Dear colleagues, ladies and gentlemen,

It is very good to join you at the opening of this conference on political finance reform, a highly relevant topic which concerns us all. I want to welcome our distinguished panellists from Germany, Sweden, Japan, and Latvia. Welcome to Montenegro.

Political parties play an essential role in all European democracies. The public may be cynical about them. But they affect all our lives in important ways. Successful politics delivers the power to take major decisions affecting economic and social life. If they are to play their essential democratic roles effectively, they need adequate funding, both nationally and locally. It is essential, therefore, that political parties obtain their funding in ways free of suspicion that donors are able to receive favours or improper influence in return.

A failure to ensure transparent party funding erodes democracy on many different levels, from the trust the ordinary citizen has in the election process, to the authority with which the government can speak to its international partners. The quest to ensure the fairness of the election process is common to all democracies, no matter how established and old a democracy might be. It is as relevant to politics in the UK, as it is to you in Montenegro.

That is why it is good to see that the issue of party funding is being addressed so thoroughly through this study. Recent events have brought the issue of political financing to the forefront of public attention. This scrutiny is healthy and while it might provoke some uncomfortable conversations for political parties it is vital. Nothing bolsters a democratic dialogue more than a vigorous, transparent, public debate between voices representing contrasting opinions.

I imagine today’s discussions will cover a range of challenges on this topic, including the lack of transparency in political finance reporting, the position of foreign financing, and the role of the Agency for Prevention of Corruption. I look forward to hearing the results of your discussions.

And I am pleased that the British Embassy, together with its partners, is contributing in a modest way to this frank and useful exchange of opinions about a topic of vital importance to Montenegro.

I wish the participants fruitful discussions as you consider how reform can support the development of a party financing system which is right in principle, sustainable and even-handed in its effects.

Prisons Minister congratulates experienced officers for their work building confidence and improving standards.

Prisons Minister Rory Stewart has met specially-trained prison staff to congratulate them on their efforts to support officers in some of the country’s most challenging jails.

The Minister spoke to members of the Standards Coaching Team (SCT) and the officers they are supporting about their work in the jails which are the focus of the 10 Prisons Project.

The project was launched last year to bring down violence in some of the most challenging jails, and as part of this SCT was created to provide advice and encouragement to officers in the 10 prisons.

At the event in Parliament he thanked members of SCT and the officers they are supporting for their energy and commitment to the 10 Prisons Project.

Following a two-week training course at the prison service training college at Newbold Revel, the teams have been working on a rotation around the 10 prisons.

Seven weeks in, the first group of prisons to be visited have seen encouraging results. With prison officers feeling more confident, relationships with offenders have improved and staff feel the environment on the wings is calmer and more stable.

There have also been physical improvements, with damaged furniture being replaced and cells equipped to a decent standard.

Prisons Minister Rory Stewart said:

The Standards Coaching Team is a fantastic innovation – putting training of the highest standard at the heart of healthy prisons. I am really impressed by these officers – drawn from across the country – and they are making a rapid visible difference in all the prisons they visit.

Prison Officer Craig said:

The two-week package at Newbold Revel has emphasised the importance of pointing staff in the right direction and being a presence to support them.

It’s been a really positive experience with a massive impact, staff now have the confidence to challenge and positively engage with the prisoner population.

Governor Sara Pennington said:

It’s been an important step in building the skills and confidence of both our new staff and those who have been in service for some time. They’ve helped drive up standards across all the wings to increase consistency.

The 10 Prisons Project has seen £10 million investment in some of the most challenging prisons to curb the flow of drugs and phones, while also improving conditions and leadership at those jails. The prisons will serve as models of excellence, with good practice to be spread across the prison estate.

The project is part of a multi-million-pound drive to improve security and safety. This includes £16 million to improve conditions for prisoners and staff and £7 million on new security measures, such as security scanners, improved searching techniques, phone-blocking technology and a financial crime unit to target the criminal kingpins operating in prisons.

This has come against a backdrop of rising prison officer numbers, with more than 4,700 additional officers now recruited since October 2016 and staffing levels at their highest since 2012.

Transport Minister Andrew Jones praised the exceptional ongoing work of the British Transport Police (BTP) to tackle knife crime on Britain’s railways, after patrols with the force in Stratford yesterday (28 March 2019).

