News story
The AAIB has sent a team to Burton in Lonsdale, Yorkshire.
The AAIB has been notified of an accident in Burton in Lonsdale, North Yorkshire involving a light helicopter. An investigation has been launched and a team of inspectors are travelling to the accident site to begin making enquiries.
Published 20 June 2022
Environment Agency officers issued the notice on Thursday 16 June. The notice was issued to prevent the deposit of waste and waste fires on land at Kenfield Farm, Main Road, Clenchwarton near King’s Lynn, after a blaze in May on the land.
A Stop Notice is issued to prohibit a particular activity where the Environment Agency believes there to be a significant risk to human health or the environment.
The deposit and burning of waste is now prohibited at Kenfield Farm. If the landowner fails to comply with the notice they can then be taken to court and prosecuted, as breaching the notice is a criminal offence. The notice will remain in place until such action is taken to mitigate the risk and the site has been brought into compliance.
Investigations into alleged waste activities at the site are continuing.
Phil Henderson, Enforcement Team Leader at the Environment Agency, said:
We take unauthorised waste activity very seriously and will take the necessary action to prevent the risks that this poses and prosecute those responsible where appropriate.
Everyone producing waste, including small businesses and householders, must ensure that their waste is only taken by registered waste carriers to properly permitted waste sites. Otherwise they themselves could be liable to prosecution.
If anyone witnesses waste being taken onto, or burning at this site, please email EAN-Enforcement-West@environment-agency.gov.uk. If you have any other information about the site that could help our enquiries or any other unauthorised waste sites or activities please contact us. You can contact us via our incident free hotline 0800 80 70 60 or Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.
The Environment Agency has worked closely with partners in the Borough Council of King’s Lynn and West Norfolk and Norfolk Police to take action against this unauthorised site.
A spokesperson from Borough Council of King’s Lynn and West Norfolk, said:
This sort of behaviour shows an utter disregard for the local community and the environment, and we will not tolerate it. We will do everything in our power to put a stop to unauthorised waste disposal when we become aware of it.
Tackling this sort of behaviour is most effective when agencies and the public work together. Our role is to work with the Environment Agency to investigate and take joint action when it happens.
The public can help us by reporting incidents and eliminate the market for it by checking that any waste carrier they use to dispose of rubbish for them is licensed.
Sections 33(1)(a) and 33(6) Environmental Protection Act 1990 make it an offence for any person to deposit, knowingly cause or knowingly permit the deposit of controlled waste on land without or in breach of an environmental permit or exemption.
Sections 33(1)(c) and 33(6) Environmental Protection Act 1990 make it an offence to treat, keep or dispose of controlled waste in a manner likely to cause pollution or harm human health.
Controlled waste means household, industrial and commercial waste or any such waste.
The penalty for breaching a Stop Notice is: on summary conviction, a fine or imprisonment for a term not exceeding 12 months, or both; or on conviction on indictment, imprisonment for a term not exceeding 2 years, or a fine, or both.
More than a fifth of Veterans Strategy Action Plan commitments already delivered as the nation celebrates the start of Armed Forces Week
Government confirms all departments now taking part in guaranteed interview scheme for ex-military, with 800 veterans already offered employment through the programme
More than £1 million in new funding for new digital service for veterans to verify their status online and access services
All central government departments are now guaranteeing veterans progression to the next stage of recruitment, known as the Great Place to Work scheme.
The news comes as the country marks the start of Armed Forces Week, which celebrates the service of military personnel, their families and veterans.
New figures released today show that 800 veterans have already been offered employment through the scheme. The government is taking steps to maximise veteran employability, which we know is the key to positive life outcomes. A successful recruitment round for the new Advance into Justice scheme, which gets veterans into prison officer roles, has also recently closed.
Meanwhile, more than £1 million in new money is being invested into a new digital service for veterans, which will enable them to quickly and easily verify their veteran status online.
The project, which is due to be available for all veterans in 2023, will make it easier and quicker to demonstrate their military service in order to access a range of government and charity services, and reduce waiting times and the likelihood of fraud.
Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster Steve Barclay said:
Our digital ID plans will help to deliver real change to the lives of our veterans, giving us the capability to more quickly identify those that need targeted support so we can then fast-track them through the system and get them what they need.
We are also putting a real focus on helping our veterans into work, recognising the brilliant skills they have and identifying great employment opportunities in cyber security, the prison service and logistics.
I’m determined to make the UK the best place in the world to be a veteran and that means harnessing the power of government to drive change and working alongside the charity sector too to make a difference.
This digital verification is also a key step towards delivering Phase 2 of the Veterans ID card roll out. The ID card, which from December 2018 has already automatically been given to any personnel who leave the military, helps veterans access specialist support and services and maintain a tangible link to their career in the forces.
Progress has been made improving healthcare provision for veterans. Op COURAGE, the bespoke mental health pathway for veterans in the NHS in England, has launched backed by over £17 million a year investment, plus an additional £2.7 million over the next three years. The service will bring three bespoke veterans’ mental health services into one long-term integrated service from April 2023.
Waiting times for veterans reduced for an assessment via Transition, Intervention and Liaison Service (TILS), one of the three services included in Op COURAGE, has dropped from 6 weeks in 2018/19 to 2 weeks in 2021/22, meeting the 14 days target.
The number of ‘Veteran-Friendly’ GP surgeries has also increased since the publication of the Action Plan, with a 17% increase from 1,200 to over 1,400.
