Stricter rules to clamp down on takeaway litter

New guidance will help make sure takeaway food businesses play their part in cleaning up high streets, the Department of Levelling Up, Housing and Communities has set out today (7 August 2022).

Updated guidance published today will clarify the powers councils in England have to set stricter litter rules for new hot food takeaways when considering planning applications, including making sure that more bins are installed to reduce rubbish in the surrounding area.

The move will help create cleaner town centres, with figures showing that fast food items are the fourth most common type of litter found on UK high streets.

Levelling Up Secretary Greg Clark said:

We are empowering councils to make sure new takeaway food businesses are doing their bit to stop rubbish littering our high streets.

It is just one of the many ways we are improving the environment and making sure we can all take pride in the local communities we call home.

The guidance will give councils clear and consistent advice on what rules they can enforce when new takeaways open, such as ensuring they install more bins and anti-litter signs around shops or have staff members pick up litter regularly. Failing to adhere to these rules could result in financial penalties.

A number of councils are already putting these requests into place, such as Gateshead Council which has ordered new takeaways to provide litter bins for customers.

Today’s announcement will ensure this practice becomes the norm across the country, so that new takeaway outlets do not increase the impact of litter on local communities.

This is part of wider measures set out in the Build Back Better High Streets Strategy to improve the public realm and create safer and cleaner spaces.

It follows new funding announced by the Environment Secretary yesterday to remove chewing gum stains from our high streets, with more than 40 councils across the UK awarded grants of up to £70,000.

New funding to remove chewing gum stains from our high streets

New Government action to crack down on litter on our high streets has been set out today (6 August), with more than 40 councils across the UK awarded grants of up to £70,000 to remove chewing gum stains.

Exeter, Birmingham, Sunderland, Swansea, Glasgow and Belfast are among the first winners of funding as part of the Government’s new Chewing Gum Task Force, helping to reinvigorate our country’s towns and cities by funding efforts to clean up streets.

Established by Defra and run by environmental charity Keep Britain Tidy, the Task Force aims to clean gum off pavements and put in measures to stop it being dropped in the first place.

Estimates suggest the annual clean-up cost of chewing gum for councils in the UK is around £7 million and according to Keep Britain Tidy, around 87% of England’s streets are stained with gum.

The funding announced today is the first tranche of a package worth up to £10 million from major gum manufacturers including Mars Wrigley and Perfetti Van Melle to tackle chewing gum stains – the investment will be spread over five years.

Environment Secretary George Eustice said:

Littering blights our towns and costs taxpayers money. Working with responsible gum manufacturers, we are now giving councils extra help to clean up our cities and towns.

This means we can double down on regenerating our high streets, boosting local economies and levelling up communities across the country.

Funding will cover:

Grants of up £20,000 for councils including Leicester, Hull, Croydon, Southend, Lewisham and Colchester to purchase cleaning equipment as well as receiving signage to warn people not to litter gum – previous pilots run by Mars Wrigley and not-for-profit Behaviour Change using this signage have reduced gum littering by up to 64%.
Long-term monitoring of gum litter levels and the effects of intervention for four councils including Belfast, Birmingham, Glasgow and Newport.
£70,000 for several council partnerships – including Bury and Bolton, Camden and Brent, and Nottingham and Derby.

Allison Ogden-Newton OBE, Chief Executive of Keep Britain Tidy, said:

This is an exciting new opportunity for councils to tackle the ongoing problem of gum pollution.

The grants will allow councils to clean up historic gum litter staining in our towns and cities, as well as taking action to prevent people littering in the first place.

Ana Baptista, Corporate Affairs Director, Mars Wrigley UK, said:

Mars Wrigley has invested in campaigns to tackle litter across the UK for many years. Through our partnership with Behaviour Change we have developed interventions proven to reduce gum littering which have already been used by over 100 Councils.

We are delighted to see these deployed as part of the Chewing Gum Task Force Grant Scheme and look forward to having many more Councils on board.

Hayley Osborne Communications and Sustainability Manager for Perfetti Van Melle, said:

As a manufacturer of gum products we are aware of the unfortunate impact our products can cause to cities and towns. By working together with industry peers, councils, and customers, we can also help be part of the solution, helping to clean-up our streets and educating consumers on the importance of safe gum disposal.

In addition, we are also working on our own campaigns to support our customers, with on-package signage and labelling to help work towards a circular, long-term solution.

