Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson visited the Metropolitan Police Wildlife Crime Unit (WCU) facility in London today (Monday 19 February) to see illegally traded wildlife products seized by the Met Police before they could be sold on the black market in the UK.

Many of the cases the WCU deals with involve cross-border smuggling and require police collaboration with international agencies, underlining the need for greater international cooperation to tackle the illegal wildlife trade.

The Foreign Secretary saw items seized in successful WCU operations. This includes the recent Abbas Allawi case, where Met Police raided a Watford property using trained search dogs and found wildlife goods with a street value of over £1 million stashed in his attic.

The Foreign Secretary was shown items including seven rhino horns weighing over 16kg, and dozens of raw ivory tusks and carved ivory specimens as well as animal trophies including a stuffed lion’s head and tiger skins. He heard how there is online demand for primates, including severed monkey hands turned into trinkets and monkey skulls.

During the visit the Foreign Secretary said:

When we think of the illegal wildlife trade, the slaughter of elephants, rhinos and other species teetering on the brink of extinction, we think of Africa, Asia and distant countries where some think this acceptable. We rarely associate this crime with our own shores. To say I was angry to see the haul of ivory, rhino horns, animal furs and other items in the gross menagerie of seized illegal animal products in London is an understatement.

This is not just a crime taking place overseas. Criminal lowlifes operate right here in the UK and the Met Police and other forces are working to stop them in their tracks. Criminal gangs trafficking wildlife across UK borders will not be permitted to operate with impunity, but this requires a global effort, tackling both the supply and demand of this odious trade.

We will not let up our efforts to ensure that future generations can share our planet with rhinos and elephants and that the criminals who seek to harm them face justice.

The Foreign Secretary also learned about a new technique for taking fingerprints from ivory. The technique was tested on ivory from the WCU facility from previous seizures, and it increases the chances of building a legal case against perpetrators.

This follows on from the Foreign Secretary’s recent visit to Asia where he viewed illegally trafficked ivory and pangolin scales seized by Thai customs.

In October the UK will host an international conference on the illegal wildlife trade, bringing together global leaders to work to end wildlife crime.

Further information

• Follow the Foreign Secretary on Twitter @BorisJohnson and Facebook

• Follow the Foreign Office on Twitter @foreignoffice and Facebook

• Follow the Foreign Office on Instagram, YouTube and LinkedIn

A technical consultation on the Trade Secrets Directive has launched. We are seeking views on the draft Regulations which will bring the Directive into UK law.

A trade secret is a form of confidential business information that can give a business a competitive edge in the market. The government believes it is important businesses are able to protect their trade secrets. This is because they can be of great commercial value.

The EU Trade Secrets Directive was adopted on 8 June 2016 and came into force on 5 July 2016. It sets out minimum standards for measures, procedures and remedies that should be available in the unlawful acquisition, use or disclosure of trade secrets. It includes a definition of a trade secret and provisions for protecting confidential information during legal proceedings.

The UK has a strong and well established legal framework that allows for the effective enforcement of trade secrets. As a result, a number of provisions in the Directive already exist in UK law. The changes proposed relate primarily to procedural matters in the courts. They are intended to provide clarity, transparency and consistency across the UK’s various jurisdictions.

Responses should be sent to enforcement@ipo.gov.uk by 16 March.

Tuesday, 27 March, 2018

featuring

Professor Chris Fox

Director of the Policy and Evaluation Research Unit I Manchester Metropolitan University

Please see the attached flyer for further details and how to book.

Outcomes-based Commissioning: Learning from Payment by Results and Social Impact Bonds (seminar flyer)

PDF, 442KB, 1 page

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A spokesperson for the Official Receiver said:

As a result of agreements entered into over the past week to purchase contracts held by Carillion ongoing employment has been confirmed for 942 employees.

Most employees who have transferred so far have done so on existing or similar terms and I will continue to facilitate this wherever possible.

Regretably 152 employees are being made redundant and they will leave the business later this week. Those who have lost their jobs will be able to find support through Jobcentre Plus’ Rapid Response Service and are also entitled to make a claim for statutory redundancy payments.

Discussions with potential purchasers continue and I expect that the number of jobs safeguarded through the liquidation will continue to rise. I am continuing to engage with staff, elected employee representatives and unions to keep them informed as these arrangements are confirmed.

• in total, to date 7,610 jobs have been saved and 1,141 jobs have been made redundant through the liquidation
• this information does not include contracts where an intention to purchase has been entered into but has not yet formally occurred
• further information about rights in redundancy is available on gov.uk
• continued support by Carillion’s public and private sector customers is enabling as many employees as possible to be retained in the interim until all contracts have been worked through

The
accord
(PDF, 74.9KB, 3 pages)

, signed by the the National Church Institutions (NCIs) of the Church of England, the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) and the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) encourages the Church of England to use its buildings and other property to improve broadband, mobile and WiFi connectivity for local communities.

