A South Wales project will receive a share of a £17million UK Government fund to help prevent and address violence against women and girls.

The UK Government has today announced that it will award £1.4million to the South Wales Police and Crime Commissioner for their Violence Against Women and Girls in South Wales Programme.

The grant is awarded through the UK Government’s Violence Against Women and Girls Service Transformation Fund. It is designed to promote projects which are leading the way in stopping violence before it happens, preventing abusive behaviour from becoming entrenched, and establishing the best ways to help victims and their families.

In South Wales, £1.4 million will go to a wide-ranging programme of support using the ‘Change that Lasts’ framework. This includes rolling out the ‘Ask Me’ scheme through which up to 30 ‘community ambassadors’ will be trained to identify the signs of abuse and to provide safe spaces within communities where women can report it.

Secretary of State for Wales Alun Cairns said:

Ending violence against women and girls is a priority for the UK Government.

Everyone has a right to live in safety and without fear and this UK Government funding for the South Wales Police and Crime Commissioner will provide victims with immediate support to ensure they can feel safe and secure.

I am proud of what the UK Government has achieved so far to tackle violence against women. But it is a complex problem that we are unable to solve alone. That is why we are sending a clear message to local agencies – including police and local authorities – that tacking violence against women and girls should be a priority for them too.

By working together and confronting these vile crimes we will find ways to beat them. I am determined to see a future where no woman or girl need live in fear. The Violence against Women and Girls Transformation Fund brings us one step closer to reaching that destination.

As part of the early intervention work and to break the cycle of violence, the UK Government is working with local authorities on changing the attitudes and behaviours of perpetrators, to make sure rehabilitation, mental health interventions and other appropriate perpetrator programmes are in place.

The funding for successful bids was announced today in a speech by the Home Secretary to the Women’s Aid conference to members in Coventry.

Home Secretary Amber Rudd said:

Tackling violence against women and girls is ‘everyone’s business’. It needs a joined-up, collaborative response locally, providing support to victims through health, education and social care, as well as the police.

These projects will help ensure that victims and survivors get the right support at the right time, as well as intervening early to prevent these crimes from happening in the first place.

Violence Against Women and Girls devastates the lives of victims and families and this Government will continue to do all it can to protect people from these horrendous crimes.

Today’s announcement represents a further demonstration of the UK Government’s commitment to tackling violence against women and girls and follows confirmation in the recent Queen’s Speech of the forthcoming Domestic Violence and Abuse Bill.

It will include a consolidated new domestic abuse civil prevention and protection order, and enshrine a definition of domestic abuse in law. It will establish a Domestic Violence and Abuse Commissioner to stand up for victims and survivors.

The legislation will allow the Government to ratify the Istanbul Convention, which will enable UK courts to prosecute British citizens for domestic abuse regardless of where in the world the offence was committed.

The Bill will also ensure that if abusive behaviour involves a child, then the court can hand down a sentence which reflects the devastating and life-long impact that abuse can have.

In the last Parliament, the UK Government published its strategy to end violence against women and girls, making clear that everyone needs to play their part – friends, family, employers, health providers and the police. It also introduced a specific offence of controlling or coercive behaviour.

Notes to editors

• The VAWG Strategy, published in March 2016, committed to launching a VAWG Service Transformation Fund as part of the £80million pledged to support the Government’s commitment to tackling VAWG and ensuring victims and survivors get the support they need. Following an additional £20million announced in the Spring Budget, we have now pledged £100million in funding over the Spending Review period.

Responding to the Scottish GDP figures published today, which show 0.8 per cent growth in the Scottish Economy in 2017’s first quarter, the Secretary of State for Scotland, David Mundell said:

These are very encouraging figures. The Scottish economy is returning to growth and I am pleased to see that the manufacturing sector in particular is making the most of export opportunities.

But, over the year, Scotland has continued to lag behind the UK as a whole – so there is still a lot of work to do.

The Scottish Government has extensive powers at their disposal to grow and support the economy and these figures underline the need for our two governments to work together as we prepare to leave the EU.

Brexit will bring new opportunities. We need to ensure Scottish business can take full advantage.

The UK Government is taking concerted action to build a strong economy across all parts of the UK. This includes work on our modern Industrial Strategy, City Deals and supporting businesses beyond the UK market to reach markets around the world through our global network of embassy-based trade experts.

