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General News
TfL: The second phase of the London Low Emission Zone, which will affect diesel engined lorries weighing over 3.5 tonnes, buses and coaches, begins at 00:01am on Monday 7 July 2008. If these vehicles do not meet the required emissions standard, which is Euro III for particulate matter, they will face a daily charge.
A Vehicle compliance checker is available online to help any concerned owner find out whether their vehicle meets the Low Emission Zone emissions standards. Transport for London will give operators of vehicles that do not comply with the emissions standards a 28 day warning period to upgrade their vehicle from the date they are first seen driving within the Zone. During this time they will not be issued with a penalty charge.
Press release ~ London Low Emission Zone ~ LEZ map ~ Approved abatement equipment & suppliers ~ Vehicle compliance checker
DWP: Tim Campbell, winner of the first series of The Apprentice, and founder of the Bright Ideas Trust, is to host the first national Local Employment Partnership awards being held in London on 1 July 2008.
Tesco, Nissan Motors and HSBC are among the 20 UK employers which have made it onto the shortlist for the awards. The finalists are in the running to win one of six awards which recognise outstanding contributions made by employers, employees and partners involved in LEPs - the Government's new partnership approach to help disadvantaged jobseekers back into work.
Press release ~ Local Employment Partnership awards ~ The Bright Ideas Trust ~ Local Employment Partnerships
ACE: Arts Council England is asking everyone to get into the swing of Big Dance 2008 - a weeklong celebration of dance from 5 -13 July 2008. Whether a dance fan, a recent convert or just curious, Big Dance 2008 will have something for you.
You can be part of a record breaking salsa dance on Gateshead Quayside, see a performance of Hofesh Shechter's celebrated work Uprising in the East, or join in with the Big Dance Mat Festival in Derby. To find out how to get involved, host your own Big Dance event or what is happening in your area, just log on..
NICE: Because insufficient evidence was provided by the manufacturers, NICE is unable to recommend the use the following treatments in the NHS:
* bevacizumab in combination with paclitaxel for the first-line treatment of metastatic breast cancer
* cetuximab for the treatment of colorectal cancer following failure of oxaliplatin-containing chemotherapy
* carmustine implants as an adjunct to surgery in patients with recurrent glioblastoma multiforme (a type of brain cancer) for whom surgery is appropriate
* bevacizumab in addition to platinum-based chemotherapy for the first-line treatment of patients with inoperable advanced, metastatic or recurrent non-small-cell lung cancer (other than predominantly squamous cell histology)
OFT: The Office of Fair Trading has welcomed the announcement that the government is to review the access to information for commercial use by Trading Funds organisations, such as Ordnance Survey and the UK Hydrographic Office. The OFT market study on the commercial use of public information found that more competition in public sector information could benefit the UK economy by around £1bn a year.
Press release ~ OFT's market study report on the Commercial Use of Public Information (CUPI) ~ Government's initial substantive response ~ Office of Public Sector Information (OPSI) ~ Information Asset Register ~ Information Fair Trader Scheme
NA: The National Archives has officially launched its new reading rooms following a £4m transformation to bring together all of its family history and historical assets into a one-stop-shop of online resources, with practical face-to-face support to help researchers make the most of the wealth of information available.
At the centre sits Domesday, the iconic & oldest public record, dating from the 11th century. Radiating around the centrepiece are stories of how secret documents are made public and tales of spies, conspirators and family history.
In the new open plan reading room visitors can search online sources, microfilm and the world-class library. Experts give lectures (downloadable from the podcast page) ) in the new ‘talks rooms’ on subjects inspired by the records, or simply on how to research their family history.
YF: Yorkshire Forward Chair, Terry Hodgkinson, has announced a new £2.5m scheme and officially launched the ‘Enterprising Yorkshire’ campaign, aimed at ensuring young people in the region have the enterprise skills they need to succeed in the world of work and self employment.
Delivered over a 3 year period the scheme will see the agency working with Young People’s Enterprise Forum (YPEF) – who already work on initiatives like Enterprise Week and the Real Business Challenge – to embed enterprise education across the region’s schools, colleges and universities.
Press release ~ Yorkshire Forward ~ ‘Enterprising Yorkshire’ campaign ~ Young People’s Enterprise Forum (YPEF) ~ Enterprise Week ~ Northern Enterprise in Education Programme (NEEP)
VSO: BAA Communities Trust is cementing its partnership with VSO and the British Council to support the Global Xchange programme for the fifth year in a row. The scheme has also drawn match funding from the youth volunteering organisation v for the third year running.
Global Xchange is a six month programme which gives young people from different countries and different backgrounds an opportunity to work together as volunteers on community projects both in the UK and overseas. Global Xchange is run & managed by international development charity VSO and the British Council.
VSO: Headlined by Hugh Masekela, the legendary South African trumpeter, singer and world-jazz star, Stars Of Africa(Royal Albert Hall - Wednesday 26 November, 7.30pm) celebrates the vibrant musical traditions of the continent where VSO started its work 50 years ago. Funds raised through the concert will support VSO’s education programmes in Africa.
Sharing the bill with Masekela is the hugely charismatic Beninese singer Angelique Kidjo, whose vibrant funk, reggae and pop influenced music makes her one of global music’s biggest stars and saw her hailed by Time Out “as contemporary, stylish and vibrant as it comes”.
In addition, celebrating the rich musical traditions of West Africa is Malian ngoni (African lute) virtuoso Bassekou Kouyate, whose haunting mix of African blues and ethereal beauty saw him win two awards at this year’s BBC Radio 3 Awards For World Music.
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