A project to establish standardised metrics to measure environmental performance of the food and drink sector has been launched by the Environment Agency.

The Environment Agency – working in partnership with the Institute for Manufacturing at the University of Cambridge, Scottish Environment Protection Agency, Northern Ireland Environment Agency, Waste and Resources Action Programme and the British Standards Institute – is aiming to make it simpler for businesses and for the public to understand the environmental performance of companies in key areas such as greenhouse gas reduction and resource efficiency.

The initiative will help manufacturers to more effectively communicate their environmental performance to the public, minimising the opportunity for green washing.

It is also hoped that it will incentivise companies toward greener manufacturing processes and business operations helping to tackle climate change.

Project lead Becca Tremain, of the Environment Agency, said:

One of the big challenges for food businesses trying to mitigate climate change is how to communicate their environmental performance that goes beyond legal compliance effectively and efficiently.

Different food businesses have developed and adopted various environmental metrics and it can be time-consuming for food businesses to collect data from different supplier systems.

This project seeks to address this challenge by standardising environmental metrics for food businesses that go beyond legal compliance.

It aims to provide an effective and efficient solution to enable the automation of environmental performance data transfer across different food businesses.

The project has been made possible by a £195,000 grant from the £3.7 million Regulators’ Pioneer Fund launched by The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS).

The fund enables UK regulators and local authorities to help create a UK regulatory environment that unleashes innovation and makes the UK the best place to start and grow a business.

The partnership will be working with IEMA, the Institute of Environmental Management and Assessment, trade associations and private sector organisations including Sainsbury’s, Nestle, Cranswick, 2 Sisters and Vitacress to understand and ensure the feasibility of the metrics.

Sarah Mukherjee, Chief Executive of IEMA, said:

Measuring the environmental performance of the food and drink sector is a complex task, but a vital one given the size and economic significance of the sector.

IEMA is uniquely positioned to contribute to the challenge given the expertise of its members in developing approaches to both understanding and mitigating the environmental impacts of supply chains across all areas of the economy.

The Regulators’ Pioneer Fund is part of wider government work on regulation. This includes the recent Reforming the Framework for Better Regulation consultation, and the Better Regulation Committee, chaired by the Chancellor, which is driving an ambitious reform agenda to ensure the UK’s regulatory framework is fit for purpose and delivers the Government’s strategic objectives in its 25 Year Environment Plan

Business Minister Lord Callanan said:

Good regulation should spur entrepreneurship, not stand in its way, and this project will help keep the UK at the cutting-edge of innovation.

This project aiming to standardise environmental metrics for the food and drink sector could pave the way for exciting developments in the sector, bringing benefits to British businesses and consumers alike.

Microsoft’s President Brad Smith and Eric Schmidt, the former Chief Executive of Google and Chairman of the US National Security Commission on AI, are among some of the top key note speakers at this year’s AI Fest.

Dstl – the science inside UK defence and security – is playing a critical role in helping UK defence understand how it can responsibly and ethically adopt AI.

Dstl provides a world-class capability in applying artificial intelligence, machine learning and data science to defence and security challenges and AI Fest will bring the AI community together from all over the world to discuss the topic of ‘trustworthy AI’.

Professor Steven Meers, the Head of Dstl’s AI Lab, said:

Responsibly harnessing AI is a key challenge for our generation and AI Fest is a great opportunity to bring the UK and our international partners together to share ideas and approaches that will help ensure AI systems are safe, reliable and trustworthy.

Last year we had a fantastic event where we had over 1700 people attending and an amazing line up of speakers from all over the world. This year will build upon that success and will enable attendees to hear from some of the world’s leading thinkers and leave inspired by new ideas, practical insights and lessons they can apply in their day to day work.

Over 2 days attendees will be able to engage in nearly 100 talks, pose questions to speakers and listen to panel discussions between AI Experts.

Other keynote speakers include Lawrence Lee, MOD’s 2nd Permanent Undersecretary, General Patrick Sanders, Commander Strategic Command, Lt General Groen, Director of the US Joint AI Centre, and Caroline Bellamy, MOD’s Chief Data Officer.

It is Dstl’s mission to de-mystify the area of AI by helping MOD understand how it can responsibly and ethically adopt AI in order to deter and de-escalate conflict, save lives and reduce harm.

This is the fourth AI Fest which aims to bring together the AI community across government, industry, academia and international partners, where world-leading experts share their experiences including the challenges of military adoption of AI, and we discuss how to build an effective and responsible AI capability.

AI Fest is open to government officials, academics and industry partners who are working in the Defence industry.

Find out more about AI and Dstl’s work and read our series of Biscuit Books, easily-digested guides to the latest thinking and developments in artificial intelligence, data science and machine learning.

