The National Cyber Force was announced by the Prime Minister as part of the Integrated Review in November 2020. The joint MoD and GCHQ partnership is helping keep the country safe as the new home of offensive cyber operations.

The permanent site of the NCF will be established in Samlesbury, cementing the North-West region’s position as the cyber centre of the UK. GCHQ already have an office in Manchester and the city is Europe’s fastest growing major tech cluster, with more than 15% of Manchester’s population employed by the digital, creative and technology sector.

The NCF draws together personnel from intelligence, cyber and security agency GCHQ, the MoD, the Secret Intelligence Service (MI6) and the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (DSTL), under one unified command for the first time.

Offensive cyber operations are those which can disrupt hostile state activities, terrorists and criminals threatening the UK’s national security – from countering terror plots to conducting military operations.

Defence Secretary Ben Wallace said:

The National Cyber Force located in Samlesbury will embrace exciting new offensive cyber technologies and provide thousands of highly skilled jobs and expertise to the North West.

I am hugely proud and enthusiastic to see this happen, not only will it provide a catalyst for investment, but also see our levelling up agenda bring economic stimulus and tangible benefits to this region.

Working in partnership with law enforcement and international partners, the NCF operates in a legal, ethical and proportionate way to help defend the nation and counter the full range of national security threats.

Offensive cyber capabilities offer the UK a range of flexible, scalable measures that will help protect the UK and our partners around the globe.

Foreign Secretary Liz Truss said:

The National Cyber Force will help confront aggressive behaviour from malign actors, and demonstrate that Britain is investing in next-generation defence capability to protect our people and help our friends counter cyber threats. It sends a powerful message to our allies and adversaries alike.

The UK has been a world-leader on offensive cyber operations, with GCHQ pioneering the use and development of these cyber techniques. In 2016 the then Defence Secretary confirmed the UK was conducting cyber operations against Daesh and in 2018, Director GCHQ revealed how it had degraded ISIS propaganda networks through cyber operations.

Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster Steve Barclay said:

The National Cyber Force is at the cutting edge of our country’s defence.

Basing the campus at Samlesbury in Lancashire will bring high skilled and well paid jobs to the area, building on our drive to move key public sector roles outside of London.

It underlines this government’s important levelling up agenda and our commitment to spread opportunity across the country.

The government has taken out a fresh injunction to target protesters who cause disruption on any of the highways on the Strategic Road Network linked to the M25 in the south east.

The new injunction bans activities that obstruct traffic and access to motorways and major A Roads in and around London. It also bans activities which cause damage to the road surface and infrastructure and prohibits activists from gluing themselves to the road or abandoning their vehicles.

Anyone who breaks this injunction faces imprisonment or an unlimited fine. Activists found in contempt of court may also be forced to repay the costs of their case.

Furthermore the police will now be able to release information on the activists, as well as evidence, to National Highways so that the injunctions can be enforced. This will speed up the enforcement process and ensure that those who disobey the authority of the courts face the consequences.

A number of activists have already been served with court papers and may face a court hearing and imprisonment or a fine for contempt of court if they are found to be in breach of the injunctions going forward. 

Transport Secretary Grant Shapps said: 

We will continue to do all we can to prevent this self-defeating, disruptive and incredibly dangerous behaviour being carried out by Insulate Britain. They are putting lives in danger and damaging their own cause.    Today, we’re ensuring every major road and motorway linked to the M25 is covered by this injunction to help prevent further disruption.

Activists are being tracked down and served court papers and will now face justice. We will take the strongest action against anyone else who decides to take part in this ridiculous and irresponsible action.

National Highways Regional Director Nicola Bell said:

This new injunction covering the Strategic Road Network in and around London is another step forward in helping to keep these reckless and dangerous protests away from our network and endangering peoples’ lives.

We continue to serve court papers on those who have breached the previous injunctions, and repeat offenders will soon be receiving a court summons. People who breach the injunctions face imprisonment or an unlimited fine.

National Highways has already taken out two injunctions to prevent action along the M25, as well as major roads around the Port of Dover, following the dangerous disruption caused by demonstrators from Insulate Britain.   These injunctions are a short-term solution to tackle the highly disruptive protests we have seen over the last few weeks, and the Government has committed to legislating to prevent these kinds of guerrilla tactics in the long-term through the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill.

• £22 million committed by the Government, with additional £8.4 million provided by the Lawn Tennis Association
• Funding to support Government’s commitment to levelling up sports provision across the nation, and Chief Medical Officer’s guidance on physical activity for children and adults

The Government and Lawn Tennis Association have announced a £30 million package to refurbish more than 4,500 public tennis courts in the most deprived parts of the UK, and support a new generation of players to get into the sport.