The Scottish Government have the powers to support the country’s economy, including powers over economic development, taxation, skills, as well as additional borrowing powers to allow them to invest where Scotland needs it.

The Scottish Government should be using these to grow the economy alongside the UK, rather than creating huge business uncertainty with the threat of another independence referendum.

Over the past year the UK Government has added over £1 billion to the Scottish Government’s Budget through extra Barnett consequentials. There was an extra £820m in the 2016 Autumn Statement and a further £350m in the 2017 Spring Budget.

The Department for International Trade (DIT) is working to promote shared UK prosperity by financing international trade and investment, and championing free trade across the world.

DIT has worked with Scottish Development International and Highlands & Islands Enterprise on two Exporting is Great tours of Scotland. We will continue to work together helping companies to potentially expand from London into Scotland and across the United Kingdom.

In 2015/16 Scotland benefitted from 108 new Foreign Direct Investment projects, creating 4,178 jobs.

The UK Government has loaned start-up companies in Scotland millions to help businesses.

Sir Simon McDonald, Permanent Under Secretary and Head of Her Majesty’s British Diplomatic Service is on a visit to Dar es Salaam helping to cement the close relationship between Tanzania and the UK, Tanzania’s number one foreign direct investor.

During his 2 day visit, the top diplomat will meet Tanzania’s Foreign Minister Dr Augustine Mahiga and the Permanent Secretary for Trade, Industry and Investment, Prof Mkenda to discuss bilateral issues, investment opportunities and how the UK can further partner with Tanzania. He will visit the Dar es Salaam port to see the port improvement programme funded by the UK’s Department for International Development (DFID) through Trade Mark East Africa and the World Bank, and UK Border Force security assistance with UNODC .

He will meet representatives from the private sector including Ali Mufuruki, head of the Tanzania CEO Round Table, as well as academia and civil society. He will also have the opportunity to listen to the views of some of Tanzania’s young people when he meets DFID’s Youth Panel, a group of young Tanzanian volunteers who advise DFID on policy.

Sir Simon’s visit is part of a regional tour to Rwanda, Uganda and Tanzania.

Speaking ahead of Sir Simon’s visit, British High Commissioner Sarah Cooke said:

This is Sir Simon’s first visit to Tanzania and a chance for him to see, first hand, the strength of the UK/Tanzania partnership across a range of areas. I am delighted he is able to visit Tanzania at this time.

Sir Simon joined the British Diplomatic Service in 1982 and has served in Berlin, Jeddah, Riyadh, Bonn, Washington and Tel Aviv, and in a wide range of jobs in London. Before taking up the role of PUS, Sir Simon served as the British Ambassador to Berlin from 2010 to 2015, the Prime Minister’s Foreign Policy Adviser and Head of Foreign and Defence Policy in the Cabinet Office from 2007 to 2010. From 2003 to 2006 he was British Ambassador to Israel. He was appointed Knight Commander of the Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George in 2014.

Local roads are set to benefit from a share in a multi-billion pound improvement fund as part of a landmark investment strategy unveiled by Transport Secretary Chris Grayling.

The Transport investment strategy sets out a new long-term approach for government infrastructure spending — meaning cash will be targeted at projects that help rebalance the economy.

And it features the proposed creation of a new major road network, which would see a share of the annual National Road Fund, funded by VED, given to local authorities to improve or replace the most important A roads under their management.

The plans aim to improve productivity and connectivity of towns and cities across the country — tackling bottlenecks and traffic jams for road users, and taking away the misery of lorries and through-traffic thundering through rural villages on main roads.

The scheme will also aim to help people get to work or school by better connecting towns and cities, unlock land for new homes, and improve business links — forming a crucial strand of the government’s strategy to rebalance the economy by ensuring wealth is spread across the UK and not just concentrated in the south-east of England.

Transport Secretary Chris Grayling said:

Getting transport spending right is crucial for the country’s future.

The transport investment strategy sets out a blueprint for how we can harness the power of transport investment to drive balanced economic growth, unlock new housing projects, and support the government’s modern industrial strategy.

This government is taking the big transport decisions for Britain’s future like HS2 and Heathrow, while delivering the biggest investment in roads and rail for a generation.

At the heart of our approach is a plan to make transport work for the people who use it and for the wider economy.

