Geological disposal is one of the UK’s largest ever environmental protection projects, which will provide a safe and secure long-term solution for the disposal of higher activity radioactive waste.

In support of the Welsh Government’s policy announcement, RWM has published information for communities including:

In addition, we have also launched a consultation on how we will evaluate sites in Wales:

Anyone interested in learning more about geological disposal and what it could mean for their community should visit our website or contact RWM via gdfenqcymru@nda.gov.uk

Published 16 January 2019

Richard Charles Hall (45), from Ecclestone, St Helens, was sentenced on Monday 14 January at Liverpool Crown Court following a joint investigation between the Insolvency Service and Merseyside Police. In total, he was found guilty of seven offences.

Across two trials, in October and December 2018, the court heard that Richard Hall traded as an estate agent through the company Brooklands Sales and Lettings Limited.

However, Richard Hall defrauded several people to the value of more than £40,000 through his business dealings.

Richard Hall also dishonestly sold Brooklands Sales & Lettings Ltd in May 2014, claiming he owned the full company, despite having received investment from a third party. Furthermore, Richard Hall sold the business just two months before he was made bankrupt for a second time.

The court then heard that Richard Hall had first been made bankrupt in 2012, with the restrictions lifted in 2013. But when he was made bankrupt for a second time in July 2014, he attempted to undermine the Official Receiver’s investigations into his affairs.

He tried to conceal a bank account from the Official Receiver and his shares in Brooklands and once investigators found the account, they discovered Richard Hall was operating a sole trader company called Brooklands Sales alongside the company he had sold unbeknownst to the new owners of Brooklands.

He then continued to thwart the Official Receiver’s investigations into his bankruptcy. He told investigators that he never held shares in Brooklands, even though his name was on the public Companies House register.

And at court, he produced banking material intending to convince the Court that he had paid back monies for the sale of Brooklands.

His Honour Judge Watson QC commented that there should be a high degree of trust and integrity in estate agents but that in this case, Hall had lied and exploited others, while abusing his position of trust and responsibility.

The Judge added that Hall deliberately withheld important information form the Insolvency Service by concealing property then deliberately tried to pervert the course of justice

Prior to his sentence, Richard Hall had received a suspended prison sentence in 2013 for possessing an offensive weapon in a public place and in 2015 he was also convicted of a battery offence.

John Fitzsimmons, Chief Investigator of Criminal Investigations for the Insolvency Service, said:

Richard Hall’s behaviour has been deceitful and calculating throughout, whether that was defrauding landlords or undermining the Official Receiver from doing their job.

This has been an extensive investigation covering many areas of criminality and we welcome the sentence handed down by the courts, which we hope serves as a warning to those who think they can renege on their responsibilities toward the Insolvency Service when bankrupt.

Detective Inspector Steve Ball, Merseyside Police, said:

We are pleased that Richard Hall has been sentenced and hope it brings some comfort to the victims of his crimes that he is now behind bars.

Hall played on peoples trust, defrauding them of large sums of money and exploiting them for his own financial gain. This sentencing brings to an end an extensive investigation carried out together with the Insolvency service and I hope it reminds the public that we will always act on information about fraud to bring offenders to justice.

Victims may sometimes feel embarrassed about coming forward but I want to reassure people that we will treat any allegations with sensitivity and compassion, through specialist officers and alongside our partners.

If you have, or are being subjected to fraud, or feel like you, or someone you care for, is being scammed, please get in touch.

The first trial took place at Liverpool Crown Court on 9 October 2018 in connection with the landlord frauds. Richard Hall was found guilty of three fraud offences.

The second trial, also at Liverpool Crown Court, followed on 10 December 2018 and was held in connection with a further fraud offence, two counts of obstructing the Official Receiver by perjury and doing an act with intent to pervert the course of justice.

The Insolvency Service administers the insolvency regime, investigating all compulsory liquidations and individual insolvencies (bankruptcies) through the Official Receiver to establish why they became insolvent. It may also use powers under the Companies Act 1985 to conduct confidential fact-finding investigations into the activities of live limited companies in the UK. In addition, the agency deals with disqualification of directors in corporate failures, assesses and pays statutory entitlement to redundancy payments when an employer cannot or will not pay employees, provides banking and investment services for bankruptcy and liquidation estate funds and advises ministers and other government departments on insolvency law and practice.

Further information about the work of the Insolvency Service, and how to complain about financial misconduct, is available.

You can also follow the Insolvency Service on:

Five charities have benefited from donations generated by the Sellafield Ltd Christmas Campaign 2018.

The main Christmas charity that was supported in Cumbria was CFM’s ‘Cask4Kids Mission Christmas’ appeal, to make sure every local child wakes up with a gift on Christmas day.

The charities that the Warrington office supported were: Home Start Warrington, Families and Wellbeing Toy Appeal, Room at the Inn and the Y project.

This was the total amount raised:

1. Shoebox appeal for the elderly on behalf of AgeUK – 280 shoe boxes full of gifts sourced and delivered by Sellafield Ltd apprentices to elderly care home residents in the local area of Workington, Cockermouth, Whitehaven, Egremont and Millom. An additional £289.42 was handed over to AgeUK from a cake sale.
2. Cask4Kids ‘Mission Christmas’ – £20,675 worth of gifts and £1,609 cash donations which helped over 318 children and equated to 948 gifts in total.
3. Home-start Warrington – Christmas Eve hampers for 37 children.
4. Families and Wellbeing Toy Appeal – 600 gifts from Sellafield and supply chain partners were collected from around the Warrington area, which helped 390 children.
5. Room at the Inn, Warrington – Hundreds of tins and toiletries donated and cash from the Christmas Jumper day for the Room at the Inn and the Y project, bringing their total up to £800 of donations.

