The Prime Minister spoke to President Erdogan of Turkey who congratulated him on his success in the election.

They committed to continue to work together as NATO allies to build on the important relationship between the UK and Turkey, in areas such as trade and investment, security and defence and counterterrorism.

The leaders also discussed regional issues. On Libya, they agreed on the need for a Libyan-owned political process, facilitated by the UN and supported by the Berlin Format.

On Syria, the Prime Minister underlined the importance of a UN needs assessment as the basis for getting aid to those who need it – as agreed in London earlier this month.

Published 24 December 2019

The fisheries team recently undertook their annual trip to Calverton Fish Farm to collect fish and restock the river in and around Buckingham.

This was done over 4 days as part of a conservation programme and post-pollution recovery plan.

On the first day of the restocking, more than 1400 juvenile barbel were released into the upper reaches of the River Great Ouse in specific locations to suit habitat conditions, in a bid to protect and develop the species.

This is part of wider efforts to conserve barbel populations and improve vital habitat.

Officers then released 5000 dace, 7000 roach and 1000 chub into the river to replenish stocks following a pollution incident in Brackley, Northamptonshire, in 2018, during which thousands of fish died.

Since the incident, the Environment Agency has released almost 28,000 fish back into the river. Further stocking at this location is planned for 2020.

As well as the fish stocking, other measures have been taken to restore the River Great Ouse, including habitat restoration work, such as gravel enhancement and cleaning, improving cover for foraging and resting up, and improved opportunities for fish passage.

Kye Jerrom, fisheries specialist for the Environment Agency in East Anglia, said: “All of these enhancements should give these fish and others in the system the help they need to thrive.

“We’re working with researchers, anglers, angling clubs and land owners to do this, and we know we couldn’t do this work without them.

“We are pleased that our restocking programme will hopefully give the river a new lease of life, but good fisheries management shouldn’t revolve around stocking.

“Our emphasis is on the restoration work that will create a self-sustaining fishery, improving the river in the long term for fish and wildlife.

“We look forward to the year when we’re not heading to Calverton to stock more barbel, safe in the knowledge that the river is doing its thing independently, and hopefully that isn’t too far away.”

On the final day, 900 crucian carp and 500 tench were delivered to 3 separate still waters in Cambridgeshire, Norfolk and Bedfordshire and will promote work with the Angling Trust to conserve crucian carp populations.

Mr Jerrom added: “Crucian carp are at risk from loss of pond habitat.

“Small ponds without resident stocks of carp were chosen for these introductions – they are also waters that are also dedicated coaching venues for new anglers too, so not only are we helping to conserve crucian carp, we’re helping to encourage more anglers too.”

It was 100 years ago, on 23 December that the Sex Disqualification (Removal) Act 1919 was given royal assent. The Act is only 4 pages long, but marked a significant step forward for women’s professional lives, permitting them to become lawyers and civil servants.

Most of the work of the Act is achieved by section 1, which provides that:

A person shall not be disqualified by sex or marriage from the exercise of any public function, or from being appointed to or holding any civil or judicial office or post, or from entering or assuming or carrying on any civil profession or vocation, or for admission to any incorporated society (whether incorporated by Royal Charter or otherwise), and a person shall not be exempted by sex or marriage from the liability to serve as a juror”.

Previously being a woman or being married, prevented a woman from being appointed to or holding a wide range of professions. Section 1 also gave the power to make regulations and rules about the admission of women to the Civil Service, and the control the ability of women to be jurors.

Section 2 contained the specific entitlement for women to be admitted and enrolled as solicitors (on the proviso that they’d had the same legal education as men).

Section 3 provided that universities were not precluded by their charters or statutes from regulating the admission of women to membership of the university or obtaining a degree.

Section 4 provided that certain acts (listed in the Schedule) and other statutory provisions or royal charters which were inconsistent with the Act would cease to have effect.

The Act was short, but had profound effects on the abilities of women to participate fully in society, building on the Representation of the People Act 1918, which had given some women the right to vote.

The rights given by the Act were used almost immediate. Mrs Ada Summers, the Mayor of Stalybridge was the first woman magistrate, being sworn in on 31 December 1919. She was a magistrate by virtue of her office as Mayor, and, because of this Act was probably the first woman to adjudicate in court. Ada was an active suffragist, using her wealth and position to support a number of schemes designed to improve conditions in Stalybridge, including a maternity and child welfare clinic, and clinics for the sick and poor.

Unfortunately, the wide-ranging powers of the Act didn’t provide an immediate change in all spheres of life for women. In 1925, women could be recruited directly into the Administrative Class (higher policy-making grades) of the Home Civil Service, but the Tomlin Report found in 1931 that most departments employed no women in responsible posts. The Ministry of Defence only employed women as typists and women in the Post Office (then part of the Civil Service) were exclusively in a separate, worse paid, Women’s Branch. Most significantly, women still had to resign when they married. That bar was not abolished until October 1946 for the Home Civil Service and 1973 for the Foreign Office. Women’s pay scales were also lower than men’s until 1961.

The rights of some women to vote (the centenary of which we celebrated last year), and the rights of women to become civil servants and lawyers, which we’re celebrating this year, marked fundamental stepping stones towards building the society, and the GLD, we see today.

