Lord True, Minister of State, has reappointed Harry Rich as the Registrar of Consultant Lobbyists. His new term will commence from 22 September 2022 for a term of no more than three years on a fixed term contract with the possibility of further reappointment.

Harry Rich is Chair of the Intellectual Property Office, Chair of the Valuation Tribunal Service, non-executive director of the Press Recognition Panel, governor of the Glasgow School of Art, an Executive Coach and business advisor. He is Companion of the Chartered Management Institute and Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts. He is also a qualified but non-practising solicitor.

The Registrar of Consultant Lobbyists is an independent, statutory office established by the Transparency of Lobbying, Non-Party Campaigning and Trade Union Administration Act 2014. The Registrar is responsible for keeping and publishing a register of consultant lobbyists. The Registrar has a duty to monitor compliance with the requirement to register and a power to undertake enforcement action in instances of non-compliance.

The Registrar of Consultant Lobbyists is responsible for overseeing the operation of the Office of the Registrar of Consultant Lobbyists. Further information on the lobbying register can be found on the website of the Office of the Registrar of Consultant Lobbyists.

Armed Forces Minister James Heappey has met UK soldiers protecting NATO’s borders during a visit to Estonia, including his old battalion, 2 Rifles.

The minister travelled to Tapa, where more than 1,600 British personnel are based, watching troops train and speaking with servicemen and women.

He also met with Estonia’s newly appointed Defence Minister Hanno Pevkur to discuss our joint work to support Ukraine and uphold European security.

Armed Forces Minister James Heappey said:

Every day our friends here in Estonia live with the threat of a belligerent Russia on the other side of their border.

Bilaterally and through NATO, the UK will stand firm with Estonia and I’m proud of the way our troops here stand ready to fight whenever, wherever they are needed.

More than 800 troops from 1st Battalion, the Royal Welsh currently lead a NATO enhanced Forward Presence (eFP) battlegroup in Estonia. The UK also has a second battlegroup of over 800 from 2nd Battalion, the Rifles in the country after deploying them in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Defence Secretary Ben Wallace announced in June that the lethality of these deployments would be enhanced with advanced capabilities including helicopters and artillery systems, as part of an increased UK contribution to NATO. Meanwhile, the UK’s existing HQ in Tallinn will be expanded. Led by a Brigadier, it will support the rapid deployment of high readiness forces at the brigade level.

The UK will also support Estonia with training and logistics, the development of its first divisional-level HQ, as well as developing new ways of fighting through their joint hosting of the Defence Innovation Accelerator for the North Atlantic European HQ, and supporting innovative dual use start-ups through the NATO Innovation Fund.

Armed Forces Minister James Heappey has met UK soldiers protecting NATO’s borders during a visit to Estonia, including his old battalion, 2 Rifles.

The minister travelled to Tapa, where more than 1,600 British personnel are based, watching troops train and speaking with servicemen and women.

He also met with Estonia’s newly appointed Defence Minister Hanno Pevkur to discuss our joint work to support Ukraine and uphold European security.

Armed Forces Minister James Heappey said:

Every day our friends here in Estonia live with the threat of a belligerent Russia on the other side of their border.

Bilaterally and through NATO, the UK will stand firm with Estonia and I’m proud of the way our troops here stand ready to fight whenever, wherever they are needed.

More than 800 troops from 1st Battalion, the Royal Welsh currently lead a NATO enhanced Forward Presence (eFP) battlegroup in Estonia. The UK also has a second battlegroup of over 800 from 2nd Battalion, the Rifles in the country after deploying them in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Defence Secretary Ben Wallace announced in June that the lethality of these deployments would be enhanced with advanced capabilities including helicopters and artillery systems, as part of an increased UK contribution to NATO. Meanwhile, the UK’s existing HQ in Tallinn will be expanded. Led by a Brigadier, it will support the rapid deployment of high readiness forces at the brigade level.

The UK will also support Estonia with training and logistics, the development of its first divisional-level HQ, as well as developing new ways of fighting through their joint hosting of the Defence Innovation Accelerator for the North Atlantic European HQ, and supporting innovative dual use start-ups through the NATO Innovation Fund.

