We’ve only got 365 more days to stop Brexit.

We’re launching the BIGGEST most AMBITIOUS campaign the Liberal Democrats have ever run outside an election.

Why?

Quite simply, we want to stop Brexit.

And why now?

Well, it’s a year since Theresa May’s calamitous government triggered ‘Article 50’, formally starting the process for the UK to leave the EU.

A UK torn apart from its closest friends and neighbours is not a future we want and not a future we are going to stand by and let happen.

We’ve still got time to Exit from Brexit and we’re ramping up our campaign. Big time.

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Press release: Prime Minister visits farmers in Northern Ireland today to mark one year to EU exit

The Prime Minister demonstrated her commitment to Northern Ireland’s farming industry in a visit to meet local farmers in Bangor today and to hear their views on what Brexit means to them.

She had a lunch of local Northern Ireland produce at Fairview Farm hosted by the Jackson family and representatives of the Ulster Farmers Union, where she shared her determination to secure a deal that would benefit the whole of the UK.

Her visit was part of a day-long tour across the United Kingdom to mark exactly one year from the UK’s historic exit from the European Union.

Prime Minister Theresa May said:

Northern Ireland and the farming industry are integral parts of the United Kingdom’s history, culture and, importantly, our future – which is why I’m here today to speak to farmers and hear their views.

My mission is to deliver a Brexit deal that strengthens the bonds between us and ensures our industries and nations prosper as we forge a new role for ourselves in the world.

Today, I want to hear from people in Northern Ireland about what our exit from the EU means to them. As there is no Executive in place in Northern Ireland, it is even more important that the views of people and businesses here continue to be heard. We remain absolutely committed to restoring a devolved government to Northern Ireland and will continue to work with the parties to achieve this.

I also want to reassure the people of Northern Ireland about my commitment to avoid a hard border and protect the Belfast Agreement. The border is used daily for travel and trade, but it also forms a hugely important part of British and Irish identities, rooted in generations of family history – and this is something that needs to be protected.

Agriculture is one of the most significant industries in Northern Ireland, employing around 48,000 people to work on over 25,000 farms, creating produce which is renowned in quality at home and abroad.

Fairview Farm is comprised of a 300 cow dairy unit and covers 132 acres of grassland.

News story: Project Servator: One year on

Deployments by the MDP Project Servator teams at these locations have continued throughout the year, and deployments are now being carried out in Whitehall by officers from the MDP station located in MOD Head Office. The Force is currently preparing to launch Project Servator on the Clyde in conjunction with Police Scotland.

Unpredictable and highly visible, Project Servator is designed to deter, detect and disrupt criminal activity.
Deployments can include armed officers, dogs, marine police units, vehicle checkpoints, Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR), CCTV, plain clothed officers, highly visible uniformed officers and others specially trained in behavioural analysis to help identify individuals who may have criminal intent. They can pop up anywhere, at any time.

Project Servator, which was introduced by City of London Police in 2014, was trialled by the MDP at Portsmouth Naval Base in 2016 and officially launched in January 2017. The launch of Project Servator at the AWE sites followed in February 2017.

Deployments take place within the AWE sites and Portsmouth Naval Base, as well as pushing out into the wider communities – including local railway stations, ferry ports and shopping centres. Project Servator was also used to support the MDP operations at the Royal International Air Tattoo (RIAT) 2017 and for HMS Queen Elizabeth’s first entry to Portsmouth and the subsequent commissioning ceremony.

MDP Project Servator officers at RIAT 2017, MOD Crown Copyright

Sir Ben Ainslie joined officers from the Portsmouth Naval Base Project Servator team and commented:

Nice to bump into these two coppers doing a great job keeping Britain safe.

Ben Ainslie with Ministry of Defence Police officers. — Ministry of Defence Police Crown Copyright.

Joint Project Servator operations are now taking place with our colleagues from the Metropolitan Police Service (MPS), British Transport Police (BTP) and City of London Police (CoLP) in the Whitehall area. If you visit Horse Guards Parade and the area surrounding Whitehall, you will see our officers with MPS Westminster and MPS Taskforce teams dispersed across the area, spreading the word about Project Servator and looking out for suspicious behaviour.

The image of MDP officers in Westminster. — MDP Project Servator officers in Westminster, Paul Kemp Crown Copyright.

During July 2017, and in the wake of the London Bridge attack on 3 June, we deployed with CoLP and carried out examinations of vehicles and passengers at a check point operation at Tower Bridge where a suspected illegal immigrant was arrested. This operation focused on offering a hostile surveillance and security presence on the bridges over the River Thames, while the terror threat across the country was severe.

Although Project Servator’s primary function is to assist in the fight against terrorism, it has also proved to be an effective tool for detecting other criminal activity, including drug related offences and driving and vehicle offences.

Inspector Andy Ramsay, from AWE Aldermaston, comments:

We are working closely with our colleagues in Thames Valley Police, sharing information and intelligence, and our site security stakeholders value the contribution that the MDP is making to ensure that AWE remains safe and secure.

Reflecting on the past year, Assistant Chief Constable Paul McLaughlin said:

The threat of terrorism in the UK is ever present and Project Servator provides a valuable tool to help deter, detect and disrupt potential attacks.