The strategy sets out how investment can deliver a stronger, fairer Britain — with priority for projects which cut congestion, support growth, boost Britain’s global competitiveness or unlock new housing.

The proposals for the major road network respond to the Rees Jeffreys Road Fund study last year, which highlighted the disparity between the funding and planning of Britain’s motorways — the strategic road network — and local authority A roads.

The new plans mean that main roads currently overseen by local authorities would share the VED funded National Roads Fund which was previously envisaged to be ring-fenced for national routes. UK VED was £5.8 billion for 2016-17.

The ‘Transport investment strategy’ also plans for a new ‘rebalancing’ measure, which will judge how investment programmes contribute to a more balanced economy, and prioritises investment that increases productivity or growth, supports new housing, improves reliability and tackles congestion. Investment should support every part of the country, and, where needed, fast track smaller schemes that are proven solutions so passengers and drivers get the benefits more quickly.

It is set to form a vital part of the modern industrial strategy and builds on the progress made in recent years of upgrading the road and rail network. The government is investing more than £61 billion over the 5 years to 2020-21 and has already taken big decisions on transformational projects like HS2 and announced our preference for a new runway at Heathrow.

The transport investment strategy sets out why investing in transport infrastructure matters and the priorities for future investment. Under 4 separate themes, it sets out propositions to guide future transport investment decision making.

Ensuring our investment consistently meets the needs of users and helps to create a balanced economy

• we will prioritise:
  • reliability and congestion
  • economic growth
  • UK competitiveness
  • housing
• investment should support every part of the country, including taking account of the balance of spending between different regions

Getting best value out of the network and our investment

• prioritising value for money
• getting the most from existing assets
• continuing to seek contributions from those who stand to benefit to support transport funding
• attracting more private finance

Maintaining a resolute focus on delivery

• prioritising predictable funding and a stable long-term pipeline of projects
• ensuring all schemes considered for funding take a pragmatic approach to delivery challenges
• where appropriate, prioritising smaller schemes which deliver quickly

Adaptability in the face of change

• where there is uncertainty, we will prioritise projects that are adaptable to change
• putting the UK at the forefront of new transport technology

We have made significant progress in realising our ambitious plans for transport infrastructure, built on the investment of over £61 billion in the 5 year period to 2021. We have taken big decisions on transformational projects like HS2 and our preferred option for a new runway at Heathrow, and are part way through delivering major investment programmes to maintain and upgrade our road and rail networks.

I am today (5 July 2017) publishing a Transport investment strategy, setting out how we will build on that progress and – through the investment decisions we go on to take – how we will respond realistically and pragmatically to today’s challenges and deliver a transport network that works for everyone.

The decisions we take now will shape the transport network for decades to come and help to determine the contribution that transport can make to our national success and wellbeing. The ‘Transport investment strategy’ describes:

• what we are trying to achieve through our investment in transport infrastructure
• the priorities and propositions that will guide future investment decisions
• the institutional frameworks within which those decisions will be taken
• the actions we are taking to help meet our ambitions

I want our investment to:

• create a more reliable, less congested and better connected transport network that works for the users that rely on it
• build a stronger, more balanced economy by enhancing productivity and responding to local growth priorities
• enhance our global competitiveness by making Britain a more attractive place to trade and invest
• support the creation of new housing

As we shape and deliver the balanced investment programmes that deliver these objectives, we will be guided by a set of priorities and propositions that put the needs of transport users at the heart of decision making, whilst getting the best value out of the network and our investment, retaining a resolute focus on delivery and remaining adaptable in the face of change.

As part of the strategy I am announcing my intention to launch a consultation on the creation of a new Major Road Network (MRN) for the most important local authority A roads. This would mirror the success of the Strategic Road Network which has created planning and funding certainty for motorways and major dual carriageways, and would mean our most important local authority A roads were actively planned and managed to deliver a better service for drivers. As part of this consultation, we will make proposals to allocate a proportion of the National Roads Fund to the MRN.

I am also determined that, through our investment, we should go further in helping to raise prosperity and productivity across the country. In the Industrial strategy green paper, the government committed to taking account of the balance of spending per head between different regions. In addition, we will develop a new assessment standard that will require transport investment programmes to be judged on how they contribute towards the creation of a more balanced economy, as part of the assessment of their strategic case.

I have placed copies of the document in the libraries of both Houses.

Government launches transport investment plan for Britain press release, 5 July 2017.