• Staff to be trained on how to better de-escalate conflict and use physical restraint as a last resort to ensure the safety of the child and others
• Independent review finds restraint is a necessary option for preventing serious further harm
• Experienced panel will scrutinise its use

An independent report by Charlie Taylor found that ways of holding children in custody , which can cause pain if they struggle or fight back, are sometimes necessary to protect themselves or other children from more serious harm. However, improved training will now see this used less and only as a last resort.

A cross-agency expert panel will be established to scrutinise the use of restraint. They will meet regularly to review the use of restraint and ensure ones that cause pain are only being used when there is no alternative and to protect the child or others from further harm. In addition, training on how to safely apply them will no longer be taught alongside other methods to manage behaviour, to make it even clearer that these are a last resort designed only to protect children from further injury.

A taskforce, with Sir Alan Wood of the Youth Justice Board acting as an independent advisor, was also set up to look into the use of separation and the effect it has on a child’s development.

Separation is when young offenders are placed in a different part of the establishment and do not mix with other children. This typically happens if they have been behaving violently or there is a risk of them hurting another child or being hurt themselves. The report found that when used properly, separation was an effective means of protecting children but there were inconsistencies in how it was being used. These inconsistencies risked the practice being perceived as unfair, which is a major factor in misbehaviour.

In response, specialist training is now being provided so staff better understand children may need to be separated from others in custody and the impact it can have. This will also ensure officers have detailed plans for reintegrating each child back into the mainstream population as quickly as possible.

Facilities across the estate are also being improved to ensure children who need to live separately from others for a period, for their own and others’ safety, are still able to readily access education, healthcare and other support services. Regardless of their crime, it is vital that a child’s right to change for the better is not unnecessarily restricted and that they receive the support they need to turn their lives around.

Justice Minister Lucy Frazer said:

The number of children in custody has halved in the last seven years thanks to better early intervention but for those that do enter youth custody, we must ensure that is not a sign of things to come.

These children have too often been failed in their young lives and I’m determined to make sure that doesn’t continue when they enter the justice system.

Specialised training for staff and new approaches tailored around each child’s individual needs will allow us to give these children the best possible chance to overcome their problems and turn their lives around.

The reforms announced today follow a number of changes already made by the Youth Custody Service earlier in the year to improve how separation is used. This includes ensuring each site has a senior manager responsible for overseeing the process and improved data collection so best practise can be shared across the youth estate.

These are just the latest in a series of youth custody measures introduced by the Government, which has seen staffing levels increase by more than a third since 2017 and will see all officers receive degree-level training.

DEFENCE Secretary Ben Wallace today welcomed NATO’s continued commitment to its modernisation agenda following a meeting of Defence Ministers, held amid the coronavirus pandemic.

The crisis prevented ministers meeting in person in Brussels, but continued as planned via video conferencing, including several bilateral meetings.

Work continues at pace to progress NATO’s agenda to adapt and modernise to meet the threats of an increasingly unstable world, as agreed at the London Leaders’ Meeting last December.

Defence Secretary Ben Wallace said:

From the outbreak of Covid-19 to Russia’s new missile capabilities, the complex threats we face take many forms and derive from multiple sources.

NATO is rising to meet all of these challenges, by strengthening its response to the pandemic, pushing forward its ambitious adaptation agenda agreed last year in London and continuing to provide essential deterrence and defence in an increasingly uncertain world.

At this week’s meeting, ministers discussed:

• A new deterrence and defence concept for NATO, which sets out a framework for the Alliance’s military activity in response to threats across land, air, sea and in the new domains of cyber and space.

• NATO’s adaptation to address Russia’s deployment of new intermediate-range missiles and other new missile capabilities – NATO is responding to Russia in a balanced and responsible way, including by strengthening air and missile defences and adapting exercising.

• NATO’s nuclear deterrent, including a meeting of the Nuclear Planning Group to discuss how to ensure the Alliance’s nuclear deterrent remains safe, secure and effective.

• NATO’s operations and missions around the world, particularly in Afghanistan and Iraq.

The UK has been integral in championing the Alliance’s collective, balanced response to new Russian missiles and in strengthening NATO’s deterrence and defence posture, which is the bedrock of the UK’s defence.

Mr Wallace also praised the progress NATO has made in adapting to today’s emerging challenges such as hybrid warfare and disruptive technologies.

