DCLG: Devolution agenda to create
The Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government has set out an enhanced package, covering new lead roles for the Mayor on housing, adult skills, planning, waste, culture & sport, health, climate change and appointments.
The assembly will be able to set its own budget, publish an annual report and hold hearings with candidates for key mayoral appointments
Mayor of
"The additional powers granted to the office of Mayor will enable us to tackle head-on the problems London faces - skills provision according to the capital's needs in the run-up to the Olympics and planning and housing powers which will help promote our city's global economic status and also deliver the vital affordable homes that Londoners need."
Further options for devolution across
Press release - DCLG ~ Press release - DfES ~ Government policy on London ~ Greater London Authority (GLA) ~ Local Government Association (LGA) ~ Regions White Paper: 'Your Region, Your Choice’ ~ Devolution in the UK - ESRC ~ Devolution and Constitutional Change - ESRC ~ Devolution in England - Directgov ~ Regional Assemblies (Preparations) Bill ~ MayorWatch ~ London 2012
DWP: Still an unobtainable dream for many - A review of Government policy on independent living for disabled people has been announced by Baroness Royall, Government Whip and Health spokesperson, speaking during the second reading of the Disabled Persons (Independent Living) Bill in Parliament.
The review will initially take 12 months and is intended to:
· Bring together the views & experience of officials from central & local Government, disabled people and organisations of disabled people
· Develop imaginative new solutions in the areas of health, social care, transport, employment and housing
· Develop thinking on the relationship between independent living and individual budgets
· Make practical proposals for activity to support independent living
The review will regularly report progress to the Independent Living Expert Panel and detailed proposals are expected to be published in Summer 2007.
Press release ~ Disabled Persons (Independent Living) Bill (and click on ‘D’) ~ Office for Disability Issues ~ National Centre for Independent Living ~ Independent Living Institute ~ Independent Living Funds ~ ADSS Disabilities Committee ~ Care Services Improvement Partnership (CSIP) ~ Coalition on Charging ~ DWP Research Report No.137 - Independent living in later life: a literature review ~ Oxford Institute for Ageing ~ Supporting People website ~ Telecare: Using Information and Communication Technology to Support Independent Living by Older, Disabled and Vulnerable People ~ Telecare Collaborative ~ Foundation for Assistive Technology (FAST)
DfES: Yet more duties for LA’s - The Government's flagship Childcare Bill has now received Royal Assent. The Act is intended to ensure that all children under 5 receive high quality early learning & care and better access to early childhood services.
The Act requires local authorities to reduce inequalities between those at risk of the poorest outcomes and the rest.
It also places a duty on local authorities to secure - in partnership with the private and voluntary sector - sufficient childcare for all parents who choose to work or are in training in preparation for work and a duty to provide information & advice to parents on childcare and other services to support parents.
Press release ~ Childcare Bill ~ Childcare Act ~ Ofsted Childcare Register consultation ~ Early Years Foundation Stage ~ The Early Years Foundation Stage - consultation on a single quality framework for services to children from birth to five ~ Surestart
DH: Don’t blame us, it’s a local issue and not our responsibility – The government has announced a new commissioning framework which supposedly will give patients more power & say over how their local health services are organised and run.
Under the plans Primary Care Trusts (PCTs) will be required to formally respond to public petitions if more than 1% of the local community are unhappy with a particular health service.
Patricia Hewitt also announced new arrangements for organised patient involvement by establishing new Local Involvement Networks (LINks) designed to have more clout to influence services both in hospitals and in community settings.
The plans are central to new guidance - Health Reform in England: Update and Commissioning Framework - to the NHS about how services should be commissioned (or purchased) by PCTs.
In addition, PCTs will be expected to publish prospectuses that set out an assessment of the local needs and the quality of current services, patient satisfaction levels and plans for future investment.
The Government is also issuing a tender advertisement to procure specialist support services to help PCTs improve their commissioning functions. This tender process will lead to a national 'framework' contract which PCTs will be able to use to get specialist help to support their commissioning – thus hopefully removing the need for expensive and time-consuming local tenders.
