which cost the English economy more than £600 million in 2015. The recommendations of the review will now be considered and responded to in Defra’s forthcoming Resources and Waste Strategy.
The review found that the government should give the criminals responsible greater cause to fear the consequences of their actions.
Welcoming the findings, Environment Secretary Michael Gove said:
The threat to society from waste crime is real. Criminals are running illegal waste sites as a cover for theft, human trafficking, drug running and money laundering.
It is costing our economy millions of pounds each year, and blighting our communities.
I welcome today’s review. We are committed to clamping down on these unscrupulous groups and we will set out our next steps in our forthcoming Resources and Waste Strategy.
Other recommendations include:
Lizzie Noel who chaired the review said:
In this report, we set out how we can modernise the structures, capabilities and powers to manage and reduce the problem of organised waste crime now and in the future.
Our intention must be to give the criminals responsible real cause to fear the consequences of their actions. Today that is not the case.
I would like to record my thanks to my review team, my advisory board, colleagues at Defra and the Environment Agency.
Between 2011 and 2017, the Environment Agency stopped the operation of 5411 illegal waste sites.
While an average of two illegal waste sites are shut down every day, they continue to create severe problems for local communities and business, particularly in rural areas, as well as posing a risk to key national infrastructure.
Since 2014, the Environment Agency has been given an extra £60million by the government towards enforcement work to tackle waste crime. The extra investment has shown a return of about £5 for every £1 extra spent.
Sir James Bevan, Chief Executive of the Environment Agency, said:
I welcome this review. Serious waste crime is the new narcotics – it damages the environment and harms local communities.
The review rightly recognises the dedication of Environment Agency officers who work tirelessly to bring the criminals to justice. In the last year, the Environment Agency has closed down over 800 illegal waste sites and brought almost 100 successful waste crime prosecutions.
But there is still more to be done. This report represents an opportunity to ensure we have the right powers, resources and coordination to win this fight.
The review builds on recent government measures to tackle waste crime, including new powers for the Environment Agency to lock the gates to problem waste sites to prevent waste illegally building up and powers to force operators to clear all the waste at problem sites, and extending landfill tax to include material disposed of at illegal waste sites. The government also recently announced a new pilot scheme that will make available up to £10 million to the Environment Agency to work with partners to clear the worst abandoned waste sites that blight local communities.
The recommendations of the review will now inform a strategic approach to waste crime, which will be published in the government’s forthcoming Resources and Waste Strategy later this year.
An independent review into serious and organised waste crime has been published.