General Reports and Other Publications
RUSI: Without a dedicated Minister for the Emergency Services, the forthcoming recommendations from the Coroner's Inquests into 7 July 2005 London bombings are unlikely be implemented in full, claims a new report from the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI).
The RUSI paper, Anatomy of a Terrorist Attack: What the Coroner's Inquests Revealed about the London Bombings, acknowledges the 7/7 Inquests have pushed the boundaries on transparency, offered unprecedented insight - and unfamiliar public scrutiny - into the modus operandi of the Security Service (MI5), but warns of difficulty implementing the expected Coroner's recommendations on the emergency services when they are published.
Citing previous reports such as that which followed the Kings Cross fire in 1987, the RUSI paper warns the absence of Ministerial oversight for emergency services mean any of the recommendations on emergency response are 'likely to go the way of those from previous reviews: noted and filed until the next major incident occurs.'
The paper also argues the Inquests may influence future government policy, coming as they have ahead of a Green Paper on intelligence in judicial proceedings, due to be published later this year.
Cebr: Bonus payouts in the City for 2010/11 fell by 8% to £6.7bn, down from £7.3bn in the previous fiscal year.
Despite falling bonus payments, City workers continue to earn bumper pay packets bolstered by rising regular pay.
Cebr estimate that average regular pay for City workers in the first quarter of 2011 is some 7% higher than a year ago and much higher than growth of just over 2% for the as a whole – lower bonuses have not put an end to the culture of high remuneration in the City. These are the key findings of updated research into the London and City economy by the Centre for Economics and Business Research (Cebr).
Cebr estimate that average regular pay for City workers in the first quarter of 2011 is some 7% higher than a year ago and much higher than growth of just over 2% for the as a whole – lower bonuses have not put an end to the culture of high remuneration in the City. These are the key findings of updated research into the London and City economy by the Centre for Economics and Business Research (Cebr).
PC&PE: The Committee of Public Accounts has published a report which, on the basis of evidence from the Department of Health, the Chief Executive of the NHS and The King's Fund, examines the value for money risks & implications of the Health and Social Care Bill.
IISS: A Strategic Comment from the International Institute for Strategic Studies highlights how the Israelis are concerned about the series of uprisings in Arab countries.
IISS: A Strategic Comment from the International Institute for Strategic Studies highlights that although European countries have been prominent in the military operation in Libya, the crisis has exposed sharp disagreements between them.
DECC: UK Energy & Climate Change Secretary, Chris Huhne, has welcomed the publication by the Global Legislators Organisation (GLOBE) of a study of climate change legislation in the major economies.
Newswire – CBI: The CBI has warned that that the UK is failing to attract the level of investment needed to build low-carbon infrastructure. With a third of our energy supply due to close in the next decade and ambitious emissions reductions targets to meet, the UK’s power sector alone needs £150bn of private sector investment over the next 20 years, the CBI said.
But in a new report called Risky Business: Investing in the UK’s low-carbon infrastructure, the CBI reveals that senior business leaders are not convinced that the UK can attract low-carbon investment at the scale & pace required.
PwC: UK workers have an average (median) 10 days unscheduled absence from their jobs each year, around twice that of their counterparts in the US (5.5 days) and Asia-Pacific (4.5 days), but on a par with Western Europe (9.7 days). Sickness accounts for around 80% of absence, which also covers jury service and compassionate leave.
With the average UK salary around £25,000, absenteeism is costing British business approximately £32bn per annum, far more than previous studies have suggested. This figure is also likely to be conservative, as it reflects direct cost of absence and does not take into account potential replacement costs and lost productivity.
The research highlights the impact workplace culture can have on absence. PwC’s data shows the public sector has the highest absence levels, averaging 12.2 days. Absenteeism is also a problem for retail and leisure, at 11.5 days.
Newswire – SA: Hundreds of UK farmers could be driven out of business if planning permission is granted for mega farms in Britain, a joint report from the Soil Association and the World Society for the Protection of Animals (WSPA) reveals. The possible impact on small & family farms is revealed as Derbyshire County Council starts a public consultation on plans for a giant pig factory at Foston.
BIS: Science Minister David Willetts has underlined his commitment to engage the public with science, after the Public Attitudes to Science 2011 survey (published this week) showed that whilst there is an increasing appreciation for science, people feel less informed about it.
.gif)
