General News
MoD: The latest Operational Honours & Awards List recognises service on operations in & national operations. Of the 140 honours, three are posthumous. 16 individuals are being awarded a Military Cross (MC) which recognises exemplary gallantry during active operations against the enemy on land.
Press release
ACE: Arts Council now represents arts, museums & libraries, having assumed some of the functions of the Museums, Libraries and Archives Council (MLA), following its closure on 1 October 2011.
Press release & links
MoD: Construction work on a multi-million pound development at Whittington Barracks for Phase 2 of the
Press release & links
ScotGov: The 'digidoc' international conference in
The 'Scottish Ten' project run by Historic Scotland and Glasgow School of Art aims to record 5 international sites in countries where Scotland has trade or diplomatic relationships. Mount Rushmore has been completed and work is due to begin soon at Rani Ki Vav Stepwell in while the Eastern Qing Tombs in have also been selected with 2 further international sites yet to be announced.
Press release & links
STFC: ALMA, the Atacama Large Millimetre/sub-millimetre Array), the most complex ground based telescope in existence, is officially open to astronomers and has produced its first image. This comes after more than a decade of design & construction involving technological & scientific expertise from countries across four continents, including the . The scale of this achievement is demonstrated by the fact that the number of observing proposals on
Press release & links
FSA: The Food Standards Agency has updated its list of product ranges that do not contain the 6 food colours associated with possible hyperactivity in young children. Another company producing product lines free of the colours have been added to the list: Simon Howie Foods.
Press release & links
FSA: Lindt and Sprüngli has withdrawn some of its Lindor white chocolate truffles because they contain potential traces of hazelnut and almonds that could be a health risk for people who are allergic to or intolerant of hazelnuts or almonds. The Food Standards Agency has issued an allergy alert.
Press release & links
TfL: Following a meeting at Acas last week London Underground (LU) has received confirmation from the trade unions that they will be recommending acceptance of LU's 4-year pay settlement. This deal, which would be the longest ever achieved, offers stability and the prospect of no industrial action over pay until at least 2015
It is now being recommended for acceptance by all unions and means that staff will get a 5% pay increase this year followed by inflation (RPI) plus 0.5% in the subsequent three years. A guarantee has also been given that LU will not take into account negative RPI, should such a situation occur.
Press release & links
FSA: The Food Standards Agency is reminding consumers to follow good hygiene practices when storing & preparing vegetables, following 2 recent E.coli outbreaks. The FSA commissioned research following these outbreaks that looked at consumer attitudes & behaviour towards food safety when preparing vegetables. The report has now been published.
Press release & links
DH: People are playing Russian roulette with their lives every year by not protecting themselves against seasonal flu, the Chief Medical Officer has warned. Only half of under-65s who were advised to get the seasonal flu jab took it up last year. This is despite the fact that seasonal flu can also be life-threatening. Last year, 602 people died with flu in the
Press release & links
ScotGov: The Borders Railway is to be delivered by Network Rail in a new rail industry partnership aimed at achieving best value for money. The move comes as Transport Scotland has had to cancel the original procurement competition for the project following the withdrawal of 2 of the 3 bidders.
Press release & links
ScotGov: Carers who look after family or friends will qualify for free energy assistance help, backed by the Scottish Government. New Regulations laid at Parliament extend the eligibility for the Energy Assistance Package to include people in receipt of the Carers' Allowance.
Press release & links
WAG: Cadw’s all new interactive website, online shop and suite of social media channels has been launched. The new bilingual site provides an interactive one-stop shop for dedicated information about Cadw’s activities.
Press release & links
ScotGov: Adjustments are being made to routine herd testing for bovine tuberculosis (TB) in as the second anniversary of official TB freedom (OTF) is reached. Herds which meet certain risk criteria will now be exempt from 4 yearly routine herd testing for bovine TB. The changes, which aim to reduce the burden on industry, are backed by recent research by
Press release
DSA: The Driving Standards Agency has a range of online services for approved driving instructors (ADI), available from 6.00 am to midnight, 7 days a week. You can download a guide to using online ADI services. It also includes space for you to make a note of your user ID and a reminder of your password.
Press release & links
EA: The Environment Agency has called upon an unusual ally in its fight to control a very troublesome water weed. A colony of tiny weevils, with big teeth & a taste for a specific plant, has been drafted in to control the problematic Azolla weed.
Stenopelmus rufinasus, commonly known as the Azolla Weevil, feeds exclusively off the Water fern, Azolla filiculoides. Now the Environment Agency has released a colony of the helpful beetles to seek & destroy a huge mossy slick of the weed in
Press release & links
CWDC: The Children's Workforce Development Council (CWDC) has announced the start of the next recruitment phase for Early Years Professional Status (EYPS), including publishing details of the organisations responsible for the delivery of the training across
Press release & links
WAG: Farmers who are converting or who plan to convert to Organic Farming can now apply for support from the Welsh Government. The application window for the Organic Farming Conversion Scheme (OFCS) will be open until Friday 4 November 2011 and is available to those farmers who began, or will begin, conversion to organic between 2 January 2011 and 1 January 2012. Applications must include an organic conversion plan.
Press release & links ~ Organic farming scheme
FSA: Tesco is recalling some date codes of its own-brand Coffee and Walnut cake. Pecans have accidentally been included in the cake and are not mentioned in the ingredients list or in the allergens advice. If you are allergic to pecans, the Food Standards Agency advises you not to eat this product.
Press release & links
MoD: 14 injured Royal Marines were in
Press release & links
NE: Farmers in the South West are being offered a free soil testing kit as part of an initiative to provide advice on soil management. The Soils for Profit (S4P) Project is managed by Natural England in partnership with Environment Agency and provides support to farmers on ways in which farm profits and the environment can benefit from improved soil management.
Press release & links
ScotGov: A national road-show launched last week to encourage parents & carers to play, talk & read more with their younger children. It will visit all of
