HM Government

They reviewed a number of defence and security issues, including our close Carrier cooperation, our deepening capability collaboration on F-35s and P-8A Maritime Patrol Aircraft, and the UK’s National Shipbuilding Strategy. The meetings underscored the strength and strategic importance of the UK-US Defence relationship, as well as each other’s role at the forefront of NATO.

Defence Secretary Sir Michael Fallon said:

Britain has no closer friend than the United States and across the globe our nations stand side by side defending our values. Our Armed Forces work closely together in every area of defence from planning for future challenges through to working together on operations around the world today.

Minister of State for the Armed Forces Mark Lancaster said:

As the Minister responsible for the Royal Navy, I was delighted to welcome Secretary Spencer on his first official visit to the UK. Our meeting highlighted the unrivalled levels of interoperability between the Royal Navy and the US Navy, and the disproportionate contribution they make to our overall bilateral defence relationship.

As previously announced we continue to make good progress on the plan to deploy HMS Queen Elizabeth on her inaugural deployment in 2021 with USMC F-35B embarked.

Minister of State for Defence Procurement Harriett Baldwin said:

I thanked Secretary Spencer for the US Navy’s continuing excellent support in helping the UK quickly field P-8 maritime patrol aircraft in support of our joint requirements, building on the MPA declaration I signed earlier this year with former Deputy Defense Secretary Bob Work, to ensure increased value for money and operational effectiveness for both countries.

We also discussed the UK National Shipbuilding Strategy, the importance of close partnerships with Industry, and opportunities for further collaboration as our countries look to new platforms in the coming years.

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International Trade Secretary, Dr Liam Fox, today (11 October) opened the ASEAN@50 Business Forum and hailed the region’s strong trade links with the UK.

The Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN), which is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year, is hosting the event to highlight business opportunities and celebrate the region’s strong economic growth.

Addressing a range of businesses and diplomats, the Secretary of State emphasised the deep relationship between south east Asian countries and the UK, and spoke of his desire to improve trade relations with the region as the UK leaves the European Union.

Currently 15% of all ASEAN’s EU trade in goods and services is with the UK, and exports have risen rapidly to the likes of Singapore and Indonesia in recent years. The stock of UK foreign direct investment in both countries also increased by 8.3% and 4.4% respectively last year.

With a population of more than half a billion people, and average economic growth of 5% over the last decade, the region has immense potential for increasing trade and investment with the UK.

ASEAN was formed 50 years ago as a political association between Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore and Thailand, and now also includes Brunei, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam.

The Secretary of State has visited the region 5 times since the Department of International Trade was created last year, and has been deeply impressed with the appetite to do business with UK companies.

International Trade Secretary, Dr Liam Fox, said:

ASEAN countries already have strong trading ties with the UK and, as we leave the EU, the region’s rapid growth presents a huge opportunity for British business to forge even closer ties with businesses across South East Asia.

As an international economic department we will support UK companies wanting to export to ASEAN markets, and will continue to encourage investment between the region and the UK.

The Department for International Trade provides businesses wishing to export to foreign markets with a range of assistance, including UK Export Finance.

UKEF’s mission is to ensure no viable UK export fails for lack of finance or insurance, while operating at no net cost to the taxpayer.

In 2016/17 UKEF provided £3 billion in support, helping 221 UK companies sell to 63 countries around the world, 79% of these companies were SMEs.

Other tools include the great.gov.uk website which allows business to access live export opportunities around the world, as well as being notified when an overseas company is looking for a particular product.

Today’s event was jointly hosted by the UK-ASEAN Business Council, the Department for International Trade and the Foreign and Commonwealth Office.

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Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson said:

I am very concerned that a UK national has been denied entry to Hong Kong. The British Government will be seeking an urgent explanation from the Hong Kong authorities and from the Chinese Government.

Hong Kong’s high degree of autonomy, and its rights and freedoms, are central to its way of life and should be fully respected.

Follow the Foreign Secretary on Twitter @BorisJohnson

Media enquiries

Email newsdesk@fco.gov.uk

Newsdesk 020 7008 3100

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The names of 32 academy leaders elected to help shape the future of schools in their local areas, have been announced today (11 October) by the Department for Education.

The leaders – who were elected by their peers across the country – were chosen because they have the right experience and local knowledge to take on this important role. They will each join one of the eight regional Headteacher Boards across England. The boards provide support to the Regional Schools Commissioners in those areas as they work to provide effective oversight of local schools and advise the National Schools Commissioner, Sir David Carter and the government.

Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for the School System, Sir Theodore Agnew, said:

Headteacher Boards have already shown they can provide invaluable support in improving the education of pupils across England and I’d like to thank everyone who has played an important role so far.

The local expertise and wisdom of the newly elected members will be vital in helping schools continue to flourish and I look forward to working with them in my new role.

The newly elected members will build on the successes of the previous Headteacher Boards, which have been in place since July 2014 when the role of Regional Schools Commissioner was created. The Headteacher Boards have already helped a growing number of academies to share expertise with neighbouring schools and within multi-academy trusts, driving improvement for thousands of pupils.

Two additional board members will be appointed by each Regional Schools Commissioner, and the board will be able to appoint further members to fill skills or expertise gaps in the future. Those elected to Headteacher Boards do not have decision-making powers, but provide local expertise to inform the decisions of National and Regional Schools Commissioners and ministers.

National Schools Commissioner, Sir David Carter, said:

Over the last three years the expertise of Headteacher Boards has been so important in helping to create a self-managing and ever-improving education system.

