Minister for Business and Industry, Nadhim Zahawi, said:

The UK has unrivalled expertise in nuclear decommissioning, cleaning up the environment, boosting the economy and delivering highly-skilled jobs, so I am delighted by Ros’s appointment as the new Chair of the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority.

Ros is ideally suited to provide the NDA with the leadership to strengthen its culture, build its capabilities, and deliver on its mission safely as we work towards eliminating our contribution to climate change by 2050.

Dr Rivaz said:

I am honoured to accept this role. I have been fortunate to work in some of the most innovative companies in the UK and internationally, in sectors such as engineering, manufacturing and chemicals.

I am to use that experience to support the NDA’s work as it deals with some of the world’s most complex challenges. It is an organisation with a clear vision and strong strategy. I relish the chance to take its mission forward.

Tom Smith said:

It has been a huge privilege to be the Chair of the NDA. The NDA’s work is important to the country as it deals with the UK’s civil nuclear legacy. I wish all the staff of the NDA well. I admire their determination, expertise and sense of public service. And, of course, I also wish Ros every success in her new role.

David Peattie, NDA CEO, said:

I’d like to welcome Ros to the NDA. Our work and achievements is a great source of pride for me and it is fantastic to have her with us. I would also like to pay tribute to our outgoing Chair.

I have greatly enjoyed and valued working with Tom Smith. Together we have brought about significant changes to the NDA’s operating model and culture.

Dr Ros Rivaz has a wide experience in executive and non-executive roles in blue chip companies in the UK and internationally. She started her career in ExxonMobil, specialising in supply chain leadership.

She has worked in senior roles for Tate & Lyle, ICI, Diageo and Premier Foods and was Smith & Nephew’s Global Chief Operating Officer from 2011-2014.

Dr Rivaz has also held a number of non-executive roles in industry, including roles at ConvaTec, Rexam and CEVA Logistics AG.

Ros is currently a Non-Executive Director at Defence Equipment and Support (DE&S), which is part of the Ministry of Defence and at Computacenter plc. She has also recently joined the boards of the chemicals company Victrex plc and the specialised steel company Aperam SA.

Ros also plays important roles in the charity sector and academia. She was non-executive Director of the “Your Life” campaign initiative to increase take up of Maths and Physics amongst 14-16 year olds; Deputy Chair of Southampton University; and is on the board of the community interest company Eton Community CIC.

The NDA is responsible for the management, decommissioning and clean-up of 17 nuclear sites across the country, including Sellafield which is one of the largest and most complex nuclear sites in the world.

The NDA’s functions also include operating nuclear sites, maintaining safety and security, transporting and storing nuclear materials, and managing a wider range of supply chain and research contracts.

Dr Rivaz’s term is 1 September 2020 to 31 August 2023

Four forces launched a concerted campaign to dismantle criminal groups, underpinned by the first round of funding from a £25 million government cash boost.

New figures show that, as a result of this activity, police made over 650 arrests, closed nearly 140 deal lines, seized cash and drugs with a total value of over £3 million, and made over 100 weapons seizures.

Officers also safeguarded scores of individuals – including 140 children.

Home Secretary Priti Patel said:

I am determined to roll up county lines drugs gangs and stop them from terrorising our towns and exploiting our children.

I have seen first-hand the important work the police are doing to tackle county lines, and these impressive results show just how much of an impact our investment is having.

The police will always have my backing in tackling this threat and, crucially, protecting victims.

The operations were carried out by British Transport Police, the Metropolitan Police, Merseyside Police and West Midlands Police, and took place between November 2019 and Mach 2020.

This police surge activity was funded by £5 million from the government’s £25 million package to tackle county lines.

Metropolitan Police Deputy Assistant Commissioner Graham McNulty, national lead for county lines, said:

County lines is an abhorrent crime which inflicts misery on communities across the UK. This issue is not being tackled in isolation. Dedicated teams in forces across the nation are identifying lines, locating those running them and dismantling their operation entirely.

This work will not cease – it will increase and intensify over the coming months. I am pleased at the announcement of additional funding which will ensure we can continue to bring those intent on peddling drugs to justice.

Detective Superintendent Gareth Williams, the lead for the British Transport Police County Lines Taskforce, said:

Our Taskforce works nationally, targeting the train routes used by gangs to transport drugs and cash. We carry out operations daily and without warning, securing hundreds of arrests within a few short months.

Our national focus has helped us build a strong understanding of the scale of this issue and its impact on communities.

Merseyside Police Chief Constable Andy Cooke said:

We have seen considerable success through this kind of targeted action in recent months and it is vital that we keep up this relentless level of activity targeting criminals and protecting the young and vulnerable who they groom to do their dirty work.

