Following a request from the Tunisian Government, experts from the UK’s Emergency Medical Team (UK EMT), supported by the UK-Public Health Rapid Support Team (UK-PHRST) have arrived in Tunisia today (13 August) to help the country tackle their COVID-19 crisis.

The team includes nine doctors, nurses and logistics experts, from the UK, France, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Italy. The medical experts specialise in emergency medicine and infection, prevention and control, as well as humanitarian healthcare. They will provide clinical supervision and support to Tunisian healthcare services and are expected to deploy for up to twelve weeks.

COVID-19 infections in Tunisia are rapidly increasing and the health crisis is exacerbating the economic crisis in the country. As the number of new COVID-19 cases and deaths surged in Tunisia in July, hospitals and ICU beds across the country became full or were stretched to near maximum capacity.

The UK-PHRST supports low- and middle-income countries in investigating and responding to disease outbreaks, and conducts research to improve our response to future epidemics. In this deployment, a UK-PHRST infection, prevention and control (IPC) specialist will work alongside the EMT staff, training health professionals in IPC management.

UK Minister for the Middle East and North Africa, James Cleverly, said:

COVID-19 has delivered major blows to the Tunisian health system and economy, with the number of daily cases of real concern.

This deployment of a UK Emergency Medical Team will provide British expertise to Tunisian health care professionals, helping them to tackle the health crisis and saving lives.

Paul Ransom, UK EMT Interim Team Lead and British Emergency Department Consultant, said:

As members of UK- Med and the UK- Emergency Medical Team, we are proud to be in Tunisia to assist the Tunisian people in their response to COVID-19.

We will be helping the national teams to provide hands-on care to patients, carrying out specialist training and giving support to our Tunisian colleagues in the demanding and vital work they carry out every day in combatting COVID-19.

Notes to editors

• The UK Government’s Emergency Medical Team (UK EMT), which has World Health Organization (WHO) classification, is a rapid medical response capability funded by the Foreign Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO).
• Since the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic, the UK EMT has supported the WHO and health ministries in deployments of over 100 medical experts to Armenia, Bangladesh, Burkina Faso, Cambodia, Chad, Lesotho, Eswatini, Lebanon, Ghana, South Africa, and Zambia, and is currently deployed to Namibia and Botswana.
• The UK EMT can deploy anywhere in the world at 24-72 hours’ notice in the event of a rapid onset emergency. This multilateral team of experts provides direct delivery of front-line medical care and world class expertise to advise and support governments during disease outbreaks and humanitarian emergencies.
• UK-Med is a Manchester-based emergency health charity with thirty years’ experience responding to health emergencies around the world. Since February 2020 UK-Med has supported the UK EMT, World Health Organization and health ministries in the fight against coronavirus in Ghana, South Africa, Cambodia, Burkina Faso, Bangladesh, Chad, Zambia, Armenia, Eswatini, Lesotho, Djibouti and Lebanon.
• The UK-PHRST is a partnership between Public Health England and the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine (LSHTM), funded by UK aid through DHSC’s Global Health Security Programme.

Dr Claire Feehily

Claire is a qualified accountant specialising in governance and risk management with extensive Non-Executive experience in government, health and charitable settings, including with The National Archive. She has a keen interest in cultural heritage in its widest sense and particularly in encouraging engagement across all age groups. Her academic research and teaching have focused on education and cultural memory.

In her first three years as a Trustee she has chaired the Audit and Risk Committee and been closely involved across the Fund’s various funding streams. Claire lives in the south west where she experiences first hand how Heritage Lottery support impacts so positively within her rural community.

David Stocker

Since 1978, David – an archaeologist and architectural historian by training – has worked in the heritage sector throughout England, but especially in Yorkshire, the East Midlands, and Lincolnshire – moving to the latter county in 1980. Prior to 1986 he worked for heritage charities and as a self-employed consultant, before being appointed to English Heritage. Disabled in 1996, he undertook research and policy roles, before taking early retirement in 2012. In 2013 he was appointed to HLF’s East Midland Committee, and in 2018 he became an NHMF Trustee. Subsequently, he has served on four NLHF Committees in the North of England, and on sub-committees dealing with: NHMF cases; Towns; Cultural Recovery Fund; Green Recovery Cultural Fund; Heritage Horizons Award and the Welsh Nature Network.

David’s academic interests lie both in landscapes, buildings and churches, and in early sculpture and nineteenth-century art-history, on which topics he has published books and articles. In 2010 he was awarded an Hon. Visiting Professorship in Medieval Studies at the University of Leeds. He has held several previous Trusteeships with heritage-sector charities, currently chairing Trustees of the Lincoln Record Society, and sitting on the National Trust’s Council.

