General Reports and Other Publications
MoD: Defence Minister, Derek Twigg, has responded to Defence Select Committee report on the recruitment and retention of the Armed Forces, saying: “We face strong competition from other employers and our personnel are very much in demand owing to the skills and experience they acquire during service life……………. The recently published Service Personnel Command Paper sets out a range of new initiatives to address some of the disadvantages which have previously affected our service personnel, their families and veterans.
To quote the concluding paragraph from the report’s summary:
We conclude that the MoD is not responding with sufficient flexibility and imagination to some of the problems it encounters. Educational incentives could be used much more effectively as a recruiting incentive, and the MoD could aid retention by reviewing the inequalities of its retirement policies. The Armed Forces should encourage transfers between and within the Services, and smooth the inconsistencies in pay and conditions between the Services.
Press release ~ Defence Select Committee report on the recruitment and retention of the Armed Forces ~ Service Personnel Command Paper ~ Campaign for Military Covenant ~ Honour the Covenant
ScotGov: Scotland's Chief Statistician and the Registrar General for Scotland has published a report onScotland's new official ethnicity classification, which will:
* extend the number of ethnic groups we collect information on from 14 to 21
* build a more accurate picture of Scotland's population
* identify discrimination when used with other census and survey questions
A national identity question is also being tested & developed for the census and relevant Scottish Official Statistics. This will let people express their national identity fully - be that 'Scottish', 'British' or any other national identity - before expressing their ethnicity. The Registrar General is developing a question for publication in autumn 2008.
At this stage, the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) have endorsed the process by which the new classification was developed and will make a full public statement about the new classification after the publication, in the autumn, of a policy statement about all aspects of Scotland's next Census.
Press release ~ Report on Scotland's new official ethnicity classification ~ General Register Office for Scotland ~
GLS: Progress has been made in the proposals for eco-towns, according to a report published last week by the Eco-Town Challenge Panel, an independent group of experts in sustainability and urban development set up by Housing Minister Caroline Flint.
The Panel found that many of the bidders had responded positively to the first set of recommendations, published last May, but it still wants to see further improvements to the transport and employment strategies for a number of the proposed eco-towns.
Press release ~ GLS – eco towns ~ Eco-towns: Sustainability appraisal - Scoping report for the Planning Policy Statement on eco-towns - Appendices ~
Ofsted: A new Ofsted report published examines the Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Services (Cafcass) in South Yorkshire. Based on a joint inspection in February this year by Ofsted and Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Court Administration (HMICA), the views of people who used the court services in South Yorkshire reveal that despite some examples of good work, important aspects of the service are inadequate.
These findings are similar to those of previous Ofsted inspections of Cafcass in the East Midlands and the South East.
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