Prime Minister’s opening remarks at Cabinet: 17 May 2022

Good morning, everybody.

Thank you very much.

The crucial duty of our Government is to make our communities safer, which is what we are doing.

That’s why we put, of the 20,000 police that we promised at the 2019 election, we’ve already put 13,576 on the streets.

They are bringing down neighbourhood crime and that’s a great thing to see. But we’ve got more to do.

We want to make sure our streets are safer and we will round up those county lines drugs gangs with Project ADDER, taking the criminals off the streets, stopping the deaths of young people from knife crime and gun crime.

But what we’re also doing is making sure that we give everybody the confidence that we are on their side when it comes to the law and their experiences of crimes – particularly crimes of sexual and domestic violence – and we want to see more prosecutions for those who engage in such crimes.

We want to see more rapists brought to justice.

I’m pleased to see the facts. Several of you across the table have been working very, very hard and we are starting to see progress.

This matters deeply to me. It matters to our government.

It’s vital to every person, it’s vital to every woman and every girl in the country that we get this right and I want to see more progress on that.

But there’s another reason why it’s so vital to bring down crime by making sure that our streets are safe, which is integral for our project for uniting and levelling up.

It is only when you have safe streets and you have safe communities, that you get the confidence of business to invest and drive jobs and growth and that it is absolutely critical now as we deal with the aftermaths of COVID and we help people with their current costs and we take the economy through a difficult patch.

That is why cutting crime is integral to our economic mission as well.

Making our streets safer is absolutely vital.

May I just say – on that point – that today I am very pleased to see that unemployment is now at the lowest level it has been since 1974 and to borrow a phrase from the Chancellor of the Exchequer…our plan for jobs is working.

Crime crime crime is what we want to focus on.

Making our streets safer.

Thank you very much.



Transport Manager scams

Press release

In a worrying recent case in the West Midlands, Traffic Commissioner Nick Denton revoked the licence of CCS Waste Ltd.

The Traffic Commissioner found that the company was essentially acting as a front for the disqualified operator Jones Waste Services Ltd, with a similar disregard for safe and legal operating practices.

The commissioner disqualified CCS Waste Ltd’s previous transport manager, Christopher Staples, indefinitely, after he had found that Mr Staples had “failed to exercise continuous and effective management to the extent that he did not realise that operations had commenced. When he did, he brazenly offered himself as a flag of convenience transport manager, a name on the licence to give the outward (but false) impression that a transport manager was in charge.”

The commissioner criticised as particularly “damning” an email exchange between Shaun McCarron and Christopher Staples in which Mr Staples said that he charged “£500 per month for my name to be on [the licence].”

Denton also heard that Staples’ successor as transport manager, Lori Wheeldon, had in effect been prevented by the operator from taking up her responsibilities, although she should have tried harder to do so. This was of particular concern because he had made it quite clear in his decision on Jones Waste Services Ltd that if Shaun McCarron was involved with any future application he must engage the services of a competent transport manager. Mr McCarron had in effect ignored this stipulation by the device of “employing” two successive transport managers who were given absolutely no responsibilities in the business and who were virtually never physically present. Mr. Denton concluded: “He clearly treated the post of transport manager as an inconvenience which I (and the law) had imposed upon the company and which was not to be taken seriously. The result was, unsurprisingly, a simple continuation of all the shortcomings of the previous, revoked, Jones Waste licence.”

The commissioner disqualified both CCS Waste Ltd and Shaun McCarron from holding an operator’s licence for three years.

Further details can be found here.

Published 17 May 2022



Environment Agency launches consultation on facility in Horsham

Press release

The Environment Agency issues a permit variation to add mechanical sorting and an energy recovery facility to an existing site in Horsham.

Environment Agency officer

An Environment Agency officer on site

After reviewing more than 130 comments and scrutinising evidence, the Environment Agency is ‘minded to’ issue a permit variation to add mechanical sorting and an energy recovery facility to an existing site off Langhurstwood Road, Horsham, which is operated by Britaniacrest Recycling Limited.

Michael Turner, Area Environment Manager for the Environment Agency, said:

We have carefully considered all of the documents provided by Britaniacrest Recycling Limited as well as relevant matters raised by members of the public. The Environment Agency is satisfied that the appropriate measures are in place to operate the energy recovery facility without causing harm to the environment or human health.

Before we make a final decision, we would like to invite members of the public to read our draft decision document and permit variation and let us know of any further information relating to any potential impact on the environment or public health you would like us to consider.

Two online documents have been produced which can be commented on as part of the consultation: the draft decision document and the draft permit variation. The draft decision document explains the Environment Agency’s thought process and how it has taken on board the comments received in the first consultation. The draft permit variation outlines the conditions the operator would have to meet.

Only issues covered by the environmental permit can be considered in this consultation. All relevant comments will be reviewed before a final decision is made whether to issue an environmental permit variation.

Published 17 May 2022



Dominic Raab speaks to officers at the Prison Officers’ Association conference

I’m really sorry I can’t be with you all today, but I wanted to record this message for your first in-person conference since the start of the pandemic.

And in particular, I really wanted to take the opportunity to thank all of you, every single one of you, for your incredible hard work, your outstanding dedication during such a tough set of times.

Prison officers, I know, may not always be in the public eye in the same way that police officers, doctors and nurses are. But I’ve got no doubt, and I’ve seen first-hand, that you’re at the front line of our defences when it comes to protecting the public and you do an outstanding, amazing job.

I’d like to see all of you at the front line get more recognition for that incredible work you’ve done, both during the pandemic and more generally.

Throughout COVID-19, you’ve done more than ever to demonstrate why – in my view at least – you are the unsung heroes across our justice system.

