Ms Victoria Billing OBE has been appointed Her Majesty’s Ambassador to the Republic of Senegal and Non-Resident Ambassador to the Republic of Cabo Verde.

Disabled people and others receiving Support for Mortgage Interest (SMI) will now be able to transfer this support to their new property when moving home.

The Queen has approved that Peter Michael Ainsworth, MA, be re-appointed Chairman of the Churches Conservation Trust.

The Queen has approved that Peter Michael Ainsworth, MA, be re-appointed Chairman of the Churches Conservation Trust for a period of three years from 1st July 2019.

Peter Ainsworth was educated at Bradfield College and Lincoln College, Oxford. He worked as a Researcher for a Member of the European Parliament before becoming an Investment Analyst in the City. He became a Director of Corporate Finance at Warburg Securities in 1986, a role which he resigned upon his election as Member of Parliament for East Surrey in 1992.

Having served as Parliamentary Private Secretary to Ministers in H.M. Treasury and the Department for National Heritage, he was promoted to the Whips’ Office in 1996 where he remained in Opposition as Deputy Chief Whip. In 1998 he became Shadow Secretary for Culture, Media & Sport, later becoming Shadow Environment Secretary.

In 2003 he was appointed Chairman of the Environmental Audit Committee before re-joining the Shadow Cabinet with the Environment brief in 2006. In 2009 he joined the Culture, Media & Sport Select Committee and in 2010 he left Parliament to pursue his interest in cultural and environmental matters.

He is currently Chairman of the National Lottery Community Fund and of the Heritage Alliance.  A former Board member of the Environment Agency, he has chaired the Elgar Foundation and the wild plant charity Plantlife.  For the past three years he has been the Chairman of the Churches Conservation Trust.

His interests include music, poetry and history.

I’m delighted to see the PM set a legal target for the UK to reach net zero carbon emissions by 2050. This is not only the right thing to tackle the climate emergency for future generations but a huge opportunity to increase our energy efficiency, improve our resilience and deliver a greener, healthier society.

We know that investing in zero carbon solutions is good for growth – boosting jobs and the economy – and it is cheaper for business, organisations and government to tackle climate change now than to manage its impacts in the future.

When I launched a consultation on the Environment Agency’s Flood and Coastal Strategy up to 2100, a few weeks ago, I talked about the importance of building a nation of climate champions – people aware of the risks of the climate emergency and empowered to take positive action to help their communities become more resilient.

We know how passionate young people are across the country about tackling complacency in the face of catastrophe and taking action now to safeguard their environment for the future. So it’s encouraging to see the Government has established a Youth Steering Group which will advise them and review progress against their commitments.

Our individual actions count too, no matter how small – from the amount of water we use at home to the products we recycle and reuse. We have no option but to do this and we all have a part to play.

The Environment Agency is already working to tackle the climate emergency. Today’s announcement gives a powerful boost to all our prospects for the future and a common goal to achieve together.