65% of Anglican churches and 66% of parishes in England are in rural areas and their locations at the heart of their communities mean they are often well placed to address connectivity and coverage problems.

The use of these churches, as well as other church properties and farm buildings, to host digital infrastructure will help to deliver the Government’s commitment for everyone to get good quality mobile connectivity where they live, work and travel.

DCMS Secretary of State, Matt Hancock said:

Churches are central features and valued assets for local communities up and down the country. This agreement with the Church of England will mean that even a 15th century building can help make Britain fit for the future improving people’s lives by boosting connectivity in some of our hardest-to-reach areas.

Through its Industrial Strategy, the Government is continually driving the UK’s connectivity, telecommunications and digital sectors, and investing in the skills, industries and infrastructure of the future.

Improved digital connectivity will bring a range of benefits to rural communities, including:

• better access to online public services
• improved social interaction with family and friends
• effective online presence meaning that local businesses can extend their reach and better compete with other
• businesses, or in the case of tourism businesses, better attract visitors to the local area
• better access to skills and training which can lead to further local employment opportunities that deliver
• improved productivity and can boost the wider local economy.

The Dioceses of Chelmsford and Norwich are already supporting programmes which
use Church buildings to improve connectivity in rural areas. It is hoped the accord
will be instrumental in encouraging more local dioceses and parishes to positively
consider how they can use their property in this way.

The Bishop of Chelmsford, Rt Revd Stephen Cottrell, said:

We know that rural churches in particular have always served as a hub for their communities. Encouraging churches to improve connectivity will help tackle two of the biggest issues rural areas face – isolation and sustainability.

The Diocese of Chelmsford has been pioneering this approach with County Broadband since 2013. Our work has significantly improved rural access to high-speed broadband.

Many new forms of technology are available to improve internet access in rural areas and I hope that this partnership between the Church of England and the Government will help rural churches consider how they can be part of the solution. I know that many churches already help people access the internet and provide digital skills training, and this Accord is a natural extension of great work already occurring.

The Bishop of Norwich, Rt Revd Graham James, said:

I welcome this agreement. It builds on what we have been seeking to do in the Diocese of Norwich since 2011 with the creation of WiSpire, a company seeking to use church towers and spires to enable Wifi connectivity in communities, especially in rural locations.

Our parish churches are a truly national network, and to use them creatively to create new forms of connectivity enhances their value for the communities they serve.

Hamish Macleod, Director Mobile UK, said:

Mobile UK welcomes this announcement from Government and the Church of England, which emphasises the benefits of mobile connectivity to local communities.

Where there is a need, a suitable building is available and appropriate terms can be agreed, the mobile operators will continue to extend their use of churches to increase mobile coverage and capacity, while respecting the church environment.

Rural Affairs Minister Lord Gardiner said:

It is vitally important people living in the countryside have the same opportunities as those in urban areas, and that means having strong mobile and broadband infrastructures in place.

This initiative marks an important step in our continued drive to connect better our rural communities and bridge the digital divide.

Clear guidance set out by both the Church and Historic England ensures that any telecoms infrastructure deployed does not impact on the character and architectural or historic significance of churches.

Under the accord the Government has also pledged to provide advice for parishes and dioceses to enable them to consider supporting digital connectivity and to develop the necessary skills for digital infrastructure projects.

There is the possibility that similar accords could be made with other faith communities that have similar estates.

ENDS

Notes to Editors

Owing to varying terrain and different community needs the Accord covers all types of mobile and broadband technologies – churches are free to explore different options to meet the needs of their communities.

There are more than 120 cases of broadband and mobile services being delivered from parish churches across the country. These take a number of forms – from wireless transmitters in church spires and church towers, to
aerials, satellite dishes, and more traditional fibre cables. The Church of England has just over 16,000 church buildings in 12,500 parishes.

Church of England and Historic England guidance on the installation of telecoms equipment in churches

At a round table meeting with rural Church of England Bishops, convened by the Bishop of St Albans, Rt Rev Alan Smith, and representatives of the fixed and mobile operators on 13 December 2017, chaired by the then Minister for Digital, Matt Hancock, and the Minister for Rural Affairs and Biosecurity, Lord Gardiner, it was agreed that an accord between the Church and Government would help make clear the importance of connectivity and support in principle for using Church assets to host fibre and mobile infrastructure.

Joint
accord
(PDF, 74.9KB, 3 pages)

on Use of Church Land and Buildings to Support Digital Connectivity