I’ve been hugely impressed by what I’ve seen in the nine prisons I’ve visited so far since I became Justice Secretary.

At Category A prisons like HMP Franklin and Woodhill, I saw the extraordinary security challenges that the governors, Darren Finley and Nicola Marfleet, face in dealing with some of the most serious offenders, including radicalised terrorists and dangerous gangsters.

You guys and your teams, work incredibly hard in what is a very precarious environment, to see the early signs of terrorist risks, to nip them in the bud, to stop the spread of poisonous ideologies, and ultimately help us protect the public.

Of course, in many of those other prisons where the focus is more on rehabilitation, I’ve seen the vital role that governors and staff play in getting prisoners off drugs, getting them skilled up, and getting them into work.

From the marketing call centre that I saw at HMP High Down, to HMP Ford, where prisoners get the chance to work as HGV drivers when they’re on ROTL. And from HMP Hatfield’s farm shop and the recycling centre, to the working farm and timber processing at HMP Prescoed. From the barbers and bike repair shop at HMP Five Wells, to the mechanics and the cleaning workshop at Wandsworth.

I’ve seen the great potential that we’ve got, and that you’re grasping in prison, to use inmates’ time in a more constructive way, to get them the skills, get them back into work, which is ultimately the way we’ll get them back onto the straight and narrow and reduce reoffending and protect communities around the country.

And, you know, I’m really struck by the conversations that I’ve had with offenders that I’ve met, who are able and willing to take that opportunity to start to turn their lives around.

And I know it’s a long haul, and there’ll be ups and downs for many offenders, but getting prisoners off drugs for good through sustainable recovery, getting them the skills, the training, the work experience they need to go straight, those are two of my very top priorities.

And of course, they’re critical elements in helping those offenders to turn their lives around, and that keeps our streets safer with fewer victims. So the public really do owe you all a debt of gratitude. And I want to say thank you for all that amazing work that you do.

And of course, when I look forward at the agenda that we’ve got ahead of us over the next year, that’s why we’re going to be assessing offenders for any addiction they’ve got from the moment they arrive, so that the treatment plans we put in place, including expanded use of drug recovery wings, a greater focus on abstinence, all of those things can be put in place straight away and strengthen the rehabilitation work you’re doing.

And of course, we’re going to have a zero-tolerance approach to drugs in prisons, clamping down on the illicit items being smuggled in.

We’re enhancing our prison security with a lot of technology that’s been funded by £100 million of new investment, including the state-of-the-art X-ray scanners across the whole closed male adult estate. I’ve seen them work first-hand and I’m convinced that they will help reduce the violence and help keep prison officers, as well as offenders, safer.

And, of course, we’ll continue to build on our partnership with you at a national level, and between prison governors and local branches of the POA, to create prisons that are better, safer, and which, as I said, through all the work we’re doing, will help drive down reoffending relentlessly.

I now want to pass over to our brilliant Prisons Minister, Victoria Atkins, to take you through some of the detail of our strategy. But again, from the bottom of my heart, through COVID and all the other work that we’re doing, thank you so much for the outstanding job you’re doing, and I look forward to seeing many more of you in the weeks and months ahead.



The PCA publishes new and improved arbitration quarterly report.

The PCA has today published its new Pubs Code Arbitration Quarterly Report, for the period January to March 2022. This latest improvement follows the appointment of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators (CIArb) as the sole provider of the PCA’s arbitration referral service.

Continuing to build on the recommendations of independent research into PCA communications, this report gives a picture of progress over time providing a comparison to the previous quarter and total for the year. Significantly, it provides more detail on the types of disputes referred for arbitration, the outcome, and duration. It also gives the industry more information to compare by pub company.

For example, the new style Quarterly Report enables the industry to see that Stonegate and Star, the two pub companies who had the highest number of cases at the end of last quarter (31 December 2021) have notably closed a number of cases this quarter. This has had a positive impact on the total open cases. Star continues to have the most open disputes. The majority of arbitrations (15 across all pub companies) ended this quarter with the parties agreeing a Market Rent Only tenancy.

This first report shows the number of open arbitrations continuing to fall, the majority of which are about the Market Rent Only full response. The PCA has focused on improving compliance and reducing disputes in this area, including the [MRO Compliance Record and Declaration(https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/regulatory-compliance-handbook-market-rent-only-proposals) introduced in November 2019, publication of arbitration awards on its website, and the recent consultation on upcoming guidance to reduce financial barriers for tenants taking the MRO option. Recent changes in the law allowing the tenant and pub company more time to negotiate the MRO option before considering arbitration are an opportunity to reduce the need for arbitration further.

The PCA continues to work with CIArb in ensuring arbitrators follow the standards introduced in April 2021 to ensure parties receive an efficient and quality service. CIArb is currently developing arbitrator training and assessment to ensure arbitrators considered by the PCA for appointment have demonstrated their knowledge of Pubs Code arbitrations to a required standard.

Fiona Dickie, Pubs Code Adjudicator, said:

“I am pleased to be launching the PCA’s new-style quarterly arbitration report, which offers more meaningful insights for the industry on Pubs Code arbitrations. I think it is right that the PCA publishes more detailed data, such as about arbitration outcomes, and to enable comparisons to be made by pub company. It is encouraging to see the number of open arbitrations continuing to fall. We nevertheless continue our work to ensure that where arbitration is required, the parties receive a quality service.”

Note: The quarterly arbitration report replaces the PCA Arbitration Data – Quarterly Release. Total number of enquiries received is no longer reported on a quarterly basis. The updated PCA arbitration information publication policy can be found here.

Keep up to date