Author Archives: HM Government

The new mental health provisions will mean it will no longer be possible to place children (under 18s) experiencing a mental health crisis in a police cell. For adults, the use of police cells as places of safety will be significantly restricted and it will only be possible for them to be used in exceptional circumstances. The period for which a person can be detained for the purpose of a mental health assessment will also be cut from 72 to 24 hours.

Victoria Atkins, Minister for Crime, Safeguarding and Vulnerability said:

Too often and for far too long vulnerable people experiencing mental health crisis, who have committed no crime, have found themselves in a police cell because there is nowhere else to go.

This government has been clear that the best place for people suffering mental health crisis is a healthcare setting and not a police station.

The change in legislation will build on progress already made by police forces and health care partners that saw use of police cells for those experiencing a mental health crisis halve in the last year.

While 23 force areas reduced their use of police cells as places of safety for children to single figures or zero in the last year, the law change will ensure no child will end up in a police cell.

To ensure there are sufficient alternatives in place the Department of Health has provided a total of £30 million to health partners to increase provision across the country of local health and community-based places of safety.

Health Minister Jackie Doyle-Price said:

When you are experiencing a mental health crisis, the last place you’d want to be is in police custody and it is totally inappropriate for a child to be taken to a cell just because they are ill.

We have seen a 90% reduction in England in the number of people being held in custody who should be in NHS care – this move will mean that for young people this will finally be a thing of the past. We are also investing £30m to increase and improve places of safety for people in crisis.

Further provisions that have also been introduced for section 135 and 136 powers, which are the powers used by police to detain someone under the mental health act include:

• extending section 136 powers to any place other than a private residence, so that police officers can act promptly when an individual is found in mental distress, and is in need of care and control
• requiring police officers to consult with mental health practitioners when possible before exercising a section 136 power, to help ensure that such a step is absolutely necessary in the circumstances
• an ability to conduct a mental health assessment in a person’s home following the use of a section 135 warrant, if that is considered to be in the interests of the person, rather than removing them to a different place of safety

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Good afternoon.

I am delighted to welcome you all to the 2017 UK-Kazakhstan Inter Governmental Commission. And a special welcome to Minister Kassymbek and his business delegation.

As we head towards the end of the year, today’s event provides an opportunity to review 2017: to consider what we have achieved in our bilateral trade and investment relationship and to look forward to 2018 and set new targets.

This year, the UK and Kazakhstan celebrated 25 years of diplomatic relations. That relationship continues to flourish and strengthen and trade and investment are central to that growth.

I know that many of you here today are playing an active role in developing our bilateral trade and investment.

According to the IMF, in 2016, the UK exported £2.9 billion of goods and services to Kazakhstan, whilst the flow from Kazakhstan to the UK was £640 million. I think we can do even better in 2018.

I’d like to congratulate Kazakhstan for their first class staging of Expo 2017 in Astana this year. I am delighted to say that the UK was one of the first countries to sign up to having a national pavilion.

Our installation, designed by Asif Khan in partnership with musician Brian Eno, was a great example of UK’s creative excellence, taking inspiration from global influences as it was inspired by a yurt.

It was visited by over half a million people during Expo and won the silver award for exhibition design. Most importantly it also provided an excellent platform for a comprehensive business and cultural programme.

His Royal Highness, the Duke of Gloucester represented the UK at our National Day. The Lord Mayor of London headed a large financial services business delegation.

My ministerial colleague Greg Hands led an oil and gas delegation, and there were visits by both Foreign Office and Scottish ministers.

In addition to the new business won and relationships strengthened, I believe the lasting legacy of Expo will be to have demonstrated the UK’s capability across multiple sectors and project the UK as a centre of excellence for creativity and innovation.

This was an important highlight in 2017, and in a few minutes time, we will hear from representatives of the various working groups detailing other achievements this year and plans for 2018.

The UK is currently the sixth largest foreign investor in Kazakhstan, having invested over £10 billion over the last 10 years. The Department for International Trade stands ready to help and encourage further overseas direct investment into Kazakhstan.

Oil and gas remains the largest sector in our trade and investment relationship. This is hardly surprising, given Kazakhstan has the world’s 12th largest reserves of oil and accounts for 30% of GDP.

I am pleased to note that many UK companies have been working in Kazakhstan for a number of years and continue to invest new resources. The UK stands ready to help you build a more prosperous and sustainable future as this vital sector is developed.

Our experience covers the use of new materials, digital intelligence and new intervention techniques that improve field integrity and productivity. I look forward to hearing more from Campbell on progress made in 2017.