COVID-19

Ministers were also joined by counterparts from Australia, Finland, Sweden and the EU’s High Representative for Foreign and Security Policy to discuss the long-term security implications of COVID-19. Ministers agreed an operational plan to ensure Allies are ready to support one another through any further waves of infection, as well as new guidelines to strengthen Allies’ preparedness and resilience.

Through the NATO Euro Atlantic Disaster Relief Co-ordination Committee (EADRCC), NATO Allies have helped to deliver hundreds of tonnes of vital aid where needed. The Defence Secretary recognised the important role the Armed Forces and NATO have played in the global response to COVID and assured Allies the UK will continue to support in this effort.

The UK will also make a monetary contribution to a new NATO Pandemic Response Trust Fund, which will be used to support Allies and partners through activities such as the purchase of vital equipment, the transportation of medical personnel and supplies, and the purchase and delivery of other relief resources.

NATO burden sharing – UK defence investment

In discussions the Defence Secretary underlined that the UK will continue to meet its 2% GDP defence-spending commitment and our defence budget will grow by at least 0.5% above inflation in each year of this Government. NATO is built on a commitment to collective defence and mutual support – a commitment which is reinforced by countries sharing the burden of defence investment and meeting the 2% target. Since all Allies pledged to meet the 2% target by 2024 at the Wales Summit in 2014, significant progress has been made. In 2019, defence spending by non-US Allies increased in real terms by 4.6 per cent – the fifth consecutive year of growth.

NATO – The bedrock of UK defence

The UK continues to play a leading role in NATO by contributing to operations across the globe and offering its cutting-edge capabilities to the Alliance:

• The UK has around one thousand troops deployed in Estonia and Poland as part of NATO’s enhanced Forward Presence initiative.

• The RAF is contributing this summer to NATO’s Baltic Air Policing mission, protecting the airspace of our Allies on a 24/7 basis.

• The UK also provides significant capacity to NATO current operations, including in Iraq and Afghanistan, providing training and assistance to forces in support of sustainable peace settlements.

• The UK is the only member to assign all its nuclear forces to the defence of NATO.

• The UK was the first Ally to offer our offensive cyber capability to the Alliance.

• The UK has nearly one thousand personnel serving in the NATO Command Structures, and we hold the post of the Deputy Supreme Allied Commander Europe.

• The UK has offered a significant contribution to the NATO Readiness Initiative over land, sea and air. Our nation’s future flagship HMS Queen Elizabeth and cutting-edge F-35 jets will be at the heart of this offer.

Thank you, Mr. President and thank you also High Commissioner Grandi. I’m sorry I missed your remarks, but I was carrying out my democratic duty to elect new members of this Council. Thank you also for the tremendous efforts that you and UNHCR are making across the globe to help those most in need, particularly in light of the huge impacts of COVID-19.

The United Kingdom is a strong and steadfast supporter of UNHCR and last year we contributed $122 million dollars in core and country level funding. And I want to echo the concerns expressed today about COVID-19’s impact on refugees and internally displaced persons. We’ve provided $184 million dollars for the new UN appeals, including $25 million dollars for UNHCR as part of an overall $1 billion dollars for the COVID response since the crisis began. And that money for UNHCR and for the UN appeals will help install handwashing stations and isolation and treatment centers in refugee camps, provide protection and education services to forcibly displaced children, and increase access to clean water for displaced people in areas of armed conflict. As the High Commissioner set out, efforts to build and sustain peace are the key to resolving displacement. The COVID-19 crisis is therefore an opportunity, colleagues, for us to redouble our conflict prevention and our peace-building efforts in support of the Secretary-General’s vision of Building Back Better. And we agree that a continued focus on solutions remains critical. We have consistently emphasised the importance of longer-term developmental measures, which increase refugee self-reliance as well as the importance of access to key services and opportunities, including education, work and training, delivered in a way which also looks to support generous host communities and countries. And in that respect I want to commend Jordan’s recent announcement that they will allow all registered refugees, regardless of nationality, access to subsidised public health care in their continued support provided to refugees across all sectors. Indeed, we commend the generosity of all countries in the region who have hosted Syrian refugees for so long.

The entrenched conflict in Syria and the failure to reach a political solution or even a lasting, nationwide ceasefire continues to prevent large scale returns. And whilst we hope that Syrians will ultimately be able to return home, we agree with the United Nations judgment that conditions in Syria do not currently allow for this. We continue to look to UNHCR to uphold the principles and the thresholds which should be met before facilitating returns and we agree with the High Commissioner regarding the importance of measures to avert the ongoing acceleration of forced displacement. In north-west Syria, where over one million civilians were displaced as a consequence of the most recent conflict, preserving the ongoing ceasefire and extending the mandate of the UN cross-border aid mechanism are our priorities for averting further displacement.