We work closely with our security partners, including the Ministry of Defence Guard Service and Mitie Security at AWE, and the support of communities is key to the success of Project Servator. From the outset, we have actively engaged with people visiting and working in and around Portsmouth Naval Base and the AWE sites, encouraging them to report any suspicious behaviour. This helps to create a network of vigilance – with extra eyes and ears – to assist us and make it more difficult for criminals to succeed.

On behalf of the MDP Project Servator Team I would like to thank all of the staff, businesses and partners for their enthusiastic and proactive response – together we’ve got it covered.

Project Servator will continue to grow within the MDP, with the number of trained officers increasing and plans set to roll out across other sites that we police.

To find out more about Project Servator visit: Ministry of Defence Police: Project Servator

Keep up to date with our Servator deployments by following us on Twitter: @MODPolice and Facebook: @MinistryofDefencePolice

Housing association fined after exposing employees to Hand Arm Vibration Syndrome (HAVS)

A community housing association has today been sentenced after it failed to effectively manage its employees’ exposure to Hand Arm Vibration Syndrome (HAVS) over a prolonged period of time.

Newport Magistrates’ Court heard how, between July 2010 and May 2015, employees of Tai Calon Community Housing Limited were routinely exposed to vibration in their day to day work. Following the company’s introduction of health surveillance in May 2015, a number of employees were diagnosed with HAVS which has side effects such as pain and loss of strength in the hands and has been known to cause distress and sleep disturbance.

An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) found Tai Calon failed to adequately assess the risk to employees from the use of vibratory tools, failed to implement adequate measures to reduce employees’ exposure to vibration, failed to place employees under suitable health surveillance and failed to provide employees with suitable information, instruction, and training.

Tai Calon Community Housing of The Rising Sun Industrial Estate, Blaina, was found guilty of breaching Section 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work, etc Act 1974 and was fined £30,000and ordered to pay £2789.25 in costs.

Speaking after the hearing, HSE inspector Paul Newton commented: “No one’s health should not be made worse by the work they do. In this case, if Tai Calon had understood why health surveillance was necessary, it would have ensured that it had the right systems in place to monitor its workers’ health.

“This prosecution highlights the health risks from using vibratory tools and the importance of employers having a health surveillance programme in place. Where vibratory tools are used, employers should monitor the health of employees using them and ensure appropriate systems are in place to manage and control the risk from vibration.”

Notes to Editors:

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is Britain’s national regulator for workplace health and safety. We prevent work-related death, injury and ill health through regulatory actions that range from influencing behaviours across whole industry sectors through to targeted interventions on individual businesses. These activities are supported by globally recognised scientific expertise. hse.gov.uk
More about the legislation referred to in this case can be found at: legislation.gov.uk/
HSE news releases are available at http://press.hse.gov.uk

Journalists should approach HSE press office with any queries on regional press releases.

“The point of no return might be near but there is still time to change course” – Keith Taylor MEP

29 March 2018

Thursday, 29 March marks the midpoint between the triggering of Article 50, on 29 March 2017, and the date on which the Government has said the UK will leave the EU, 29 March 2019.

Green MEP Keith Taylor is using the ‘Brexiversary’ as an opportunity to reiterate his commitment to fighting for the people of Britain to have the final say on any Brexit deal in a ‘People’s Poll’.

Mr Taylor has also moved to reassure voters that, although “the point of no return might be near,” there is still time to “change course”.

The senior Green politician, who also recorded a video addressing supporters directly, said:

“Brexit, of any type, is not in Britain’s interest.

“It inevitably means cutting ties with our closest friends and neighbours and abandoning a project that has delivered much positive social and environmental change in Britain and across Europe. More than that, it means departing from a union that has fostered solidarity and proven one of the most successful peace projects in recent history.

“Brexit, of the type a bitter and divided Tory government is dragging us towards, is a monumental calamity.

“The Government’s approach to negotiations has been unforgivably shambolic. The result is that we, the people of Britain, will have no idea what kind of post-Brexit future we’re heading for when we leave the European Union.

“All that we can be sure of as we approach the point of no return is that any and all Brexit outcomes will have hugely damaging economic impacts, according to the Government’s own (secret) studies. The fact the transition period delays the worst of these impacts until 2020 is of little comfort when the fundamental question of what our future relationship with the EU will look like remains unanswered.

“In the meantime, it’s clear that any notion of “taking back control” has been hijacked by the Tory Government planning to give itself, as part of the Withdrawal Bill, unprecedented powers to bypass Parliamentary democracy.

“What is more, almost every day new details emerge about vital information being kept from the public while allegations about a potentially illegal disinformation campaign run by Leave groups continue to mount.

“The referendum was supposed to signal the start of a democratic process, not the end of democracy.

“I campaigned for and voted Remain, as did voters in Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, and Oxfordshire and Surrey, East and West Sussex; across the region, more than 48% of people voted Remain. These voices are being increasingly sidelined by a Government desperately afraid of its own Brextremist fringe and in hock to the DUP.

“I stand committed to the ‘Green Guarantees‘ I set out after the referendum: safeguarding environmental laws, defending freedom of movement, supporting young people to study and work across Europe; guaranteeing workers’ rights, jobs, food safety and animal welfare by advocating single market and customs union membership.

“Above all, I still believe that we are fairer, greener and safer inside the European Union. It is why Greens are fighting for a People’s Poll on the final terms of any deal – with remaining in the EU an option on the ballot.

“The point of no return might be near but we still have the chance to change course.”

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