A change in lorry speed limits has saved businesses millions of pounds a year and could have helped improve road safety.

A report shows that allowing heavy goods vehicles over 7.5 tonnes to travel 10mph faster, bringing them closer to the speed of other traffic, has contributed to an increase of 1.5mph in average speeds on single carriageway roads.

An increase of just 1mph would free up 650,000 driver hours and save hauliers more than £10 million a year. The change, which came into force in 2015, allows lorries to travel at up to 50mph on single carriageways and 60mph on dual carriageway roads in England and Wales. It means they are travelling at similar speeds to other vehicles, instead of much slower – with the aim of improving road safety. This report shows there is a possible “statistically significant” improvement to road safety on study roads; which will be further explored in the final report.

Roads Minister Michael Ellis said:

I am pleased to see the improvement in safety while helping to unlock the UK’s potential – encouraging growth and enhancing productivity.

Increasing the speed limit for lorries has helped companies save time and money, enabling them to re-invest this in their business and buying newer and greener vehicles.

This move has also potentially improved road safety as it appears to have reduced the risks some drivers take when overtaking slow-moving vehicles.

The report also shows that the number of speeding lorries has fallen by about 70%.

Since the change in speed limit was introduced, the average lorry speed on single carriageways increased by 1.5mph to 45.6mph, and other vehicles also saw increased speeds. On dual carriageways, the average speed increase was 0.4mph, to 52.4mph.

A final report will be published in due course and will provide further evidence on the effects of the change, particularly on road safety.

Figures from the Department for International Trade published today (26 June), show 1,782 new inward investment projects were recorded in 2018/19, creating over 57,000 new jobs and safeguarding nearly 7,000 jobs in the UK.

The figures published today complement recent reports that show that despite a competitive global investment environment, the UK continues to attract more foreign direct investment projects than any other country in Europe.

Of the number of projects that the UK attracted, the Department for International Trade helped to secure 81% of them.

The figures also show UK regions increasing their share of total UK FDI projects since 2016/17. The Midlands Engine and Northern Powerhouse regions saw a 2.6 percentage point and 1.4 percentage point increase in their total share of UK projects.

The software, life sciences and oil & gas industries all saw an increase in the number of jobs attracted into their sectors.

International Trade Secretary, Liam Fox MP said:

Despite global economic headwinds and a competitive investment environment, the UK continues to be the number one destination for foreign direct investment in Europe, accumulating more FDI stock than Germany and France combined.

Today’s figures show the UK remains extremely attractive to foreign investors, particularly our European neighbours.

My department will continue to promote the strengths of the UK as a great inward investment destination, with an open, liberal economy, world-class talent and business friendly environment.

Figures from 2018/19 show an increase in the number of FDI projects coming from a number of European countries including Ireland, Netherlands, Italy and France, where inward investment projects have increased by 10.4%, 7.1%, 6.3%, and 4.3%, respectively.

The US continues to be the UK’s number 1 source of foreign direct investment investing in 440 projects in the UK, with Germany in 2nd place and India in 3rd place for the number of investments made.

Background

• The full statistical release can be found here

EY Attractiveness Survey 2019

• The latest attractiveness report by EY shows that the UK remained the number one destination in Europe for foreign direct investment, securing 1,054 investment projects in 2018, despite a fall in FDI projects into Europe.

fDi Intelligence Report 2019

• fDi’s intelligence Report 2019 showed the UK attracted more greenfield investment projects in 2018 than Germany and France combined.

UNCTAD World Investment Report 2019

• The latest data by UNCTAD showed that by the end of 2018, the total value of the UK’s inwards investment stock was $1.89tn, the highest in Europe and third highest in the world. The value of the UK’s inwards stock was also worth more than Germany and France combined.

ONS

• ONS’s latest National Statistics (to the end of 2018) show the inward FDI stock is at the highest level recorded (£1.489 trillion).

Forbes ‘best countries for business’ 2019

• The UK was found to be the top country for doing business in Forbes’ 2019 report, a measure which ranks countries according to how business friendly they are based on 15 different factors from property rights to investor protection.

Following the launch last week of an expert advisory group looking at alternative arrangements to the Northern Ireland backstop, the Government has convened a second group made up of businesses and trade unions to ensure their experience and on-the-ground knowledge informs developments.

The group includes cross-sector representatives from Ireland, Northern Ireland and the rest of the UK, and will ensure the views of businesses and their employees are represented in this process.

The new Business and Trade Union Alternative Arrangements Advisory Group will complement the work of the recently-established Technical Alternative Arrangements Advisory Group, which comprises trade and customs experts tasked with considering workable solutions to the backstop.

They will consider processes associated with the movement of goods across borders and options for simplifying them, such as trusted trader programmes and advanced use of data and IT systems.

