At the request of the Russian Ministry of Defence, the Chief of the Defence Staff, Admiral Sir Tony Radakin, spoke with his Russian counterpart, General of the Army Valery Vasilyevich Gerasimov, this afternoon.

The Chief of the Defence Staff rejected Russia’s allegations that Ukraine is planning actions to escalate the conflict, and he restated the UK’s enduring support for Ukraine.

The military leaders both agreed on the importance of maintaining open channels of communication between the UK and Russia to manage the risk of miscalculation and to facilitate de-escalation.

The conversation followed the Defence Secretary’s call with his Russian counterpart yesterday and a call between the Foreign Ministers of France, the UK, and the USA last night.

Simon James was appointed to the Authority from 25 July 2022.

Simon has more than 30 years’ experience in commercially oriented board-level finance and risk roles. He has held roles within large private sector businesses including world-class consultancy and FCA regulated investment banking (such as PwC, KPMG, and HSBC) plus public sector health environments, including the NHS.

He is currently Chief Financial Officer at the Institute of the Motor Industry (IMI), the professional body for the automotive sector and Ofqual-regulated awarding organisation. Simon is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants and has been appointed to the Authority for a term of 3 years.

Caroline Corby was appointed to the Authority from 19 September 2022.

Caroline is currently the Chair of the Parole Board for England and Wales and the Chair of the Professional Standards Authority for Health and Social Care. She brings a wealth of knowledge and experience from previous public sector roles notably in criminal justice and healthcare settings. Caroline has been appointed to the Authority for a term of 3 and 6 months.

The Minister for Safeguarding has also re-appointed Alec Wood and Trevor Reaney as non-executive directors of the Security Industry Authority.

Alec was originally appointed in February 2020 and will now remain a member of the Authority until August 2025. Trevor was initially appointed in November 2018 and following an extension of his term until November 2022, will now continue in his role until November 2024.

Notes for editors:

• The SIA is governed by a Board, which is made up of:
  • Authority members (its Chair and non-executive directors)
  • a Chief Executive and other executive directors
• The Board’s role is to establish and take forward the SIA’s strategic aims and objectives.
• The SIA’s pages on GOV.UK contain further details on the Authority members

Further information:

• The Security Industry Authority is the organisation responsible for regulating the private security industry in the United Kingdom, reporting to the Home Secretary under the terms of the Private Security Industry Act 2001. The SIA’s main duties are the compulsory licensing of individuals undertaking designated activities and managing the voluntary Approved Contractor Scheme.
• For further information about the Security Industry Authority or to sign up for email updates visit www.gov.uk/sia. The SIA is also on Facebook (Security Industry Authority) and Twitter (SIAuk).

Environment Agency Officers served a statutory notice on Carla Hardwick of Barnsley Road, Brierley. Following an investigation into fly-tipping in a layby at Windmill Hill on the A17 near Sleaford, Lincolnshire.

The notice required her to hand over paperwork supporting the transfer of waste from her land in Carlton, Barnsley, South Yorkshire. Officers attended the site in October 2020 and gave Ms Hardwick advice on the actions she needed to take. These included the removal of excess waste and the importance of retaining relevant Waste Transfer Notes for waste that had been removed.

When officers returned to the site in June 2021, they noted that the vast majority of the waste had gone. However, when asked to provide the Waste Transfer Notes, she failed to provide any documents in respect of the waste removed. The transfer notes were requested for between the dates of the Environment Agency visits. After 12 months she did provide a single document, but this did not match the waste on her site. It did not provide the information legally required by a transfer note. In particular it did not identify the person removing the waste.

The court heard that Ms Hardwick had no system for recording waste movements from her site. This leaves waste vulnerable to the risk of fly-tipping and made it impossible for the Environment Agency to trace its movements, once it had left her site.

Ordering Ms Hardwick to pay a fine of £729, costs of £4,579 and a victim surcharge of £72. The presiding magistrate said that she had acted “recklessly” and had “ample opportunity to comply with her obligations.”

After the hearing, Environment Officer Paul Salter said:

Waste crime undermines legitimate business, can cause harm to the environment and to local communities. This case demonstrates the importance of businesses and individuals following the rules when handling waste.

There was no suggestion that Ms Hardwick had fly-tipped any waste herself but that she had lost control of the waste leaving her site. When waste is illegally disposed of the waste transfer notes enable us to trace the waste. Where the rules aren’t followed, we cannot identify offenders, meaning that they get away with it and are likely to commit further offences.

Anyone with information about waste crime to contact the Environment Agency’s hotline on 0800 80 70 60 or anonymously to Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.

Ends

• The deal will help Embraer access critical parts, components and technology from UK suppliers that will enhance its commercial and defence aircraft programmes.

• This is a part of broader initiatives by both nations to strengthen trade ties and will promote future collaboration between UK suppliers and Brazilian manufacturers in aerospace.

• UKEF provided support by acting as guarantor to the lender, JP Morgan Chase Bank, N.A., London Branch (“JPMorgan”), ensuring Embraer benefits from flexible repayment terms.

UK Export Finance, the UK’s export credit agency, has supported an £89 million loan to Embraer.

This was made possible through partnership with JP Morgan, who acted as the lending bank and arranger for this deal.

Securing UK exports to this major manufacturer means UK goods and services will be embedded in aircraft that fly 145 million passengers globally every year.

UKEF can help overseas buyers access financial support to make their projects happen, provided they commit to sourcing goods and services from the UK. This helps open new doors for world-class British suppliers to trade overseas. Through UKEF, the UK can also help international buyers access finance and insurance when it is not available from the private sector.

UKEF has over £3 billion available to help Brazilian buyers access the finance they need to trade with the UK, with the ability to provide guarantees in Brazilian Reals so that Brazilian businesses can access finance in their own currency.

Samir Parkash, interim CEO of UKEF said:

Now, with this UKEF first deal with Embraer, we can export world renowned British expertise and technology in the aviation and aerospace industry to Brazil – an economy that was rapid in recovering pre-pandemic levels of economic activity, that keeps on growing strong in 2022 and is an important trading partner to the UK. In fact, in the four quarters up to Q1 2022 trade in goods and services between the two nations increased by 18% year-over-year reaching £6.5bn.

Antonio Carlos Garcia, Chief Financial Officer of Embraer, said:

This first Embraer deal with UKEF shows the success of our strategy to diversify our suppliers and financial partners. We are always looking for actions that improve the profile of our debt, and this operation is another step in that direction.

John Meakin, Global Head of Export & Agency Finance at JP Morgan, said:

We are delighted to support a strategically important global client in the aviation sector to meet their objectives and partner with UKEF in delivering commercially relevant financing. The financing structure is flexible and innovative, and it would not have been possible without the commitment of all parties involved in rolling out this milestone program.