Following Baroness Taylor of Bolton’s nomination by the Labour Party, her appointment was confirmed formally as the Labour Party Member of the House of Lords Appointments Commission (HOLAC). Baroness Taylor commenced her role on 11th September 2022, when Lord Clark of Windermere’s term came to an end.

Baroness Taylor of Bolton

Baroness Taylor of Bolton was the first woman to serve as Leader of the House of Commons and Lord President of the Privy Council in 1997. She went on to become the first woman to serve as Government Chief Whip (Parliamentary Secretary to the Treasury). Baroness Taylor is the former MP for Bolton West (1974 – 1983) and Dewsbury (1987 – 2005) and was made a Life Peer in 2005. She currently sits on the Industry Regulators Committee, Procedure and Privileges Committee, and the Lord Speaker’s Committee on the Size of the House.

Minister of State at the Cabinet Office, Ed Argar, welcomed Baroness Taylor’s appointment, saying:

I would like to congratulate Baroness Taylor on her appointment to the Commission and I am grateful to Lord Clark for his service over the last five years. Baroness Taylor brings to the role a depth of experience and public service that will be of huge value to the Commission in its work.

Notes:

HOLAC has two main functions:

• to recommend individuals for appointment as non-party political life peers; and to vet nominations for life peers, including those nominated by the UK political parties, to ensure the highest standards of propriety.
• Political Members are nominated by their party leader, and appointed by the Prime Minister for five year non-renewable terms. More information about HOLAC can be found on their website.

A Hertfordshire man who sexually assaulted a woman has had his sentence increased after it was referred to the Court of Appeal by the then Solicitor General Edward Timpson CBE KC MP.

Tayo Wisdom, 28, sexually assaulted the victim while she was sleeping in his flat, having gone there following a night out. Wisdom ended the assault when the victim woke up and asked him to stop.

On 11 July 2022, Wisdom was sentenced to 3 years’ imprisonment for assault by penetration at Wood Green Crown Court.

Following the sentencing, Wisdom’s case was referred to the Court of Appeal under the Unduly Lenient Sentence scheme because the then Solicitor General felt that the sentence was too low.

On 23 September 2022, the Court found Wisdom’s original sentence to be unduly lenient and increased it to 6 years’ imprisonment.

Speaking after the hearing, the newly appointed HM Solicitor General Michael Tomlinson MP said:

Tayo Wisdom took advantage of a particularly vulnerable victim in this shocking incident.

Today’s decision reinforces the message that such crimes, committed against victims who are asleep, will be treated especially serious by the courts.

The Marine Management Organisation (MMO) joined a forum hosted by the Angling Trust in July to discuss development of the Channel demersal Non-quota species Fisheries Management Plan (FMP) with recreational anglers.

MMO is engaging with a wide range of marine stakeholders in the first phase of its development of the FMP for key non-quota demersal stocks, and recognises the importance of including views from the recreational fishing sector for consideration alongside those of commercial fishermen.

FMPs are central to the Government’s approach to fisheries management now the UK has left the EU’s Common Fisheries Policy and are geared to ensuring fish stocks are fished sustainably and the marine environment is protected.

The Channel demersal NQS FMP will cover ICES divisions 7d and 7e and will cover a wide range of demersal species.

Development of a plan specifically for demersal non-quota species in the Channel was highlighted by the fishing industry and other key marine stakeholders as a necessary move because of concern about potential over-exploitation of some stocks and a lack of data about non-quota stocks in general.

Richard Hoskin, Head of Fisheries & Marine Conservation at MMO, said:

We’d like to thank the Angling Trust and their members for making time to gives us their views.

Alongside all the stakeholders we are currently engaging with, the views of the recreational fishing sector provide us with a much broader understanding of what the plan should cover and the impact it could have.

MMO has published a more detailed overview of the feedback it received from the forum and we encourage recreational fishers to keep on giving us their thoughts at fmp@marinemanagement.org.uk

Here are the highlights of the forum feedback:

MMO is planning a second series of engagement sessions with commercial and recreational sectors on the south coast this autumn to ensure as many stakeholders as possible have had a chance to express their views on the demersal NQS FMP.

Together with the Bank of England, HMT is today providing further details of the £40 billion Energy Markets Financing Scheme, to address extraordinary liquidity requirements faced by energy firms from high and volatile energy prices.

The Energy Markets Financing Scheme will improve resilience in energy markets, and the economy. To deliver the scheme, there will be a 100% guarantee to commercial banks covering additional lending extended to firms. The scheme will open to applications on 17th October. The scheme will provide short term financial support and will be designed to be used as a last resort, with pricing and conditions reflecting this.

The scheme will ensure that energy firms can continue to operate and manage risk in a cost-effective way in the face of unprecedented volatility. This helps to reduce the eventual cost that businesses and consumers face.

The EMFS will only be available to firms who are able to meet eligibility requirements, for example that they are otherwise in sound financial health and make a material contribution to the liquidity of UK energy markets. Firms will need to undergo solvency checks.

HMT will convene an advisory committee as part of standing up a robust assessment process.

Further details will be published in due course. To register interest in the scheme, please email EMFS@bankofengland.co.uk.

• First Islands Forum in Orkney will help to level up island communities and work together on shared opportunities and challenges
• Representatives from island communities in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland and the devolved governments will attend
• Opportunities around net zero a key focus for the first meeting

The Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Minister for Intergovernmental Relations, Nadhim Zahawi, will chair the first Islands Forum in Orkney on 28 September 2022.

The Forum, which will take place at Orkney Research & Innovation Campus, will ensure island communities are able to discuss solutions to common challenges, with a significant focus for the first meeting on opportunities around net zero.

Council leaders and chief executives representing all eligible island communities across the UK will take part, as well as ministers from the Scottish and Welsh governments and representatives from Northern Ireland.

The programme will also include a session with the regulator, Ofgem. This will allow island representatives to share their views on regulatory barriers to net zero ambitions and explore next steps to address them.

Participants will also undertake a tour in Orkney focussing on renewable energy, hosted by Orkney Islands Council and European Marine Energy Centre.

Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, The Rt Hon Nadhim Zahawi MP, said:

As the new Minister for Intergovernmental Relations, I am delighted to be chairing the first Islands Forum in Orkney next week with the purpose of giving our islands a stronger voice.

It is often said that people make a place, and this is certainly true of the UK’s island communities, who contribute a huge amount to our country but often face common challenges.

I look forward to hearing directly from island communities and working closely with the devolved governments on the issues that matter most to local people, making good on our promise to deliver for the whole United Kingdom.