On 30 June at Hull Crown Court, 55-year-old Gert Meyers of Oxford Street, Bridlington was sentenced to 8 months in prison, after previously pleading guilty to possession of regulated substances without a licence, at Beverley Magistrates Court on Wednesday 29 March.

The charges relate to the unlawful possession of chemicals associated to a company called ‘Oxford Chem Serve’ that was run by Meyers. He was contacted about these substances by the North East Counter Terrorism Unit (NECTU) in November 2014 and advised that the substances he possessed would require a licence under new regulation by 3 March 2016.

Despite being contacted on numerous occasions after this initial contact he refused to engage with authorities. Enquiries into the business and Meyers highlighted that he didn’t show any consideration who he sold chemicals to, something that was concerning to the authorities.

NECTU’s investigation indicated Meyers was no longer selling chemicals online but he still possessed the substances and was committing an offence under The Poisons Act 1972.

The investigation was then taken on by Humberside Police and a warrant was executed at his home on Thursday 4 August 2016. Meyers was arrested and a number of chemicals recovered from his garden shed.

Due to the danger that the substances posed a large number of people were involved including police officers and staff, Humberside Fire and Rescue Service specialist staff, Yorkshire Ambulance, Army Explosive Ordnance Disposal teams, the local council and specialist scientists from the Home Office.

As a result of the risk posed by the chemicals a 200 meter cordon was put in place which led to large numbers of local residents and businesses being evacuated so that controlled explosions could be carried out.

Chief Inspector Iain Dixon from the East Riding Community Policing said:

Gert Meyers has failed to see the severity of what he has done wrong throughout his interactions with authorities and ignored warnings that he was possessing illegal substances. He was keeping these very volatile and explosive substances in his shed which could have seriously harmed or killed himself or neighbours. When we discovered the substances it became clear that we’d need to evacuate the area around his home to ensure the safety of the public. I hope now the circumstances are emerging the public support our action understand and why it was so vital.

I am sure the public affected by his selfish actions will be pleased to see that he has been sentenced to time in prison. It should serve as a warning to other people in possession of dangerous and unregulated substances that they will be identified and brought to justice.

The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has been investigating the award of the franchise to FirstGroup and MTR since May, and concluded that there are no competition concerns on the vast majority of routes it would operate.

However, competition concerns have been raised on one route as FirstGroup already operates the Great Western Railway (GWR) franchise, which runs the only other train service between London and Exeter.

The CMA is concerned that FirstGroup having control of both services could reduce competition on the route, leading to higher fares or worse service for passengers.

Acting Chief Executive and Decision Maker, Andrea Coscelli, said:

This is a crucial rail route to the South West, used by around half a million passengers a year. It’s therefore vital that passengers do not suffer as a result of reduced competition.

The CMA believes that without its intervention, FirstGroup may be able to increase fares for passengers between London and Exeter, as it will be the only rail operator running all services on this route. We look forward to hearing from the companies involved about how they think they can overcome this.

FirstGroup and MTR now have the opportunity to offer proposals (known as ‘undertakings in lieu of reference’) to the CMA to address the concerns identified. If these undertakings are considered sufficient, the companies involved will be able to avoid an in-depth phase 2 investigation.

In previous cases, most recently the CMA’s decision on the award of the Northern franchise to Arriva, competition concerns have been resolved by the operator agreeing to price caps for the affected lines.

The CMA’s decision comes in advance of the start of the franchise, due on 20 August 2017. Further details about the CMA’s investigation can be found on the case page.

Notes for editors

1. The CMA is the UK’s primary competition and consumer authority. It is an independent non-ministerial government department with responsibility for carrying out investigations into mergers, markets and the regulated industries and enforcing competition and consumer law. For CMA updates, follow us on Twitter @CMAgovuk, Facebook, Flickr and LinkedIn.
2. Under the Enterprise Act, First MTR will now have 5 working days to propose undertakings in lieu (UILs) of reference to resolve the competition concerns raised by the CMA. If First MTR does not propose UILs or if the CMA is not satisfied with them, the merger will be referred to an in-depth (‘phase 2’) investigation.
3. The CMA will announce by 25 July its preliminary decision on whether any UILs offered by First MTR might be sufficient to resolve the competition concerns identitfied. If the CMA provisionally accepts UILs, a consultation will follow.
4. Media enquiries to the CMA should be directed to press@cma.gsi.gov.uk or 020 3738 6798.

The UK will save the life of one woman every 90 minutes through its global leadership in supporting modern, voluntary family planning, International Development Secretary Priti Patel will announce today (Tuesday, 11 July) at a major international summit.

Today there are 214 million women around the world, who despite not wanting to get pregnant, aren’t using modern contraception. Progress has been made globally to reach more women with family planning services, but more needs to be done.

Voluntary family planning saves lives by enabling women to plan, and have fewer, pregnancies – reducing their risk of death through unsafe childbirth. This risk is very high in the world’s poorest countries, especially for adolescents.

At today’s Family Planning Summit, Ms Patel will set out an increased support package – boosting and extending the UK contribution until 2022 – to provide voluntary, modern family planning to women in the world’s poorest countries across Africa and Asia.

The UK’s total package of support until 2022 will every year:

• help save the lives of over 6,000 women by preventing maternal deaths – that’s one woman every 90 minutes
• support nearly 20 million women to receive voluntary contraceptives through family planning services
• help avert 6 million unintended pregnancies
• help prevent the trauma of 75,000 stillbirths and nearly 44,000 new-born deaths

The London Summit is co-hosted by Ms Patel, Melinda Gates (Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation) and Natalia Kanem (UN Population Fund – UNFPA), and will look at practical measures to reduce costs and increase availability for the millions of women who want contraception, but can’t afford it or get hold of it.

