Research and analysis: Assessment of scallops stocks 2016/17

Scallop stock assessment 2016/2017 research carried out by Cefas.



Press release: New appointments to the Board of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew

Defra Ministers have appointed Krishnan Guru-Murthy to the Board of Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens. They have also reappointed Catherine Dugmore and Nick Baird for second terms.
RBG Kew is an Executive Non-Departmental Public Body created under the National Heritage Act 1983, is sponsored by Defra. The Board of Trustees comprises a Chairman and eleven members.

Trustees provide non executive leadership and support to the executive through regular Board meetings, committees and groups.

Krishnan Guru-Murthy’s appointment is for 3 years and will run from 1 July 2018 to 30 June 2021. Catherine Dugmore’s and Nick Baird’s reappointments are for 3 years and will run from 1 June 2018 to 31 May 2021 and from 1 November 2018 to 31 October 2021, respectively.

The appointments have been made in accordance with the Ministerial Governance Code on Public Appointments. All appointments are made on merit and political activity plays no part in the selection process.

There is a requirement for appointees’ political activity (if significant) to be made public. The appointees have not declared any significant political activity in the past five years.

Trustees do not receive any direct remuneration for their services, although reasonable travel and subsistence expenses can be reimbursed.

Biographical details of Trustees

Krishnan Guru-Murthy

Krishnan Guru-Murthy is a presenter and reporter on Channel 4 News and on Channel 4’s Unreported World. He was previously a presenter and reporter for the BBC. He is a member of the executive committee of the Edinburgh Television Festival and a patron of Duchenne Children’s Trust.

Catherine Dugmore

Catherine Dugmore is a qualified Chartered Accountant. From 1988 to 2002 Catherine worked at PricewaterhouseCoopers, latterly as an audit partner based in Johannesburg. In addition to her role as a Trustee of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, Catherine is a Board Member of Natural England and a Trustee of WWF-UK. She has worked in the NHS since 2012 and currently holds a non-executive role at Hertfordshire Partnership Foundation Trust. She was formerly Vice-Chair and Trustee of Action for Children and Chair of Victim Support.

Nick Baird

Nick Baird is currently Group Corporate Affairs Director of Centrica plc. He previously had a long and varied career in Government, his roles including CEO of UK Trade and Investment, Director General in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office leading its work on Europe, the global economy and consular issues, and British Ambassador to Turkey from 2006 to 2009.



Notice: PE24 5HZ, L.J. Fairburn and Son Limited: environmental permit issued

The Environment Agency publish permits that they issue under the Industrial Emissions Directive (IED).

This decision includes the permit and decision document for:

  • Operator name: L.J. Fairburn and Son Limited
  • Installation name: Orby Farm
  • Permit number: EPR/QP3132JE/A001


Press release: M4 smart motorway plans to go on show this weekend



Press release: M4 smart motorway plans to go on show this weekend

32 miles of the M4 will have an extra lane created in both directions, with upgraded signs, signals and technology to inform drivers about conditions ahead.

Plans about the upgrade are going on show this weekend, Saturday 7 July, with the first of six public events ahead of main construction starting later this year.

Drivers, business owners and local residents are invited to find out more about the plans, which will add an extra lane in each direction to the M4 between junction 3, near Hayes, and junction 12 at Theale, to upgrade it to an all-lane-running smart motorway. New technology will help to manage traffic to reduce delays and give drivers up to date information about conditions on the road ahead.

Work is due to start this autumn on the stretch between junctions 8/9 and 10, between Maidenhead and Wokingham. Six public information events are being held in the area, starting in Maidenhead this weekend, and visiting Wokingham, Theale and Reading over the next two weeks.

The M4 smart motorway scheme has already been through a comprehensive consultation as part of the complex planning process, and people interested in finding out more about the plans are encouraged to attend an event and put any questions directly to the project team. Further events will take place early next year between junctions 8/9 and junction 3 (Hayes).

Highways England delivery director Mike Grant said:

Upgrading the M4 to a smart motorway between junctions 3 and 12 is a massive job and will provide huge benefits not only to the 130,000 drivers using it each day by tackling congestion and improving journey times, but also for business travellers and holiday makers using the corridor to get to and from the airports in the south, as well as residents and businesses based in the area.

Smart motorways add vital capacity to our motorway network and are central to our ambitious plans for modernising the motorway network, adding 120 miles of new lanes to motorways in the South East by 2020. Drivers will also see better information about conditions through new smart motorway technology which helps us to manage incidents, smooth traffic flow, make journeys more reliable and improve journey times, while maintaining high levels of safety.

The public exhibitions starting this weekend are an ideal place for anyone interested in the upgrade of the M4 to a smart motorway to meet the project team and find out more.

The M4 is the main strategic route between London, the west of England and Wales.

Under the plans, the hard shoulder will be permanently converted into a live running lane between junctions 3 and 12 in both directions. New signs and signals will be used to vary the speed limit to reduce congestion at busy times, and to control traffic if there is an obstruction on the road ahead.

Work is scheduled to start in September this year, and will be carried out in phases, with the smart motorway being fully operational in spring 2022.

Public information events are starting this weekend (Saturday 7 July, Holyport War Memorial Hall, near Maidenhead) with a further five events running until Thursday 19 July in Reading. People are encouraged to attend to find out more about the plans and put any questions directly to the project team. Further events will be held over the next few months along the route of the scheme.

Anyone interested in the scheme can visit the project page on the Highways England website.

General enquiries

Members of the public should contact the Highways England customer contact centre on 0300 123 5000.

Media enquiries

Journalists should contact the Highways England press office on 0844 693 1448 and use the menu to speak to the most appropriate press officer.