Following a planning hearing last year, Grant Shapps, the Secretary of State for Transport, has granted a Development Consent Order for work to start on the major A30 Chiverton to Carland Cross Dualling Scheme.

Highways England’s £290 million improvement scheme, part of the Government’s £15 billion Road Investment Strategy, will help to promote economic growth, improve journey times and increase safety by unlocking one of the last major bottlenecks in the county.

Roads Minister Baroness Vere said:

This Government is committed to delivering an infrastructure revolution and levelling up access across the country.

This vital upgrade of the A30 will improve safety, cut congestion, boost access for drivers on their daily commute and create better journeys for the surrounding communities.

The 8.7-mile road scheme includes:

• a 70mph high-quality dual carriageway
• a two-level junction at Chiverton Cross and a new roundabout to ensure the free flow of traffic on the A30
• a new partial junction at Chybucca built on two levels with west-facing slip roads to provide access onto the dual carriageway from local routes
• new bridges at Tolgroggan Farm, Pennycomequick Lane and over the Allet to Tresawsen road to provide local access
• a two-level junction at Carland Cross with a new roundabout north of the dual carriageway and re-using the existing roundabout to the south
• keeping the existing A30 as a local route with new sections where necessary to provide continuity and connectivity for local communities

Highways England Senior Project Manager Josh Hodder said:

We’re delighted to receive the Secretary of State’s decision, which represents a major step in developing a scheme to help unlock congestion, promote economic growth and bring out better connectivity for local communities along the A30.

Improving the A30 between Chiverton and Carland Cross is incredibly important for Cornwall’s future.

It’s the only remaining stretch of single carriageway on the A30 between Camborne and the M5 at Exeter; journeys on this part of the road are regularly delayed, congestion often brings traffic to a standstill, and as a result the Cornish economy is being held back.

Following the granting of planning consent, main construction works are scheduled to start later this year, with the route expected to be open to traffic in 2023.

During construction, the work will take place away from the existing A30 route to ensure continuity for traffic.

Mr Hodder added:

The existing A30 will remain open while the scheme is built alongside. We are currently finalising our construction partner, all phases of the work and associated traffic management will be explained to the local community before we start, and ongoing communication will keep people updated throughout.

The cost of developing the scheme is being partly funded by an £8 million contribution from the European Regional Development Fund, with an additional £12 million for the construction phase. The remainder of the cost of developing and delivering the scheme is being funded by central Government.

Cllr Geoff Brown, Cornwall Council’s Portfolio Holder for Transport, said:

This is very welcome news for Cornwall. The scheme will help to improve journey times for local people, businesses and visitors, there is strong support locally to improve this stretch of the A30, and the project will build upon the excellent working relationship that we have with Highways England.

Now a decision has been issued by the Secretary of State, there is a six-week period in which the decision may be challenged in the High Court.

In the meantime, further information and updates will be available on the web page.

General enquiries

Members of the public should contact the Highways England customer contact centre on 0300 123 5000.

Media enquiries

Journalists should contact the Highways England press office on 0844 693 1448 and use the menu to speak to the most appropriate press officer.

The regulations have been put in place with immediate effect to impose restrictions on any individual considered by health professionals to be at risk of spreading the virus.

The regulations apply to any individuals seeking to leave supported isolation before the current quarantine period of 14 days is complete. It will also apply to future cases during the current coronavirus incident where an individual who may be infected or contaminated could present a risk to public health.

Today’s announcement is not a result of a change in risk to the UK public, which remains moderate.

Health Secretary Matt Hancock said:

I will do everything in my power to keep people in this country safe. We are taking every possible step to control the outbreak of coronavirus.

NHS staff and others will now be supported with additional legal powers to keep people safe across the country. The transmission of coronavirus would constitute a serious threat – so I am taking action to protect the public and isolate those at risk of spreading the virus.

Clinical advice has not changed about the risk to the public, which remains moderate. We are taking a belt and braces approach to all necessary precautions to ensure public safety.

Our infection control procedures are world leading – what I am announcing today further strengthens our response.

The regulations have been put in place to reduce the risk of further human-to-human transmission in this country.

The strengthened powers, effective immediately, will ensure that NHS staff dealing with possible cases can be confident the necessary powers are in place to keep individuals in isolation where public health professionals believe there is a reasonable risk an individual may have the virus. This is in line with measures taken in other countries.

Over the weekend, the latest government-chartered flight brought a further 100 individuals from the centre of the outbreak in Hubei province to stay in supported isolation in the UK.

The individuals have been taken to the Kents Hill Park conference centre in Milton Keynes where they will remain for 14 days until the end of the incubation period. This follows the same approach for those currently being housed in Arrowe Park NHS accommodation in Wirral.