Press release ~ Patient forums ~ Health Reform in England: Update and Commissioning Framework ~ Practice Based Commissioning (PBC) ~ A stronger local voice: a framework for creating a stronger local voice in the development of health and social care services
DCLG: Hard to believe as we swelter, but flooding is a growing risk - The Government has published its response to the Environmental Audit Select Committee Sustainable Housing: A Follow-up Report.
It highlights the key environmental policies of the Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG) and other Government departments which are aimed at ensuring that new & existing homes are more sustainable.
As part of the response, Building Regulations Minister Angela Smith has announced that the DCLG is now investigating further measures on flood resilience in partnership with the Environment Agency. Following research to be completed by September 2006 new measures could include construction guidance or strengthened building regulations in flood risk areas.
Press release ~ Sustainable Housing: A Follow-up Report (VVLF 5.0Mb) ~ Government response ~ Flooding Direction
DCLG: Time to redefine overcrowding - £50 million to help homeless & overcrowded families in
£30 million of investment will help councils provide settled homes for families currently in temporary accommodation, expanding similar schemes already operating in Newham and Ealing. £20 million will be targeted at helping councils tackle overcrowding with schemes to carry out loft extensions or provide support for single people who want to move out of family homes.
The overcrowding standard hasn't changed since 1935. This means that a family of four including a teenage girl and a teenage boy in a one bedroom flat would still not be classed as overcrowded under the current standards. The result in some circumstances can be babies sleeping in kitchens.
The government claims that some local councils will not give overcrowded families priority for relocation until they breach statutory standards and is therefore now consulting on options for raising standards and building them into allocation policies
The Room Standard is breached if two people of opposite sexes who are not living together as husband and wife must sleep in the same room. Living rooms and kitchens as well as bedrooms can be treated as available sleeping accommodation. Children under 10 do not count.
Ms Cooper also announced that 12 local authorities and one housing association have been selected as Homelessness Regional Champions for 2006/07. There is at least one Champion in each region and they will work with other local authorities to provide support and share good practice to prevent homelessness.
Press release ~ Tackling Overcrowding in England - A discussion paper ~ Homelessness Regional Champions ~ DCLG Homelessness website ~ Directgov - homelessness
DfES:
Schools are being encouraged to identify & stretch the
brightest children whose potentials have gone unrealised or underdeveloped, and
do more to nurture their talents.
A new national register at the National Academy for Gifted and Talented (NAGTY) will track &
nurture talents of the top 5% of 11-19 year-olds identified
nationally as gifted & talented by their schools, and provide data to
encourage schools to consider children they have not so
far.
Mr Adonis also announced the revising & updating of the DfES’
guidance on identification of gifted & talented learners for
release early in the new academic year.
With no single test that identifies gifted and talented learners
reliably, the new guidance aims to encourage schools to draw on a wide range of
evidence, for example: pupil's work; teachers' assessments
and classroom observation - alongside data from the national
register.
Press release ~
National
Academy for Gifted and Talented Youth (NAGTY) ~
The letters sent to schools
by Andrew Adonis ~ Schools White Paper: ‘Higher Standards, Better Schools for All - More Choice for Parents and
Pupils’ ~ Gifted and Talented - DfES ~ G&Twise -
TeacherNet ~ National
Association for the Gifted Child ~ The Support
Society for Children of High Intelligence (CHI) ~ Mensa
Creative Industries / British Council: The British Council's Creative Future programme
aims to discover
Out of a total of 1,084, 60 applicants were long-listed over the last one
month. These 60 individuals vied
for the 20 places available in the Creative Future School at the Indian Institute of Management,
The average age of the finalists is 28 years, with the youngest candidate
aged 22 and oldest aged 35. The
finalists are from a range of sectors: film, design, music, TV, publishing,
fashion, photography, radio, traditional Indian art, software and one finalist
has a cross-sectoral proposal.
