Secretary General, Prime Minister Johnson, Chancellor Merkel, Svenja, Ministers, Friends.

Today, I have the unique honour of being the only COP President-Designate to welcome ministers to the Petersberg Dialogue two years in a row. And it is a particular pleasure for me to be sitting next to my friend Minister Schulze as I do so.

Svenja, let me start by congratulating you for the proposal that you put forward yesterday to make Germany net zero by 2045, coupled with enhanced near-term ambition.

Colleagues will know that at last year’s Dialogue we quite rightly focused on the unfolding impacts of the coronavirus pandemic, and the importance of the green recovery.

This year, with now less than six months to go to Glasgow, we are focusing on the negotiations.

And I am very keen that we use every moment of our time over the next two days to delve into adaptation, into finance, and of course, the outstanding elements of the Paris Rulebook, as Svenja has just said.

And we need to be exploring solutions to issues that require a political resolution.

And we need to provide clear guidance to our negotiators on what is expected from them ahead of Glasgow.

And we need to send a clear signal that the political will is there to reach a successful negotiated outcome at COP26.

Now friends, we are now all too familiar with these video conferences. They can sometimes feel very formulaic. What I sometimes refer to as the ‘doom of Zoom’.

But, I request that we do everything we can to make full use of the opportunity that we have now today and up to Glasgow.

That we move beyond positional statements.

Instead, let’s speak very frankly about what really matters to each of us, to each of our countries. And let’s engage in a genuine conversation about how we, as ministers, can best contribute to resolving these issues.

It is only through flexibility, through leadership that we will find compromise.

And it is through that that we will agree a balanced package that makes the goals of the Paris Agreement a reality.

That is what each of us must bring to this virtual table today. And am really looking forward to the detailed discussions we’re going to have.

But before we begin, I want to give you a quick but important update.

As many of you will know, in March the United Kingdom held a Climate and Development Ministerial meeting. And we agreed at this to set-up a Taskforce on Access to Finance, which is absolutely vital for developing countries around the world.

This will take a new, economy-wide approach to climate finance, aligning support behind developing country priorities.

And I am very pleased to say that we have developed the draft concept note already, which I am going to invite partners to work with us in shaping and take this work forward. And we will make this available shortly on the COP26 website.

For now that is all from me, I very much look forward to hearing from ministers and having an interactive discussion.

Svenja, back to you.

The ability to collect, process and interpret data quickly and efficiently is vital across the broad spectrum of defence and security. However, in a world where more and more data is generated from a growing number of sources, the capability to effectively assess data information is hindered by issues such as insufficient computing power and limited bandwidth at the point of need.

Fortunately, our colleagues in the US Army have an ongoing competition that aims to address data analytics challenges, which will be of particular interest to UK defence innovators in the AI-enabled analytic space.

The xTech Global Artificial Intelligence (AI) Challenge is a two-round competition, where up to ten finalists will receive an award of $10,000 each and pitch their dual-use technologies at the Innovation Hub (I-HUB) Imperial College London this July 2021, where DASA has its London office.

In conjunction with the pitch event, DASA will host UK Venture capitalists who are looking to invest in the AI technology area.

Check out their website for more details.

The xTech Global Artificial Intelligence (AI) Challenge is the first international tri-service competition that aims to engage with international small to medium enterprises in the US Army combat Capabilities Development Command (DEVCOM) Atlantic Area of responsibility, which includes Europe.

It is also the first international prize competition held by the United States Assistant Secretary of the Army for Acquisition, Technology, and Logistics (ASA(ALT)).

What is the aim of the competition?

The Department of Defence (DoD) is seeking AI-enabled capabilities to manage, process and reason disparate data/information sources for rapid decision making. The competition has a particular focus on AI/Machine learning (ML) algorithms and software tools that enable data analytics, especially in resource-constrained environments.

When is the deadline?

The xTechGlobal AI Challenge will comprise a two-round competition:

• a call for white papers
• a finalist pitch event

The deadline to submit a white paper proposal is 12 May 2021, where up to ten finalists of this round will win $10,000 each.

HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) is offering advice to traders in Great Britain on how to submit their delayed customs import declarations for non-controlled goods imported from the EU. This week, the government department that is responsible for customs and tax processes, has written to more than 200,000 customers with top tips for how to be ready to make delayed import declarations, and how they can access further support.