All passengers were asked to sign a consent form agreeing to stay in supported isolation for at least 14 days until the incubation period is over. In all cases so far, supported isolation has been effective in controlling the spread of the virus.

These powers will give the public further confidence that the repatriation of British citizens back to the UK from Hubei does not increase the risk of further cases in this country.

The UK Chief Medical Officers currently assess the risk to the UK to be moderate.

Excellencies, ladies and gentlemen,

It’s a delight to be with you all, here today, at the first ICONS following our departure from the European Union, as we begin the next stage of our historic relationship with Europe.

This year also marks the 50th anniversary of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) – a cornerstone of global peace and security. And 4 years since the final Nuclear Security Summit where many countries committed to strengthen nuclear security.

This conference is therefore timely for taking stock of our progress. And to reflect on how nuclear security has contributed to the NPT’s success in enabling peaceful nuclear technologies.

These technologies – from low-carbon energy generation, to scientific and medical applications – help tackle global issues such as climate change, and promote human health and sustainable development.

This relies on public confidence that nuclear is safe and secure. An attack against a nuclear facility, or using radioactive materials, could severely harm people, our prosperity and the environment. It would damage public acceptance of nuclear technologies with far-reaching consequences.

Although nuclear security is each nation’s responsibility, it cannot be achieved unilaterally. Governments and international organisations must work together – to share expertise and practices, and to find solutions to common challenges.

Having left the EU, the UK remains entirely committed to the highest standards of nuclear security at home and around the world.

We strongly support the IAEA’s role in coordinating global efforts and helping Member States implement effective nuclear security. We also welcome its promotion of gender diversity, mirrored in our own Nuclear Sector Deal.

We are a leading contributor to the Nuclear Security Fund (NSF), helping dozens of Member States to enhance their security.

I’m pleased to announce that we plan to contribute a further £1.6 million to the NSF and I urge other Member States to contribute too.

UK experts participate in peer review missions and in drafting IAEA guidance, sharing our approaches and always learning from others. I encourage Member States to use IAEA peer review services, as we have, to benefit from collective global expertise.

Since the last ICONS in 2016, we have worked to enhance the UK’s civil nuclear security regime and continue to meet our obligations and commitments.

In December 2018, we completed the transfer of around 700kg of highly enriched uranium (HEU) from Scotland to the USA for conversion to civil reactor fuel.

This fulfills our 2016 Nuclear Security Summit pledge, and makes the world safer. I urge other Member States to reduce their own civil stocks of HEU.

Our detection architecture prevents the trafficking of radioactive materials. This is key to UK nuclear security, so we are trialling and using the latest detection technologies at our borders and in-land.

In addition, we are looking to replace Caesium irradiators in our health and research sectors with alternatives which do not contain radioactive sources.

By working to dispose of, and reduce demand for, these materials, we aim to join a growing international movement towards alternative technologies. I encourage other Member States to take similar steps.

Nuclear security regimes are strongest when they are integrated with safety and operations, and underpinned by effective regulation. To achieve this, the UK is shifting to outcome-focused nuclear security regulation.

Through its Security Assessment Principles, our Office for Nuclear Regulation identifies security outcomes across physical, cyber and personnel security.

Site operators must propose measures they will take to achieve them. This helps to better integrate safety and security, and improves risk awareness and innovation by industry.

Finally ladies and gentlemen, the UK recognises that, to keep pace with evolving technologies, cyber security requires greater global attention.

In 2017, we published a Cyber Security Strategy for the civil nuclear sector. This set out measures to enable our nuclear sector to defend against, and recover from, cyber threats.

We have worked with industry, and through our National Cyber Security Centre, to conduct exercises, test for vulnerabilities and increase threat awareness throughout the supply chain.

Let me close by thanking the IAEA for organising this important conference.

Through the Ministerial Declaration we endorse today, and through sharing technical expertise and practices, together we commit to protecting the global public and to sustaining the peaceful use of nuclear technologies for future generations.

Thank you.

Up to ten new innovative Freeports will be opened across the UK as the Government seeks to level up the country and seize on the opportunities leaving the EU has presented.

A consultation has been launched setting out the Government’s vision for Freeports, with the aim of announcing the location of the new zones at the end of this year so they can be open for business in 2021.

Chief Secretary to the Treasury, Rishi Sunak, said:

Freeports will unleash the potential in our proud historic ports, boosting and regenerating communities across the UK as we level up. They will attract new businesses, spreading jobs, investment and opportunity to towns and cities up and down the country.

This is all part of our mission as an open, outward-looking country, championing global free trade with vibrant Freeports that work for all of the UK.

Secretary of State for International Trade, Liz Truss, said:

We are taking back control of our trade policy, and opening every corner of the UK to opportunities across the world.

