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Alexandra Zernova, sole Director of London City Associates and former employee of charity Solicitors International Human Rights Group, (SIHRG), appeared at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on Monday 13 January for sentencing following a successful prosecution brought by the Office of the Immigration Services Commissioner (OISC).
Ms Zernova of London, had pleaded guilty on 13 January 2020 to seven charges of providing unlawful immigration advice through her company London City Associates. At sentencing she was fined £3,500 and ordered to pay £2,000 costs.
The offences occurred whilst Ms Zernova was working as an education and training officer at SIHRG. Following Ms Zernova’s departure from SIHRG, the charity became aware she had been providing illegal immigration advice and alerted the OISC.
Upon sentencing the Magistrate said:
“You knew that you were not to provide these services. That is for good reason…Those who seek immigration services are often the most vulnerable. You know about these things as you trained in this, you are trained about clients, about their vulnerabilities and about the duty on us as a profession to abide by the highest standards of ethics towards our clients. You did not do that.
“The offences are aggravated by it being over a number of years with several distinct clients. There is no guidance on sentencing for such an offence. I have noted the aggravating features as I see them, but also the fact that you have cooperated as far as I can tell, and your guilty plea at the earliest opportunity. I will deal with you by way of a fine. This is the first time I do so with one of these cases. I take these offences seriously, as it undermines the legal protections in this country.”
John Tuckett, OISC Commissioner said:
“Immigration services are regulated to protect some of the most vulnerable in our society and to ensure people are getting the advice they need. This is why all immigration advisers must be registered by the OISC or be a qualified lawyer to ensure they meet standards in knowledge and ethics.
“We are pleased with today’s result, and that we have been able to bring forward another successful prosecution. However the length of time Ms Zernova was able to operate illegally reinforces the importance of people or organisations like the SIHRG coming forward and reporting knowledge of poor or illegal immigration advice to the OISC.”
Kelly Louise Forrester (40) was appointed director of Clear Lettings Limited when the company was incorporated in 2007.
Trading as a real estate agency based in Exeter, the company was better known as Clear Property, and operated a custodial deposit scheme. In accordance with the Housing Act 2004, Clear Lettings would safely hold onto tenants’ deposits on behalf of their landlords.
But from at least June 2016 through to April 2019, the Exeter-based director caused Clear Lettings failure to comply with its statutory obligations to properly safeguard more than £68,000 worth of tenants’ deposits.
For more than two years, Kelly Forrester caused the company to collect tenants’ deposits connected to at least 54 properties but did not pay them into the Government-backed custodial deposit scheme. Instead, the £68,000 was spent on the general running of the company.
The misconduct was uncovered after Clear Lettings entered into liquidation proceedings in April 2019 and the Insolvency Service conducted investigations into the activities of Kelly Forrester while director of the real estate agency.
On 24 December 2019, the Secretary of State accepted a disqualification undertaking from Kelly Forrester after she did not dispute that she had caused Clear Lettings failure to ensure that deposits taken from tenants by the company totalling at least £68,356 were safeguarded, as required by the Housing Act 2004.
Effective from 14 January 2020, Kelly Forrester is banned for 6 years from acting as a director or directly or indirectly becoming involved, without the permission of the court, in the promotion, formation or management of a company.
Dave Elliott, Chief Investigator for the Insolvency Service, said:
Kelly Forrester failed to safeguard the deposits she was entrusted to hold onto, resulting in losses to both landlords and tenants.
Her conduct fell short of what is required of a director of a limited liability company and her disqualification will act as a deterrent to others from similar conduct in the future.
Kelly Louise Forrester is of Exeter and her date of birth is June 1979
Company Clear Lettings Ltd (Company Reg no. 06275759)
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 restrictions.
You can also follow the Insolvency Service on:
Due to the ongoing effects of Covid19, MMO have agreed to extend the consultation deadline to 20 April 2020. This is the final stage of statutory public consultation before we submit the Marine Plan to the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs for adoption.
This week, the Marine Management Organisation (MMO) launched the public consultation on the draft North East, draft North West, draft South East and draft South West Marine Plans. The consultation will be open between 14 January 2020 and 6 April 2020; stakeholders will be able to respond to the consultation for the draft Marine Plans via the MMO’s Citizen Space consultation tool at the following links:
Draft North East Marine Plan consultation
Draft North West Marine Plan consultation
Draft South East Marine Plan consultation
Draft South West Marine Plan consultation
Marine Planning makes sure the right activities happen in the right place, at the right time and in the right way, placing sustainable development at the centre of all decisions. The draft Marine Plans are prepared under the policy framework provided by the Marine Policy Statement, and together they underpin the marine planning system for England.