Africa’s population is rising to unsustainable levels, with Sub-Saharan Africa passing the one billion mark this year. Giving people access to voluntary family planning helps slow population growth and makes real economic sense. For every £1 spent, governments can save over £4 which can in turn be spent on improving health, housing, water sanitation and other public services.

In her key note speech, Ms Patel will highlight the UK’s global leadership in responding to the urgent need for voluntary family planning; the innovative technology being used to reach women in the poorest communities across Asia and Africa and call on others – including businesses – to do more.

International Development Secretary Priti Patel said:

It’s truly astonishing that in today’s world there are still 214 million women around the world who do not want to get pregnant, but who are not currently using modern methods of family planning.

Britain is leading the world on sexual and reproductive health, helping millions more women in the world’s poorest countries to access and use desperately-needed family planning services.

This new UK aid support will provide 20 million women with voluntary contraception, change the lives of 6 million women by allowing them to avoid unintended pregnancies and prevent the trauma of 75,000 still births.

But this isn’t a job for the UK alone and that’s why at this global Summit governments from around the world have come together to make commitments on family planning to address the long term need and unsustainable population growth.

We are supporting the world’s poorest women to take control of their lives, so they can finish their education, get better jobs and in turn provide for their smaller, planned families rather than being trapped in a cycle of grinding poverty through unplanned pregnancies.

The Summit will address several pressing issues, including:

• addressing the need in emergency situations. Family planning remains one of the biggest gaps in humanitarian response, leaving women at risk of maternal death or having to resort to unsafe abortions. The Summit will address this so that women experiencing humanitarian crises can obtain the contraceptives that they need to protect their health

• blockages that mean that contraceptives that are supposed to be available simply don’t make it onto the shelves

• making sure women have a choice in contraceptives, along with accurate information, so they can opt for the product that suits them best be it short term, long lasting or permanent. More choice will lead to more uptake

• the specific barrier faced by adolescents – both married and unmarried – including a critical lack of access to accurate information and the cultural barriers around adolescent sexual activity, which can further restrict contraceptive provision for this group.

In addition to saving lives by stopping women from dying in childbirth, investing in family planning provides long term life-changing benefits for women and their families, communities and countries.

It means women can make their own decisions about their own lives and futures, and helps stop the cycle of grinding poverty, improving lives now and in the future. This means local economies can grow, in turn boosting global prosperity, which is in everyone’s interests.

The UK put family planning on the international agenda with the inaugural 2012 Family Planning Summit where a goal was established to help 120 million additional women and girls use modern, voluntary family planning by 2020.

Britain is the second largest bilateral donor of family planning in the world. Since the 2012 Summit, the UK has helped nearly 8.5 million additional women to access modern methods of contraception.

Notes to editors:

At the 2012 London Summit on Family Planning, the UK Government committed to spending £180 million per year on family planning until 2020. With this new commitment the UK Government’s support will be an average of £225 million per year until 2022, an additional £45 million a year‎ for 5 years. The £45 million is new funding for family planning.

A full programme for the summit can be found here. And the Summit’s livestream can be found here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mHlUFROblHw

For b-roll footage, photos and relevant documents visit the Summit’s Isebox

Follow the conversation on social media with the hashtag #HerFuture

More than £4 million of criminal assets will be split between Jersey and the Home Office, following the signing of an agreement by Solicitor General Robert Buckland QC and Attorney General of Jersey Robert MacRae QC.

The Law Officers’ Department for Jersey and the CPS worked together to bring Independent financial advisor Adeel Mirza, 47, to justice. He was convicted of nine counts of fraud in 2013, jailed for six years and ordered to pay back £4,180,788.32.

Prosecutors arranged the sale of nine houses across London – the majority of Mirza’s UK property portfolio – which were all registered to a trust in Jersey.

Robert Buckland QC MP said: “The UK and Jersey enjoy good relations which has resulted in effective cooperation in tackling crime. I’m pleased that Mr Mirza’s ill-gotten gains will be split between the Home Office and Jersey, to the benefit of taxpayers. Criminals will not be able to keep the profits of their unlawful actions”.

The Attorney General for Jersey, Robert MacRae QC, said: “This case of close collaboration with the UK authorities once again demonstrates Jersey’s commitment to fighting serious financial crime. In particular it shows that Jersey trusts are no place to hide the proceeds of crime.”

The assets are being shared between Jersey and the UK to reflect the work that both jurisdictions dedicated to bringing Mirza to justice and ensuring that he did not benefit financially from his crimes.

Foreign Office Minister for the Americas, Sir Alan Duncan welcomed the adoption of UN Security Council Resolution 2366 on July 10. The resolution will support Colombia’s continuing journey toward peace.

Minister for the Americas, Sir Alan Duncan said:

We have witnessed Colombia embark on an extraordinary journey since peace negotiations began six years ago. By showing how even the longest and hardest of conflicts can be brought to a peaceful end, Colombia offers a beacon of hope to the world. But history has taught us that building a sustainable peace is a long and difficult process, and so we welcome the leadership shown by both parties in calling for the UN to support the next phase of this journey.

I welcome today’s unanimous adoption of UN Security Council resolution 2366. I am pleased the international community has responded so swiftly to President Santos’ request for continued UN Security Council support for the peace process. Working closely with partners on the Security Council, the UK was privileged to lead the negotiations establishing a second UN Mission for the next phase of the peace process. The UK remains steadfast in its support for Colombia.

Further information