Tag Archives: HM Government

The Department of Health has confirmed the appointment of Professor Jonathan Van-Tam as the new Deputy Chief Medical Officer for England.

Professor Van-Tam will take up the position on 2 October 2017. He replaces Professor John Watson who is retiring after 4 years in the role.

The Deputy Chief Medical Officers are senior public health leaders who support the Chief Medical Officer – the most senior adviser on health and medicine to the UK government.

Professor Van-Tam is an internationally recognised flu, vaccine and respiratory expert. During his 25-year career, he has advised the World Health Organization, the UK Government and The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control on influenza and other respiratory virus infections.

He graduated in medicine from the University of Nottingham in 1987, trained in public health medicine from 1991, and became a Senior Lecturer at the University of Nottingham in 1997.

In addition to publishing 150 scientific papers, Professor Van Tam has also held the following posts:

• 2004 to 2007: Head of the Pandemic Influenza Office at the UK Health Protection Agency
• 2005 to 2009: part of the UK national Scientific Pandemic Influenza Committee (SPI)
• 2007 to 2017: consultant to the World Health Organization on influenza
• 2007 to date: Professor of Health Protection at the University of Nottingham
• 2009 to 2010: part of the UK Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (SAGE) during the influenza pandemic
• 2010 to 2017: leader of the WHO Collaborating Centre for Pandemic Influenza and Research
• 2013 to 2017: Editor-in-Chief of Influenza and Other Respiratory Viruses
• 2014 to date: Chair of the UK Government’s New and Emerging Respiratory Virus Threat Advisory Group (NERVTAG).

Professor Van-Tam said:

It is a great honour to be given the opportunity to serve as the Deputy Chief Medical Officer for England. I am looking forward to the work ahead with enormous enthusiasm.

Professor Dame Sally Davies, Chief Medical Officer said:

I would like to congratulate Professor Van-Tam on his appointment. His track record speaks for itself; he will bring a wealth of experience and expertise to the role and I look forward to working closely with him.

Professor John Watson has been a fantastic Deputy Chief Medical Officer. I would like to thank him for his huge contribution to public health and for his expert support.

A public consultation on additional information to support an application by Dover Harbour Board (DHB) for aggregate dredging activity off the Kent coast closed on 28 September 2017. The MMO recognises there is a high level of public interest in this … read more

MHRA and Care Quality Commission (CQC) set out key principles to support their collaboration on improving public health.

Ofsted has today (29 September) published a new 5 year strategy.

The strategy, developed in conjunction with serving heads, teachers, and social workers from around the country, sets out how Ofsted will deliver its mission of improving the lives of children and young people.

The strategy centres on a fundamental guiding principle that the organisation will be:

“A force for improvement through intelligent, responsible and focused inspection and regulation”.

The strategy describes how Ofsted will conduct inspection and regulation that is:

• intelligent: our work will be evidence-led and our evaluation tools and frameworks will be valid and reliable.

• responsible: our frameworks will be fair. We will seek to reduce inspection burdens and make our expectations and findings clear

• focused: we will target our time and resources where they can lead directly to improvement

The principle will be underpinned by 3 core values:

• children, young people and learners first

• independence

• accountability and transparency

The strategy commits to an ambitious programme of work, which will inform the 2019 inspection framework development. Ofsted is currently undertaking a series of parent focus groups to understand how our reports can provide more information and enable choice. Ofsted will undertake research and learn from others to ensure that Ofsted is reliably measuring the right things, and that these measures add up to a meaningful overall judgement. For example an international seminar on the validity of lesson observation in November which will inform future practice, and research is being undertaken on the impact of the current grading structure.

Amanda Spielman, Chief Inspector of Ofsted, said:

I am pleased to announce our new corporate strategy, which will set Ofsted’s direction during my tenure as Chief Inspector. I am determined that Ofsted will be a force for improvement.

By really drilling down on how, where and why we inspect and report, we can ensure that inspection and regulation are more than the sum of their parts. One of our greatest strengths is our bird’s eye view of the education, training and care systems. Over my time in office, we will do more to aggregate the insights from individual inspections, so that we can better encourage and support improvement across all the areas we inspect and regulate.

This high-reaching strategy commits us to inspection that is intelligent, responsible and focused. It will allow us to tackle emerging challenges and take advantage of new opportunities, ensuring that we can have maximum impact in improving young people’s lives.

Julius Weinberg, Chair of Ofsted, said:

With our new Chief Inspector, Amanda Spielman well established in post, and Ofsted celebrating its 25th anniversary this is the ideal time to set out our new 5 year strategy. We have taken this opportunity to ensure that our strategy is evidence based and takes account of the wider environment; educational, political and economic.

The strategy is the product of significant engagement with both our inspection workforce and those we inspect. Through that engagement we have been able to build a clear picture of where Ofsted adds most value and what more we need to do to fulfil our mission of being a force for improvement.

The strategy also recognises the vital importance of Ofsted’s independence and commits it to being transparent and accountable in all its work, just as others are held others to account by Ofsted.

Environment Secretary Michael Gove met representatives from Northern Ireland’s food and farming sectors today to discuss the future of their industries outside the EU.

Following a meeting with industry leaders including the Northern Ireland Agricultural Producers Association, Northern Ireland Environment Link and Northern Ireland Food and Drink Association amongst others in Stormont, the Environment Secretary visited a local farm hosted by members of the Ulster Farmers Union.

The visit was an opportunity to discuss the key opportunities and challenges facing the sector ahead of EU exit, and for regional industry leaders to share their ambitions and expectations for future farming policy as we prepare to leave the European Union.

Speaking after the meetings, Environment Secretary Michael Gove said:

Food and drink is the leading sector in the Northern Ireland economy, employing tens-of-thousands people and generating around £5 billion from food sales alone.

As we prepare to leave the EU, we have the chance to design a new approach to food and farming that works for the whole of the UK, not least for Northern Ireland.

Today’s meeting with agricultural leaders was a chance to hear first-hand from them as we move towards life outside the EU. We will continue to work closely with industry to ensure we grasp the opportunities that leaving the EU presents.

The roundtables held today are part of a series of ongoing engagements across all parts of the UK ahead of EU exit.

ENDS