Tag Archives: HM Government

Andrew will provide strategic advice and assurance to the High Speed Two (HS2) Executive and Board on technical matters. At the same time Andrew will advise both the Department of Transport and other government departments on wider transport matters.

Andrew will also continue his role as an expert witness for the project, as required, and continue to be chairman of the World High Speed Rail Committee.

Andrew was HS2 Ltd’s first official employee, joining the company as Chief Engineer in 2009 and guiding it from concept to the edge of reality in the period since.

Professor Andrew McNaughton said:

After leading the design and authorisation phases of HS2 for the last 9 years I am stepping back from a full time executive leadership function to this more strategic role which, I am delighted to say, will continue my strong link with HS2 whilst also giving me more freedom to advise the government here, and others elsewhere, on both high speed railway development, and wider transport issues.

The chairman of HS2 Ltd, David Higgins, said:

Andrew’s expertise and experience has been critical in getting HS2 to the point it is now, and the Board is delighted that it will be able to continue to draw on that expertise in the future.

The chief executive of HS2 Ltd, Mark Thurston, said:

Andrew was not only our first employee, but has also been an inspiration to many of those who have joined since. He has been critical in establishing the project and in recruiting the highly talented team that will carry his and many others’ work through to fruition. We will continue to lean heavily on his expertise, at the same time as benefiting from the perspective Andrew gains from his work with other organisations.

Andrew will be stepping down from his full time role leading the Technical Directorate, taking on the new position from the 2nd January. He will continue to report into Mark Thurston. An announcement on the future leadership of the Technical Directorate will be made shortly.

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His Royal Highness, a longstanding advocate of apprenticeships and getting more young people in to science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) subject areas, presented the awards at a ceremony which took place in MOD Main Building. His Royal Highness also announced the winner of this year’s MOD Apprentice of the Year in the Memorial Courtyard.

Defence Minister Harriett Baldwin said:

We are committed to investing in and celebrating the next generation of engineers, to grow our future workforce and capability in STEM far into the future.

I am delighted to see the impact our engineering apprentices have on our equipment programmes. Over 800 apprentices worked on the QE Class Carriers, and should feel a great sense of achievement today as HMS Queen Elizabeth is commissioned into Her Majesty’s fleet.

Defence is the largest employer of apprentices in the UK, with 9,000 engineering apprenticeships, and a total of 20,000 apprenticeships across a range of defence disciplines. Apprenticeships are a crucial way to develop the skills required by employers and to provide people, from all backgrounds, with the opportunity to obtain skills that will contribute to their achievement in the workplace.

Defence Minister Tobias Ellwood said:

Today’s winners should be very proud of their achievements, and the impressive skills they have developed through their apprenticeships.

The MOD is the largest employer of apprentices in the UK, supporting the Government’s commitment to achieve three million apprenticeship starts by 2020 through our range of civilian and Armed Forces schemes.

In recognition of HRH’s attendance at the MOD Engineering Apprentice Awards, the inaugural presentation of ‘His Royal Highness The Prince of Wales’s Award for Services to Defence Engineering’ was made. This was awarded to Chief Technician Rob Bates, who joined the RAF in 1995 as a Mechanical Technician Apprentice and was recognised for representing engineering within Defence by exemplary professional performance and selfless commitment to promotion of engineering as a career.

Chief Technician Rob Bates, winner of His Royal Highness the Prince of Wales Award for Services to Defence Engineering Award, said:

Today has been the stand out moment of my life so far. I enjoy my work and I am humbled to be recognised for it.

Defence apprenticeships give young people the opportunity to work at the heart of some of the most important projects in the UK. Over 800 apprentices have been involved in the QE Class Carrier project, delivering HMS Queen Elizabeth, which was commissioned in Portsmouth today, and HMS Prince of Wales.

DE&S Apprentice Champion Air Marshall Julian Young said:

We in DE&S are proud of our long tradition of training the next generation of MOD Apprentices through our innovative schemes.

This strong pipeline of highly-skilled talent, who are among the brightest and the best, are central to the delivery of essential equipment and support programmes for the UK’s Armed Forces. I offer my sincerest congratulations to all today’s winners and runners up on their sterling achievements.

Each MOD engineering apprenticeship lasts three years and, after qualifying, most apprentices go on to employment across defence.

The MOD is also offering a range of apprenticeship schemes internally to existing staff in order to invest in our workforce, by providing staff with the right training opportunities to help them develop and increase their skills, gain valuable experience and achieve a recognised qualification.

The families and guests, representatives from senior management of participating business units, representatives from competition sponsors, awarding bodies, educational establishments, and local government officials attended the ceremony alongside the apprentices.

You can find out more about apprenticeships with defence here https://www.gov.uk/guidance/apprenticeship-opportunities-in-the-ministry-of-defence

List of winners

The full list of winners and their awards are as follows:

His Royal Highness, the Prince of Wales Award for Services to Defence Engineering

· Winner: Chief Technician Rob Bates

Apprentice of the Year 2017

· Winner: Matt Schofield

The Tom Nevard Memorial Competition

Phase 1 – Individual Design and Manufacturing

· Winner: Sarah Hughes (DE&S Devonport)

· Runner-up: Thomas Baker (DSTL)

Phase 2 – Individual Design and Manufacturing

· Winner: Thomas Diaper-Fox (DSTL)

· Runner-up: Chloe Garland (DE&S Abbey Wood)

Team Design and Manufacturing Event

· Winners: James Wiltshire (Phase 3, DE&S Abbey Wood), David Thomson (Phase 3, DM Beith), Will Robinson (Phase 2, DSTL), Kieran Stainer (Phase 2, DE&S Abbey Wood), Chloe Stephens (Phase 1, DE&S Abbey Wood).

