London ETO supports play’s theatre tour in United Kingdom telling Hong Kong story (with photos)

The Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office, London (London ETO) highlighted the story of Hong Kong migrants to the United Kingdom by supporting a new play touring the UK. The play “Mountains: The Dreams of Lily Kwok” is based on the family memoir Sweet Mandarin by Helen Tse, co-owner of the Sweet Mandarin restaurant in Manchester.

The play was directed by Jennifer Tang from Hong Kong, and featured a number of artists who were born in Hong Kong or have a family connection there. It tells the story of Helen and her quest to find out the history of her family, through a dream-like connection with her grandmother Lily in Hong Kong, which reveals a past of shocking family secrets that culminate in the family moving from Hong Kong to the UK and setting up a restaurant in Manchester based on the meals Lily learned to cook on her journey to the UK – meals which the cast actually cook on stage during the performance.

Speaking after the performance on April 20 (London time) at Stratford Circus Arts Centre, London, the Director-General of the London ETO, Ms Priscilla To, said, “The story of “Mountains” is in fact a story that also belongs to many of the Hong Kong Chinese in the UK and reflects the close relationship between Hong Kong and the UK. In fact, food – which is the lifeline that held the three generations together in the story of “Mountains” – tells us a lot about our traditional Chinese culture, in particular the significance of family values, as well as how our society has evolved over time.

“We have seen tonight how Lily Kwok, her daughter and grand-daughters fought through the difficult times to pursue their dreams. I’ll go further and say that their stories remind us of the ‘Hong Kong’ or ‘Lion Rock’ spirit, meaning that we stay united in difficult times, never give up in facing challenges and work hard to achieve our life goals.”

Mountains is a Royal Exchange Theatre, Yellow Earth Theatre and Black Theatre Live co-production. When it finishes in London on April 21 (London time), Mountains will continue its tour of the UK until June 2. Visit www.yellowearth.org/mountains-dreams-lily-kwok for more information.

News story: Civil news: further tender opportunities for 2018 contract work

We are providing another opportunity to tender for face to face 2018 civil contracts in the following three categories of law:

family
housing and debt
immigration and asylum

The procurement process is limited to the small number of geographic areas where we wish to secure greater provision.

Who can tender?

The tender process is open to both existing contract-holders and new entrants. It is a single-stage process that will assess:

an organisation’s suitability to contract with us
their ability to meet our service requirements

Contracts will be procured using a non-competitive process. This will be limited to the categories of law and procurement areas specified above.

All organisations assessed as being suitable and meeting the minimum service requirements will be awarded a contract.

How can I tender?

Tenders must be submitted using the LAA’s e-Tendering system – see below. A link is also available on the tender pages of the LAA website.

If you wish to tender then you must submit a response for the relevant invitation to tender (ITT) in the category of work you wish to deliver.

You may also need to submit a response to the selection questionnaire that forms part of this tender opportunity. This will be required if your organisation:

did not submit a tender for a 2018 Standard Civil Contract as part of last year’s main civil 2018 contracts tender process
submitted a tender but was excluded at the selection questionnaire stage
submitted a tender but has a selection questionnaire response which is no longer valid

Organisations which tendered successfully as part of the main civil 2018 contracts tender process and whose circumstances have not changed will need to confirm this. They can do so in their tender response.

Further information

Civil 2018 contracts tender – to find out more and download the IFA document

e-Tendering system – to submit your tender

News story: UK Flags to be flown at full mast for birth of Royal Baby

Flags on UK Government Buildings will fly at full mast on Tuesday 24th April 2018 from 0800 – 2000hrs in celebration of the birth of TRH Duke and Duchess of Cambridge’s third child.

Other organisations and local authorities may choose to follow suit. Devolved administrations are responsible for issuing instructions for the flying of the Union Flag on buildings in their estate and others as necessary.

News story: Defence Secretary marks major step forward for UK’s nuclear submarine capability

In a move that signals the UK’s commitment to a continuous-at-sea deterrent, the Submarine Delivery Agency (SDA) was today officially launched.

The announcement comes after an extra £800 million was secured by the Ministry of Defence – £600 million of which will ensure the UK is protected by the new Dreadnought submarine fleet into the 2030s and beyond.

Defence Secretary Gavin Williamson said:

Our nuclear deterrent is our ultimate defence from the most extreme threats while our attack submarines are busier than ever providing unprecedented levels of protection across the world.

A Royal Navy submarine is on patrol 24 hours a day, every day of the year, protecting our way of life. These advanced and complex vessels are more important than ever as the world becomes an increasingly dangerous place and establishing this new Agency sends a clear signal of our commitment to continue deterring conflict and protecting the nation.

The stand-up of the SDA marks the delivery of a milestone set out in the 2015 Strategic Defence and Security Review that strengthens arrangements to support the UK’s submarine capability.

The Executive Agency will lead on the procurement, in-service support and decommissioning of all UK nuclear submarines.

The SDA will procure and project manage the construction of future Royal Navy submarines, and support those in-service, working with Navy Command and the newly established Defence Nuclear Organisation.

The vision of the SDA is to lead a high-performing industrial enterprise to deliver and support the UK’s submarine capability safely, securely and more effectively and cost efficiently.

Headed by Chief Executive Officer Ian Booth – who has a wealth of experience in delivering complex private and public sector procurement programmes – the SDA employs around 1,300 people and already has a talented and extremely knowledgeable workforce, including some of the nation’s most experienced nuclear experts.

The Agency will have the authority and freedom to recruit and retain the best people to manage the Submarine Enterprise. The majority of SDA staff will be based in Bristol, with other colleagues located at sites such as Barrow, Derby, Devonport, Rosyth and Faslane.

Chief Executive Officer of the Submarine Delivery Agency, Ian Booth said:

The SDA is to lead a high-performing industrial enterprise that is committed to strengthening the safety, availability, reliability and security of UK submarines, including our Continuous At Sea Deterrent. The Agency will draw on best practice from both the public and private sectors with a focus on cost effective and timely delivery to achieve the best possible outcomes for Defence.

The SDA has learnt from other successful programmes of a similar scale and complexity such as the 2012 Olympics and Crossrail. It will maintain vital links with industry and public sector partners to preserve the UK’s technology advantage and skills-base and to ensure submarine manufacturing and maintenance capability is sufficient to support the UK’s submarine requirements.

A key facet of the SDA is to manage the Dreadnought and Astute nuclear submarine programmes to time and budget, alongside providing day-to-day support to the in-service fleet of Trafalgar, Astute and Vanguard Class submarines. As a responsible nuclear operator, the organisation will also manage the decommissioning and disposal of submarines in a safe and environmentally sound way.

Provision of deficit and debt data for 2017 – first notification – Euro area and EU28 government deficit at 0.9% and 1.0% of GDP respectively – Government debt at 86.7% and 81.6%

In 2017, the government deficit and debt of both the euro area (EA19) and the EU28 decreased in relative terms compared with 2016. In the euro area the government deficit to GDP ratio fell from 1.5% in 2016 to 0.9% in 2017, and in the EU28 from 1.6% to 1.0%. In the euro area the government debt to GDP ratio declined from 89.0% at the end of 2016 to 86.7% at the end of 2017, and in the EU28 from 83.3% to 81.6%.

Full text available on EUROSTAT website