On mining, I understand that the new subsoil legislation is being considered by the Kazakh Parliament and that it is envisaged that the new Mining Code will be in operation from as early as July 2018. I believe this will be a milestone and encourage further investment into Kazakhstan.

On financial services, I am delighted that the Astana International Financial Centre will be operational from 1 January 2018. Many UK financial and legal companies are now embedded in AIFC – most notably Lord Woolf in administering and establishing the new Court of Arbitration, set up under English common law.

But other UK companies are involved in the development of the Astana Stock Exchange or helping draft the regulatory guidance or providing training for AIFC staff.

The CityUK and its members are clearly demonstrating that both pre and post UK’s withdrawal from the European Union, London will continue to be Europe’s major international financial centre and a global leader.

The planned privatisation programme of Samruk Kazyna will provide an opportunity for IPOs in Astana and London and encourage more UK companies in looking to Kazakhstan as a new market.

And of course the One Belt, One Road project will provide massive opportunities in infrastructure projects linking China with Europe via Kazakhstan.

The DIT team in Astana is working closely with colleagues in Beijing and Hong Kong to organise events that will focus on viable projects and facilitate new consortia of UK, Kazakh and Chinese companies to deliver these projects in Kazakhstan.

So we have a strong platform, but we can do more. I am pleased that this morning’s Business Council focused on digitalisation and new business horizons. I know that many of your major cities have smart city plans and this is an area where the UK can offer much help and experience.

Finally, in agriculture, the Astana DIT team will be organising an inward mission to the UK in March 2018 to explore potential co-operation in animal health and agri-tech. These examples show that both countries are actively seeking to open up new sectors of trade and investment.

I would also like to highlight the International Business Festival that will take place in Liverpool from 12 to 28 June, which is now established as a leading forum for business exchange.

I would be delighted to welcome a large Kazakh delegation to take part in those business sector events. I understand that we will be seeing a video about the IBF at the end of the programme.

So in conclusion, the Department of International Trade is committed to positioning the UK at the centre of an increasingly connected world, resetting and energising our relationships with global partners such as Kazakhstan.

The UK will continue to remain a fantastic place in which to do business. We have a strong rule of law, we have some of the best universities in the world, we have innovative and award winning companies and we are a leading destination for foreign direct investment in Europe.

The UK values its relationship with Kazakhstan. We want to build on it and I am sure today’s event will be another significant step on that journey.

Thank you.

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Some of the world’s poorest countries will get vital support to help their citizens trade their way out of poverty, thanks to new financing from the UK.

International Trade Secretary Dr Liam Fox will announce the £18 million funding at the World Trade Organization’s (WTO) largest ever Ministerial Conference in Argentina today.

He will also commit the UK’s support for a Gender Declaration by WTO members, which will seek to ensure that women have equal access to the benefits of global trade.

The £18 million funding from the Department for International Development will help 51 of the world’s poorest countries produce products fit for export, trade more easily across borders and access untapped new markets which have the potential to create thousands of jobs and lift their citizens out of poverty.

It comes as the UK sets out its vision for open and inclusive global trade which benefits businesses, consumers and developing countries. This will be central the UK’s new independent trade policy as leaves the EU and becomes an independent member of the WTO.

International Trade Secretary Dr Liam Fox said:

Trade has been one of the greatest liberators of the world’s poor. Over the last few decades whole countries have been transformed thanks to global trade, bringing jobs and prosperity to millions.

As we prepare to leave the EU, we can move forward with more purpose, supporting developing countries to transform their economies through trade and resisting attempts to put up barriers to the open and free trade which has already benefited millions worldwide.

International Development Secretary Penny Mordaunt said:

No country can escape the crushing cycle of poverty without sustained, inclusive growth, which is why the UK is helping the world’s poorest countries harness the potential of international trade, creating jobs and increasing prosperity for millions.

This new UK aid support will help people in countries across Africa and Asia identify products they can sell, make them fit for export and access untapped new markets. This will enable producers – many of whom are poor women – to earn an income, support their country’s economy and help create Britain’s trading partners of the future.

£16 million of the funding will go to the WTO’s Enhanced Integrated Framework (EIF) programme, which helps governments and businesses build the capacity, infrastructure and policies needed to successfully export and trade.

The programme has to date helped 35,000 women get a regular income through trade. The UK has supported the programme since 2008, and is the only country to announce increased funding at the WTO conference this week.

UK funding is already helping Zambian farmers harness the country’s huge export potential for honey, building the supply chains and regulatory compliance needed to export abroad.