Those responsible for these county lines bring misery to our local communities through their drug dealing. Here on Merseyside we have arrested 137 people and shutdown 61 County Lines between November 2019 and March this year. The additional funding this year will certainly be put to good use and will provide us with the ability to use new ANPR technology to target county lines and provide support services for the vulnerable.

Chief Inspector Ronan Tyrer from the West Midlands Regional Organised Crime Unit said:

The funding has enabled us to create a taskforce dedicated to targeting top-tier drugs criminals operating in our region. These are people running drugs networks, exploiting vulnerable people and making large sums of money on the back of others’ suffering.

“These results are just the start: there will be many more warrants, arrests and seizures over the coming weeks and months.

Nikki Holland, NCA Director of Investigations and joint National County Lines Lead, said:

Protecting young and vulnerable people from County Lines networks remains a priority for law enforcement, and our work continues despite the challenging situation the UK is facing with the Covid-19 pandemic.

Since the National County Lines Centre opened our intelligence picture is the best it’s ever been and law enforcement has united to target criminals, making thousands of arrests and seizing significant amounts of cash in coordinated action.

We welcome investment in our work to tackle County Lines and we are continuing our work at pace with partners to target the illicit finances behind the county lines operations; working to strip criminals of their assets to have maximum and lasting impact against those damaging our communities.

The Home Office is delivering the remaining £20 million of the package this year. Other measures being invested in include the expansion of the National County Lines Co-ordination Centre, new technology including Automatic Number Plate Recognition and support services for victims.

British Transport Police have also used the funding to introduce specialist drug detection dogs to work within their new dedicated county lines task force.

The National County Lines Co-ordination Centre is ensuring more intelligence is shared between forces and police are targeting dirty money. Since it opened in 2018, the centre has coordinated action which led to over 2,500 arrests and has safeguarded over 3,000 vulnerable people.

County lines is criminal exploitation, where children and vulnerable adults are coerced by gangs and organised crime networks to carry and sell illegal drugs from one area of the UK to another, usually across police and local authority boundaries.

The National Crime Agency’s most recent strategic assessment of serious and organised crime found that more than 3,000 unique deal line numbers were identified in 2019, of which 800 to 1,100 lines were estimated to be active during a given month.

The Bureau of the Conference of the Parties to the UNFCCC (United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change), with the UK and its Italian partners, agreed today new dates for the COP26 UN climate conference, which will now take place between 1 and 12 November 2021 in Glasgow.

The agreement followed consultation with UNFCCC members, delivery partners and the international climate community. The conference was originally set to take place in November 2020, but had been postponed due to COVID-19.

In the run up to November 2021, the UK as hosts will continue to work with all involved to increase climate action, build resilience and lower emissions. The new date will also allow the UK and our Italian partners to harness our incoming G7 and G20 presidencies in driving climate ambition.

The decision on the new date comes as the UK Government announces that over 25 experts in multiple global sectors will be advising the COP26 Presidency.

The Friends of COP bring expertise from countries across six continents, including France, Barbados, Chad, Australia, India and Peru. They will advise the UK Government and inspire action from their sectors ahead of the conference.

The Friends of COP include Selwin Hart, Special Adviser to the United Nations Secretary-General on Climate Action, Eric Garcetti, Mayor of Los Angeles and Sharan Burrow, General Secretary of the International Trade Union Confederation.

COP26 President and Secretary of State for the Department of Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, Alok Sharma, said:

While we rightly focus on fighting the immediate crisis of the Coronavirus, we must not lose sight of the huge challenges of climate change. With the new dates for COP26 now agreed we are working with our international partners on an ambitious roadmap for global climate action between now and November 2021. The steps we take to rebuild our economies will have a profound impact on our societies’ future sustainability, resilience and wellbeing and COP26 can be a moment where the world unites behind a clean resilient recovery.

Everyone will need to raise their ambitions to tackle climate change and the expertise of the Friends of COP will be important in helping boost climate action across the globe.

Italian Minister for the Environment, Land and Sea Protection, Sergio Costa, said:

I am glad that consultations with Parties have made it possible to collectively and quickly agree new dates for COP26. The new dates mean the conference will be at a time when the Covid-19 tragedy will be behind us and we will be able to ensure inclusiveness, for us a fundamental prerequisite for an ambitious COP26 based on global commitment to action.

Between now and November 2021 we will take advantage of every international opportunity to increase ambition and mobilization, also harnessing the G20 under the Italian Presidency and the G7 under the British Presidency.

Carolina Schmidt Zaldívar, COP25 President and Minister of Environment of Chile said:

It is very important that we continue to push for climate action, and having quickly agreed on new dates for COP26 is a sign of this commitment. While the subsidiary body sessions (SB52) were also postponed 4-12 October 2020, the work of the Parties and stakeholders will continue through virtual meetings such as the upcoming ‘June Momentum’.