Freeports will unleash the potential of our historic ports, creating jobs and regenerating communities across the UK. These hubs will also deepen partnerships around the world as we restore our economic and political independence.

Business Secretary, Andrea Leadsom, said:

Freeports represent a fantastic opportunity for our businesses to increase their trade with companies from all over the world.

Not only will they help create jobs and level up the UK, but they underscore our commitment to championing global free trade – unleashing our country’s potential.

Communities and Local Government Secretary, Robert Jenrick, said:

Our new Freeports will drive forward investment and regeneration, delivering high-skilled jobs and new homes for people across the country.

Minister for the Northern Powerhouse, Jake Berry, said:

People across the Northern Powerhouse can look forward to a new era of jobs and prosperity unlocked by this new generation of Freeports.

They will unleash the potential of communities both by boosting trade with our friends across the globe and transforming surrounding areas into hotbeds of innovation where businesses will grow and create new well-paid jobs.

Scotland Secretary Alister Jack said:

Freeports are a fantastic example of how Scotland and the rest of the UK can flourish outside of the EU. The opportunity to unleash the potential in our maritime, air and rail ports, regenerating communities across the UK, is too good to miss. I urge Scottish ports and partners to take part in the consultation and develop bold, ambitious plans to bid for Freeport status.

We want Freeports to deliver a truly UK wide regeneration and jobs boost and the UK Government will work closely with the Scottish Government to achieve this.

Secretary of State for Wales Simon Hart said:

The development of Freeports will create innovation hubs across the UK, generating new ideas in a whole host of UK sectors, from customs to transport to decarbonisation.

A Freeport in Wales could create hundreds of jobs and facilitate significant regional economic growth. That is why I urge businesses to engage with our consultation and help us to unleash our potential in innovation, investment and growth. Working closely with the Welsh Government and businesses, we will ensure that the whole of the UK can feel the benefits.

Freeports will boost trade, jobs and investment with a view to building innovative business clusters that benefit the local area as part of the Government’s commitment to level up every nation and region.

Freeports will also offer an exciting opportunity for cutting-edge customs, transport and green technologies to be trialled in controlled environments, before being adopted more widely in relevant sectors of the economy. The Government will work in close partnership with the Devolved Administrations so that all nations of the UK are able to share in the benefits of Freeports.

Benefits of the 2020 Freeports model could include:

• Goods brought into a Freeport do not attract tariffs until they leave the Freeport and enter the domestic market.
• No duty is payable if they are re-exported.
• When raw materials are imported and processed into a final good, duties are only paid on the final good.
• Freeports could be located inland as well as adjacent to ports. This can reduce relocation or investment costs for existing manufacturing sites near ports.
• A full customs declaration would not be required to move goods into a Freeport. This saves businesses time and makes it easier to import goods.
• Planning reforms to help sea ports develop within their boundaries and empower local councils to greenlight much-needed local construction projects.
• A regeneration agenda to level up the local areas around Freeports
• Innovative environments to trial new technologies.
• Challenge-based initiatives to build collaborative partnerships between ports, businesses and innovators

In addition, the Government is considering tax measures that aim to:

• Increase investment in infrastructure, construction and machinery in Freeports to raise productivity.
• Incentivise research to stimulate innovation in Freeports.
• Cut costs associated with processing goods through a port.
• Reduce the costs of hiring workers working in Freeport sites.

The UK’s high standards with respect to security, safety, workers’ rights, and the environment will not be compromised.

Once the 10-week consultation is completed, the Government will invite sea, air and rail ports to bid for Freeport status on a competitive basis.

At around 11:31 hrs on 28 January 2020, a freight train derailed on a set of points just south of Eastleigh station. The train was travelling at about 12 mph (19 km/h) at the time, and was running from the down slow line, through a crossover which led to the down fast line. The locomotive became partly derailed and then re-railed itself, and some of the wheels on four of the following five wagons also became derailed, causing significant damage to the track in the process. The driver stopped the train before the remaining 25 wagons reached the damaged track. Nobody was injured, but the track and signalling equipment was severely damaged and there was extensive disruption to services on the south western main line for the following six days.

The RAIB’s preliminary examination found that a series of rail fastenings, intended to maintain the correct distance between the rails, had broken. Initial evidence suggests that some of these were already broken before the derailment. Consequently, as the freight train passed over the points, the rails moved apart and the train wheels dropped into the space between the rails.

Our investigation will identify the sequence of events which led to the incident. It will also consider:

• the design and installation of the rail fastenings
• the industry’s response to previous problems identified with the fastenings during their service life
• any underlying factors

Our investigation is independent of any investigation by the railway industry or by the industry’s regulator, the Office of Rail and Road.

We will publish our findings, including any recommendations to improve safety, at the conclusion of our investigation. This report will be available on our website.

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