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Consultations
DH: Mandatory regulation & labelling could be on the cards for the alcohol industry following the launch of a consultation about England's drinking culture. New calculations put the cost of alcohol misuse to society at £17.7bn to £25.1bn per year, with a cost to the NHS of £2.7bn.
The Department of Health consultation (closes 14 October 2008) is published together with independent reviews showing that:
* the drinks industry is not adhering to its own voluntary standards, and
* new evidence suggests that alcohol is a far wider cause of damage to health than previously suspected
Press release ~ Safe, Sensible, Social - consultation on further action (includes related documents) ~ Alcohol resources ~ DH – Alcohol misuse ~ Working with the alcohol industry ~ Home Office – Alcohol Misuse ~ Changing Scotland's relationship with alcohol: a discussion paper on our strategic approach ~ ScotGov - Alcohol ~ A Question of Architecture: Executive Summary ~ 12 Dimensions of a Manageable Problem ~ Scottish Association of Alcohol and Drugs Action Teams ~ Scotland’s alcohol culture
BERR: The detailed criteria & process for assessing where new nuclear power stations could safely & securely be built across England and Wales have been set out by the Government in a consultation (closes on 11 November 2008). The Strategic Siting Assessment outlines the process the Government will use for identifying suitable sites for new nuclear power stations. The government is also publishing an environmental study alongside the consultation.
The Government is proposing to invite third parties to nominate sites which it will then assess against a range of criteria. The consultation also sets out the various criteria that would be applied in making that assessment - including those that would automatically rule out sites. The Department expects to have finalised the criteria by early 2009 and will at that time open the invitation for the nomination of sites that could be suitable for new nuclear generation by 2025.
Press release ~ Consultation on the Strategic Siting Process and related documents ~ Infrastructure Planning Commission ~ Nuclear White Paper Meeting the Energy Challenge: A White Paper on Nuclear Power ~ Generic Design Assessment (GDA) ~ Environment Agency - GDA Preliminary reports ~ HSE: UK Nuclear Regulators New Reactor Assessment ~ Health and safety in the nuclear industry ~ Nuclear Directorate of the Health and Safety Executive ~ Office of Civil Nuclear Security ~ Dedicated public information website on nuclear waste ~ United Kingdom Radioactive Waste Inventory (UKRWI) ~ Consultation on funded decommissioning programme guidance for new nuclear power stations - BERR ~ Nuclear Power - BERR ~ Committee on Radioactive Waste Management (CoRWM)
HM Treasury: The Chancellor of the Exchequer has launched a consultation (closes on 15 September 2008) on the 'special resolution regime' which is designed to reduce the impact of a failing bank. The consultation document is published jointly by HM Treasury, the Financial Services Authority and the Bank of England. It builds on previous consultation documents published in January and earlier this month outlining the Authorities' proposals for financial stability and depositor protection.
This technical consultation document sets out further detail on the specifics of the special resolution regime (SRR). It also includes draft clauses for key aspects of the regime, in particular those areas where there has been the most significant interest from stakeholders. These proposals will now be subject to a further period of consultation, prior to the introduction of legislation later in this Parliamentary session.
WAG: All sectors need young people to bring new ideas, energy & enthusiasm and farming is no exception, Rural Affairs Minister Elin Jones said as she launched a consultation (closes on 10 October 2008) on support for young farmers.
Encouraging young entrants to the industry can not only bring innovation & enthusiasm to farming, but it is also important in sustaining rural communities and the Welsh culture. The publication of the consultation meets a One Wales commitment to support young entrants to farming and includes proposals on how to use £2m of funding available from 2010 to best effect.
Press release ~ Support for Young Entrants to Farming ~ WAG – Farming and the Countryside ~ Farming Connect ~ One Wales ~ WAG Consultation on Meeting Housing Needs in Rural Areas ~ TAN 6: Agricultural and Rural Development – 2000 ~ JRF Commission on Rural Housing in Wales ~ Sue Essex Report into affordable housing in Wales ~ Community Housing Cymru
DH: Plans claiming to improve patient safety and support professionals in sustaining their high standards have been set out for consultation (closes 24 October 2008) by the Chief Medical Officer for England (CMO) Sir Liam Donaldson. In proposals, outlined in the report ‘Medical Revalidation - Principles and Next Steps’, doctors will, be required to renew their professional registration every five years, in order to provide assurance that they are practising to the standard that patients, the public and the profession itself expect.
