• Chancellor doubles Brexit funding for this year, announcing £2.1 billion to prepare for no deal.
• New immediate cash boost of £1.1 billion to prepare critical areas for EU exit on 31 October.
• A further £1 billion available to enhance operational preparedness this year if needed.
• Funding will accelerate preparations at the border, support business readiness and ensure the supply of critical medicines.

An immediate cash boost to help get the UK ready for Brexit on 31 October has been announced by the Chancellor of the Exchequer, Sajid Javid.

The move sees Brexit funding for this year double, with £1.1 billion being provided to departments and the devolved administrations immediately, and a further £1 billion made available, should it be needed. This will ensure government departments step up vital operational preparations across the country as the UK leaves the EU on 31 October.

Funding announced today will be used for border and customs operations, critical medical supplies, support for UK nationals abroad, and an awareness campaign to ensure the public and businesses are ready to leave the EU.

In total the Treasury has now made available £6.3 billion to prepare for EU exit, including £4.2 billion funding this financial year alone.

The Chancellor of the Exchequer, Sajid Javid, said:

With 92 days until the UK leaves the European Union it’s vital that we intensify our planning to ensure we are ready.

We want to get a good deal that abolishes the anti-democratic backstop. But if we can’t get a good deal, we’ll have to leave without one. This additional £2.1 billion will ensure we are ready to leave on 31 October – deal or no deal.

Targeted funding allocated today will support critical operations, including:

o £344 million to help get new border and customs operations ready. This includes:

• An extra 500 border force officers, meaning we will have added up to 1,000 more officers this year.

• Boosting capacity to process UK passport applications this year, helping avoid delays.

• Doubling the support made available for customs agents to train new staff or invest in better IT so businesses can get the support they need to complete customs declarations.

• Improving transport infrastructure around ports and additional funding for ‘Operation Brock’ to manage traffic disruption in Kent.

• Enhancing support available on government helplines.

o £434 million made available to help ensure continuity of vital medicines and medical products, including through freight capacity, warehousing and stockpiling.

o £108 million available to promote and support businesses to ensure they are ready for Brexit, including a national programme of business readiness and helping exporters to prepare for, and capitalise on, new opportunities.

o £138 million to boost public communications, including:

• A new information campaign to help people and businesses get ready to leave on 31 October.

• Increasing consular support and information for Brits living abroad.

• Support for local areas including Northern Ireland.

In addition to the £1.1 billion immediate funding, the Chancellor has also committed today that a further £1 billion will be available for all departments and the devolved administrations to enhance operational preparedness for the UK’s departure from the EU on 31 October. Departments will be invited to submit bids to the Treasury if they require additional funding, and the devolved administrations can submit bids where they face disproportionate pressures compared to England.

Notes for Editors

1. Prior to this announcement, the Government had allocated £4.2 billion to prepare for a range of Brexit scenarios. Details on allocations by department can be found in Table E.6 (page 77) of this report.

2. This funding will only be used to prepare for no deal in 19/20. The immediate allocation of funding is focussed on critical areas of operational planning.

3. Barnett will apply in the usual way to all new funding given to UK government departments in devolved areas. In addition, the devolved administrations can bid for access to the £1 billion unallocated pot where they face disproportionate pressures compared to England, as they can with the existing reserve.

The Prime Minister has today (31 July) opened the first meeting of the National Policing Board, which will drive forward the Government’s commitment to recruit 20,000 new police officers over the next three years.

The Board, announced last week, brings together senior police leaders and government. During today’s meeting the Home Secretary outlined plans to begin the unprecedented recruitment drive in September and hire up to 6,000 officers in the first year.

Opening the meeting, Prime Minister Boris Johnson said:

This first meeting of the new National Policing Board marks the start of a new partnership between the police and the Government.

My pledge to recruit 20,000 police officers over the next three years is an absolute priority and it will begin within weeks.

I am a Prime Minister who backs our police all the way and I am going to give them the resources and the confidence they need to get the job done.

Today’s meeting was attended by senior policing figures, including Chair of the National Police Chiefs’ Council Martin Hewitt, Chair of the Association of Police and Crime Commissioners Katy Bourne, National Crime Agency Director General Lynne Owens and Metropolitan Police Deputy Commissioner Sir Stephen House, among others.

Speaking after the meeting, Home Secretary Priti Patel said:

This Government will not hesitate to act and give the police the support they need to protect the public.

We have moved swiftly to set up this Board, provide strong leadership and deliver on our commitment to recruit 20,000 more police officers to crack down on crime and keep us all safe.

Following this meeting, the Government and police will move at pace to drive forward our plans to bolster the police’s ranks.

The Board discussed the changing nature of crime and the increasingly complex demand on the police, including from child sexual exploitation, serious and organised crime, and fraud.

They agreed that the Board would be a useful forum for improving collaboration and consistency across the 43 police forces in England and Wales.

The importance of police officer wellbeing and findings from the Home Office’s Front Line Review were also discussed.

The National Policing Board will meet four times a year.