A further £2 million will go to the WTO’s Standards and Trade Development Facility which helps developing countries meet international agricultural standards, enabling them to export more produce.

Creating a trade policy which reduces gender inequality and supports women to export will also have a big impact. The McKinsey Institute estimates that closing the global gender gap could boost the world economy by $12 trillion by 2025, boosting economies around the world including the UK.

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Mr Speaker, with your permission I will make a statement on my visit to the Middle East, from where I returned this morning.

This is a crucial time in the region: on the one hand we have a moment of hope, with scores of countries having come together to break the corrosive grip of Daesh on Iraq and Syria.

Britain’s armed forces have played a proud role in a military campaign that has freed millions – and Iraq’s government declared on Saturday that all of its territory had been liberated.

During her successful visit to Iraq last month, my Rt Hon Friend the Prime Minister thanked the British servicemen and women who have helped to bring about the territorial defeat of Daesh.

In Jordan, she reaffirmed Britain’s absolute commitment to the peace and stability of one of our closest allies in the region.

But the setbacks inflicted upon Daesh have coincided with a dangerous escalation of the war in Yemen, where one of the worst humanitarian crises in the world is now unfolding.

This morning, I returned from my first bilateral visit as Foreign Secretary to Oman, the UAE and Iran. My aim was to take forward Britain’s response – diplomatically and economically – to the crisis in Yemen.

The Government strongly believes that the only way of bringing this tragic conflict to an end is through a political solution.

His Majesty Sultan Qaboos of Oman – whom I met in Muscat last Friday – entirely shared this analysis.

The Sultan and I discussed in detail the tragedy in Yemen, with which Oman shares a 180-mile border.

The Sultan and I also agreed on the importance of settling the dispute between Qatar and its neighbours and I was pleased to see that the summit of the Gulf Cooperation Council went ahead in Kuwait last week.

From Muscat I travelled to Tehran where I met Iran’s senior leadership including President Rouhani, Vice-President Salehi and the foreign minister, Javad Zarif.

I was frank about the subjects where our countries have differences of interest and approach, but our talks were constructive nonetheless. The latest chapter of Britain’s relations with Iran opened with the achievement of the nuclear deal, the JCPOA, in July 2015.

In every meeting, I stressed how the UK attaches the utmost importance to preserving this agreement.

For the JCPOA to survive, Iran must continue to restrict its nuclear programme in accordance with the deal – and the International Atomic Energy Agency has verified Iran’s compliance so far – and other parties must keep their side of the bargain by helping the Iranian people to enjoy the economic benefits of re-engagement with the world.

The House knows of Iran’s disruptive role in conflicts across the region, including in Syria and Yemen.

Our discussions on these subjects were frank and constructive though neither I nor my Iranian counterparts would claim that we reached agreement on all issues.

If we are to resolve the conflict in Yemen, then Houthi rebels must stop firing missiles at Saudi Arabia and the House will recall that King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh – Saudi Arabia’s equivalent of Heathrow – was the target of a ballistic missile launched from Yemen on 4th November.

I pressed my Iranian counterparts to use their influence to ensure that these indiscriminate and dangerous attacks come to an end.

On bilateral issues, my first priority was the plight of the dual nationals behind bars.

I urged their release on humanitarian grounds where there is cause to do so.

These are complex cases involving individuals considered by Iran to be their own citizens – and I do not wish to raise false hopes.

But my meetings in Tehran were worthwhile and while I do not believe it would serve the interests of the individuals concerned or their loved ones to provide a running commentary, the House can be assured that the Government will leave no stone unturned in our efforts to secure their release.

I also raised with Mr Zarif the official harassment of journalists working for BBC Persian and their families inside Iran.

I brought up Iran’s wider human rights record, including how the regime executes more of its own citizens per capita than almost any other country in the world.

But where it is possible to be positive in our relations with Iran – for instance by encouraging scientific, educational and cultural exchanges –we should be ready to do so.

I then travelled to Abu Dhabi for talks yesterday with the leaders of the UAE, focusing on the war in Yemen, we agreed on the importance of restoring full humanitarian and commercial access to the port of Hodeidah, which handles over 80 per cent of Yemen’s food imports.

We also agreed on the need to revive the political process, bearing in mind that the killing of the former president, Ali Abdullah Saleh, by the Houthis may cause the conflict to become even more fragmented.

And we discussed how best to address the missile threat from Yemen, welcoming the United Nations investigation into the origin of the weapons that have been launched.