In January, the Government launched the Veterans Strategy Action Plan of more than 60 commitments backed by an extra £70 million. Great progress is being made with over a fifth of commitments already completed after just six months.
The Government is also making sure veterans receive a high standard of support, across the whole UK. The appointment of a new Veterans Commissioner for Wales, Colonel James Phillips, announced in March to advise on issues affecting Welsh veterans, and the 2021 Census in England and Wales and this year’s Scottish census including veteran status for the first time, will help give unprecedented insight into the veteran community.
A number of other events will also take place throughout the week, to mark Armed Forces Week, culminating on Saturday, where Armed Forces Day will be hosted in Scarborough.
The ‘Great Place to Work for Veterans scheme’ makes it easier for veterans to join the Civil Service. When veterans opt into the scheme and meet the minimum criteria, they progress automatically to the next stage for most roles – whether that’s an interview or an online test.
Alongside the Strategy, over the last year we have delivered significant legislation ensuring veterans, serving and families are protected and supported in law:
The government has today (Monday 20 June) announced a range of changes to make it simpler for businesses to apply new product conformity markings for most products placed on the market in England, Scotland and Wales.
The UK Conformity Assessed (UKCA) mark is a mandatory mark on certain products, for example mobile phones, to indicate that they conform to Great Britain legislation. Businesses have until 1 January 2023 to start using UKCA marking which replaces the CE and reverse epsilon markings now that we have left the European Union.
The marking allows the UK to have control over its goods regulations and maintain our high product standards.
To make it simpler for businesses to adopt UKCA marking, the government has today brought forward the following measures.
Any conformity assessment activities undertaken by EU bodies before the end of 2022 will be considered as the basis for UKCA marking next year. Legislation on this will be brought forward before the end of the year and will enable manufacturers to apply the UKCA mark on these products without the need for re-testing.
This will allow CE marked products that are manufactured and imported into the UK by the end of 2022 to be sold, without the need to meet UKCA requirements. This will remove the current need for retesting and recertification for products that are imported whilst the UK recognised CE requirements.
The UK will continue to accept spares onto the GB market which comply with the same requirements that were in place at the time the original products or systems they were being used to repair, replace or maintain were placed on the market. This will help to address concerns about the availability of spare parts and ensure businesses and organisations avoid disruption to their operations.
To make it cheaper and logistically easier for businesses to continue to supply goods to Great Britain, legislation will be brought forward to extend current labelling easements to allow important information and other UKCA markings to be added to products using a sticky label or an accompanying document.
Manufacturers of construction products under AVCP system 3 – such as radiators, sealants and tile adhesives – whose products are tested by an EU notified body before 1 January 2023 will be able to obtain a UKCA mark without having to retest through a UK-approved body.
Businesses can access the full government guidance on GOV.UK.
The business sectors that these measures apply to include:
There are different rules for:
More than 220,000 businesses are being contacted by HMRC to urge them to move to the UK’s new streamlined customs IT platform, if they’re not already using it. To continue importing goods, businesses must use the Customs Declaration Service to make import declarations, after 30 September this year.
HMRC is writing to more than 220,000 VAT-registered businesses with information on how to move onto the Customs Declaration Service, if they are not already using it.
The Customs Declaration Service has been running since 2018 and should now be used for making import declarations when moving goods into the UK. The service will replace the old Customs Handling Import and Export Freight (CHIEF), representing a significant upgrade by providing businesses with a more user-friendly, streamlined system that offers greater functionality.
This marks the first step towards the government’s vision of a Single Trade Window, which will have considerable benefits for businesses through reduced form-filling, better data use across government and a smoother experience for users.
Businesses with a customs agent must make sure they are ready to make their import declarations on the Customs Declaration Service by 30 September. Those without a customs agent must set themselves up to make their own declarations using software that works with the system before the 30 September deadline.
Lots of businesses use a customs agent to make declarations on their behalf. If businesses want to hire one, they can find a list of customs agents on GOV.UK. This list is regularly updated to show which agents are ready to use the Customs Declaration Service.
Larger businesses, such as freight forwarders and hauliers, must start working with their software developer, community service provider or agent to begin the migration process now.
Carol Bristow, HMRC’s Director General for Borders and Trade, said:
There is only just over three months to go until CHIEF closes for import declarations and all businesses will need to use the Customs Declaration Service instead. It is incredibly important that businesses move across to the system as soon as possible. There is plenty of support and guidance available to help businesses make the move.
It takes businesses time to move across onto the Customs Declaration Service depending on the size and nature of their business so they must start the process now to ensure that they are fully set up ahead of the 30 September deadline.
Postal operators, such as Royal Mail, will continue to make customs declarations on behalf of UK small businesses who receive goods from abroad by post, and inform them of any tax or duty owed.
To help all businesses and agents prepare for the Customs Declaration Service, more information is available on GOV.UK, including a Customs Declaration Service toolkit and checklists, which break down the steps traders need to take. Traders can also register or check they have access to the Customs Declaration Service on GOV.UK and access live customer support services for additional help.
The Customs Declaration Service will become the UK’s single customs platform after 31 March 2023, replacing CHIEF. After 31 March, businesses will have to use the Customs Declaration Service to make export declarations for goods they send out of the UK.
There is more information about using the Customs Declaration Service on GOV.UK.