Appointment of Permanent Secretary to the Ministry of Justice

Press release

The Cabinet Secretary, with the approval of the Prime Minister, has appointed Antonia Romeo as the new Permanent Secretary to the Ministry of Justice (MoJ).

The Cabinet Secretary, with the approval of the Prime Minister, has appointed Antonia Romeo as the new Permanent Secretary to the Ministry of Justice (MoJ).

The Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice, the Rt Hon Robert Buckland QC MP, said:

“I am delighted to welcome Antonia back to the Ministry of Justice. I know that she shares my passion for renewing the Justice system, protecting the public and reforming offenders, and I look forward to working with her as we build back safer from the pandemic.

“I am also extremely grateful to Mike Driver for his exceptional leadership as interim Permanent Secretary, and for his help in navigating the challenges the department has faced over the latter half of the last year.”

The Cabinet Secretary, Simon Case, said:

“Antonia’s appointment is great news for the Ministry of Justice. As an experienced Permanent Secretary she brings with her a wealth of experience garnered in a variety of roles across government, as well as a deep understanding of the Ministry of Justice.

“I should also like to thank Mike Driver who has provided strong leadership to the department over the last few months.”

“I am thrilled to be appointed Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Justice. I have spent the majority of my career in the department, working on its vital agenda of protecting the public and reducing reoffending, ensuring access to justice, and upholding the rule of law. I know first-hand the incredible job that the 75,000 MoJ staff do every day, and I’m looking forward to working with the Lord Chancellor, Ministers and the team on this important work.

“At the same time, it is hard to leave DIT after four brilliant years building the department and launching the UK’s independent trade agenda – thanks to all Ministers and colleagues.”

Antonia will take up her post on 18 January 2021. John Alty, Director General Trade Policy will take on the role of interim Permanent Secretary at the Department for International Trade while a process is run to appoint a permanent successor.

Published 4 January 2021



IPO new search UK trade mark classes service now available

Trade mark classification

This service will be unavailable from 6am to 5pm on Saturday 13 March and Sunday 14 March.

New service available to search and classify, trade mark goods and services.

When applying to register a UK trade mark, you may use the UK classification system to specify the goods and/or services you are seeking protection for.

This service will allow you to search for the goods and services you intend to use your trade mark on before you apply.

Intellectual Property Offices worldwide use a trade mark classification system that groups together similar goods or services into 45 different classes. This is referred to as Nice Classification.

While a member state of the EU, the IPO contributed to and shared a common classification system called TMClass. TMClass is a classification search tool provided by the EUIPO. With the transition period relating to the UK’s exit from the EU ending on 31 December 2020, we have created a UK specific database.

Over time, there may be instances where UK classification diverges from the EU. When applying for a UK trade mark, we will examine the application against the goods and services within the UK database.

The search UK trade mark classes service is available on GOV.UK.

Published 4 January 2021
Last updated 11 March 2021 + show all updates

  1. This service will be unavailable from 6am to 5pm on Saturday 13 March and Sunday 14 March.

  2. This service will be unavailable from 6am to 5pm on Saturday 20 February.

  3. This service will be unavailable from 6am to 5pm on Saturday 13 February.

  4. First published.



Brothers banned for failing to pay £173,000 in taxes

Brothers Carlos Enrique De La Cruz Vidal (51), from South East London, and Fernando De La Cruz Vidal (52), from Granada in Spain, are now banned from acting as directors or directly or indirectly becoming involved, without the permission of the court, in the promotion, formation or management of a company.

Carlos’ 6-year ban became effective on 5 November, while Fernando’s 6-year ban is effective from 30 December.

The brothers were appointed directors of Santo Limited in April 2007 on the same date as the company was incorporated.

Santo Limited traded as a restaurant called Santo on Portobello Road, West London, but the company entered into creditors voluntary liquidation in December 2018 before the brothers’ conduct was referred to the Insolvency Service for further enquiries.

Investigators established that Santo Limited was subject to enquiries by the tax authorities in November 2017 after issues were discovered relating to the company’s tax returns.

The tax authorities found that from September 2014 to September 2017 the brothers had suppressed the company’s takings by more than £173,000 and overstated the amount of takings that were non-taxable.

By the time the company had gone into liquidation in December 2018 the tax authorities claimed almost £200,000 in the liquidation.