Katherine Green and Sophie Dean, Directors General, Borders and Trade, HMRC, said:

We know how hard businesses are working to adapt to the new rules and we want to do everything we can to help and support them to get things right. By offering the option to delay import declarations, we are giving businesses more time to prepare in what has been a challenging time for many.

There is plenty of support available, with online guidance and the new SME Brexit Support Fund now open, offering grants of up to £2,000 to pay for training or professional advice on adjusting to new customs, rules of origin and VAT rules.

For imports of most goods from the EU made during 2021, traders have 2 choices when making import declarations. Either make a full declaration as the goods arrive into Great Britain or delay their declarations.

If businesses have delayed their declarations, it’s important they:

• keep an accurate record of what they are importing every time their goods arrive in Great Britain, including the date and time of the import, a written description of the goods and the associated commodity code. This is a legal requirement
• send HMRC their supplementary declaration within 175 days of the date the goods arrived in Great Britain. For example, if they imported goods on 1 January 2021, they need to complete their supplementary declaration by 25 June 2021

Traders, or whoever is making declarations on their behalf, will need authorisations from HMRC before they can make supplementary declarations and it can take up to 60 days to get these. So if traders imported goods in January or February using delayed declarations, they need to act now to make sure they have everything in place to make their supplementary declaration on time.

HMRC also recommends that traders:

There is a range of support available to businesses importing or exporting goods, including the new SME Brexit Support Fund, a range of online step-by-step guides, webinars, and online forums to ask and get answers to specific questions.

My name is Sam Chadburn and I want to tell you why, sometimes, “You look absolutely fantastic!” is the last thing you want to hear.

I am an Employment and Partnership Manager and I love my job helping other people to access DWP’s services and find work. However, it’s taken me a while to get to this point.

Back in January 2017, I woke up one morning feeling unwell. I had dizzy spells, head pain, and I even needed a rest and a lie down during the day at work. Visits to my GP didn’t help, so I just got on with my job as an Employer Adviser at the Job Centre and tried to ignore my symptoms.

Over the next few months the pain and the dizziness got worse and worse. Four months of stress and anxiety came to a head when I completely broke down at work one day as I could no longer cope with the pain. When I was referred to hospital for a brain scan in April, I discovered I had an aneurysm. My symptoms continued and I collapsed, a further brain scan identified a stroke and I learned that each of the dizzy spells had been mini-strokes.

I had a follow up scan three months later, just before I was due to go on holiday. I needed urgent life-saving surgery. One of the main arteries in my brain had torn, my one aneurysm had turned into two and they were causing the pain and strokes. At that point, I didn’t know if I could ever work again, or even if I wanted to. Here’s the thing: I’d undergone major brain surgery. Things don’t just go back to normal. I still have a brain condition that affects me, I have good days and bad days. Fatigue, anxiety, and memory issues.

After a long recovery, I returned to work in January 2018. Someone said, “You look absolutely fantastic Sam!” … moments before I walked into a filing cabinet. At this point I started wondering whether I could retire.

My outlook and mindset completely changed when I heard about the Civil Service Future Leaders Academy. I’d long held promotion ambitions, and my manager encouraged me to apply.

It was the best decision I’ve ever made and a turning point in my life. I was placed in a team with other successful applicants and we were tasked with a joint project of our choosing. Here, I planted the seed for ‘Hidden Agenda’, a project to raise awareness of hidden disabilities and shine a light on an inclusive Civil Service. Getting the team’s agreement for this project gave me back my mojo and fired my passion for all things inclusion!

With the support of wonderful colleagues around me I worked tirelessly on this project. My proudest moment came when I emailed Senior Leaders to ask if DWP could adopt the Sunflower Lanyard scheme. The lanyard discreetly signals that the wearer has hidden disabilities and may need extra support, giving them confidence and a voice. I jumped cartwheels when I learned last spring that DWP had given every Job Centre in the UK the opportunity to participate in the scheme. I also became a Membership Lead on the newly formed DWP Disability Network THRIVE.

I’ve come a long way. I’m so proud to be ODP and to have won the ODP Inclusion Award 2021, and I hope my story inspires others to keep going when things get tough, because they always get better.