This forms part of the Prime Minister’s High Street Strategy to support the evolution and regeneration of high streets across the country, which includes 15 Town Deals totalling £335 million to fund community regeneration projects, the transformation of derelict buildings, and communities being given the chance to own local pubs, theatres, sports grounds and corner shops.

Littering is a criminal offence, and the UK Government has already bolstered local authorities enforcement powers by increasing the on-the-spot penalties for littering to £150 in England. Councils can also take offenders to court, which can result in a fine of up to £2,500 if convicted.

Through the Environment Act, the Government will be able to ensure that enforcement powers are used with a high degree of professionalism, whether by council staff or private contractors, and place our improved enforcement guidance on a firm statutory footing.

This forms part of wider government action to tackle litter and protect our environment. We plan to launch a deposit return scheme for drinks containers, extended producer responsibility for packaging and consistent recycling collections which will transform the way we deal with our rubbish.

Call for Bid: Advancing Gender Equality and Inclusion in the OPTs

World news story

British Consulate General Jerusalem is accepting proposals for a two and a half-year project October 2022 to March 2025 with a total budget of £1.77m

1. Introduction:

The United Kingdom, including through its Conflict Security Stability Fund Programme (CSSF), supports progress towards gender equality and inclusiveness in the Occupied Palestinian Territories (OPTs). Due to its impact on peace building, economic and security objectives the evidence shows that increased levels of gender equality links to reduced levels of internal and external conflict.

The British Consulate General Jerusalem (BCG) is accepting proposals for a two and a half-year project October 2022 to March 2025 with a total budget of £1.77m under its Conflict, Stability and Security Fund (CSSF). The overall aim of the project is to promote gender equality and inclusion in the OPTs, with a focus on women’s political and social empowerment and tackling and preventing gender-based violence (GBV). BCG is anticipating an evidence-based novel and innovative approach to protect and promote gender equality and inclusiveness in OPTs rather than replication of past interventions.

Deadline for submitting applications: 30 August 2022.

2. Project Objective:

The objective of the project can be achieved through three complimentary focus areas (proposals can focus on one, two or all three areas):

Setting positive precedents, overcoming social norms and tackling structural and institutional barriers that limit women’s ability to achieve leadership positions within the Palestinian political and social sphere;
Provision of technical assistance to CSOs and Palestinian Authority institutions and ministries that support inclusiveness and help set positive precedents of women in leadership; and
Increasing equitable participation of women in democratic processes and civic life, particularly for young and marginalized women and those with multiple intersecting forms of deprivation.
Design and implement interventions to prevent, mitigate and respond to violence against women in politics, community engagement and leadership positions including online harassment and incitement, against women potential leaders.

2.2. Tackle Gender Based Violence (GBV):

Vulnerable women and men, girls and boys, including those facing intersecting and multiple forms of deprivations, have better access to adequate and appropriate support and protection and multi-sectorial services (economic, medical, psychosocial, security and shelter, case management, legal aid, etc.);
Working to prevent GBV and strengthening the GBV service delivery capacity of Palestinian CSOs and public institutions;
The contribution should also enable actors to move from project-based planning to longer term and more strategic sustainable models, e.g providing sustainable exit plans for victims of GBV such as economic empowerment/independence through training opportunities; (thought this should not be the primary focus of the proposal).

Engaging men and women, religious leaders, media outlets, private sector and public institutions and other community members in issues of gender equality targeting, inclusion and challenging pervasive social norms
Tackling harmful beliefs and social norms that perpetuate violence against women and girls and other minorities. This can include perceptions survey to identify those groups within society most susceptible to change their view on diversity and inclusion, in particular on women’s roles in society, politics and the workplace”

3. Summary of requirements:

The call for bid is open to all types of organisations, including commercial, not for profit, international and local, partner government or multilateral. Any proposals from for-profit organisations for grant funding can only be considered if an officially registered non-profit making arm or division of the for-profit organisation will deliver the project.
Bidders should have presence and previous experience working in the Occupied Palestinian Territories (OPTs), with in-depth knowledge of the local context, including HMG political sensitivities.
Bidders should consider sub-contracting with local CSOs, using appropriate selection criteria.
Technical know-how and organisational capacity to deliver such a project. Bidders should have previously received a direct fund of at least $200.000 for a one year spend.
Suppliers should pay particular attention to relevant UK legislation on aid divergence. All activities must be conducted in accordance with UK values, standards and HMG policy.