Our concern for the unspeakable suffering in Yemen should not blind us to the reality that resolving a conflict of this scale and complexity will take time and persistence – and success is far from guaranteed – but it is only by engagement with all the regional powers, including Iran, and it is only by mobilising Britain’s unique array of friendships in the Middle East that we stand any chance of making headway.

I am determined to press on with the task, mindful of the human tragedy in Yemen, and I shall be meeting my Gulf and American colleagues again early in the New Year.

I commend this statement to the House.

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The Home Secretary Amber Rudd has announced plans to tackle economic crime to help stop criminal gangs exploiting the vulnerable and profiting from fraud, money laundering and corruption.

She announced a package of measures – including new laws and an enhanced operational response – to crack down on money laundering that allows ruthless gangs to profit from their crimes and fraud, the most common offence in the UK that is estimated to cost every household £255 a year.

A new national economic crime centre within the National Crime Agency (NCA) will task and coordinate the national response to economic crime, backed by greater intelligence and analytical capabilities. It will draw on expertise from across government, law enforcement and criminal justice agencies, as well as new resources provided by the private sector.

To further improve the coordination of the law enforcement response, new legislation will allow the NCA to directly task the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) to investigate the worst offenders. The SFO will continue to act as an independent organisation, supporting the multi-agency response led by the NCA.

The Home Secretary will personally chair a new economic crime strategic board to drive action. It will convene the relevant ministers from across government to agree strategic priorities and to ensure the right resources are allocated across our law enforcement agencies to tackle economic crime.

Home Secretary, Amber Rudd said:

There is a myth that there are no real victims of economic crime, but I have seen first-hand how it can ruin people’s lives. It is not a victimless crime and so it’s vital we tackle these offences that can leave innocent people destitute, cost the country billions every year, and allow gangs to profit from serious and violent crimes.

The measures we have announced today will significantly improve our ability to tackle the most serious cases of economic crime by ensuring our agencies have the tools and investment they need to investigate, prosecute and confiscate criminal assets.

Rest assured we will pursue all those seeking to move, use and hide the proceeds of crime.

In addition, the government has published its anti-corruption strategy which sets out the government’s anti-corruption priorities, both domestic and international, and establishes an ambitious, long-term framework for tackling corruption up to 2022.

The government’s 6 priorities under the strategy are:

• reducing the insider threat in high risk domestic sectors such as borders and ports
• reducing corruption in public procurement and grants
• promoting integrity across the public and private sectors
• strengthening the integrity of the UK as an international financial centre
• improving the business environment globally
• working with other countries to combat corruption

To complement this, the Prime Minister has announced the appointment of John Penrose MP as the new anti-corruption champion. In his role, John Penrose will be responsible for challenging and supporting the government in implementing the strategy, as well as promoting the UK’s response to corruption both domestically and internationally.

Anti-corruption champion, John Penrose MP said:

Corruption destabilises governments and economies, taking money away from developing nations to support the luxury lifestyles of ruthless criminals.

I am thrilled to have been appointed as the government’s anti-corruption champion, and am looking forward to furthering the work that has already been done in rooting out corruption and securing the UK’s prosperity.

World Anti-Corruption Day on 9 December highlighted the impact that corruption can have on countries and businesses across the globe and the need for governments to take action to stamp out corruption.

The cost of corruption worldwide is estimated to be more than 2 per cent of global GDP and the World Bank estimates that over $1 trillion paid in bribes each year.

At the recent Global Forum on Asset Recovery, co-hosted by the UK and the US, more than 250 participants from 29 countries committed to a renewed effort to trace, recover and return stolen assets.

The government has also renewed its commitment to introduce an overseas companies beneficial ownership register, which is being developed by the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy.

It will mean that overseas companies that own or buy property in the UK, or participate in central government procurement, will be required to provide details of their ultimate owners. This will reduce the opportunities for criminals to use shell companies to launder their illicitly gained wealth in London property, and make it easier for law enforcement to track and act on criminal funds.

Further commitments were also made to seize criminal assets. A new working group will be established, which will include the NCA, the police (including devolved forces), Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs, the Crown Prosecution Service and the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) to use the powers within the Criminal Finances Act for forfeiture of criminal money.

To provide a more targeted, intelligence-led focus on high risk economic crime, the government will also reform the suspicious activity reports regime, making the necessary legislative, operational and technical changes required.

Finally, the Law Commission will undertake a review of the law on confiscation in the Proceeds of Crime Act with the aim of improving the process by which confiscation orders are made and optimise the enforcement of them.

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