Patients will be asked for views on their doctor, including:
* Effective communication, including listening, informing & explaining
* Involving patients in treatment decisions
* Care co-ordination & support for self-care and
* Showing respect for patients & treating them with dignity
The revalidation & recertification process will be introduced in stages from spring 2009 following a series of pilots scheduled to begin at the start of the year. These arrangements will be supported by the introduction of Responsible Officers (the consultation on whose introduction closes 24 October 2008), senior doctors in each healthcare organisation who will take responsibility for collating the information needed to support a recommendation on revalidation.
Press release ~ Medical Revalidation - Principles and Next Steps ~ Consultation on the introduction of Responsible officers ~ Good doctors, safer patients ~ White Paper 'Trust, assurance and safety: the regulation of health professionals' ~ DH - Professional regulation ~ DH - Responsible officer
WAG: The Minister for Rural Affairs, Elin Jones, has launched a consultation (closes on 14 October 2008) on the revision of Woodlands for Wales, the Welsh Assembly Government’s Woodland Strategy. The draft plans will lead towards fulfilling the One Wales commitment of creating a Welsh National Forest of native trees.
The previous strategy did not include the importance of trees in towns & cities which, it is now recognised, can reduce urban air temperatures that are set to rise as a result of climate change.
Press release ~ Consultation on proposals to revise Woodlands for Wales: The Welsh Assembly Government’s Strategy for Trees and Woodlands ~ WAG – Forestry ~ One Wales
FSA: The Financial Services Authority (FSA) is consulting (closes on 30 September 2008) on a proposal that financial institutions in receipt of liquidity support from a central bank will have a legitimate interest for delaying the public disclosure of such support.
Press release ~ Consultation paper 08/13 is entitled 'Disclosure of liquidity support' ~ Financial stability and depositor protection: strengthening the framework ~ Strengthening financial stability and depositor protection
BERR: The Government has welcomed and is consulting (closes 30 October 2008) on an industry agreement to address unlawful file-sharing of film & music online, which has been signed by the six major Internet Service Providers (ISPs), the music and film rights-holders and Government.
ISPs and rights holders will produce a Code of Practice together on how they will deal with alleged repeat infringers, which will be approved by Ofcom, who will also ensure that the self-regulatory mechanism is effective, proportionate and fair to consumers. Government will consult to give this Code legislative underpinning.
DfT: Drivers & hauliers resident outside the UK will not be able to escape punishment under a proposed new system (consultation closes on 17 October 2008) which will give Police and examiners from the Vehicle Operator and Services Agency (VOSA) the power to collect on-the-spot penalties from anyone without a satisfactory UK address from next year. They will also be able to issue penalty points against a non-UK driver's record for endorsable offences.
For the first time VOSA examiners will also have the power to issue fixed penalty notices to hauliers for a range of offences such as breaking driving hours, weight or vehicle safety regulations. In addition to financial penalty deposits, the new measures will enable the Police and VOSA examiners to immobilise any vehicle that has been prohibited from continuing a journey as a result of a driver breaking the rules on drivers' hours or driving a vehicle with defects.
Press release ~ Graduated Fixed Penalties, Financial Penalty Deposit and Immobilisation Schemes ~ Vehicle Operator and Services Agency (VOSA)
DCMS: Plans to regulate video-on-demand services and product placement on British television are set out in a consultation (closes on 31 October, 2008) document published by Culture Secretary Andy Burnham. The proposals are part of a comprehensive consultation on how the UK should implement the EU Audio Visual Media Services (AVMS) Directive, which includes both compulsory and optional elements, some of which are expected to lead to new legislation.
The consultation focuses on the Government's proposals on three specific issues in the Directive, which are:
* product placement in television and video-on-demand services
* introducing a system for regulating video-on-demand services in the UK
* controls over the content of non-EU satellite channels which are uplinked from a ground station in the UK
Press release ~ Public Consultation on Implementing the EU Audiovisual Media Services Directive ~ EU Audio Visual Media Services (AVMS) Directive ~ TVWF Directive
Defra: Defra has launched a consultation (closes on 17 October 2008) on legislation to allow local authorities in England to work more easily together on animal health. In 2006, the Eves review of the animal health and welfare delivery landscape highlighted that there was a legal obstacle to local authorities carrying out animal health work for other local authorities and recommended removing it.
The proposed Legislative Reform Order (LRO) to bring in this change, which will bring animal health in line with all other policy areas in England.
Press release ~ Consultation on changes to the Local Government Act 1972 to allow local authorities in England to work together on animal health ~ Eves Review report and Defra's response
NE: Environmental organisations, farmers, landowners and the public are being invited to have their say on how the laws protecting the natural environment are enforced, as Natural England launched a consultation into its forthcoming enforcement policy.
The consultation (closes on 18 October 2008) is designed to seek views on the levels of enforcement and the processes that should apply to them. Natural England will then publish its updated enforcement policy in 2009.
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