In a surprise announcement, panel chairperson Lee Corner said that
Praveen Chrispugg from Chennai has been selected by the Creative Industries Development Agency
to be mentored in the
Press release ~ Creative Industries Development
Agency ~ 20
Finalists ~ Commonwealth Business Council
Patent Office:
In a keynote speech to the Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR),
Minister for Science and Innovation Lord Sainsbury said that to meet the
challenge of Intellectual Property (IP) theft by organised crime groups, the
Patent Office has developed the National
IP Crime Strategy, which brings together enforcement agencies and industry
to tackle IP theft nationally.
This in turn has led to the development of TellPat, a national
database for recording counterfeiting and piracy activities, which
will provide strategic information for spot raids at markets and other venues
across the country throughout the year.
In a paper for IPPR, Lord Sainsbury describes the strength &
importance of the
Press release ~
ESRC: Dr
Diana Burman is the winner of the first ever Michael Young Prize, sponsored by The Young Foundation and the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC). The prize was conceived in honour of the
founder of the ESRC the late Lord Michael Young, and aims to reward and
encourage new researchers whose work offers genuine new insights and is likely
to have an impact beyond academia.
Dr Burman, a former teacher of the deaf, took the first prize for
ground-breaking research that helped her to develop a highly successful method
for improving profoundly deaf children's English
literacy.
The deaf children taught using Dr Burman's method showed a 38%
improvement in their writing skills compared with only a 12% improvement
amongst the children who were taught not using the method. Similarly there was a 30% improvement in
the spelling assessment of children who were taught to use morphemes compared
to a 3% improvement among the children who were not taught using Burman's
method.
Press release ~
The Young Foundation ~ Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) ~
diana.burman@edstud.ox.ac.uk
HMRC: A
series of new approaches exploring simpler & less time-consuming
ways of helping taxpayers comply with their responsibilities have
been announced by HM Revenue & Customs. The new approaches, which aim to cut down on
bureaucracy for taxpayers, their agents and the Government, will
help inform an ongoing consultation process into modernising the powers of
HMRC.
The six new approaches, which will take place at selected
locations
around the
While no decision has been made on the likely roll out of any of
the new approaches, the evidence gathered will add to the responses from the
recent consultation on HMRC's powers, deterrents & safeguards and will
help to inform future policy.
Press release ~
Consultation document: Modernising Powers, Deterrents and
Safeguards (contains details of the interventions being trailed) ~ Understanding your tax code - HMRC ~ TaxAid ~ Money, tax and benefits - Directgov ~ Taxation Web: independent tax website ~
Advice Guide
DCLG: Ruth
Kelly has set out her agenda for devolution which she claims will go further than
the mere devolution of power to local authorities and will see communities
in control of their services & local quality of
life.
Ms Kelly explained that devolution could not be a simple one-size fits all
solution
to neighbourhood empowerment and that the nature of any
neighbourhood arrangements should be appropriate to local circumstances and reflect local
communities' needs and their desired level of
involvement.
The Government claim that neighbourhood empowerment - giving local
people a real opportunity to improve their services and facilities - will be one of the
key themes of this autumn's White Paper.
Press release ~
Letter to PM ~ Local Government Association (LGA) ~ Regions White Paper: 'Your Region, Your Choice’ ~ Devolution in the UK -
ESRC ~ Devolution and
Constitutional Change -
ESRC ~
DWP: The
Government has launched a new set of initiatives which it claims will help
small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) provide a safer working
environment and reduce work related ill health in an attempt to
counter the estimated £12bn to the economy, a third of that being
in the private sector.
Vocational rehabilitation programmes which promote health
in the workplace, are a key part of the Government's Health Work and Well-being Strategy
which underpins the health related components of the Welfare Reform Bill
introduced last week.