In Myanmar, the recent escalation of violence in Rakhine and Chin has led to significant new displacement. This uptick in violence risks setting back efforts aimed at creating conditions conducive to the safe, voluntary and dignified repatriation of Rohingya refugees. We welcomed Myanmar’s recent announcement that the MOU with UNDP and UNHCR has been extended until June 2021. However, more progress is required on creating conditions to allow for Rohingya repatriation. This remains important and urgent, given the increasing desperation in the camps in Cox’s Bazaar, the threat posed by COVID and the perilous boat journeys that refugees continue to risk in the Bay of Bengal, facilitated by ruthless traffickers, for which a recent regional solution is essential. And we have urged the governments of Myanmar to set up a transparent and credible long term plan to advance these priorities. We hope they will use their report to the International Court of Justice to do this, that they will publish it as part of the commitment to transparency. And let me also just pay tribute, and again thank, the Government and people of Bangladesh for their incredible generosity in supporting so many refugees on their territory.

Finally, Mr President, let me say that the United Kingdom remains committed to doing its part to meet the needs of the some 50 million internally displaced persons across the globe, 90 % of whom are displaced as a result of conflict and violence. We are a long standing advocate and supporter of the Secretary-General’s High-Level Panel on Internal Displacement, which we believe represents a critical opportunity to galvanise political attention, to tackle the growing challenge of internal displacement and find solutions that all countries can take forward. I thank you, Mr. President.

The UK Minister for the Middle East, James Cleverly MP, has expressed his deep concern at the rapidly rising number of coronavirus infections in Yemen amid an ongoing conflict and humanitarian crisis.

Infections may have already reached one million, according to UK aid-funded research by the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine which projects a worst-case scenario of up to 85,000 deaths.

During a ‘virtual visit’, involving calls with senior figures from the Yemeni authorities and the UN, Mr Cleverly set out how the UK is supporting the coronavirus response in Yemen and called for drastic action to avoid a humanitarian catastrophe.

The Minister highlighted the need for further support to the UN, which fell $1 billion short of its target at the Saudi-hosted pledging conference earlier this month. The UK pledged £160 million at the conference, one of the biggest donations on the day, to support the frontline coronavirus response.

The pledge takes the UK’s total commitment to nearly £1 billion since the conflict began in 2014, which has helped to feed millions of Yemenis, as well as provide access to water and sanitation.

After 6 years of conflict and the recent Houthi offensive on Marib, Mr Cleverly stressed to Yemen’s leaders that the only way to permanently end the suffering is with a comprehensive political solution.

He urged the parties to swiftly agree to the proposals presented by the UN Special Envoy to Yemen, Martin Griffiths.

During the visit, Mr Cleverly said:

This visit has allowed me to hear about the devastating impact coronavirus is already having in Yemen, and I was deeply concerned to hear that there have been over a million cases. All parties to the conflict must work with the UN so there is safe access for food and medicine supplies.

The virtual nature of the visit meant I was able to see how UK aid is helping Yemeni people by seeing the inside of a hospital, homes and camps, as well as talking to vulnerable people receiving support.

I am grateful to all of those working to deliver vital life-saving aid to Yemen, which is needed now more than ever as coronavirus continues to spread across the country. But only a political solution can end the misery and prevent even more loss of life. I urge Yemen’s leaders to redouble their efforts and agree to the UN’s proposals.

Notes to editors

• The £160 million package, from the UK Government, announced recently will help to tackle the spread of coronavirus in Yemen and is expected to provide over 700,000 medical consultations, train 12,000 healthcare workers to work safely in a coronavirus environment, and provide a much-needed boost to nearly 4,000 health centres to continue providing existing health services.
• The new funding also aims to provide support to at least 300,000 vulnerable people each month to help them buy food and household essentials, treat 40,000 children for malnutrition and provide 1 million people with improved water supply and basic sanitation.
• UK funded modelling by the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine predicts that, with few mitigation measures in place, there may already have been over 1 million coronavirus infections in Yemen. In total, the model predicts that there could be up to 10 million people infected with between 62,000 and 85,000 deaths in a worst case scenario.