Commenting on the Scottish Government’s Government Expenditure & Revenue Scotland figures, Scottish Secretary Alister Jack said:

Today’s Scottish Government figures show how people and their families benefit massively from being part of a strong, resilient UK.

Scotland’s deficit – the shortfall between taxes raised here, including oil, and public spending – stands at £23.7bn. But as part of the UK, we can rely on the Treasury to step up to support us in plugging the gap.

At a time of unprecedented challenges, sharing resources around the UK has never been more important.

As we continue to recover from the pandemic and confront global pressures on prices and the cost of living, it is clear we need a shared and a relentless focus on boosting the economy.

• Total expenditure for the benefit of Scotland fell from £98,439 million in 2020-21, to £97,502 million in 2021-22.

• The decline in spending reflects a reduction in spending associated with coronavirus support schemes.

• Although spending as a share of GDP has fallen from the peaks seen during 2020-21, it remains above 50% of GDP, and around 5 percentage points higher than prior to the pandemic.

• On top of receiving additional Barnett consequentials for the Scottish Government for 2021-22, these figures account for Scotland having benefited from at least an additional £3.7 billion in reserved spending, down from £9.4 billion in 2020-21.

• The figures from the Scottish Government show that Scotland’s notional deficit fell from £35,774 billion in 2020-21 to £23,727 billion in 2021-22.  This is more than Scotland’s entire health, education, economic development, tourism and culture budget for the year, which was a cumulative £23.4 billion in 2021-22.

• Public expenditure per person in Scotland in 2021-22 was £1,963 higher than the UK average. This was an increase from £1,530 in 2020-21.

• Revenue per person in Scotland remained below the UK average. In 2021-22, including an illustrative geographical share of North Sea revenue, revenue per person was £221 lower than the UK average.  In 2020-21 when revenue per head was £395 lower than the UK average. This shows the higher variability when North Sea revenues are included.

• The ‘Union dividend’ per person in Scotland (the combined value of higher spending and lower revenue) was £2,184 in 2021-22.  This was an increase from £1,924 in 2020-21 (revised).

• Although spending on the pandemic fell in 2021-22, this has mostly been offset by increases in the cost of servicing public sector debt.

Commenting on the Scottish Government’s Government Expenditure & Revenue Scotland figures, Scottish Secretary Alister Jack said:

Today’s Scottish Government figures show how people and their families benefit massively from being part of a strong, resilient UK.

Scotland’s deficit – the shortfall between taxes raised here, including oil, and public spending – stands at £23.7bn. But as part of the UK, we can rely on the Treasury to step up to support us in plugging the gap.

At a time of unprecedented challenges, sharing resources around the UK has never been more important.

As we continue to recover from the pandemic and confront global pressures on prices and the cost of living, it is clear we need a shared and a relentless focus on boosting the economy.

• Total expenditure for the benefit of Scotland fell from £98,439 million in 2020-21, to £97,502 million in 2021-22.

• The decline in spending reflects a reduction in spending associated with coronavirus support schemes.

• Although spending as a share of GDP has fallen from the peaks seen during 2020-21, it remains above 50% of GDP, and around 5 percentage points higher than prior to the pandemic.

• On top of receiving additional Barnett consequentials for the Scottish Government for 2021-22, these figures account for Scotland having benefited from at least an additional £3.7 billion in reserved spending, down from £9.4 billion in 2020-21.

• The figures from the Scottish Government show that Scotland’s notional deficit fell from £35,774 billion in 2020-21 to £23,727 billion in 2021-22.  This is more than Scotland’s entire health, education, economic development, tourism and culture budget for the year, which was a cumulative £23.4 billion in 2021-22.

• Public expenditure per person in Scotland in 2021-22 was £1,963 higher than the UK average. This was an increase from £1,530 in 2020-21.

• Revenue per person in Scotland remained below the UK average. In 2021-22, including an illustrative geographical share of North Sea revenue, revenue per person was £221 lower than the UK average.  In 2020-21 when revenue per head was £395 lower than the UK average. This shows the higher variability when North Sea revenues are included.

• The ‘Union dividend’ per person in Scotland (the combined value of higher spending and lower revenue) was £2,184 in 2021-22.  This was an increase from £1,924 in 2020-21 (revised).

• Although spending on the pandemic fell in 2021-22, this has mostly been offset by increases in the cost of servicing public sector debt.