I know from personal experience how much Headteacher Boards help inform decisions and I’m looking forward to working with the newly-elected members to help make our school system even better.

The academy leaders elected to the Headteacher Boards, assuming the position on 1 November 2017, are:

Regional Schools Commissioner (region)	Elected member (school)
Janet Renou (north of England)	Zoe Carr (WISE Academies), Chris Clarke (Lunesdale Learning Trust), Nick Hurn (Trinity Catholic Trust), Lesley Powell (North East Learning Trust)
Vicky Beer (Lancashire and west Yorkshire)	Julie Bradley (Tauheedul Education Trust), Karen Bramwell (Forward As One Church of England Multi Academy Trust), Royston Halford (The Rowan Learning Trust), Duncan Jacques (Exceed Academies Trust)
John Edwards (East Midlands and the Humber)	Peter Bell (Community Inclusive Trust), Anne Martin (QEGSMAT), Roisin Paul (Chorus Education Trust), Paul Stone (Discovery Schools Academy Trust)
Christine Quinn (west Midlands)	Dame Mo Brennan (Matrix Academy Trust), Mike Donoghue (John Taylor MAT), Sinead Smith (Holy Spirit Catholic Multi Academy), Margaret Yates (All Saints Catholic Collegiate)
Lisa Mannall (south-west England)	Sally Apps (Cabot Learning Federation), Suzanne Flack (The Redstart Learning Partnership), Paul Jones (Retired from First Federation Trust Academy), Steve Savory (Gloucestershire Learning Alliance)
Sue Baldwin (north-east London and east of England)	Brian Conway (St. John the Baptist Catholic MAT), Caroline Derbyshire (Saffron Academy Trust), Karen Kerridge (Benflet Schools Trust), Nardeep Sharma (Thrive Partnership Academy Trust)
Martin Post (north-west London and south central England	Sarah Bennett (Inspiring Futures Through Learning), Dame Sue Bourne (Retired from The Avenue School – Special Needs Academy Trust), Tom Rees (Northampton Primary Academy Trust), Claire Robins (Sir John Lawes Academies Trust)
Dominic Herrington (south London and south-east England)	Sir Andrew Carter (South Farnham Educational Trust), Jon Chaloner (GLF Schools), Paula Farrow (Nexus Education Schools Trust), Justin Smith (The Primary First Trust)

Further information:

1. The electorate was made up of all academies in England open on 1 June 2017. Each senior leader was only able to vote in the election for the Headteacher Board covering the region in which their academy is located.
2. The elections used a first-past-the-post system with conditions to ensure that at least one primary head and one secondary head is represented and to ensure that no more than one head per single academy chain is elected onto each board.
3. Candidates for the elected positions must either: • currently be serving as a headteacher of an academy rated by Ofsted as ‘outstanding’ overall with ‘outstanding’ leadership and management or • currently be serving as a headteacher of an academy rated by Ofsted as ‘good’ overall with ‘outstanding’ leadership and management or • have (within five years of 1 June 2017) served as a headteacher of an academy which met either of the first two criteria above at the time of your departure, and is now serving as a Senior Executive Leader* (SEL). [*A Senior Executive Leader (SEL) is defined in the Academies financial handbook 2016]

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For the second year running, Highways England and The Deer Initiative have joined forces to warn motorists about the heightened risk of deer-vehicle collisions during the autumn.

Across the UK it is estimated that there could be up to 74,000 deer-related motor vehicle accidents this year alone, resulting in 400 to 700 human injuries and 20 deaths.

October through to December is considered a high-risk period as deer will be on the move for the autumn mating season, also known as the rut. The highest risk of a deer-vehicle collision is between sunset and midnight, and the hours shortly before and after sunrise.

Senior principle environmental advisor at Highways England, Tony Sangwine said:

Safety is our top priority, which is why we care about people’s journeys. We are working with The Deer Initiative to warn motorists about the risks caused by deer, when they suddenly appear on the road, particularly at both dawn and dusk.

With most deer movement coinciding with key commuting hours, we are urging drivers to be more aware during this time of year so that they can complete their journeys safely and without incident.

With some 2 million deer living wild in the UK, newly qualified and city drivers are asked to take extra precaution when venturing onto unfamiliar roads, especially those in more rural areas.

Highways England’s advice on staying safe is:

• when you see deer warning signs or are travelling through a heavily wooded or forested stretch of road, check your speed and stay alert
• if your headlights are on, use full-beams when you can; but dip them if you see deer, as they may ‘freeze’
• more deer may follow the first one you see
• be prepared to stop – try not to suddenly swerve to avoid a deer. Hitting oncoming traffic or another obstacle could be even worse
• if you have to stop, use your hazard warning lights
• do not approach an injured deer – it could be dangerous

Deer Aware will be running a safety campaign on social media for drivers throughout October and into November. Drivers are encouraged to follow DeerAware on twitter or facebook, or [visit their website] (http://www.deeraware.com) for hotspot notifications during this period.

If you are involved in a deer vehicle collision and require assistance please contact the police. If you need to report a deer vehicle collision or to find out more on safety advice please [visit the deer aware website.] (http://www.deeraware.com. The website exists to offer basic advice on how to avoid a collision and to collect data on the number of accidents.

Our research is the only national effort to collect data that could be used to save lives – the information you submit is an essential part of this important effort.

Issued jointly by the Deer Initiative and Highways England

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.

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