New appointments to the ACMD

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Three new members of the Advisory Council for the Misuse of Drugs (ACMD) have been announced today.

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Experts in topics including clinical toxicology, drug markets, social research and social care have been appointed to the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs (ACMD), to help deliver the ACMD’s vital ongoing work.

The ACMD is an independent body which makes recommendations to government on the control of dangerous or otherwise harmful drugs, including classification and scheduling under the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 and its regulations.

The new appointees being announced today are:

  • Professor Sarah Galvani, professor of Social Research and Substance Use at Manchester Metropolitan University
  • Professor Judith Aldridge, professor of criminology at the University of Manchester
  • Dr David Wood, consultant physician and clinical toxicologist at Guy’s and St Thomas’ Hospital, and Reader in clinical toxicology at King’s College London

The Chair of the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs, Professor Owen Bowden-Jones, said:

I am delighted to welcome the new members to the ACMD. Their range of expertise will ensure that the Council continues to provide the best possible evidence-based advice on the harms of drug misuse. I look forward to working with each of them on a range of projects.

The 3 appointments to the ACMD will serve 3 year terms. Appointments to the ACMD attract no remuneration, and have been made in accordance with the Cabinet Office Code on Public Appointments.

The newly appointed members take up their positions today.

Published 3 August 2020




Rail passengers see major service boost with new £40 million Stevenage station platform

  • dedicated fifth platform and track at Stevenage station will enable more frequent and reliable services
  • £40 million project, delivered over a year ahead of the revised schedule, will provide better connectivity with other destinations on the East Coast Main Line
  • completion of the work marks an important milestone in the wider £1.2 billion upgrade of the East Coast Main Line between London and Edinburgh

Rail passengers now have more frequent and reliable services as well as better long-distance connections thanks to a new £40 million platform and track at Stevenage station, Rail Minister Chris Heaton-Harris has announced today Monday, 3 August. Construction work on the project has been accelerated and delivered more than a year ahead of the revised schedule.

On a visit to the station today where platform 5 was officially opened to the first weekday services, the Rail Minister hailed the completion of the project as an important milestone in the wider £1.2 billion upgrade of the East Coast Main Line between London and Edinburgh.

Work began in early 2019 to build a dedicated fifth platform where Govia Thameslink Railway (GTR)’s Great Northern trains from the Hertford North line, known as the Hertford Loop, could terminate and then go back towards London creating space on the existing tracks for Thameslink trains and restoring the train service between Stevenage and the Hertford Loop served by buses since May 2019.

With the new platform and track separating the local Hertford Loop services from the longer distance mainline Great Northern, Thameslink and London North Eastern Railway trains, there will be better reliability.

The restored train service running between Stevenage’s new platform and the Hertford Loop will be an improved all-day, twice-hourly service between Stevenage and Hertford North, giving passengers from the loop better connections with the fast mainline services which stop at Stevenage.

Network Rail worked with GTR to accelerate the revised project which has been delivered over 12 months earlier than planned. The new platform includes a passenger lift and stairs to an extended station footbridge along with 2 waiting rooms, 3 sets of seating, a help point and ticket machine.

Rail Minister Chris Heaton-Harris said:

Our ambition is not just to deliver more punctual journeys, but to deliver major projects punctually as well.

This new platform and track at Stevenage will mean more frequent and reliable services for passengers who use the line day in day out.

Thanks to the hard work of Network Rail and GTR who have worked tirelessly to accelerate the project, we have reached an important milestone in our ambitious £1.2 billion East Coast upgrade, which will bring improved connections, faster journeys, thousands of extra seats per day and more choice for passengers.

Paul Rutter, Network Rail Route Director, said:

This vital project to build a bay platform at Stevenage is part of a programme of investment that will allow additional services to run on the East Coast Main Line, bringing more choice, more seats and a more reliable railway for passengers.  

It will also bring more resilient local services on the Hertford Loop, as trains will soon be able to terminate at Stevenage and then go back towards London. 

We would like to thank passengers who have needed to use bus replacement services between Stevenage and Watton-at-Stone, station users and people who live near the railway for their continued patience whilst this essential part of the East Coast upgrade was completed.

Steve White, GTR Chief Operating Officer, said:

The most recent independent customer satisfaction survey showed Great Northern as the most improved operator. This is more good news for our customers.

We have worked closely with Network Rail on this important project as part of the continuing transformation of our railway. This new, additional, platform will help us run services more punctually on both the Great Northern metro and mainline services.

The new platform also means that we can start running our Hertford services to and from Stevenage again giving our customers from that area fast, convenient, step-free connections at the station to Cambridge, London, Gatwick and Brighton.