National Police Chiefs’ Council Chair, Martin Hewitt QPM said:

I am pleased to have attended the first meeting of the new National Policing Board, which brings together Government and police leaders to deliver a transformational opportunity for policing.

This ambitious growth requires significant planning, and work has already begun with all involved to consider how we can successfully achieve our recruitment target in the next three years.

The Home Office is also considering how it can further support the police in the use of stop and search, including next steps on a pilot that has made it simpler for officers in seven forces to use Section 60 of the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act.

Section 60 powers allow police officers to stop and search anyone in a designated area, over a specific period of time, without reasonable grounds for suspicion if serious violence is anticipated.

On 31 July 2019 we sent a letter setting out our decisions on RO65/2019 to responsible officers about international qualifications and certifications.

This letter sets out how we will make it easier for users of qualifications to find out which are regulated by Ofqual and can be taken outside the UK by introducing a new field on the Register of Regulated Qualifications.

It also explains how the collection of international certifications data will contribute towards wider initiatives facilitating exports from the education sector.

Wakefield Council and Morrisons were one of the first primary authority partnerships in the country to take National Inspection Strategies (NIS) from an unexplored concept to a viable option for delivering risk-based regulation (to be trialled).

Their pathfinder work explored how NIS for food hygiene partnerships could be used to tailor proactive intervention and reduce regulatory burdens with a mature and legally compliant partnership. It built an evidence-base which enabled it to use business data to accurately predict independently awarded food hygiene ratings. Evaluation of the pathfinder concluded the evidence was robust and credible and the methods used were justified.

The partnership drafted an NIS to investigate how it might work in practice. This highlighted that a primary authority is well placed to generate a picture of compliance across the business and to make informed decisions about how to regulate the business nationally. They also explored how the Food Hygiene Rating System could continue to operate if NIS was implemented.

The overall benefit of NIS is that compliant, well-managed businesses are recognised and proactive intervention by regulators is more risk-based. The NIS, supported by the Food Standards Agency, is to be trialled later this year.

The Regulatory Excellence Awards are run by the Office for Product safety and Standards. If you would like to know more, please email OPSS.enquiries@beis.gov.uk

This week, the Environment Agency is starting work on a new £25 million flood risk management scheme that will better protect more than 1,600 homes and businesses in Carlisle, Cumbria.

Sir James Bevan, Chief Executive of the Environment Agency, is officially marking the occasion with the first spade in the ground on 31st July 2019 at Walkmill Crescent, near Botcherby Bridge in Carlisle.

Phase one of the Carlisle Flood Risk Management scheme will reduce flood risk to more than 1,200 homes and 106 businesses at a cost of £8 million pounds – increasing protection from the previous scheme completed in 2005 to a 0.5% chance of flooding in any one year.

The first phase of the new scheme will involve building and improving flood defences at Melbourne Park, the raising of land at the entrance to Tesco at the junction off Warwick Road, as well as work on and around Botcherby Bridge to improve the flow of water.

In addition to raising and extending the existing flood walls, work during the first phase will also include enhancing wildlife habitats in Melbourne Park and improving recreation facilities, including new park benches and entrance features. The Environment Agency will also be planting extensive wildflower meadows to increase the number of native birds, amphibians, small mammals and pollinators. The habitat will primarily support native pollinators including butterflies, moths and bees, helping to sustain insects that pollinate our food crops.

Sir James Bevan, Chief Executive of the Environment Agency, said:

I was in Carlisle during the 2015 floods and witnessed first-hand the devastating effects on people’s lives and livelihoods. So I am personally delighted to be here to see work starting on this new £25 million pound scheme which will better protect more than 1,200 homes and over 100 business against flooding for decades to come.

This important project will also benefit the environment by enhancing essential habitats and increasing biodiversity across the area, creating better spaces for local people and wildlife. It will do what the Environment Agency exists to do: create a better place.

Stuart Mounsey, Environment Agency’s Flood and Coastal Risk Manager for Cumbria, said:

The community of Carlisle have seen how devastating flooding can be. That’s why I’m so pleased we can start work to further reduce flood risk to more than 1600 homes and businesses.

We have worked closely with our partners and the local community to develop an improved flood scheme which not only benefits the people of Carlisle, but also the environment.

It is hoped phase one of the scheme will be completed by the end of this year better protecting Carlisle this winter against another Storm Desmond sized storm, with phase one delivering the greatest improvement to homes in the city.

This scheme will have the highest standard of protection outside London and York, and whilst we can never guarantee that there will never be future flooding, we hope that this scheme will bring peace of mind to the public.

The £25m scheme will be delivered over three phases in total and will better protect 1600 homes and business by its completion in 2021.

The Environment Agency has looked at many different options and combinations of options for reducing flood risk in Carlisle, and have shared and consulted with the public to design the best possible scheme for the city.

The Environment Agency is working towards submitting the planning application for the further phases during winter 2019. Residents, businesses and local interest groups will have opportunities to have their say and help shape the further phases of the scheme ahead of the planning application.

Along with flood defences and flood management schemes, knowing your flood risk is also important when protecting your family and property from flooding. People can check their risk and register to receive free flood warnings online or calling Floodline on 0345 988 1188.