Press release ~
Welfare Reform ~
DWP: A new
advisory body has been set up in an attempt to bring the
In addition to offering guidance on existing policies, the EMAG will
also provide advice on a series of measures being introduced as part of the welfare
reform bill, including the
Press release ~
Ethnic Minority Advisory Group (EMAG) ~
Government's Ethnic Minority Employment Task Force
(EMETF) ~ Cities Strategy DWP press release ~ Ethnic Jobsite ~ Welfare Reform Bill ~ DWP Bill explanatory website ~ Report: 'Ethnic
Minorities in the Labour Market' ~ Prospects.ac.uk ~ Women & Equality Unit ~
The incomes of ethnic minorities -
JRF
HSE: The
Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has launched a new Programme aimed at
protecting the estimated two million workers who suffer excessive
noise or hand arm vibration, which can lead to serious and
long-term effects.
The Programme is designed to eliminate new cases of occupational induced
hearing damage and control new cases of Hand Arm Vibration Syndrome (HAVS) sufficiently to enable workers
to remain at work without disability.
The Programme will include a range of activities including
stakeholder engagement and inspection activity to promote the use of good
practice controls measures to control exposure of workers. Initially the focus will be on Hand-Arm Vibration exposure in foundries,
heavy fabrication and construction.
Press release ~
Noise and Hand-arm Vibration Programme ~ Vibration at Work - HSE ~ Vibration at Work - TUC ~ Noise at Work –
HSE ~
Noise at Work – TUC ~ The Control of Vibration at Work Regulations 2005 ~ The Control of Noise at Work Regulations
2005 ~ Health and Safety for Beginners
DCMS: The
Government has launched a consultation on whether the current
statutory and other legal restrictions which prevent national
museums from de-accessioning works of art in their collections should be
lifted to allow restitution of items which were lost during the Nazi
era – closing
The consultation invites views on how far a power to make
restitution of objects lost during the Nazi era should extend, who should be
responsible for taking decisions on restitution, and what
continuing role the Spoliation Advisory Panel should have.
The powers discussed in the paper relate only to the return of items lost
as a result of the actions of the Nazis or their allies. It does not propose to remove the
restrictions on museums' powers to dispose of objects in their collection
in any other case.
Press release ~
Spoliation Advisory Panel ~
Commission for Looted Art in Europe ~ The Art Loss Register ~ British Museum ~ The Central
Registry of Information on Looted Cultural Property ~
National Museum Directors' Conference: Links and
Contacts ~ Spoliation of Jewish Cultural Property – ICOM ~
History behind the Nazi art confiscation – Crime
Library
DTI: The
Government has published a draft map of assisted areas where companies
will be eligible for regional aid in future. The new map follows a full first stage
consultation and will be subject to further consultation over the next
four weeks – closing
The current map has been in force for seven years and under EU rules
expires on
Under EU rules regional state aid can only be paid by
governments to enterprises located within the areas
designated. In the
Four measures were used to decide how to prioritise
·
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The employment rate.
·
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The level of skills.
·
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The number of people claiming incapacity
benefit.
·
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Manufacturing as a share of
employment.
Press release ~
Consultation ~ Proposed assisted areas in
Great Britain 2007-2013 map ~ EU press release on regional aid guidelines
(easy to read) ~ EU regional aid guidelines ~
Assisted Areas Review -
DTI ~ Local Government International
Bureau
DCA: A
consultation has been launched in an effort to make the family court system more
accountable to the public by opening the family court system to the
media so that they can report on their work to the public – closing
This move is expected to affect a range of cases including those where
a local authority acts to take a child into care, or where parents dispute
child contact or residence. The
proposals also include new safeguards to ensure the anonymity and
privacy of individuals.
The present system is complicated by different access rules for different courts, even though they may be hearing the same types of cases.
Press release ~
Consultation paper: 'Confidence and Confidentiality: Improving Transparency and Privacy
in Family Courts' ~ DCA on-line
discussion forum aimed at adults ~ Speech: 'What shall
we tell the children? - Greater London Family Justices meeting
~ Speech: The Family Court
System ~ Children and
Family Court Advisory and Support Service (CAFCASS) ~ Family
Matters - DCA ~ HM Courts
Service ~ Government advice on family courts
DCA:
Radical reform of the legal aid system has being set up as the Lord
Chancellor opened consultations on implementing sweeping changes to the way
Government buys legal advice on behalf of the public – closes 12 October
2006.