The package, which will see £21.9 million committed by the Government and £8.4 million by the Lawn Tennis Association, will revive over 4,500 courts including those in a poor or unplayable condition at more than 1,500 venues.

It is designed to open up the sport to people of all backgrounds, support the Government’s commitment to levelling up sports provision across the nation, and provide greater opportunities for everyone to follow the Chief Medical Officer’s guidance on physical activity. The guidance makes clear that children should aim to carry out 60 minutes of physical activity a day, and adults 2.5 hours a week.

It follows unprecedented success for British tennis at the US Open Tennis Championships in September, led by Emma Raducanu becoming the first British woman to win a Grand Slam singles title since Virginia Wade in 1977, and the first qualifier to win the tournament. The final was watched by a peak audience of 9.2 million viewers on Channel 4 as well as being shown on rights holder Amazon Prime.

Gordon Reid and Alfie Hewett also became the first all-British pairing to complete the Grand Slam by winning the men’s wheelchair doubles final, and Joe Salisbury delivered ‘double doubles’ wins in both the men’s and mixed events.

The government has also announced nearly £30 million a year will go towards improving and opening up school sport facilities in England, as well as to improve the teaching of Physical Education at primary school.

This will build on the 10.1 million which has supported schools to reopen their sports facilities after the Covid pandemic and increase opportunities for children and young people all over England to take part in sport.

It builds on the £320 million PE and Sport Premium, announced for the academic year 2021-22, which helps children become active early on in their lives, supporting primary schools to improve the quality of their PE and sport provision so that pupils experience the benefits of regular exercise. It underlines the importance of PE and sport as set out in the Government’s manifesto, backed by the ambitious School Sport and Activity Action plan which will be updated in due course.

Further detail around the delivery of the funding will be set out in due course.

ENDS

Notes to editors:

• Over the past year and a half the Government has prioritised the importance of sport and physical activity. This will remain at the heart of the Government’s coronavirus recovery plan as we build back fitter.
• During the pandemic it has provided an unprecedented £1 billion in funding to ensure the survival of the sport and leisure sectors. This has included:
  • A £600 million Sports Survival Package that protected the immediate futures of major spectator sports in England and provided onward benefits to grassroots sports.
  • A £270 million fund provided by Sport England directly to support community sport clubs and exercise centres through this pandemic, via a range of funds.
  • A £100 million support fund for local authority leisure centres. *More than £6 billion of unringfenced funding has also been given to local authorities since the start of the pandemic to allocate in line with local needs which includes leisure facilities.
• The Prime Minister recently announced an additional £50 million in grassroots football pitches, to boost the wave of national interest in EURO 2020 and Women’s EURO 2022, and inspire the stars of the future to take up the sport.
• We have worked with Sport England to set out a ten year strategy which focuses on driving up activity levels and helping to improve physical and mental health.

On 30 September, a conference titled “Going Green: A Global and Armenian Perspective on Sustainable Development and Management” was held in Yerevan with support from the British Embassy Yerevan and in partnership with the CITY College, University of York Europe Campus.

This event was a precursor to the 26th UN Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP26), which the UK will host between 31 October and 12 November in Glasgow.

The conference sought to address the topic of sustainability of supply chains in Armenia and provide a high-level platform for policy makers, researchers and the private sector to present and discuss trends, opportunities and practical challenges encountered in the field. It enabled participants to learn from top supply chain executives and sustainability experts with the aim of inspiring and driving forward sustainable supply chain initiatives in Armenia.

The conference attracted around 150 participants from across government, business, the academic community, international institutions, civil society organisations and youth playing an active role in climate change and sustainability initiatives.

In his welcoming speech, UK Ambassador to Armenia John Gallagher said:

In the run-up to the UN Climate Change Summit (COP26) which the UK, in partnership with Italy, will host in Glasgow in November, we are working with every country to reach an agreement on how to tackle the urgent challenge of climate change. We are encouraged by Armenia’s commitments and are keen to support Armenia in delivering their climate goals. A critical part of the solution is putting green supply chains and sustainable economic growth at the forefront of Armenia’s climate response. Alongside all countries, Armenia can play a positive role in reducing emissions in order to achieve ‘net zero’ and meet the goal of keeping global temperature rise to within 1.5 degrees.

Professor Leslie Szamozi, Director Pan-European Executive MBA, City College, University of York Europe Campus, noted:

This conference is providing us with the opportunity to showcase how far the country has come in terms of sustainable development and management but also chart a pathway forward that takes into account the unique aspects of the country and its people. On the path to Glasgow there are things that we need to learn about BUT also knowledge that we can pass on!

The conference was followed by keynote addresses and panel discussions on topics such as sustainable green development, the circular economy, green supply chain management, agro industry, and digitalisation.