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Policy Statements and Initiatives
WO: A referendum on additional powers for the National Assembly for Wales should be held before the end of the first quarter of 2011, Secretary of State for Wales, Cheryl Gillan, announced last week. In a letter to the First Minister, Mrs Gillan said in accordance with section 1 04(3)(b) of the Government of Wales Act 2006, she was writing to notify him that she was unable to lay the draft referendum Order in Council before Parliament within the 120-day period due to circumstances she had inherited from the previous administration.
Mrs Gillan said: “Both you and I and the Deputy First Minister have discussed a possible timetable for the referendum, taking account of all the stages that need to be gone through to prepare for it. In the light of our discussion, we have agreed that we should aim for a referendum to be held before the end of the first quarter of 2011.”
HO: Registration with the Vetting & Barring Scheme (VBS) will be halted to allow the Government to remodel the scheme back to proportionate & common sense levels, it was announced by the Home Secretary last week. Voluntary registration with the VBS for new employees and job-movers working or volunteering with children and vulnerable adults was due to start on 26 July 2010. This registration has now been stopped.
The Government recognises that many businesses, community groups & individuals see the current scheme as disproportionate & overly burdensome, and that it unduly infringes on civil liberties.
The scope of the remodelling process – to be co-ordinated by the Home Office in partnership with Department of Health and Department for Education – is currently being finalised and will be announced shortly.
The scope of the remodelling process – to be co-ordinated by the Home Office in partnership with Department of Health and Department for Education – is currently being finalised and will be announced shortly.
Press release ~ Business Link: Vetting & Baring Scheme ~ Directgov: V&BS ~ Independent Safeguarding Authority (ISA)
DFID: Britain will in future focus its aid on fewer countries in a move designed to increase the impact of UK funding on the world’s poorest people, International Development Secretary, Andrew Mitchell, announced last week.
A review will scrutinise the countries, which currently share around £2.9bn in UK bilateral aid. Countries such as China & Russia will see a phasing out of UK development assistance as soon as practical & responsible. The Review, which will report after the Comprehensive Spending Review in the Autumn,
A review will scrutinise the countries, which currently share around £2.9bn in UK bilateral aid. Countries such as China & Russia will see a phasing out of UK development assistance as soon as practical & responsible. The Review, which will report after the Comprehensive Spending Review in the Autumn,
The redirected money will be channelled to priority countries and used for poverty reduction measures including programmes to improve maternal health, women’s right to family planning and protection against deadly diseases like malaria.
HMT: Sir John Vickers is to Chair the Independent Commission on Banking, which will produce a final report by the end of September 2011.
CO: Responsibility for The Office of Government Commerce (OGC) and the public sector procurement agency, Buying Solutions, will move to the Cabinet Office, where they will form part of the Efficiency and Reform Group (ERG), the Prime Minister announced last week.
Press release ~ Office of Government Commerce ~ Buying Solutions ~ Cabinet Office ~ Cabinet Office Structural Reform plan
ScotGov: A blueprint for maximising the contribution allied health professionals (AHPs) make to supporting people with mental health problems has been unveiled by Public Health Minister, Shona Robison.
The plan will help bring together the work of AHPs in mental health with service users & carers, professional bodies and NHS boards in a bid to further improve the quality & range of care and support delivered to people with a mental illness.
The plan will help bring together the work of AHPs in mental health with service users & carers, professional bodies and NHS boards in a bid to further improve the quality & range of care and support delivered to people with a mental illness.
The 3-year action plan has a number of key actions, structured to make the biggest possible difference to improving the lives of service users and their carers. It aims to deliver earlier intervention and faster access to these important AHP services that promote wellbeing, support recovery and enable people to live their lives to the full.
This work includes support for service users to stay in or return to work, education or productive living and aims to maximise quality of life.
This work includes support for service users to stay in or return to work, education or productive living and aims to maximise quality of life.
Press release ~ Realising Potential: An Action Plan for Allied Health Professionals in Mental Health
HMT: The Chief Secretary to the Treasury, Danny Alexander, last week announced which projects re-submitted to the Treasury will be suspended / cancelled as part of a review of all spending decisions taken since 1 January 2010. Projects have been cancelled where they:
* were not affordable
* did not represent good value for money, or
* where they did not reflect the Government's priorities
The Chief Secretary also announced an urgent review of inherited spending commitments for 2010-11, where funding was reliant on underspending through the End Year Flexibility (EYF) system, or additional funding from the Reserve.
It was unrealistic to expect under-spending would have occurred on a scale necessary to fund all these commitments - consequently, at least £1bn of commitments will have to be cancelled.
It was unrealistic to expect under-spending would have occurred on a scale necessary to fund all these commitments - consequently, at least £1bn of commitments will have to be cancelled.
ScotGov: Four farms have been selected to test & demonstrate climate friendly farming methods in Scotland. Three represent the 3 agricultural sectors - dairy, upland livestock & arable. The fourth will demonstrate farm diversification and can be used for education & public demonstration. The Climate Change Focus Farms will work to reduce emissions, improve efficiency and boost productivity.
CLG: Housing Minister, Grant Shapps, last week announced that councils will have greater flexibility to manage concentrations of shared housing in their area, without tying landlords in red tape. A high concentration of shared homes can sometimes cause problems, especially if too many properties in one area are let to short term tenants with little stake in the local community.
Changes to legislation will give councils the freedom to choose areas where landlords must submit a planning application to rent their properties to unrelated tenants - known as Houses in Multiple Occupation (HMOs).
DfE: Education Secretary Michael Gove has unveiled the next step in the Government’s school reform programme. He outlined the process for allowing teachers, charities & parents to set up new schools – Free Schools – in response to parental demand. Free Schools are independent state schools run by teachers not bureaucrats or politicians and accountable to parents.
In addition the Secretary of State for Communities & Local Government will update guidelines to local planning authorities to make it clear there is a presumption in favour of setting up of new schools.