The UK and EU have a shared desire to replace the backstop with alternative arrangements to ensure there is no hard border — and both sides have committed to prioritising the development of these in the next phase of talks.

The business and trade union group is one of three domestic advisory groups that the Government announced earlier this year to help inform its negotiations with the EU on this important issue.

The first meeting of the business and trade union group will take place today (Wednesday 26th June). It will be co-chaired by Brexit minister Robin Walker and BEIS minister Andrew Stephenson.

Robin Walker, Parliamentary Under Secretary of State at the Department for Exiting the European Union, said:

The development of alternative arrangements to replace the backstop has been recognised as a priority by both the UK Government and the EU Commission. Accordingly, we have a highly-informed group of experts in trade and customs focused on developing and testing workable solutions.

But it is vital that any possible alternatives to the backstop are informed by the views of those on the ground, whose goods cross the border every single day. So I am delighted to chair this important group, which will ensure that the voices of business and trade union representatives are heard.

Members of the business and trade union group have been chosen based on their comprehensive backgrounds in cross-border supply chains. The group includes large companies who can represent the views of themselves and their suppliers, as well as smaller companies who rely on cross-border “just in time” supply chains.

The Government has made available £20 million of funding to support the development, testing or piloting of any ideas that emerge from the advisory groups.

Business and Trade Union Alternative Arrangements Advisory Group members:

• Aodhán Connolly, British Retail Consortium NI, Director
• John McGrane, British Irish Chamber of Commerce, Director General
• Dr Mike Johnston, Dairy Council for Northern Ireland, Chief Executive
• Seamus Leheny, Freight Transport Association NI, Policy Manager
• Angela McGowan, CBI NI, Director
• Karen Marshall, BoW Leather, Managing Director
• Aidan Gough, InterTradeIreland, Designated Officer and Director of Strategy and Policy
• Conall Donnelly, Northern Ireland Meat Exporters Association, Executive Director
• David Nicholl, NC Engineering, Director
• Wilson Del Socorro, Diageo, Global Director of Public Affairs
• Wesley Aston, Ulster Farmers’ Union, Chief Executive
• Ian Hampton, Stena Line, Chief People, Communications and Sustainability Officer
• Marcus Wachtmeister, BMW Group UK, Head of Government Affairs
• Tom McGroder, Sensata Technologies (Schrader Electronics), Global Trade Compliance EU Regional Manager
• Clare Guinness, Warrenpoint Harbour, Chief Executive
• Owen Reidy, Irish Congress of Trade Unions, Assistant General Secretary
• Dr Gerard O’Hare CBE, DL, Belfast Harbour, Board Member
• Craig Jones, General Electric, Director of Government Relations

Kevin Gary Scott, 54, of Bridge Street, Hilgay, Norfolk, ran the site at Fairfield Garage illegally for a number of months.

He had registered exemptions online but none covered the level of waste storage and treatment that was carried out at the site, the court was told by Rebecca Vanstone, prosecuting for the Environment Agency.

During a hearing on Thursday 20 June 2019, the court was told the site was next to a drainage ditch leading to the River Wissey and close to 10 houses around two boundaries, the nearest of which was only 10 metres from the waste storage area.

The court heard that since 2011 the site had been used legally for vehicle repairs and sales and the storage of touring caravans and dinghies, but in January 2017 it was turned into the illegal waste storage and treatment site.

Ms Vanstone told the court:

Mr Scott was aware that he needed an environmental permit and had applied for various exemptions.

He applied in January but didn’t even check to see they were in place before an inspection in March and after the inspection he applied for more, none designed to allow waste storage and treatment in the way he was working. They were subsequently de-registered.

An environmental permit to operate a waste site comes with rules about how waste is stored and treated in order to safeguard the environment.

A stop letter and waste removal letter were sent in March 2017 after a site inspection by the Environment Agency. The court was told that a month later it was found that exemptions for the site were not being complied with or were not appropriate, so they were de-registered and Scott was given a month to clear the waste.

The court was told Scott had failed to comply and was given a further 8 weeks, but by the end of August only some of the waste had gone.

In imposing the sentence, His Honour Judge Holt recognised Mr Scott’s guilty plea, the efforts that had been made to remedy the situation and the fact that there had been no further offending since this offence. Scott was fined £520 and ordered to pay a victim surcharge.

After the hearing Environmental Crime Team Leader Phil Henderson said:

This is the second time in under 2 years that Mr Scott has been prosecuted by the Environment Agency for operating an illegal waste site. Despite being given advice and guidance, he again chose not to apply for a permit and continued to operate illegally forcing us to take this action. We hope that the sentence handed down today will deter Mr Scott from future offending.

We are actively targeting illegal waste activities across the country and would urge all those seeking to become involved in the waste industry to ensure they have the appropriate permits and authorisations in place before operating.

Running an illegal waste site in Norfolk has cost a man £520 after he was fined at Norwich Crown Court.