Meeting with officers including BTP Assistant Chief Constable Robin Smith, the minister saw first-hand the tactics and work taking place aimed at stopping people carrying knives onto trains, as part of specialist Operation Engulf – which started last year – focused on keeping the railways safe.

This was followed by a demonstration of the methods being used by BTP to deter knife carrying, including the use of knife arches, metal detectors, and plain-clothed officers throughout stations.

Transport Minister Andrew Jones said:

For millions of people up and down the country using a train is a daily necessity, and it is absolutely vital that they know they can travel safely without the senseless threat of knife crime.

It is fantastic to see first-hand how the invaluable work of British Transport Police officers is cracking down on this issue, ensuring passengers can have total confidence in a safe and secure journey.

Through schemes such as Operation Engulf, the BTP are working to pre-empt offences before they take place by stepping up patrols in areas where crime is likely to occur.

Tactics employed at stations including Stratford have been hugely successful in helping to keep knives off our rail network. Due to measures such as enhanced officer deployments, the station has seen 33 arrests for weapon offences and 322 stop searches carried out since the specialist operation began last year.

Assistant Chief Constable Robin Smith said:

Millions of people use the railways every day and our officers are on hand 24/7 to help keep them safe.

Over the last year we have increased our targeted, intelligence-led operations against knife crime. These patrols, which often involve knife arches, metal detectors, plain clothed and uniformed officers, have been paramount in taking knives off our rail network.

Around half of all knife crime we record is as a result of weapons our officers have seized and importantly, these successful operations also act as a deterrent to those intent on carrying weapons, and help us to keep passengers and staff safe.

The interim update from the Gender Pay Gap in Medicine Review has found that the continued dominance of men in senior medical positions is one of the main causes of the gender pay gap in medicine.

The independent review, led by Professor Dame Jane Dacre, was commissioned by the Department of Health and Social Care in April 2018 to advise on action to improve gender equality in the NHS. It is the largest examination of gender pay data ever conducted in the public sector.

Today’s update shows that the gender pay gap for doctors is 17% based on their total pay. The overall NHS gender pay gap is 23%.

The review’s initial findings show the full extent of the gender pay gap:

• the general practice gender pay gap is 33% – far higher than the average in medicine

• women are not yet represented in equal proportions in senior medical grades – there are nearly 32,000 male consultants to 18,000 female

• two-thirds of doctors in training grades are women, but within consultant grades this drops to under half

• women are over-represented in lower-paid specialties, such as public health and occupational health, but under-represented in the highest-paying specialties, such as urology and surgery

• there is variation across medical specialties, with male-dominated specialties such as urology showing a higher gender pay gap

The aim of the review is to identify the impact of cultural, practical and psychological issues that contribute to the gender pay gap in medicine. This is being achieved through in-depth analysis of anonymised pay data, evidence from interviews with medics at various career stages and an online survey of 40,000 doctors.

The final report and recommendations is due to be published in September. It is expected to address the underlying causes of the gender pay gap, such as the impact of motherhood and women’s career progression while working irregular hours or part-time.

Promoting a culture of respect, equality and diversity will be a central part of the workforce implementation plan, which will be set out later this year as part of the next phase in delivering the NHS Long Term Plan.

This week, further steps were taken to make the NHS a more flexible and responsive employer with a fairer system of parental leave agreed for the majority of NHS staff, giving new parents greater choice over how they manage the demands of work and family.

Health Minister Stephen Hammond said:

The founding principle of the NHS is to treat everyone equally, yet women employed in the health service are still experiencing inequality.

It’s disappointing to see that the numbers show that two-thirds of senior medics are men despite more women starting training and it is essential we understand the underlying causes of the gender pay gap if we are to eradicate it from modern workplaces like the NHS.

Senior doctors and managers have an important role to play in breaking down barriers and championing equality as role models or mentors so aspiring doctors know they are joining a health service that encourages more women to reach their full potential.

We fully support Dame Jane Dacre and her team as they continue to review the medical pay gap and look forward to their final conclusions later this year.

Professor Dame Jane Dacre said:

Our research shows that the gender pay gap in medicine is slowly narrowing, but with more to do. The findings of the review will help us to work with government, employers and the profession to identify and understand the main contributors to the gap, and to explore ways to reduce it, based on our evidence.