• Over £500 million to support hundreds of thousands of people into jobs announced today (Monday)

• Workers leaving the furlough scheme and unemployed people over the age of 50 will be helped back into work

• Those on the lowest wages will also be helped to progress in their careers and existing schemes targeting young people will be extended into next year

Workers leaving the furlough scheme and unemployed people over the age of 50 will be helped back into work as part of more than £500m expansion of the government’s Plan for Jobs.

Those on the lowest wages will also be helped to progress in their careers and existing schemes targeting young people will be extended into next year as part of the new package which could help hundreds of thousands of people into work.

Helping those on the lowest wages

Starting in April 2022, the Government is enhancing its programme of support for workers on Universal Credit. More people who are in work on Universal Credit will be able to access work coach support, which will focus on career progression advice, and Job Centre Plus specialists will work with local employers to identify local opportunities for people to progress in work.

Supporting Older Workers to navigate the next stage of their career

Workers over the age of 50 are also set to benefit from a new enhanced support package to help them to stay in and return to work.

This new package will ensure older workers will receive better information and guidance on later life planning, helping them make informed choices and supporting them to plan their career and remain in work. For those who have lost their jobs, this funding will ensure that older job seekers on Universal Credit receive more intensive, tailored support as they look to take the next step in their career.

The Government is also prioritising support for those coming off furlough and on Universal Credit through the Job Finding Support (JFS) scheme. This scheme provides online, tailored, one-to-one support for people unemployed for less than 3 months, including recruitment advice from a skilled adviser, support with CVs, and, a mock interviews.

In addition, the Government is extending the Job Entry Targeted Support Scheme (JETS) to September 2022; this scheme provides tailored support for people who have been unemployed for over three months.

Supporting young people to fulfil their potential

More young people aged 16-24 and on Universal Credit will be able to benefit from the Kickstart Scheme, which is being extended to March 2022 and will be open to applications from employers and gateways until 17 December 2021. Over 76,900 young people – an average of 3,600 a week – are starting new placements, and this extension will see more young people developing the skills, confidence and experience to support them into long-term sustainable employment.

The government is also extending its Youth Offer to 2025 and expanding eligibility to include 16 and 17 year olds in addition to 18-24 year olds. This provides additional support to unemployed young people on Universal Credit who are searching for work through its Youth Employment Programme, supportive Youth Hubs and specialised employability coaches.

An Apprenticeship offers vital on-the-job training and the chance for apprentices to earn while they learn. We know they work, with around 90% staying in employment or go on to further training.

Today, the Government is also extending its £3000 incentive payment for every apprentice a business hires up until 31 January 2022.

This multi-million expansion of the Plan for Jobs will ensure that people across the country continue to be supported as we enter the next stage of our economic recovery.

Further information

• This package will cost over £500 million. Specific funding for each measure will be confirmed at the Spending Review

Harry Rich has been appointed as the new IPO Chair along with two new Non-Executive Directors, Harriet Kelsall and Hilary Newiss. All three will take up their roles from 1 October 2021 for a period of three years.

They will join existing Steering Board members Andrew Lawrence, Kevin Orford, both of whose appointments have been extended by year (to 30 July 2022 and 27 November 2022 respectively) and Lopa Patel MBE who has been re-appointed for three years (to 3 July 2024) and Laurie Benson.

Harry Rich is currently Registrar of Consultant Lobbyists, Chair of the Valuation Tribunal Service, non-executive director of the Press Recognition Panel and governor of the Glasgow School of Art. He has held a number of senior posts including Chief Executive of the Royal Institute of British Architects and Enterprise UK. He has been a board member of the Advertising Standards Authority and the UK government’s Creative Industries Council.

Harriet Kelsall is one of the most respected bespoke designers and business trailblazers working in the UK jewellery industry. Having finished her term as the Chair of the National Association of Jewellers in 2020, she is now the Deputy Chair. She has been a Non-Executive Director for the British Hallmarking Council since 2016 and she advised the Creative and Cultural Skills Academy on jewellery skills from 2012-2018.

Hilary Newiss is a lawyer and former partner in a City law firm, specialising in Intellectual Property. Since leaving the City, she has served on several public boards including The Human Genetics Commission, the National Information Governance Board for Health and Social Care, Biobank Ethics and Governance Board and the Francis Crick Institute.

Commenting on his appointment to the role of Chair, Harry Rich said:

“I’m passionate about the ways that design, innovation, creativity and business drive wellbeing and prosperity. So, I am very excited to have been appointed as Chair of the Intellectual Property Office – and look forward to working with a great team to support the use of IP rights.”

Tim Moss welcomed all of the appointments and said:

“Our role is to incentivise innovation through an accessible and balanced IP system. To perform at our best we need to draw on breadth and wealth of professional experience and expertise. I am delighted to welcome Harry, Harriet and Hilary to an already experienced and committed team of Non-Executive Directors.

“The new appointments and re-appointments put us in an excellent position at an exciting time. We have an important role to play in helping to deliver the government’s innovation strategy and make the UK a science super power just as we are starting to deliver on our ambitious programme to transform our services over the next five years.”