4. Required Submissions

Bidders should submit the Activity Based Budget Template (MS Excel Spreadsheet, 27.3 KB) and the Project Proposal Form Template (MS Word Document, 72.1 KB) Template for the entire project period. We will not consider proposals submitted in other formats
Budget must be Activity Based Budgets (ABB), including monthly breakdown, of a maximum ceiling of £1.77m under CSSF programme over three years divided as follow:
FY October/November 2022/to March 2023: £177k
FY April 2023/ March 2024 £0.8.k
FY April 2024/ March2025 £0.8K
All costs should be listed in GBP (not ILS).
The budget should be detailed for the first year, and contain a general estimate of the costs for the following year(s).
Bidders are required to differentiate in the Annual Budget between their (a) Administrative Costs (e.g: general administration and support costs; office maintenance, repair and running costs; accountants, HR, and senior managers; other cross-cutting staff costs not directly attributable to a single project and are shared across the implementer’s business platform and any mandatory operational or legal costs incurred by an implementer in order to operate in a given location administrative staff salaries, office maintenance, repair and running costs), and (b) Project Costs which should include all project associated costs including implementing staff costs, travel, M&E costs.
Please explain clearly, what you have included in each category. Administrative costs must stay within the limit of 10% of the total project budget.
2-pages summary of resume of key personnel who are proposed for the project. (Do not submit full resumes of staff please)
Official registration of the organization

5. Bidding process

Proposals should be sent to dalya.abuomar@fcdo.gov.uk by 30 August 2022 Opts Time. In subject line please indicate the name of the bidder and title of the bid ‘Gender Equality and Inclusion in OPTs’’ Proposals should not be more than 13 pages, with minimum font size 11 Arial. If you have not received a confirmation email within 24 hours, please get in touch with us. (we recommend limit the size of submissions to 10MB to avoid technical issues or send in two separated emails).
The British Consulate reserves the right to carry out due diligence of potential grantees as part of the selection process. Due to the volume of bids expected, we will not be able to provide feedback on unsuccessful bids.

6. Evaluation criteria

Successful bids must demonstrate strong strategic relevance to the project outcome and objective, and have a clear focus on delivering change and sustainability. Proposals will be evaluated against the following criteria:

Strategic fit to project objective – to what extent the proposal is clear, coherent, realistic and how appropriate is the work plan of activities in order to achieve expected results.
Quality of project – the strength of the Theory of Change, and the monitoring and evaluation framework.
Value for money – what measures (effectiveness, efficiency, economy and equity) have been optimized and how.
Expertise- Evidence of understanding of the context; ability to manage and deliver a successful project that includes dissemination activities and engagement across society, and an existing network of relevant connections. If staff members and sub-contractors possess sufficient knowledge and experience of the project area.
Gender-sensitive approach – If gender implications of the project have been identified and how the project will take account of gender-related differences; ensuring the project does no harm to any particular gender group or gender context.
Potential of scaling up and sustainability- how the project outcomes will continue to have impact beyond the lifetime of the project
Risk management – the extent to which the proposal identifies serious risks, together with a management strategy.

Published 5 August 2022

Minister for Sport speech at International Working Group on Women and Sport handover

Thank you to New Zealand for your generous hospitality.

I am genuinely delighted to be able to attend today’s event which starts the official handover of the International Working Group on Women and Sport from New Zealand to the UK.

It is great that the event could be happening at the very same time as Birmingham 2022, which – and this is worth repeating – has the largest female sport programme in the history of the Commonwealth Games and will be the first time a major multi-sport event will feature more women’s than men’s medal events and I think that is fantastic.

I am absolutely committed to supporting women’s sport at every opportunity – pushing for greater participation, employment, commercial opportunities and visibility in the media. The fantastic success of the Lionesses this weekend shows just how far we have come.

The UK has a strong track record and strong history of empowering women and girls through sport. There is a long way to go but we have much to be proud of in this area.

The media profile of women’s sport is continuing to rise and recent research shows that two-thirds of UK sport fans currently follow some form of women’s sport, and half have attended an event featuring women’s athletes.

Our domestic initiatives, like This Girl Can, are inspiring millions of women and girls to get physically active. Something that is particularly important as we recover from the pandemic.