The government’s £1.2 billion investment in the East Coast upgrade between 2014 and 2024 will improve passenger journeys, create capacity for up to 10,000 extra seats a day on long-distance services, speed up journeys and improve reliability for passengers.

Major work is also taking place at King’s Cross and near Peterborough, where a new section of railway is being built at Werrington so trains, particularly freight, can get to and from the line to Spalding, freeing up space on the East Coast Main Line for extra passenger services.

The East Coast Main Line is also set to become Britain’s first mainline digital rail link with £350 million of new investment to install state-of-the-art electronic signalling designed to cut journey times and slash delays.

Conventional signalling will be replaced with a digital system that allows trains to talk to the track allowing the smooth the flow of trains, making journeys safer and reduce signal failures that every year result in thousands of hours of delays.




UK-China Cooperation on Intellectual Property

This webpage is about intellectual property (IP) cooperation between the UK and China. For basic information on protecting and enforcing IP in China, please go to the publications section below.

If you are a British company and would like to discuss specific IP issues in China in more detail, please contact commercialmail.beijing@fcdo.gov.uk

The UK aims to build an efficient, respected international IP system. This includes promoting non-discriminatory and transparent application of IP rules within national IP regimes.

Bilateral Cooperation

The UK Intellectual Property Office (UKIPO) has cooperation relationships with a number of Chinese government agencies working on IP. The UKIPO and China’s State Intellectual Property Office (SIPO) signed a cooperation agreement in 1996 covering patents and designs. The UKIPO signed a framework for cooperation on trade marks with China’s State Administration for Industry & Commerce (SAIC) in 2009, and has operated a formal programme for cooperation with the National Copyright Administration of China (NCAC) since 2010.

In addition, the UKIPO works with other UK Government partners and China’s State Council Information Office to hold regular UK-China Internet Forums. These events look specifically at issues which both China and the UK face in managing copyright on the internet, including peer-to-peer file sharing and live streaming of sporting events.

The Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) and UKIPO fund a number of cooperation projects on important IP topics in China. These include online IP infringement; copyright enforcement; protection of geographical indications; IP in technology transfer and collaborative research; and facilitating exchanges between IP judiciaries.

IP Attaché

Since December 2011 the UKIPO has based an attaché in the British Embassy in Beijing, working with representatives from UKTI and the FCDO. The position is central to the government’s plans to enhance trade relations and to support IP and innovation-led businesses abroad.

IP attachés provide a focal point in host countries for supporting UK businesses with IP related issues, promoting UK Government interests and working with local IP agencies. Attachés help to build relations with governments of host countries to understand and actively engage with IP policy makers. For more information on our IP cooperation with China please contact Conor Murray via email.

Publications

The British Embassy Beijing and the UKIPO provide a number of factsheets and newsletters on IP in China.

China IP Newsletter

We publish an ad-hoc newsletter to inform UK stakeholders of recent developments in the Chinese IP environment. The content is collected from publically available sources, where information is often available in Chinese only. To be added to/removed from the distribution list or to receive past editions please contact Leo Zhuang.

China IP in Numbers

China is a country of big numbers. The rise in applications for intellectual property (IP) rights in China in recent years has been a key part of the development of the global IP system. Chinese businesses are filing large volumes of patents, designs and trade marks at home and increasingly abroad. These IP rights are enforced vigorously through the courts and local government “administrative enforcement” systems in China. The statistics in our China IP in Numbers document are gathered from the relevant official government departments unless otherwise stated.

Protecting your intellectual property in the UK

This is a guidance to help people understand how to protect intellectual property (IP) right in the UK. It gives an introduction of IP, and how to apply and protect IP in the UK, as well as the changes of UK’s IP framework after Brexit.

Protecting Intellectual Property in China during the COVID-19 Period

China’s intellectual property (IP) system has continued to function over the COVID-19 period. While some in-person contact is being avoided, solutions have been widely adopted including online and postal case filings and online trials. However, there are challenges that rights owners may now face as a result of travel restrictions, or not being able to meet administrative deadlines. The China Network Intellectual Property Team have put together a handy guide for UK businesses to protect their IP in China over the Covid-19 period. We hope you find it useful.

Factsheet on Intellectual Property and Life Sciences in China

China offers significant opportunities for British life sciences companies, including access to a large market, world-leading research facilities, institutional and private Chinese investors, and partners with manufacturing, distribution and other supply chain expertise. But China also presents a number of regulatory and market access challenges, including how to protect intellectual property.