The consultation comes in response to the publication of the final
report of the independent Review of Legal Aid Procurement. The independent review was commissioned
in July 2005 and has involved detailed negotiations with the legal profession
to reach a sustainable way forward for legal aid.
Amongst the proposals are:
·
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Lawyers will, as far as possible, be paid on
completion of cases rather than by the hour
·
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A market based system for legal aid
procurement with best value tendering for contracts based on quality, capacity
and price
·
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Changes to make the legal professions
responsible for proper quality control over their members
Press release ~
Consultation ~ Final Report of the Independent Review into Legal Aid
Procurement by Lord Carter of Coles ~ 'A Fairer Deal for Legal Aid' ~
Legal Services Commission of the United Kingdom
~ Legal Aid - DCA
DfT: The
Government has opened a consultation on the new draft guidelines, which are an
attempt to overhaul the country's system of civil parking enforcement
and reverse the trend of using parking fines as a fund raiser – closing
The highlights of the Government's draft advice
include:
·
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Wheel clamping only for the most persistent
parking penalty evaders
·
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A more motorist-friendly appeals process with
a penalty charge discount reoffered after an informal
challenge
·
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More powers being given to the independent
adjudicators to intervene where procedures have not been followed
properly
·
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Regular review of parking policies by local
authorities in consultation with stakeholders
·
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Persistent parking offenders targeted through
a nationwide database
Press release ~
Consultation on Part 6 of the Traffic
Management Act (TMA) 2004 ~ Traffic and parking management -
DfT ~ British
Parking Association ~ Road Traffic Act 1991:
decriminalised parking enforcement ~ Confessions of a parking attendant – BBCnews.co.uk ~ NCP ~ Appeal
Now.com
DH:
Professor Sir Liam Donaldson, the Chief Medical Officer (CMO), has
published his review into the regulation of the medical profession. Good Doctors, safer patients was undertaken following the
publication of the Shipman Inquiry:
fifth report, which was highly critical of the General Medical Council
(GMC) and the broader arrangements for medical regulation.
The CMOs recommendations were received by the Secretary of State and
will now go out to consultation (Closes
A Department of Health review into the regulation of non-medical
professionals - undertaken concurrently with the CMO's review - has also
been published and a similar consultation will also be
undertaken.
The main recommendations in Good
Doctors, safer patients include:
·
FONT>
The creation of unambiguous, operationalised
standards for generic and specialist practice to give a clear, universal
definition of a 'good doctor' and to allow patients, employers and
doctors themselves to have a shared understanding of what is expected of
doctors.
·
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The creation of an independent tribunal in
order to adjudicate on fitness to practise matters - the GMC would focus on the
assessment and investigation of cases.
·
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A renewed focus on the assessment,
rehabilitation and supervision of doctors with performance problems where these
problems are not borne of malice.
Press release ~
Good Doctors, safer patients
(scroll down for Consultation
and Review into non-medical regulation) ~ The Shipman Inquiry: fifth
report
DCA: All
secondary schools in
Inside
The guide will be distributed to secondary schools, sixth forms and
further education colleges and will be a valuable resource for citizenship
classes.
Press release ~
Purchase: Inside Britain:
A Guide to the UK Constitution ~ Citizenship Foundation ~ UK
Constitution ~ Magistrates' Court Mock Trial Competition
2006/07 ~ The
Democracy Series ~ Constitution Unit, University College,
London ~ Hansard
Society
Gambling Commission: The Gambling Commission has published new
guidance surrounding the strict restrictions on gaming for money in
licensed premises, in an attempt to clampdown on illegal poker
games.
Under the 1968 Gaming Act there are strict
restrictions on gaming for money in licensed premises. A local authority permit is required to
run games, the games must not be used as an inducement for people to visit a
pub and any stakes and prizes should be low.