We have also seen the growth in audiences for women’s sport.

Recent research published by Women’s Sport Trust shows that domestic women’s sport attracted a record British broadcast audience of nearly 33 million in 2021, the main drivers being The Hundred and the FA Women’s Super League.

And the leadership role of certain media outlets is very important, including the BBC, which made the strategic decision to make sure that many of those matches were on BBC One, peak time. It worked. It showed that there is a mass audience for women’s sport. And that is pivotal. If the eyeballs are there, then the money and commercial opportunities start flowing. Instead of just doing that because it is the right thing to do, we will have increasing competition to hold these events and make sure these events are on TV because they are commercially viable and commercially lucrative.

And a record crowd of more than 87,000 attended this year’s UEFA Women’s Euros final – the highest attended match at either a men’s or women’s European Championship. I was lucky enough to attend some of the matches including the final and I can honestly say that there was a superb atmosphere. The spectators were evenly balanced and importantly, more than 100,000 children were spectators in those matches. I know the whole nation will have been inspired by the Lionesses.

There have also been record sponsorship deals struck with women’s sports leagues, such as Barclays’ sponsorship of the Women’s Super League, the premier women’s football league in England.

And the UK is due to host a number of high profile women’s sports events this year, including the Rugby League World Cup and the Billie Jean King Cup. Plus Birmingham 2022 of course which is going on at this moment in time.

We are working tirelessly to make the most of these events in showcasing women’s sport, and encouraging more women and girls to get active as a result. But we recognise that we need to go further.

The IWG is a great opportunity to build on this success and not only share the fantastic work we are doing but to learn from other countries too.

The UK Secretariat’s vision for a ‘just and sustainable post-pandemic world where women and girls play a full and equitable role’ is something that I feel passionately about.

It is vital that we continue to strive for greater equality and opportunity in sport.

We have been working with our women’s sport working group in the UK, which many of you have attended, to look at some of the challenges and opportunities that exist and I am really keen that we continue to make progress as a result of these discussions.

I would also like to commend the work of the current hosts New Zealand in sharing, promoting and supporting stories of inspiring change from around the world.

Their development of the world’s first IWG Insight Hub as a home for the world’s best research, insight, case studies, news and interactive programmes such as training and seminars has also been ground breaking.

I believe the IWG can be a catalyst for women’s sport as we recover from the impact of the pandemic.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank you for the role you have all played in securing the IWG secretariat for the UK.

It’s absolutely essential that we work collectively to share the messages behind the bid of inclusivity, equity and collaboration.

I look forward to continuing to work with you to ensure that women’s sport continues to thrive not just in the UK but on the international stage.

UK monkeypox case numbers begin to plateau

As of 4 August, there are 2,859 confirmed and highly probable cases of monkeypox in the UK.

Analyses of the current UK outbreak shows that monkeypox continues to be transmitted primarily in interconnected sexual networks of gay, bisexual, or other men who have sex with men (GBMSM). The median age of confirmed cases in the UK was 37 years old. In England, 73% are known to be London residents over the course of the outbreak.

In the past few weeks, there have been a small number of women confirmed to have monkeypox but there is not enough evidence currently to suggest that there is sustained transmission outside of interconnected sexual networks. Twenty-two cases in women have been identified and 99% of all UK cases are male.

A small number of cases with no known travel history during their incubation period have been detected prior to 6 May, pre-dating the previous first-known report of a monkeypox case in the UK. This is not unexpected given our understanding of the outbreak to date.

Dr Meera Chand, Director of Clinical and Emerging Infections, UKHSA, said:

While the most recent data suggests the growth of the outbreak has slowed, we cannot be complacent. Be vigilant of and check yourself for monkeypox symptoms, including rashes and blisters.

If you are concerned that you may have monkeypox symptoms, take a break from events, meeting with friends or having sexual contact. Instead, stay at home and contact 111 or your local sexual health service for advice.

The smallpox vaccine is being offered to individuals at higher risk of coming into contact with monkeypox in order to offer them protection and to reduce the spread of disease.

The briefing now includes monkeypox genomic surveillance data from the UK. As is described globally, the majority of outbreak cases in the UK belong to a distinct genetic lineage (B.1) which has mutations of unknown significance when compared with the closest previously characterised monkeypox virus genomes.

UKHSA will continue to publish regular technical briefings as the response to the outbreak continues.