The Ministry of Defence has donated thousands of unused ration packs – the equivalent of over 14,000 nutritious meals – to FareShare, a charity that distributes food to over 11,000 UK charities, including community groups, homeless hostels and lunch groups for older people.

The donation is part of the MOD’s commitment to reducing waste in an environmentally sustainable way when ration packs are unused. The meals distributed by FareShare will be given out as part of street outreach for the homeless and to provide relief for those in temporary B&B accommodation where there are limited cooking facilities.

The 14,000 Operational Ration Packs (ORP) were delivered to the FareShare headquarters in Deptford just before Christmas, where they are to be sorted and delivered to charities in need of food donations over the festive period.

Minister for Defence People and Veterans Johnny Mercer said:

FareShare does an excellent job of getting proper nutrition to those who need it most, distributing food to thousands of charities around the country. I am proud that our ration pack donation supports their goals whilst reducing unnecessary food waste.

The MOD has partnered with FareShare for nearly one year because of the work they do to redistribute surplus food to charities that turn it into quality meals, often for vulnerable people. FareShare’s work also saves charities an average of £7,900 yearly that they can reinvest back into their vital services.

FareShare CEO Lindsay Boswell said:

We’re delighted to have partnered with MOD to help them get their surplus food and get it to good causes. The ration packs we received last week will be sent to charities across London.

Because these packs don’t need refrigeration they are ideal for winter night shelters where volunteers need to make food quickly, or to offer out to families in temporary accommodation who might only have access to a kettle or a hob at Christmas time.

Operational Ration Packs offer a high-quality flexible range of food to meet the needs of servicemen and women. The donated packs are used for group meals, usually by military chefs in field kitchens, and include enough to feed ten soldiers for a 24-hour period. The packs include ingredients that enable the preparation of nutritionally balanced meals for breakfast, lunch and dinner, such as porridge, sausages, baked beans, pasta and rice, and provide an average of 4000 calories.

DE&S Director Logistic delivery Roger West said:

A little under a year ago we announced that we would support the important work of FareShare by providing unused surplus rations that MOD would be unable to consume, and would otherwise become waste.

I am very glad that we are able to provide this support to those most in need.

Around 2 million ration packs are used by the military every year, with less than 1% of the MOD’s stock requiring disposal. This scheme means that there is an opportunity to gift to those in need and ensure that any good food does not go to waste.

Colin Atkinson (58) and his son, Jack Samuel Atkinson (29), both of North Ferriby, East Yorkshire acquired the business and assets of Premier Contract Cleaning Limited from its retiring directors in November 2015.

They operated the business from trading premises in Sheffield and offices in Hessle, East Yorkshire, providing cleaning services. Jack Atkinson was the registered director.

Just a year later, however, after the company changed its name to Premi-Clean Limited, it experienced financial difficulties and Administrators were appointed in December 2016. While winding up the affairs of the company, the administrators reported several matters to the Insolvency Service for further investigation.

Investigators found that between December 2015 and June 2016, when the company was failing to meet its liabilities when they were due, Premi-Clean had made payments worth £75,000 to another company of which Jack Atkinson was sole director.

But the Atkinsons failed to provide accounting records to the Administrators, which meant the payments were deemed to be detrimental to the company’s creditors and the nature and purpose of the payments could not be verified.

The company had also used a factoring company since 2009 to obtain finance. Factoring companies provide finance by purchasing invoices from a business. When the invoices are paid, arrangements are made for the proceeds to be paid back to the factoring company to repay the monies advanced to the borrower.

Instead of passing on to the factoring company payments from their customers, however, father and son caused Premi-Clean to keep some monies in the company bank accounts. At the point of administration the factoring company was owed more than £110,000.

Jack Atkinson’s father, Colin Atkinson, had also acted as a director of the company despite not being formally appointed. He was also already subject to an eight-year directorship disqualification in respect of his conduct as a director of three earlier failed companies and acted in breach of his ban. Jack, as the formally-appointed director, allowed this to happen.

On 16 October 2019 the Secretary of State accepted disqualification undertakings from Colin Atkinson and Jack Atkinson for periods of 11 years and 7 years respectively. Effective from 6 November 2019, the pair are prohibited from being involved, directly or indirectly, in the formation, promotion or management of a company, without the approval of the court.

Rob Clarke, Chief Investigator for the Insolvency Service, said:

The Atkinsons wilfully and with full knowledge abused the professional trust of a factoring company, causing Premi-Clean to withhold more than £100,000 from them.

To make matters worse, when Premi-Clean was failing to pay its creditors, it transferred £75,000 to another of Jack Atkinson’s companies and by acting as a director of Premi-Clean, Colin Atkinson flagrantly abused the terms of his previous ban. These lengthy bans reflect the seriousness of the Atkinsons’ actions.

Colin Atkinson is lately of North Ferriby, East Yorkshire and his date of birth is February 1961.

Jack Samuel Atkinson is of lately of North Ferriby and his date of birth is December 1989.

Premi-Clean Limited (05634573).

Colin Atkinson was originally disqualified for eight years in January 2010 for his conduct while director of: ESG(UK) Ltd (05003514), Serviscare Security Limited (05820844) and Serviscare Security (North) Ltd (03150446).

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.

Further information about the work of the Insolvency Service, and how to complain about financial misconduct.

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