Carlos Enrique De La Cruz Vidal had his undertaking accepted by the Secretary of State on 15 October, while Fernando De La Cruz Vidal had his undertaking accepted on 9 December.

In their undertakings, the brothers did not dispute that they caused inaccurate tax returns to be submitted to the tax authorities by supressing their sales income.

Lawrence Zussman, Deputy Head of Insolvent Investigations at the Insolvency Service, said:

Customers have a right to expect that the tax they pay on their food is given to the tax authorities. Instead, Carlos and Fernando De La Cruz Vidal substantially underdeclared the tax due and in doing so both failed to take their responsibilities as directors seriously.

Carlos and Fernando have now been removed from the business environment for 6 years and these bans should further serve as a warning to other directors that if you do not pay the correct taxes you run the serious risk of being disqualified.

Carlos Enrique De La Cruz Vidal is from South East London and his date of birth is August 1969.

Fernando De La Cruz Vidal is from Grenada, Spain, and his date of birth is April 1968.

Santo Limited (Company Reg no. 06222263).

Disqualification undertakings are the administrative equivalent of a disqualification order but do not involve court proceedings. Persons subject to a disqualification order are bound by a range of other restrictions.

Further information about the work of the Insolvency Service, and how to complain about financial misconduct, is available.

You can also follow the Insolvency Service on:



Carrier Strike Group hits important milestone

Press release

The UK’s Carrier Strike Group (CSG) has achieved a major milestone ahead of its first operational deployment this year.

Image depicts HMS QUEEN ELIZABETH.

HMS Queen Elizabeth has achieved Initial Operating Capability (IOC). Crown copyright.

The CSG has reached Initial Operating Capability (IOC), meaning all elements of the group from fighter jets to radar systems to anti-ship weapons have been successfully brought together and operated.

Both the air and naval elements of the CSG have now met this milestone, which includes qualified pilots and ground crews being held at short notice for carrier-based operations and trained to handle weapons and maintain the equipment.

Another marker of success at this stage includes the ability to deploy Anti-Submarine Warfare capabilities such as frigates and destroyers, as well as both fixed and rotary wing aircraft including Merlin helicopters to operate alongside the carrier.

Defence Minister Jeremy Quin said:

This is a hugely significant milestone for HMS Queen Elizabeth, the Royal Navy and the whole country. This achievement is a testament to the determination of our service personnel and industry workforce who have delivered this first-rate military capability, a capability held by only a handful of nations. I wish the entire Carrier Strike Group well ahead of their first operational deployment this year.

Following the success of the NATO Joint Warrior Exercises last autumn, the Carrier Strike Group capability has reached the key IOC milestone for the programme on schedule.

The multinational deployment in 2020 focussed on incorporating all elements of the CSG with 13 of the UK’s allies including Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, Germany, Latvia, the Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Turkey, Japan, UAE and the US. Exercise Joint Warrior saw the largest number of aircraft on a British Royal Navy carrier since 1983, as well as the most F-35B jets at sea across the globe.

Full operating capability for the CSG is expected by December 2023.

Published 4 January 2021



New Disability and Access Ambassadors to support rights of disabled consumers

News story

The Cabinet Office opens recruitment today for 14 Disability and Access Ambassadors.

Portrait of Justin Tomlinson MP

The Cabinet Office, on behalf of the Minister for Disabled People, Health and Work, is seeking fourteen new Disability and Access Ambassadors to help to ensure businesses are doing all they can to support their disabled customers.

They will join existing Ambassadors who have been helping industry and the Government in their management of the COVID-19 crisis, and supporting work to develop the National Strategy for Disabled People.

The ambassadors are industry leaders who help to drive improvements in the accessibility and quality of services and facilities in their sector for disabled people, as consumers and employees.

There are 14 posts being recruited, which includes four new sectors which have been added to the existing programme. These additional posts will work within the pubs and restaurants, private housing, universities and energy industries.

They will join colleagues already representing the financial sector, the transport sector, the arts, the built and natural environment, technology and web design, and others.

The posts being recruited are for:

  • Airports
  • Arts and Culture
  • Banking
  • Buses
  • Creative Industries
  • Energy
  • Hospitality (Pubs and Restaurants)
  • Housing (Private)
  • Insurance
  • Rail Travel
  • Retail
  • Sports and Physical Activity
  • Tourism
  • Universities

Read the full details of the application process.

Published 4 January 2021