IP and Industrial Software in China

China offers opportunities for British software in a wide range of sectors. In order to fully benefit from these opportunities and maintain long-term competitiveness, it is important that British companies identify and mitigate intellectual property (IP) risk.

Copyright recordal is not mandatory in China. However, it is recommended that UK companies consider voluntary recordal of copyright. Recordal can help prove copyright ownership in infringement actions and other disputes, administrative procedures, and commercial negotiations.

IP and Education in China

Rising spending on education in China is creating opportunities for British companies offering a range of products and services. Managing intellectual property (IP) risks can help position UK businesses to meet the booming demand for international-standard academic, vocational and English-language education. 

UK-China Film & TV Toolkit

The UK-China Film & TV Toolkit is intended to help UK companies develop projects with Chinese partners. The Toolkit helps create a legal framework for the sharing of confidential ideas and intellectual property (IP) as part of the creative process.

Factsheet to support Chinese companies with overseas IP protection and technology commercialisation (Chinese-language)

This factsheet, developed with the UK Chartered Institute of Patent Attorneys (CIPA) and the Institute of Trade Mark Attorneys (ITMA), supports Chinese companies establish and manage an international IP portfolio. The factsheet covers topics such as application strategies in the UK and Europe, IP risk analysis and mitigation, dispute resolution, and insights from the UK model of technology commercialisation.

Factsheet on Bad-faith Trade marks in China

China has a widespread and systemic problem with bad-faith trade mark applications. Bad-faith applicants in China target both domestic and international brands, seeking to extract payment to transfer marks (“trade mark squatting”) or to piggy-back on the reputation of established brands. The issue of Bad-faith trade mark applications is the single most common business irritant reported to the British Embassy in Beijing, affecting hundreds of marks each year across all industry sectors.

Report on China-Southeast Asia Anti-Counterfeiting

China and Southeast Asia are fast growing markets that are increasingly important for British companies. As bilateral trade and investment increases, the FCDO and the UK Intellectual Property Office (IPO) commissioned a report into anti-counterfeiting in the region. The report analyses the key trade routes for counterfeits and recommends a series of actions to address the problem.

Factsheet on Intellectual Property & 3D Product Design

China is an important manufacturing location for products featuring British design, including by original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) producing goods for global export. The fast-growing Chinese economy is also creating new demand for British-designed products. Whether taking advantage of manufacturing expertise or selling to the Chinese consumer, British designers and design-intensive companies should ensure they have considered the intellectual property (IP) risks presented by China. This factsheet is presented together with the Anti-Copying in Design (ACID) business association.

Factsheet on Intellectual Property & Architecture in China

The fast-growing Chinese economy – including rapid urbanisation – offers opportunities for British architectural design expertise. But the Chinese architecture industry also features several sources of intellectual property (IP) risk. Identifying and mitigating these risks can be an important element of succeeding in the Chinese market.

Factsheet on Intellectual Property & Film in China

Increasing UK-China film cooperation is offering British films access to revenue streams in the Chinese market through a variety of business models. The Chinese intellectual property (IP) system has developed rapidly over the past 30 years. But a number of differences remain between international norms and the structures of the Chinese film industry and IP system. It is important for British companies to be aware of these differences and to prepare accordingly.

Factsheet on Trade Secrets in China

As British companies pursue commercial opportunities in China it is important to identify and mitigate risks. Trade secrets are often crucial elements of the competitive advantage of innovative companies. Protecting trade secrets – and taking action should leaks occur –can present particular challenges in China.

Factsheet on Intellectual Property in China

UK-China trade and investment is expanding rapidly. As British companies pursue commercial opportunities in China it is important to identify and mitigate risks, including around intellectual property (IP). It is possible to protect and enforce IP in China. However, challenges remain and elements of China’s IP system are different to the IP system in the UK and other countries.

Factsheet on Well-Known Trademarks in China

Owners of a well-known trade mark (驰名商标) can enjoy multi-class (or multi sub-class) protection in the Chinese trade mark system. This factsheet focuses on the two main channels for rights owners to achieve well-known trade mark status: a decision during an opposition or cancellation procedure and a decision by the courts during a judicial review of these administrative decisions.

There are four main routes for enforcing copyright in China: administrative enforcement; civil litigation; criminal enforcement; and customs enforcement. This factsheet focuses on the administrative enforcement channel. Administrative enforcement is conducted by an administrative government department as opposed to a law enforcement agency or court. It is available for many (but not all) types of copyright infringement.

