The Prime Minister spoke to Chancellor Angela Merkel this morning.

They discussed Saturday’s attacks in Saudi Arabia and the need to work together, alongside international partners, to agree a collective response.

On the issue of Iran, they reaffirmed their commitment to a common approach and the importance of avoiding the further escalation of tensions in the region.

On Brexit, the Prime Minister reiterated that the UK and the EU have agreed to accelerate efforts to reach a deal without the backstop which the UK Parliament could support, and that we would work with energy and determination to achieve this ahead of Brexit on the 31 October.

The leaders looked forward to meeting to discuss these issues further at the upcoming UN General Assembly in New York.

Published 17 September 2019

The UK reiterates its support for the important work of the UN Commission of Inquiry on Syria. We are grateful for the latest update and share the Commission’s deep concern about the human rights situation, particularly in Idlib, where 1000 civilians have been killed and 600,000 displaced as a result of the military offensive by the Asad regime and its backers.

The UK welcomes the UN Secretary General’s Board of Inquiry to investigate the appalling attacks, including those on medical facilities. Hostilities have had a particularly devastating impact on children, who make up over half of Idlib’s three million civilians. During the current offensive, 304 children have been killed and 55 schools have been struck. We join the Commission’s call for all sides to abide by their obligations under international humanitarian law and to protect civilians.

We welcome the UN’s efforts to negotiate sustained humanitarian access to Rukban camp. Any movement of camp residents should be safe, voluntary, and informed, in line with International Humanitarian Law. We are concerned by reports of violations, including arbitrary detention, against those who have relocated, and support a role for the UN in monitoring the relocation process.

Mr Pinheiro,

Given the continued reports of violations against former residents of the Rukban IDP camp, will the Commission consider investigating this further?

A consistently impressive safety performance over more than a decade has again earned LLW Repository Ltd (LLWR) recognition on the national stage at a ceremony in Glasgow.

The RoSPA (Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents) Awards offer organisations an opportunity to prove their ongoing commitment to raising health and safety standards, and three members of the LLWR workforce were on hand to collect the organisation’s fifth President’s Award, in recognition of receiving 14 consecutive Golds.

“We never take these awards for granted, they have to be earned every single year, which is why we consider it such an honour to be consistently recognised by RoSPA,” said Dave Rossiter, LLWR’s Head of Waste Management Services, who was joined at the event by colleagues Louise Steele, Waste Compliance Specialist, who is also a Safety Representative, and Andrew Murray, Nuclear Safety Case Senior Team Member.

“You can never allow safety standards to slip, which is why we constantly impart its importance to our workforce, who remain receptive to the message.”

LLWR has now gone more than 1.25 million person hours since suffering a Lost Time Accident and its Total Recordable Incident Rate (TRIR) stands at zero.