Maria Adebowale-Schwarte

Maria is the CEO of the Foundation for Future London, funding and fundraising for local communities, places and programme partnerships at the Stratford Waterfront and East Bank the new culture, education, innovation and good growth centre in East London. She joined the Foundation from Living Space Project, the urban placemaking and inclusive cities think tank consultancy she founded.

Maria is a placemaking and grants strategist with over 25 years’ cross-sector experience in heritage, human rights, improving urban places and green spaces. She is passionate about investing in local communities and the economy to create jobs and training in genuine community-inclusive and cross-sector development and co-designed public/private space partnerships. She has sat on several governance boards of organisations and advisory groups that hold a solid place-led, sustainable development, culture, and heritage focus. As well as being on the board of The National Lottery Heritage Fund, she also Chairs its Equality Diversity and Inclusion Task Force.

Maria is also on the board of the Environment Agency and the Mayor of London’s Sustainable Development Commission independent advisory group to the Mayor of London, where she co-chairs the social value regeneration committee. And is a member of the City of London’s Culture and Commerce Taskforce. In addition, she is an Inaugural Fellow at the Centre for Knowledge Equity, Skoll Centre, University of Oxford and recipient of the Place and Environment Clore Social Fellowship. Her book The Place Making Factor explores the role of philanthropy in unlocking siloed approaches to funding.

National Heritage Memorial Fund and The National Lottery Heritage Fund Trustees are remunerated at £10,500 per annum. Dr Claire Feehily is remunerated at £13,500 per annum as Audit and Risk Committee Chair. All three Trustees were initially reappointed to short six month terms and these reappointments are therefore to a third term. These reappointments have been made in accordance with the Cabinet Office’s Governance Code on Public Appointments. The process is regulated by the Commissioner for Public Appointments. The Government’s Governance Code requires that any significant political activity undertaken by an appointee in the last five years is declared. This is defined as including holding office, public speaking, making a recordable donation or candidature for election. Claire, David and Maria have not declared any activity.

UK legal services are set to enjoy an export boost thanks to guarantees in the UK-Australia trade deal that make it easier for British lawyers to practise in Australia.

Almost £85 million worth of legal services were exported to Australia in 2019 and the landmark deal, agreed in principle between Prime Minister Boris Johnson and Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison in June, removes barriers for businesses and makes it easier for people to travel and work together.

Under the deal, which is set to be signed in the next few months, British lawyers can continue to provide UK and international legal services in Australia using their existing qualifications with more clarity and certainty. This will include arbitration, conciliation and mediation services.

New provisions will also support regulators on both sides to address obstacles and remove red tape make it easier for lawyers to get the necessary licences to practise. This means that those looking to requalify in Australian domestic law might face fewer barriers in what is already a costly and time-consuming process that involves having to sit up to 11 exams.

Legal services are a major industry in the UK contributing £22bn to the economy, and employing around 350,000 people who could take advantage of the legal wins in the trade deal.

International Trade Secretary Liz Truss said:

Our trade deal with Australia is a big win for our world-leading legal services industry, allowing them to practise down under more easily, with more certainty and support.

This deal will reduce barriers to trade, make it easier for our people to travel and work together, and will bring big benefits to our consumers and businesses.

Junior lawyers wanting to gain work experience in Australia will also benefit from easier access to Australia’s Working Holiday Maker Visa, with eligibility increased from 30 years up to those 35 years old.

International law firm Herbert Smith Freehills, which merged UK and Australian firms in 2012 and employs 3,500 across both countries, is one of the many companies to benefit from the deal.

Rebecca Maslen-Stannage, Chair and Senior Partner, Herbert Smith Freehills said:

Leading multinational law firms such as Herbert Smith Freehills, with major operations in both countries, are looking for certainty on mobility and RPQ provisions relating to the legal profession. We are delighted that the UK and Australian governments have included these provisions which will help us to work more easily across regions.

Law Society of England and Wales President, I. Stephanie Boyce said:

The FTA establishes and drives collaboration between the relevant bodies with the aim of addressing remaining barriers to practise as a local lawyer in the other country’s territory.

We now look forward to taking new steps to facilitating international business with our colleagues in Australia. While the final agreement is yet to come, these commitments are a step in the right direction for both our legal professions and we will continue to seek the best deal for members in these discussions.

The UK’s world leading services industry will benefit from better access through new digital and services provisions in this deal. Alongside the new investment provisions these arrangements will bring new opportunities to the whole of the country.

A Free Trade Agreement with Australia is also a gateway into the fast-growing Indo-Pacific region and will boost our bid to join CPTPP, one of the largest free trade areas in the world, covering £9 trillion of GDP and 11 Pacific nations from Australia to Mexico.