The new guidance on these rules, which apply to all pubs and members
clubs in
·
FONT>
Under the existing law many of these games
are illegal or are likely to lead to illegal games being
played.
·
FONT>
Illegal poker games can lead to people being
cheated into losing very substantial sums of money, and there is concern that
people will be exploited if games are not properly
supervised.
The Commission’s advice aims to ensure that players, organisers and
“hosts”, especially pub landlords and licensees, recognise
their responsibilities & discourage the establishment or
organisation of games outside licensed casinos or card
rooms.
Press release ~
Poker guidance ~ Gambling Commission ~ Gambling and Racing - Dcms ~ Gaming Board for
Great Britain ~ GamCare ~ Society for the Study of Gambling ~ International Gaming Research Unit ~ Gamblers
Anonymous UK
HSE: The
Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has urged businesses to spend less time
dotting 'i's and crossing 't's and more time on putting
practical actions into effect and has issued a revamped risk assessment guide
featuring examples that it hopes will spell out, in plain English, what is -
and what is not - expected.
The guidance Five Steps to Risk
Assessment, hopes to make it even easier for normal business people, not
just health and safety experts, to use.
It also places greater emphasis on making sure that decisions are
actually put into practice.
The 11-page booklet provides advice and tips on five key
elements to an effective risk assessment:
·
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Identifying the hazards
·
FONT>
Deciding who might be harmed and
how
·
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Evaluating the risks and deciding on
precautions
·
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Recording findings and implementing
them
·
FONT>
Ensuring they are reviewed at regular
intervals.
Press release ~
Five Steps to Risk Assessment online booklet ~
HSE Risk Assessment ~ HSE Statistics ~ Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents
(RoSPA) ~ Health and safety at work -
Directgov ~ Health and
Safety - TUC ~ Health and Safety
Laboratory ~ workSmart
TDA: A
guide to help headteachers understand the role of bursars, and how they
can free the headteacher up to lead the school, has been published by the
Training and Development Agency for Schools (TDA).
It follows a significant increase in the number of bursars appointed by
state schools in
Close to 4,000 bursars have qualified or are currently undergoing
training for the
The bursar role, also known as 'school business manager' or
'senior administrator' is increasingly important in supporting
headteachers and to make sure schools, whatever their size, make the most of
all their resources for the benefit of children.
Press release ~
Guidance: ‘Looking for a bursar’ ~ Further information on becoming a bursar ~ Statistics: School Workforce in England ~ National College for School Leadership (NCSL) ~
Diploma of School Business Management
(DSBM) ~
Bursar Development Programme
Patent Office:
The Patent Office has launched a supplement to its formal Annual
Report - The Patent Office Annual
Review, Our Story: Highlights of 2005.
The new format of the Annual Review gives The Patent Office the
opportunity to cover some of its activities in greater detail than is possible
in the Annual Report, as well as providing an accessible picture of what the
Patent Office has done in relation to intellectual property and
innovation.
Press release ~
The Patent Office Annual Review, Our Story: Highlights of
2005 ~ Patent Office Annual Reports and Corporate Plans
~ IP Crime Group
CC: The
Competition Commission has publishes its Annual Report and Accounts for
2005/06.
Announcing the annual report, CC Chairman, Peter Freeman commented on
how 2005/06 proved to be an important year for the Commission, with the
first Market Investigation under the Enterprise Act regime and the first time
one of its merger decisions (Somerfield) was tested before the Competition
Appeal Tribunal and the decision on store disposals
upheld.
Press release ~
Annual Report and Accounts for
2005/06 ~ The
Competition Commission ~ Office of Fair Trading
CCWater:
The number of complaints about water companies received by the Consumer
Council for Water (CCWater) totalled 6,274 across
Whilst there were wide regional variations in complaint trends
over the period, the main perpetrators who caused the rise in complaints are
identified as United Utilities (with a rise of 42% - serves the North
West of England) and Severn Trent Water (with a rise of 54% -
serves the Midlands region)
Complaints were up across a wide range of complaint types,
notably complaints about:
·
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Metered billing - up by
40%.
