News story: Dangerous occurrence near Kirkham

Obstruction left on the line near Kirkham, Lancashire, 15 May 2017.

At around 05:15 hrs on 15 May a railway maintenance vehicle, which was moving in an engineering possession, stopped short of a large steel pile on the line. The pile, weighing around 1 tonne, had been left there on completion of earlier engineering works.

We have undertaken a preliminary examination into the circumstances surrounding this incident. Having assessed the evidence which has been gathered to date, we have decided to publish a safety digest.

The safety digest will shortly be made available on our website.



Press release: Charity Commission to hold public meeting in Cardiff

The Charity Commission, the independent regulator of charities in England and Wales, will hold its next public meeting on 29 June 2017. The meeting will take place from 11:30am to 3:30pm at Cardiff City Stadium, Leckwith Rd, Cardiff CF11 8AZ.

William Shawcross, Chairman, and Eryl Besse, Deputy Chairman, will open and chair the meeting prior to presentations from senior staff, to include a presentation from the Chief Operating Officer David Holdsworth, who will discuss the digital transformation of the Commission. There will also be a presentation by David Teague of ICO Wales.

The meeting will focus on guiding trustees and their charities through data and digital challenges, will provide updates on our key guidance for trustees, and will highlight important lessons to take home from our casework. Attendees will also be given an update on the Commission’s activities and have the opportunity to ask questions before the meeting concludes.

The event is free of charge and charity trustees, employees and advisers are urged to attend.

Please register to attend through Eventbrite. Places are limited and will be allocated on a first-come, first-serve basis and are limited to 2 attendees per organisation. Members of the press are also welcome to attend and are asked to register their interest with the press office directly at pressenquiries@charitycommission.gsi.gov.uk.

Papers for public meeting 29 June 2017

Ends

PR 45/17

Notes to editors

  1. The Charity Commission is the independent regulator of charities in England and Wales. To find out more about our work, see our annual report.

  2. Search for charities on our online register.



Notice: WA8 8UF, Stobart Biomass Products 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: Stobart Biomass Products Limited
  • Installation name: Foundry Lane Biomass Processing Plant
  • Permit number: EPR/BP3632DM


Press release: Macedonia forms a new government

Following the long-standing political crisis in Macedonia, Prime Minister Zoran Zaev has now formed a government.

Minister for Europe, Sir Alan Duncan said:

We congratulate Macedonia on forming a new government. This is an opportunity for the whole country to come together in the interests of all the citizens of Macedonia and the wider region. We are looking forward to working with the new government as it implements important reforms, in particular to strengthen the rule of law and accountability and make progress towards its goal of closer integration with Euro-Atlantic institutions.

Further information



News story: CMA considers undertakings in Autodata/Solera merger

The companies supply vehicle repair and maintenance information (RMI) platforms across the UK, which give access to digital data and are mainly used by workshops and other repairers to diagnose, service and repair vehicles.

On 26 January 2017, Solera Holdings Inc. acquired the ultimate holding company of Autodata Publishing Group Limited.

The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) subsequently conducted an investigation into this acquisition and found competition concerns, should the merger be allowed to proceed.

This was due to the fact the companies are the 2 main suppliers of these platforms in the UK and compete closely with each other. Other suppliers face significant barriers to entry and expansion in the UK.

Solera has since offered to overcome these concerns by selling its RMI platform in the UK, E3 Technical (which is part of CarweB), to a buyer approved in advance by the CMA. It has also offered to provide transitional support to the buyer of the divested business.

The CMA considers there are reasonable grounds for believing the undertakings offered, or a modified version of them, might be acceptable, and will open a public consultation on the undertakings in due course.

The CMA has until 27 July to consider whether to accept the undertakings, or a modified version of them, with the possibility of extending this deadline to 22 September 2017 if there are special reasons for doing so.

All information relating to the investigation is available on the case page.