Katie Jones, charity manager for CFM, said:

We are over the moon with the contribution of gifts and toys from the people at Sellafield Ltd and in the supply chain.

The quality of gifts donated is amazing and makes a huge difference to those children who would have, without our help, received very little or nothing at all on Christmas morning.

I know that some donations will have gone in to drop off points in the local area, so the total contributions are no doubt more.

The total number of children helped through Mission Christmas 2018 was 8,031 which was an increase of 143 from 2017.

Sandra Dempsey from Age UK West Cumbria said:

Can I say a huge thank you to everyone involved in this project. The generosity of your staff and the hard work and effort of the wonderful apprentice team were appreciated by us all here at Age UK West.

Community liaison officer Pauline Deans, Sellafield Ltd said:

We are overwhelmed with everyone’s generosity. We’re glad that children in our local area could wake up on Christmas morning to a gift under the Christmas tree and that homeless people can enjoy a hot meal and a roof over their head at Christmas, thanks to everyone’s kind donations.

Business and Energy Secretary Greg Clark has appointed Heidy Rehman as a non-executive director for corporate services and Laurence Milsted as an audit and risk non-executive director at the Small Business Commissioner’s Office.

Heidy and Laurence will hold the roles until 6 January 2023, having started on 7 January 2019.

Heidy is an entrepreneur and was most recently the CEO of womenswear brand Rose & Willard. She was previously a senior equity research analyst at financial services and banking group Citi.

Laurence is a chief financial officer for Baker McKenzie, a trustee and audit committee chair of ESCP Europe Business School in London, and has recently joined the Ministry of Justice Audit Committee as an independent member.

Board members play a key role in providing leadership and direction to the organisation, working closely with the Small Business Commissioner’s Office and the Commissioner Paul Uppal.

The Small Business Commissioner’s Office was set up by BEIS in December 2017 to help the UK’s 5.7 million small businesses struggling with late payments.

The Small Business Commissioner, Paul Uppal, supports small businesses to resolve their payment disputes with larger businesses, providing advice, and helping bring about a culture change in payment practices and how businesses deal with each other.

The government has issued advice to help minimise disruption in the trade of protected animals and plants in the event of a ‘no deal’ EU exit.

In this scenario, protected animals and plants would need a permit to be transported between the UK and the EU and would only be able to travel through designated ports.

To make sure there is enough capacity within the system, the government has increased the number of Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) points of entry and exit for goods. Currently there are just 10 ports and airports for CITES trade with countries outside the EU. Read the full list of designated ports that will be available in a no deal scenario.

Delivering the deal negotiated with the EU remains the government’s top priority. This has not changed. However, the government must prepare for every eventuality, including a ‘no deal’ exit.

CITES

CITES is an international agreement between governments which aims to ensure international trade in specimens of wild animals and plants does not threaten their survival. CITES accords varying degrees of protection to more than 35,000 species of animals and plants, whether they are traded as live specimens, musical instruments or dried herbs.

All CITES species bar those with the highest level of protection can be traded and transported freely within the EU. The UK will continue to be a member of CITES after we leave the EU, even in the event of no deal.

If the UK leaves the EU without a deal, all CITES species that are currently freely moved and traded between the UK and the EU would require a CITES permit or import/export notification. This would mean movement of all species controlled under CITES between the UK and the EU would need to follow the same processes as those currently in place for movement between the UK and non-EU countries.

Environment Minister Thérèse Coffey said:

The CITES convention plays a key role in protecting endangered species and we will continue to uphold it after we leave the EU, as part of our pledge to be the first generation to leave the environment in a better state than that in which we found it.

This government has been absolutely clear on our commitment to deliver the Brexit deal negotiated with the EU. But the government is preparing for any eventuality.

That’s why we are taking the responsible step of ensuring people and businesses understand the potential impacts of no deal – such as the transport of protected goods and animals between the UK and the EU – to help minimise any potential disruption.

Businesses or individuals trading in or moving CITES-listed species outside the UK would need to check the specific requirements with the intended import or export country on the Global CITES website, and either apply to the Animal and Plant Health Agency for a CITES permit or request and complete an import notification form.

Designated ports and airports

In addition, CITES animals and plants would only be able to travel or be transported through certain designated ports, meaning individuals and businesses may be more restricted in the transport routes they can use.

Busy routes (for example Eurotunnel, Dover and Holyhead) are not currently proposed for designation. This is to avoid potential delays at these ports as they experience large volumes of traffic passing through. Businesses or individuals who regularly use these routes may need to make alternative arrangements as there will be no facilities at these ports for CITES permits to be stamped.

If we were to leave the EU without a deal, the designation of CITES ports would be reviewed as we gather more data post March 2019 on the actual levels of CITES trade between the UK and the EU.

• We have also published updated guidance which sets out how people who trade in, or travel with, endangered animals or plants, or their products, would be affected if the UK leaves the EU in March 2019 without a deal.

• We have increased the number of CITES points of entry and exit for CITES goods, as they are currently limited to just 10 ports and airports for CITES trade with countries outside the EU. Read the full list of designated ports that will be available in a no deal scenario .

• All CITES-listed species are contained within Annexes A to D of the EU Wildlife Trade Regulations. The Species+ database includes details of all CITES-listed species.

• Details of how to obtain a CITES permit in the UK are available on GOV.UK, as are current details of fees for CITES permits and designated CITES points of entry.