The Environment Agency in partnership with Arun District Council and Elmer Sands Limited has completed major coastal defence works at Elmer in West Sussex.

This new flood scheme will better protect 325 properties from flooding. It has cost £5 million and a further £3 million will be spent on maintenance over the next 50 years. Funding for the scheme is from the UK Government, Arun District Council and Elmer Sands Ltd.

During construction 20,000 tonnes of rock were used to improve the existing rock revetment and 12,500 cubic metres of shingle were recharged across the defences. A new boat ramp for Elmer Boat Club was also constructed.

To mark the occasion the Environment Agency hosted a virtual opening ceremony on Monday 22 June using Microsoft Teams.

Emma Howard Boyd, Chair of the Environment Agency, said:

While the coronavirus has changed so much this year, flooding and coastal erosion have not gone away. Throughout the recent lockdown, the Environment Agency continued working on flood schemes while following government guidance and safe working measures. This new £5 million flood scheme will better protect 325 properties in Elmer, and is an example of how we work with partners to make communities more resilient to the escalating impacts of the climate emergency.

John O’Flynn, Environment Agency Operations Manager, said:

We realise the inconvenience that this work may have caused our local neighbours, especially during this lock-down period. We would like to thank them for their co-operation and the understanding throughout the work.

In carrying out this critical construction during the coronavirus outbreak, our contractors followed guidance from Public Health England to work safely on construction sites. The safety of our staff, partners and the communities we work is always our priority.

The UK has set out how it intends to approach a range of important regulatory reforms in the process of being implemented at the international and European level. Now the UK has left the EU, the UK will make its own decisions about the rules governing its world-leading financial sector, and the plans confirmed today ensure that the UK financial sector will continue to be underpinned by a commitment to the highest international standards.

These include reforms to update UK prudential requirements, maintain the soundness of UK capital markets, and manage future risks. In particular, the government is announcing how it intends to legislate for updated prudential rules to reflect international Basel standards and a new regime for investment firms, publishing a consultation on the transposition of the Bank Recovery and Resolution Directive II (BRRDII), and announcing a review to improve the prudential rules for insurers.

The details published today will provide clarity to financial services firms and demonstrate the UK’s continued commitment to the same high standards of regulation in the context of ongoing equivalence discussions with the EU.

The Economic Secretary to the Treasury & City Minister, John Glen, said:

The financial services sector plays a crucial role in supporting the wider economy, creating jobs across the UK, supporting SMEs, contributing taxes, driving regional growth and investment, tackling climate change and embracing technology and innovation. It has also been at the forefront of our response to the economic impact of Coronavirus.

Now we have left the EU the UK is making its own decisions about regulation. There will be changes to some of the details, but our values as an open, global, responsible financial centre are staying the same. The best rules for Britain are those that maintain or enhance the world-leading standard of regulation that has underpinned our success to date.

A series of written statements, a policy paper, and a consultation have been published today, detailing these changes:

The defence ministers from the Five Eyes nations (Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the United Kingdom and the United States) met via videoconference on 22‑23 June.

Ministers reaffirmed their commitment to advance defence and security cooperation on matters of common interest to support and defend a stable, rules-based, global order, that is increasingly being challenged.

Ministers recognised the role of regional partners and institutions in shaping globally and across the Indo-Pacific a stable and secure, economically resilient community, where the sovereign rights of all states are respected.

Ministers discussed new opportunities for Five Eyes partners to further strengthen their relationship, build resilience, address challenges to international rules and norms and advance cooperation across key lines of effort in an increasingly complex and challenging geostrategic environment.

Ministers committed to meet regularly as part of efforts to address existing and emerging security challenges, and to advance their shared values of democracy, freedom and respect for human rights.