·
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Liability for unmetered bills - up
66%
·
FONT>
Delays in connections to the mains - up by
36%
Press release – CC Water ~ Press release – CCWater
Thames ~ Press release – CCWater
Midlands ~ CCWater Wales ~
CC Water Annual Review ~ CC
Water ~ CC Water
consumer blog on the current water restrictions ~
Five fast fixes for households on water
saving - CCWater ~ Ofwat ~ Leakage from public water supply –
Environment Agency ~ Beat the
Drought
HSO: Ann
Abraham, the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman, has criticised a number of government departments for taking a negative
& defensive approach to her investigations.
In her 2005-06 annual report, Making a Difference, Ms Abraham praises some other departments for
engaging constructively with her, and says that her investigations into
maladministration can be used by government as a "powerful lever for
reform".
Ms Abraham reported on the 3,606 investigations carried out by her
office in the year ending
Press release ~
Annual Report 2005-2006
~ Memorandum to the Public Administration Select
Committee ~ Parliamentary
and Health Service Ombudsman
ODI: The
Government's Office for Disability
Issues (ODI) has published its first Annual Report to the Prime Minister,
detailing the progress that is being made towards realising the
Government's vision for real equality for disabled people by 2025.
The ODI is also in the process of setting up a new advisory
body - Equality 2025: the
United Kingdom Advisory Network on Disability Equality - which will be
launched later
this year. The body
aims to give disabled people a voice right at the heart of Government, allowing
them to influence the strategies, policies and services that affect their
lives.
Press release ~
ODI annual report 2006 ~ Office
for Disability Issues (ODI) ~ Improving the
Life Chances of Disabled People - Prime Minister Strategy
Unit ~ Disability - Directgov ~ Disability Rights
Commission ~ Disability
UK ~ Disability
Now ~ You're Able ~ RADAR ~ Disability Awareness
in Action ~ Employers' Forum on Disability
FSA: The
Financial Services Practitioner Panel (the Panel) has published its Annual
Report for the period 2005/6. The
report includes commentary on the Treating Customers Fairly initiative; the recently-published Costs of Regulation study; the
Panel's ongoing Survey of Regulated Firms; the FSA's work and influence
in the international arena, the FSA's use of its enforcement powers; the
application of caveat emptor; and MIFID/CRD
implementation.
Press release ~
Annual Report ~
Financial
Services Practitioner Panel ~ Financial Services
Authority (FSA) ~ Financial Ombudsman
DCLG: The
Planning Inspectorate's Annual Report and Accounts for 2005/06 has been
published revealing that whilst the Inspectorate has met many of
its targets, it failed to meet timeliness targets for determining
planning appeals by inquiry or hearing, or enforcement appeals by written
representations or inquiry in
The report also contains the Inspectorate's targets for its main
areas of casework in 2006/07.
Press release ~ Annual report 2005/06 (LF1.4 Mb) ~ The
Planning Inspectorate ~ DCLG Planning website ~ Environment, Planning & Countryside – Welsh Assembly ~ Planning Portal ~ UKPlanning ~ Royal Town Planning
Institute
FO: The
Foreign Office has published its annual report 2005/06 on Science and
Innovation.
In the wake of high-profile global agendum on climate change, extreme
poverty and disease, the Government is placing a heavy emphasis on the need for
the building of partnerships between British scientists and scientific
communities under the billing ‘The world
we will live in tomorrow depends so much on the science and scientists of
today’.
