Environment Agency officers visit each bathing water beach from May to September every year to see what levels of bacteria are present in the water. Officers use results to maintain and improve bathing water quality. Across Tendring, the majority of beaches have “good” or “excellent” water quality, based on regular water sampling by specially trained officers from the Environment Agency.

A huge amount of work has been carried out with partners at bathing waters across the area to maintain and improve water quality. As part of this, additional sampling is taking place at Clacton bathing water to help us obtain a clearer picture of pollution sources. A period of testing is being conducted this week, with samples of groundwater being taken from under the beach.

John Daniels, Senior Environment Officer, said:

Tendring’s bathing waters were generally of a very high standard, with excellent and good ratings for most beaches.

Samples are taken regularly throughout the bathing water season and this enables us to check they are safe for people to enjoy. We know how much people like going to the beach and the great benefit this has on the local economy. We will continue our work to ensure these standards are upheld.

We are working closely with partners to try and establish the cause of bathing water quality issues at Clacton. Investigations have led us to believe that contaminated groundwater is the most likely source of the problem.

We will continue to investigate the pollution sources at the beach to help improve water quality. The public can also do their bit to keep our beaches clean. Last month the Environment Agency and partners continued their #binit4beaches campaign to encourage people to help keep beaches clean by always putting wet wipes in the bin – not flushing them.

Full details of the water quality results for Clacton and all bathing waters can be found at the Environment Agency’s bathing water quality data page: Bathing water quality page

Countries, organisations and territories invited by Department for International Trade Defence and Security Organisation (DIT DSO) to attend Defence and Security Equipment International (DSEI) 2017:

• Algeria
• Australia
• Austria
• Bahrain
• Bangladesh
• Belgium
• Botswana
• Brazil
• Brunei
• Bulgaria
• Canada
• Chile
• Colombia
• Czech
• Denmark
• Egypt
• Estonia
• Finland
• France
• Germany
• India
• Indonesia
• Italy
• Japan
• Kenya
• Korea (Rep of)
• Kuwait
• Latvia
• Lithuania
• Malaysia
• Mexico
• Netherlands
• New Zealand
• Norway
• Oman
• Pakistan
• Panama
• Peru
• Philippines
• Poland
• Portugal
• Qatar
• Romania
• Saudi Arabia
• Singapore
• South Africa
• Spain
• Sweden
• Switzerland
• Taiwan
• Thailand
• Turkey
• UAE
• Ukraine
• USA
• Vietnam

The new advice focuses on the risks around property and registration fraud, and supplements a range of existing resources, training, practice notes and updates provided by both organisations to combat fraud and scams.

Law Society President Joe Egan said:

While successful instances of fraud against solicitors are rare, the whole profession must maintain constant vigilance against those who try to defraud them.

Graham Farrant, HM Land Registry Chief Executive and Chief Land Registrar, said:

Property is an attractive target to criminals due to its high value. As well as financial loss, a fraudulent property transaction also creates emotional distress for home owners and prospective buyers. Our priority is to ensure the integrity of the Land Register by preventing fraudulent registrations.

The advice sets out a number of emerging fraud threats, detailing the ways criminals are attempting to defraud conveyancing solicitors and providing case studies to illustrate potential warning signs of land fraud.

It also directs solicitors to a number of resources to help them carry out checks needed to prevent fraud.

Joe Egan said:

Solicitors have an important role to play in protecting themselves and their clients from fraud – while it can seem a burden, it is part of the extra value our clients know they get when dealing with a solicitor.

Graham Farrant continued:

Fraud is becoming an increasingly significant issue and is now the most commonly experienced crime in the UK, with 3.5 million cases reported in the Office for National Statistics crime survey last year. We need to continue to work closely with conveyancing solicitors to ensure the necessary checks and safeguards are in place to beat the fraudsters. This joint practice note will assist all parties involved in the house buying process to effectively tackle fraud.

The advice can be found on the Law Society website.

Solicitors can also find resources on combating fraud and scams.

Law Society of England and Wales

Oliver Searle
Oliver.Searle@LawSociety.org.uk
020 7316 5624

The Minister for Africa Rory Stewart said:

The UK warmly congratulates President-elect João Lourenço and commends the Angolan people on the peaceful environment in which the elections were held.

The UK looks forward to working with the new Angolan government to strengthen further our relationship in what will be a new era of opportunities for both countries.

A further 19 hospitals across England have been given a cash injection of over £13 million for emergency care, in the latest wave of winter funding announced today by Health Minister Philip Dunne.

Around £13 million has been awarded to improve patient flow through A&E, ensuring departments are prepared for busy times during winter. The additional funding brings the total given to hospitals since April to over £90 million, part of the dedicated funding announced in the Spring Budget.

Minister of State for Health Philip Dunne said:

Thanks to the hard work and dedication of staff, the NHS has put in place strong plans ahead of winter – ensuring patients continue to receive safe and efficient care as demand rises over the coming months.

This funding will give more hospitals the boost they need to streamline patient flow in A&E, freeing up A&Es to care for the sickest patients and helping make sure all patients get the right treatment in the right place as quickly as possible.

The funding will be used to help hospitals finalise preparations ahead of winter, particularly to handle the large volumes of patients attending A&E. By investing in the necessary equipment or infrastructure, hospitals will be able to target improvements to patient flow and relieve pressure on A&E.

The funding supports NHS England’s wider plans to improve A&E performance in England by 2018. In particular, it will help hospitals hit the target of admitting, transferring or discharging 95% of patients within 4 hours.

List of agreed proposals