Factsheet on IP Best Practice in UK-China Technology Transfer

Technology transfer is a general term used to describe the commercialisation of research and knowledge generated from the research base. The IP considerations in any particular technology transfer deal will depend on the route selected to commercialise a new opportunity. This factsheet examines IP-related factors in UK-China technology transfer.

For further information on protecting and enforcing IP in China, please visit the China country guide on the UK Intellectual Property Office (UKIPO) website.

For feedback or questions about this webpage and other UK government support on IP in China, contact Conor Murray




Roll-out of 2 new rapid coronavirus tests ahead of winter

  • Both tests will be able to detect COVID-19 and other winter viruses in just 90 minutes
  • New tests will hugely increase testing capacity ahead of winter, delivering fast results that will help to break chains of transmission quickly

Millions of ground-breaking rapid coronavirus tests will be rolled out to hospitals, care homes and labs across the UK to increase testing capacity ahead of winter. The tests will enable clinicians and NHS Test and Trace to quickly advise on the best course of action to stop the spread of the virus.

Two new tests – both able to detect the virus in just 90 minutes – will be made available to NHS hospitals, care homes and labs. The 2 tests will be able to detect both COVID-19 and other winter viruses such as flu and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV). The tests do not require a trained health professional to operate them, meaning they can be rolled out in more non-clinical settings.

This will help to further strengthen the coronavirus response this winter, arming both clinicians and NHS Test and Trace with the ability to distinguish between COVID-19 cases, which have specific self-isolation requirements, and other winter viruses.

Health Secretary Matt Hancock said:

We’re using the most innovative technologies available to tackle coronavirus. Millions of new rapid coronavirus tests will provide on-the-spot results in under 90 minutes, helping us to break chains of transmission quickly.

The fact these tests can detect flu as well as COVID-19 will be hugely beneficial as we head into winter, so patients can follow the right advice to protect themselves and others.

I am hugely grateful for the excellent work done by DnaNudge and Oxford Nanopore to push forward these life-saving innovations in coronavirus testing.

A new test that uses DNA to detect the virus will be rolled out across NHS hospitals from September, with 5,000 DNA machines, supplied by DnaNudge, to provide 5.8 million tests in the coming months.

Separately, 450,000 90-minute LamPORE swab tests will also be available across adult care setting and laboratories from next week, supplied by Oxford Nanopore.

DNA testing for coronavirus

5,000 DNA ‘Nudgebox’ machines, supplied by DnaNudge, will be rolled out across NHS hospitals in the UK to analyse DNA in nose swabs, providing a positive or negative result for COVID-19 in 90 minutes, at the point of care. The machines will process up to 15 tests on the spot each day without the need for a laboratory.

The DNA COVID-19 test machines are currently operating in 8 London hospitals:

  • St Mary’s Hospital in Paddington
  • Charing Cross Hospital
  • West Middlesex University Hospital
  • Chelsea and Westminster Hospital
  • Royal Hospital Chelsea
  • Queen Charlotte’s and Chelsea Maternity Hospital
  • the Renal Transplant Centre at Hammersmith Hospital
  • the Tower Hamlets Centre for Mental Health at Mile End Hospital

The machines are located in cancer wards, A&E and maternity wards to protect those most at risk.

The government is signing contracts with more companies to produce machines for DNA coronavirus testing.

Rapid LamPORE tests

The new rapid LamPORE test will be able to process swab and saliva samples to detect the presence of COVID-19 in 60 to 90 minutes.

The new test has the same sensitivity as the widely used PCR swab test, but can be used to process swabs in labs, as well as on-location through ‘pop up’ labs. The desktop GridION machine can process up to 15,000 tests a day, or the palm-sized MinION can process up to 2,000 tests a day for deployment in a near-community ‘pop-up’ lab.

450,000 of the new LamPORE tests will be available from next week across adult care settings, NHS laboratories and lighthouse laboratories, with millions more tests to be rolled out later in the year.

Details of positive test results will be shared with NHS Test and Trace, so close contacts can self-isolate in line with guidance.

Regius Professor Chris Toumazou FRS, CEO and co-founder of DnaNudge and founder of the Institute of Biomedical Engineering at Imperial College London, commented:

The DnaNudge team worked with incredible speed and skill during the peak of the pandemic to deliver this highly accurate, rapid COVID-19 test, which requires absolutely no laboratory or pipettes and can be deployed anywhere with a direct sample-to-result in around just over an hour.

We have been able to successfully adapt our in-store consumer DNA testing technology – which identifies genetic risks for chronic conditions related to obesity and type 2 diabetes – and validate it for detecting COVID-19 with gold-standard accuracy.

