It has come to our attention that ‘different desktop setups’ do not always receive a consistently formatted document in their e-mailed version of Wired - GOV Plus. If you have any problems viewing the e-mailed version below, please click HERE for the website version.
HMT: The light at the end of the tunnel just got further away - The Chancellor has delivered his Autumn Statement to Parliament, alongside the publication of the Office for Budget Responsibility's updated forecasts for growth & borrowing.
He announced ‘permanent reductions in spending to ensure that the UK meets its fiscal targets, using some of those savings in the short term to fund infrastructure investment to generate long-term growth’. Alongside this, he announced measures to ‘help households & businesses cope with higher inflation and to ensure that deficit reduction is implemented fairly’.
Other documents published alongside the Autumn Statement document included:
* Autumn Statement policy costings
* Autumn Statement distributional analysis
* The National Infrastructure Plan 2011
* Audited Whole Government Accounts for 2009-10
Integrated working offers the potential both for efficiency savings & improved care. NHS & social care partners need to be clearer about the outcomes they are trying to achieve and how they will know they are making progress towards them.
CO: There are other dangers to the UK apart from the eurozone collapsing - The Government recently published its new Cyber Security Strategy, setting out how the UK will 'support economic prosperity, protect national security and safeguard the public’s way of life by building a more trusted & resilient digital environment'.
Defra: Where is St Swithin when you need him? - Water companies & the public need to plan now for a summer drought to minimise the impacts of a potentially dry winter, Environment Secretary Caroline Spelman said last week. The drought that has affected central & eastern England this year could continue until next summer and the south east will be at risk of drought if sustained rainfall does not replenish water levels that were depleted during one of the driest springs on record.
Environment Secretary Caroline Spelman said: “It may have surprised people that we’ve granted Anglian Water a drought permit in November, but it is a warning of the need to take action now after the country has seen the driest twelve months since records began”.
A recent report published by the Environment Agency makes further recommendations to water companies & other water users, such as farmers, on measures they can take to minimise the impacts of a longer term drought.
CLG: Bringing young life back to the country - Communities Minister Andrew Stunell has called on farmers & rural councils to 'think outside the box' to deliver more affordable housing. The average house price in rural areas is £250,000, yet the average salary is only £21,000 a year, meaning many local people struggle to get on the housing ladder. Mr Stunell wants to see farmers identify disused farm buildings that could be converted into new affordable homes for local people, and wants councils to look favourably on their planning applications.
Mr Stunell highlighted a scheme run by Harrogate Borough Council that requires developers to make provision on the site for affordable housing, resulting in 34 extra affordable homes across 19 sites. Harrogate's approach is in the spirit of the 'Home on the Farm' idea, championed by Mr Stunell, which promotes conversion of disused farm buildings into new homes.
EU News: Crisis, what crisis; Who cares if you have less to spend on your young, sick, poor & elderly! - The European Commission has proposed to finance the GMES programme (Global Monitoring for Environment and Security) for Earth observation for the period 2014-2020 outside the EU financial framework, for which an estimated budget of €5.8bn is deemed necessary.
The Commission proposes to set up a specific GMES fund similar to the model chosen for the European Development Fund, with financial contributions from all 27 EU Member States based on their gross national income (GNI). This will require an intergovernmental agreement between the EU Member States meeting within the Council.
DWP: Good idea: A government listens then decides on policy - Disabled people living in residential care will continue to have their additional mobility needs met through Disability Living Allowance (DLA) and the Personal Independence Payment (PIP), the Minister for Disabled People, Maria Miller announced last week.
When DLA is replaced with PIP in 2013, disabled people in residential care will continue to receive any mobility component of PIP they are entitled to.
RoSPA: H&S does matter - Trade associations and the firms they help with health & safety still have time to put forward nominations for the 2012 RoSPA SME Assistance Trophy, sponsored by BHSF. Nominations for the trophy are invited from trade associations and similar bodies themselves, as well as from the firms they help. The closing date for nominations is 14 January 2012.
Latest Whitepaper: - GPG13 Compliance: How to Improve Protective Monitoring and Reduce Costs - All UK central government departments, agencies and police are subject to GPG 13 compliance and the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) can now levy fines of up to £500,000 for organisations that suffer a breach.
Because of GPG13, many government bodies now understand the need to configure an appropriate level of logging and processing of log files. However, the requirements for change detection still remain and this cannot be achieved through logging alone.
In a forthcoming Webinar, Ed Hamilton, CLAS Consultant at Analysys Mason explains the importance of change detection and how it can improve the effectiveness of your organisation’s protective monitoring. In addition, a related white paper looks at how to reduce GPG 13 compliance costs, and improve security as a natural byproduct.
Click here to find out more and receive your free copy of the paper.
Please note that previously published newsletters can be accessed from the Newsletter Archive