Press release ~
Annual report
2005/06 ~ Jack
Straw's speech: 'Britain's
leading role in global science' ~
FCO
Science and Innovation ~ Global
Watch Online ~ UKWatch
Online ~ International Technology Promoters ~ Research Councils
UK ~ GOST
DTI: The
Department of Trade and Industry's (DTI's) Global Watch Service (GWS),
which helps
This year's Annual Report concludes that the GWS has had its most
successful year to date in delivering on commitments made in the 2003
Innovation Report and on its impact on
Press release ~
2005/2006 Annual Report (VLF 2.2Mb) ~ 2003 Innovation Report ~ Global Watch Service
DWP: The
Department for Work and Pensions has published research which presents the
findings of a telephone survey of 1,174 companies who benefited from ESF supported training
in the period April 2003 - March 2005. The report was commissioned to examine the current operation
and efficacy of ESF funded training used by companies in
With research claims that ESF-supported training activity is having a
positive effect on the companies who benefit from , with over
80% of beneficiary companies felt that the training had fulfilled the
objective of increasing staff aptitudes in their particular job
role.
Press release ~
Report: No. 361 A quantitative survey of
companies supported by European Social Fund ~ European Social Fund -
UK website ~ European Social Fund - EU website
~ Job
Centre Plus ~ European Social Fund - DfES
DWP: A
report has been published showing the latest estimates of Housing Benefit (HB)
fraud and error for the period April 2002 to September
2005.
Key
findings include:
·
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Around £580m (5.0%) of HB expenditure within
the scope of the HBR sample2 is estimated to have been overpaid due to fraud
and error;
·
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By using a rough extrapolation, around a
further £160m is estimated to have been overpaid in the HB expenditure outside
the scope of the HB sample.
·
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This gives an estimate of around £740m (5.4%)
for total overpaid expenditure.
However, alternative reasonable assumptions about the nature of the HB
caseload outside the scope of the sample could have resulted in an estimate
that was £50m different.
Press release ~
Report: ‘Fraud and Error in Housing
Benefit’ ~ Targeting Benefit Fraud ~ Reporting Benefit Fraud - Directgov ~ Good practice in tackling external fraud – NAO, HM
Treasury ~ Benefit Fraud
Inspectorate (BFI) ~ Department for Work and Pensions: Tackling Benefit Fraud
2003
DCA: New
legislation which the government hopes will make the voting system more
accessible, secure & efficient and to maximise participation in elections
has been given Royal Assent. The
Electoral Administration Act 2006
aims to tackle three key areas at the core of a healthy democracy
by:
·
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Improving access and
engagement
·
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Improving confidence;
and
·
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Maintaining professional delivery of
elections
Press release ~
Electoral Administration Act ~
Registering to vote ~
Youth voting network ~ Do
Politics website ~
Absent voting in Great Britain: report
and recommendations ~ Delivering Democracy? The future of postal
voting -
Summary ~ Review of Electoral Commission - Issues and
Questions paper ~ Code of conduct for
handling of Postal Ballots ~ e-democracy ~
aboutmyvote website
CC:
The Charity Commission has released details of interim manager cases
concluded in 2005/06. The
Commission can appoint an interim manager to take over the running of a charity
where there are substantial concerns about the way that charity is being
managed, or in order to protect its property in exceptional
cases.
The role of the interim manager will vary, but could be
to administer all or part of a charity's affairs, or to take on
responsibility for a particular function for the charity. In the financial year from
FSCS:
Consumers can claim compensation of up to £48,000 if they have lost
money as a result of their dealings with any one of 87 firms that the Financial
Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) has recently declared in
default.
As the
Press release ~
87 firms declared in default
(scroll down) ~ Search FSCS default database ~
Financial
Services Authority ~ Financial Ombudsman
Service
Pensions Regulator: The Pensions Regulator's code of practice 'Member-nominated trustees and
directors - putting arrangements in place' has been laid before
Parliament. The code provides
pension scheme trustees with practical advice & principles on how to comply
with legislation on member-nominated trustees and member-nominated
directors.
Trustees are required to ensure that arrangements are in place, &
implemented, for at least one third of trustees to be member-nominated; or at
least one third of directors of the trustee company to be member-nominated.
The arrangements must include a
nomination process, a selection process and other statutory
requirements.
The code will not come into force until it has been laid before
Parliament for 40 sitting days (excluding recesses).
Press release ~
Member-nominated trustees and directors - putting
arrangements in place (scroll down)
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