We are extremely proud to be playing such a pivotal role in supporting the national effort on testing, as this major contract award signifies. With the ability to test not only for COVID-19 but also FluA, FluB and RSV on the same single COVID-19 Nudge cartridge, our multiplex test offers a vital solution to protect the NHS as we head into the flu season.

Gordon Sanghera, CEO of Oxford Nanopore, said:

We are honoured to be playing a part in fighting COVID-19 in the UK, and preparing the country for the winter virus season. Ever since we founded Oxford Nanopore, our mission has been to create disruptive, high performance technology that has a profound, positive impact on society.

LamPORE has the potential to deliver a highly effective and, crucially, accessible global testing solution, not only for COVID-19 but for a range of other pathogens. We are delighted to be working with the UK government to support and empower our communities to effectively manage testing at a national and localised level.

Background information

About DnaNudge

DnaNudge, based in London, is a retail based, on-the-spot genetic testing service that provides product recommendations suited to your DNA to promote a healthy lifestyle.

DnaNudge’s new RNA COVID-19 tests are based on DnaNudge DNA testing innovation delivering processing outside of a laboratory environment, using DnaNudge’s patented and miniaturised ‘NudgeBox’ analyser, which can be used anywhere.

About Oxford Nanopore

Oxford Nanopore, which last year built a factory in Oxfordshire, is a rapidly growing business that is scaling its operations to be able to provide substantial volumes of tests to the UK – critical to support expanded testing at a time when global supply chains are squeezed for traditional tests.

About LamPORE

LamPORE uses a method called RT-LAMP to identify and amplify the SARS-CoV-2 virus in an original sample, and Oxford Nanopore’s sequencing technology to precisely identify the amplified virus. It tests for active infection, providing a complementary testing solution to antibody detection, currently only able to indicate a previous infection.

LamPORE includes a control mechanism that detects and invalidates samples where there has been an error in sample collection.




Eat Out to Help Out launches today – with government paying half on restaurant bills

  • from today customers will get up to 50% off on bills when visiting participating restaurants, pubs and cafes
  • half price discount will run through August and applies to all food and non-alcoholic drinks consumed on the premises – with Pizza Express, Costa Coffee and Nando’s among thousands signed up
  • the scheme, part of the Chancellor’s Plan for Jobs, aims to protect jobs in the hospitality sector – which has been hit hard by coronavirus

Anyone visiting a participating restaurant, café or pub on Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays throughout August will receive the half price discount – keeping more money in hardworking families’ pockets and giving a vital boost to the UK’s hospitality sector.

The scheme – part of the government’s Plan for Jobs that will spur the country’s economic recovery from coronavirus – applies to all food and non-alcoholic drinks, with a maximum discount per person of £10. It could save a family of four up to £40 per meal.

More than 72,000 establishments are participating, including independent eateries and family favourites such as Pizza Express, Costa Coffee and Nando’s.

There have already been over 3.3 million hits on the Eat Out to Help Out restaurant finder since it launched last week, which shows what businesses are participating in local areas, and many restaurants have since seen a boost in bookings. Apps like Opentable, Fork and Bookatable are all planning pages to support the scheme.

Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak said:

Our Eat Out to Help Out scheme’s number one aim is to help protect the jobs of 1.8 million chefs, waiters and restaurateurs by boosting demand and getting customers through the door.

More than 72,000 establishments will be serving discounted meals across the country, with the government paying half the bill. The industry is a vital ingredient to our economy and it’s been hit hard by coronavirus, so enjoy summer safely by showing your favourite places your support – we’ll pay half.

The scheme will help protect the jobs of the hospitality industry’s 1.8 million employees by encouraging people to safely return to their local restaurants, cafes and pubs where social-distancing rules allow.

Around 80% of hospitality firms stopped trading in April, with 1.4 million workers furloughed, the highest of any sector.

Many participating restaurants offer healthy and low-calorie options, and the scheme should be enjoyed as part of a healthy and balanced lifestyle. No vouchers are needed, with the participating establishment deducting 50% from the bill.

People may be worried about returning to eat out. To address these concerns, businesses have prepared to become Covid-secure through, for example, protective screens, contactless payments, social distancing, one way walking systems, online bookings and reduced capacity.

The Eat Out to Help Out scheme is one part of the Chancellor’s £30 billion Plan for Jobs, announced last month. Other measures announced to protect, support and create jobs include cutting VAT for tourism and hospitality by 15%, a £2 billion Kickstart Scheme and an £8.8 billion investment in new infrastructure, decarbonisation and maintenance projects.

Further information