The urgency with which governments and the way in which countries promote recovery from the post-COVID-19 crisis will directly affect the other serious global crisis we are experiencing: global warming and climate change crisis. That is why we will continue to strongly mobilize all actors. We need more ambition to reduce emissions, to build resilience and to cooperate with each other.

UN Climate Change Executive Secretary, Patricia Espinosa, said:

Our efforts to address climate change and COVID-19 are not mutually exclusive. If done right, the recovery from the COVID-19 crisis can steer us to a more inclusive and sustainable climate path.

We honour those who we have lost by working with renewed commitment and continuing to demonstrate leadership and determination in addressing climate change, and building a safe, clean, just and resilient world.

Groups of up to six people will be able to meet outdoors in England from Monday 1 June, including in gardens and other private outdoor spaces, provided strict social distancing guidelines are followed.

The Prime Minister announced the change as he set out a carefully-designed package to ease the burdens of lockdown in a way that is expected to keep the R rate down.

Thanks to the public’s continued patience and hard work in helping to protect the NHS and contain the virus, the Prime Minister confirmed that the government’s five tests are being met. This means we can now move forward to the next phase of adjusting the lockdown.

In line with the Prime Minister’s announcements earlier this week, a series of measures will be put in place in England from Monday 1 June in three core areas – schools, retail, and social contact.

Primary schools will welcome back children in Reception, Year 1 and Year 6 on 1 June, and nurseries and other early years settings will be reopened. On 15 June, secondary schools, sixth forms and colleges will begin to provide some face-to-face contact time for Year 10 and 12 and the equivalent groups in further education. This will help students prepare for exams next year, and we expect there to be around a quarter of these secondary students in at any point.

The Prime Minister has also acknowledged that some schools may not be able to reopen immediately, and has committed the government to continuing to work with the sector to ensure any schools experiencing difficulties are able to open as soon as possible.

Thousands of high street shops, department stores and shopping centres will also begin to reopen in June as we restart the economy.

Outdoor markets and car showrooms will be able to reopen from 1 June, provided they meet COVID-19 secure guidelines to protect shoppers and workers. We intend to open all other non-essential retail from 15 June, as long as the government’s five tests are still being met and COVID-19 secure guidelines are followed.

Recognising the impact that lockdown is having on family and friends who have been unable to see each other, the Prime Minister announced today that from 1 June up to six people from different households will be allowed to meet outside, including in gardens and other private outdoor spaces.

The evidence shows that the risk of transmission is significantly lower outdoors and this step will mean that people can see more of their friends, family and loved ones.

However, as we take this small step forward, it is critical that those from different households continue to stay 2 metres apart. And it remains the case that people should not spend time inside the homes of their friends and families, other than to access the garden or use the toilet.

Minimising contact with others is still the best way to prevent transmission. The Prime Minister was clear today that people should try to avoid seeing people from too many households in quick succession – so that we can avoid the risk of quick transmission between lots of different families and continue to control the virus. Those who are shielding should continue to do so. The Government recognises the toll this is taking on groups that have been asked to shield and hopes to say more soon on what further support we can provide.

Speaking at today’s Downing Street press conference, the Prime Minister said –

Thanks to the caution we have shown so far, all five tests are being met. That is not my achievement or the government’s achievement – it is your achievement, only possible thanks to your resolve and dedication to our national purpose to overcome this virus.

So the result is we can move forward with adjusting the lockdown in England on Monday.

I want to reaffirm that fundamental commitment to the British people that all the steps we have taken, and will take, are conditional.

They are conditional on all the data, and all the scientific advice, and it is that scientific advice which will help us to judge what we are doing is safe.

And as before, we will see how these new changes are working, and look at the R value and the number of new infections before taking any further steps, so we can ensure anything we do does not risk a second peak that could overwhelm the NHS.

The new NHS Test and Trace programme will ensure we keep making progress in easing the lockdown while continuing to keep the virus under control.

The government will closely monitor the impact of the changes set out today and continue to follow the scientific advice to ensure the five tests continue to be met before we take any further steps.

So far, the public have shown high levels of compliance and we are confident that this will continue as restrictions are relaxed, and that people will do the right thing to control the virus and save lives.

The police will continue to take the approach of engaging, explaining and encouraging individuals to follow the law. Where people do not follow the rules, the police will have the power to enforce these requirements as a last resort.

The Prime Minister’s statement at today’s Downing Street press conference is here.

The Government’s five tests are:

1. Protect the NHS’s ability to cope. We must be confident that we are able to provide sufficient critical care and specialist treatment right across the UK
2. See a sustained and consistent fall in the daily death rates from COVID-19 so we are confident that we have moved beyond the peak
3. Reliable data from SAGE showing that the rate of infection is decreasing to manageable levels across the board
4. Be confident that the range of operational challenges, including testing capacity and PPE, are in hand, with supply able to meet future demand
5. Be confident that any adjustments to the current measures will not risk a second peak of infections that overwhelms the NHS