Throughout the consultation period, the MMO has arranged training sessions for decision-makers to facilitate implementation of the draft plans. A series of informative webinars (national and plan area-based) will also be held early in the consultation period to assist all stakeholders in making representations on the draft marine planning documents. Further details will be circulated shortly.
The consultation marks a milestone for marine planning in the north east, north west, south east and south west marine areas, and is the culmination of over three years of work, dating back to July 2016, when the Statement of Public Participation (SPP) for each plan area was launched. The SPPs ensured that the marine planning process was transparent, and that stakeholders understood how and when they could be involved and influence a marine plan’s development. This has enabled the development of the draft Marine Plans to reflect the unique nature of each marine plan area.
The consultation gives interested parties the chance to provide their formal representations on the draft Marine Plans, and it will provide the MMO with invaluable insight to shape this stage of the Marine Planning process. Once the consultation has closed on 6 April, all comments received will be analysed by the MMO and there will be a period where the draft Marine Plans are amended, as appropriate, ahead of adoption. A consultation summary will be published soon after the consultation has closed. A more detailed report of responses and amendments made will be published once the Marine Plans are adopted.
Now published for Consultation the draft North East, draft North West, draft South East and draft South West Marine Plans become a material consideration and upon adoption become statutory. Public authorities are now responsible for implementing the relevant Marine Plans for their area, through existing regulatory and decision-making processes, for any activity or development which is in, or impacts, the marine environment. All applicants, third parties and advisors should also consider the draft Marine Plans. Proposals should conform to all relevant policies, taking account of economic, environmental and social considerations.
Have your say through this consultation, and if you require further information, please do not hesitate to contact the MMO Marine Planning Team at planning@marinemanagement.org.uk or 02080 265 325.
The SatelLife Competition, now in its fourth year, is looking for innovative proposals that could use data collected from space to benefit daily life, such as growing new businesses, improving health services or tackling climate change.
Winning ideas from last year’s competition included tracking abandoned shopping trolleys, fighting crime with drones and designing a mobile app to locate public toilets.
Satellites support the economy and everyday life, and this competition gives young people the chance to test their ideas with space experts and perhaps one day become part of one of the UK’s fastest growing industries. The UK space sector already supports 42,000 jobs and could create a further 30,000 opportunities in the next decade.
Business Secretary Andrea Leadsom said:
The Satelife Competition will help our next generation of scientists and innovators unleash their imaginations and turn their ideas into real-life proposals that could eventually transform our lives – from saving our planet from climate change, to improving healthcare services.
UK space is booming, and we are at the forefront of the space industry. I would encourage all young people who are fascinated by space to enter the SatelLife Competition and play a key part in the second space age.
Last year’s individual winner Lowena Hull, an A-Level student from Portsmouth, has continued to develop her idea to track abandoned supermarket trolleys using satellites and has secured a meeting with a major supermarket chain later this month.
Lowena, 17, said:
Since winning the SatelLife Competition I’ve had interest in my idea so that shows that anything can happen if you enter. SatelLife is such an amazing opportunity and it’s a great introduction for young people to the space sector, which is important especially with the UK’s space sector growing.
Lowena
The competition, which is open to those aged 11 to 22 and split into three age groups, aims to support the development of science, data handling and technological skills.
Lowena is one of a number of previous winners making progress on turning their ideas into reality. In 2018 medical students Christopher Law, 21, Thomas Franchi and Hammad Jeilani, both 22, from London came up with an idea to use satellites and drones to help people in isolated areas who cannot access basic healthcare such as vaccines, birth control or medicine.
They set up a company, MEDeus Ltd, which has gone on to win multiple international awards and are currently planning a test drone flight from a private clinic to an NHS hospital. The trio have recently been appointed as NHS Clinical Entrepreneurs and are working alongside the National Institute for Health Research to uncover the potentially life-saving impacts of drones on patients.
Hammad said:
The SatelLife Competition is great because not only do you win money but the support that you get afterwards to develop your idea is incredible. The space industry is only getting bigger here in the UK so if you’re successful in this competition there’s a high chance you can go on to achieve something in the industry.
MEDeus Ltd
The judging panel will be made up of experts including industry representatives and the UK Space Agency, Satellite Applications Catapult and European Space Agency (ESA). The UK is the leading investor in satellite business applications across Europe and hosts the European Centre for Space Applications and Telecommunications in Harwell, Oxfordshire.
All winners will go on to pitch their ideas to a panel of ‘dragons’ at the Harwell Space Cluster on 16 June for the chance to win further prizes. Over the last three years these prizes have included further funding, patent advice and invitations to discuss job opportunities as well as introductions to the other relevant experts for further help.