A driver who killed his best friend will now serve time in prison after Solicitor General Robert Buckland QC MP referred his original sentence to the Court of Appeal as unduly lenient.

Stephen Whilde, 24, was driving his modified car 20 mph over the speed limit when he failed to negotiate a right hand bend, causing the vehicle to crash into a hedgerow. A piece of wooden fence struck the passenger, William Bye, 24, killing him.

The passenger was filming the drive leading up to the crash in November 2016. The footage was used by police and prosecutors.

Whilde was originally sentenced to 2 years in custody, suspended for 2 years last November at Shrewsbury Crown Court. The Court of Appeal quashed his suspended sentence and replaced it with an immediate 3 year prison sentence. Whilde has also been disqualified from driving for 4 and a half years.

Whilde has been ordered to surrender to Shrewsbury Police Station by 4pm today .

Speaking after the hearing, the Solicitor General said:

This was a sad example of deliberate, very dangerous driving that has caused the death of a young man and devastated a family.

I feel the increased sentence better reflects the seriousness of the offence and I hope this will provide some comfort to the family at this very difficult time.

The British and French Governments have agreed to share expertise and best practice to help tackle sports corruption and match-fixing through illegal and irregular sports betting.

The Declaration of Intention was signed by Matt Hancock and the French Sports Minister Laura Flessel as part of the UK-France Summit taking place this week.

Matt Hancock said:

The UK and France are steadfast allies in the battle against corruption. Doping and match-fixing scandals have rocked international sport in recent years and it is crucial that we take a global approach, working together to ensure the integrity of sport is upheld. Fans have to be able to believe in fair play in sport and be inspired by the best athletes in the world.

Through the work of UK Anti-Doping, the Gambling Commission’s Sports Betting Intelligence Unit and our Code for Sports Governance we are ensuring that our sports bodies are more transparent and uphold the highest standards on integrity and governance. We want to share best practice with other nations and this agreement with France underlines how important it is to work in partnership on the threat of corruption.

Working together

At the 2016 Anti-Corruption Summit in London, the UK joined the International Partnership against Corruption in Sport that has brought together the International Olympic Committee, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, and the Council of Europe and United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime.

At a meeting of the partnership in Paris in December 2017, it was agreed that three task forces would be created to reduce corruption risks in procurement relating to sporting events and infrastructure, ensuring integrity in the selection of host cities for major sporting events and mitigating the risk of corruption by improving compliance with good governance.

The UK Code for Sports Governance, was announced in the government’s sport strategy. The code came into force in April 2017 and to date, 55 out of 58 national sports bodies have complied with the code, ensuring more diverse board membership and increasing transparency to help fans and those taking part better understand the decision-making of those leading their sports.

Major events

Under the Declaration of Intention, the UK has also agreed to share with France best practice and expertise gained from hosting the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games and England hosting the Rugby World Cup in 2015.

France will host the Rugby World Cup in 2023 and Paris will stage the Olympic and Paralympic Games in 2024.

London 2012 generated over £14 billion worth of trade and investment for the UK while the 2015 Rugby World Cup, held in 11 host cities across England, set new attendance, viewership and competition records, generating an additional £1.1 billion to the UK economy.

The scheme, which cost £2.7million to construct, has been delivered as part of the Environment Agency’s programme of £2.5bn investment into flood defences across the country. The scheme was made possible through a partnership with Birmingham City Council and St Andrew’s Healthcare.

The flood defences include a 500m long embankment on the public open space next to Dogpool Lane bridge. By doing this, the Environment Agency has created a flood storage area which will store water from the River Rea during times of heavy rainfall and then slowly release it back into the river when river water levels go down. The Environment Agency have also built a new flood wall and a higher river bank at the rear of 15 homes which back onto the river.

Mike Adams from the Environment Agency said:

We’re pleased to deliver these flood protection measures for the people of Selly Park South. This community has experienced the terrible effects of flooding and the measures we’ve built here reduces future risk of flooding. We would like to thank local people for their patience and support throughout the building of this scheme.

Councillor Lisa Trickett, Cabinet Member for the Environment from Birmingham City Council said:

We’ve seen the devastating impact that flooding can have on communities, so I am delighted that these new measures are now in place. These will make a real difference by reducing the risk of flooding to hundreds of homes and businesses in Selly Park South.

Along with flood defences, knowing your flood risk is also important when protecting your family and property from flooding. People can check their risk and register to receive free flood warnings online or call Floodline on 0345 988 1188.

More than 80 delegates from key stakeholders across the UK nuclear sector have heard details of multi-million-pound contracts from ITER that they can target with help from UKAEA after the Government’s recent £86 million investment in UKAEA at Culham.

John Devine, head of exports and investment on the civil nuclear team at the Department for International Trade, kicked off the event at Corpus Christi College, Oxford, on Tuesday 16 January by saying he was confident in UKAEA’s expertise, capability and record, before adding that the event represented an “opportunity for UK technologies and companies to get involved” and “take their expertise to the world.”

Ian Chapman, UKAEA CEO, outlined how the two investments – H3AT and FTF – would help in making commercial fusion a reality.

The first centre of excellence – named Hydrogen-3 Advanced Technology (H3AT) – will research how to process and store tritium and helps with ITER’s development.

Ian Chapman said:

The main purpose of H3AT is to looking forward to ITER. We want to partner with UK industry to make sure they win these contracts. This will allow the R&D to have other benefits as well as fusion, while these facilities will also help to train the next generation of people who will operate ITER.

Added to that was the Fusion Technology Facility (FTF) for developing thermal hydraulic tests for components under fusion conditions: for example in a vacuum, high heat flux, under a magnetic field. Partnering with UKAEA will support industry with a range of test and design capabilities, preparing them to bid for forthcoming major ITER contracts.

Ian Chapman commented:

We are extremely well placed – through using these processes in JET and the new facilities – to support the supply chain in its bidding for a wide range of projects.

Tom Greatrex, Chief Executive of the Nuclear Industry Association, added:

The level of Government investment seen with the £86 million National Fusion Technology Platform demonstrates the expertise, confidence and ability of staff at Culham in being at the cutting edge of research. As well as being a world leader in fusion research, we have a similar industrial capability which we have the opportunity to seize. There is a very real sense that the UK can make its mark on the world in helping to develop sustainable nuclear power for the future.