· Joint runner-up: Ashley Conlon (Phase 3, DE&S Abbey Wood), Zachary Hall (Phase 3, DSTL), Ashley Biginton (Phase 2, DM Gosport), Thomas Hill (Phase 2, DE&S Abbey Wood), Chris Nowell-Smith (Phase 1, DE&S Devonport).

· Joint Runner-up: Ewan Walker (Phase 3, DSTL), Joseph Samways (Phase 3, DM Gosport), Stacey Bishop (Phase 2, DE&S Devonport), Hewlett (Phase 2, DE&S Abbey Wood), Oliver Nicholas (Phase 1, DE&S Abbey Wood).

Sir Henry Royce Memorial Foundation Medal

· Winner: Luke Worrall (DM Gosport)

QinetiQ Awards

First Year Mechanical Manufacturing Engineering Apprentice of the Year

· Winner: Oliver Kemp (DSTL)

First Year Electrical Engineering Apprentice of the Year

· Winner: George Sweeney (DSTL)

First Year Electrical Engineering Apprentice of the Year

· Winner: Cameron Fitze (DSTL)

IET Local Network Award for Student Excellence

· Winner: Zachary Hall (DSTL, Southern Region)

East Kilbride Group Training Association – Chairman’s Award 2017

· Winner: Sam Rennix (DM Beith)

Glasgow and Clyde Campus Apprentice of the Year 2017

· Winner: Russel Vincent (DM Beith)

DIO Sustainability Recycling Challenge

· Winner: Declan Heard (Phase 1, DE&S Devonport), Lawrence Parker (Phase 1, DE&S Devonport), Sarah Hughes (Phase 1, DE&S Devonport), Chris Nowell-Smith (Phase 1, DE&S Devonport)

Babcock Land Division Excellence Awards Apprentice of the Year

· Winner: Joe Sayce (Babcock DSG Donnington)

· Winner: Sarah Malkin (Babcock DSG Donnington)

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More than 30 MPs have pledged their support for a national campaign to get more young people into engineering, joining government and industry in a united effort to tackle a major skills gap.

The Year of Engineering, which launches in January (2018), will see government work with hundreds of industry partners to raise the profile of engineering among young people aged 7 to 16, their parents and their teachers. This will include offering at least a million direct experiences of engineering to young people from all backgrounds – from behind the scenes tours and family days out, to school visits and the chance to meet engineering role models.

At an event in Parliament yesterday, (6 December 2017), MPs from across the UK committed to supporting the campaign in their constituencies. Pledges included connecting schools with local engineering employers and encouraging businesses to take part in open doors events for schools and families.

Minister for the Year of Engineering and Transport Skills Minister John Hayes said:

If we are going to create a country fit to meet all new challenges, we need to train the next generation of highly-skilled British workers.

Engineering and all it brings is at the heart of economic success and provides exciting opportunities of fulfilling careers through skills that will shape all our futures, but for too many employers a lack of skilled engineers is limiting growth. That’s why I am delighted to see so many of my colleagues determined to promote engineering. Their determination and dedication, enthusiasm and engagement will help to make the year of engineering not only a year-long campaign but a lifelong success.

Now, huge opportunities exist as the government’s strategic investment in infrastructure bears fruit. New skills, new jobs and new prospects will turn vision to reality, if we show young people, their parents and their teachers what engineering can mean: a career in engineering offers creativity, variety, the chance to innovate and so make a real difference.

HMG Envoy for the Year of Engineering Stephen Metcalfe MP said:

The value of engineering skills is frequently underestimated, outdated perceptions of the profession are still widespread, and the industry continues to suffer from a lack of diversity in its workforce.

The Year of Engineering aims to tackle these challenges, so it’s vital that the campaign is championed across government, parliament and industry.

We know how much enthusiasm there is in all parts of the profession to encourage engineers of the future. We want this campaign to unite those ambitions, and I welcome these pledges of support from my fellow MPs which will be vital in helping to drive this across the country.

The event was jointly hosted by government and the Institution for Engineering and Technology (IET), marking the publication of its annual Skills Survey report – which looks at the skills challenges faced by engineering and technology employers in the UK.

Nigel Fine, IET Chief Executive, said:

The IET 2017 Engineering and Technology Skills Survey highlights a buoyant sector with high value jobs being created. In order to deliver on the skills challenge we must ensure we have enough people with the practical and technical skills required by industry, and recruit widely from a diverse pool of potential talent, bringing in all sections of society.

The cross-government Year of Engineering campaign will be an ideal way of celebrating the amazing contribution that engineering makes to society, and encourage young people to join the profession. The IET is delighted to be supporting the campaign to highlight the exciting, creative and rewarding world of engineering.

Hundreds of partners have signed up to support the Year of Engineering, including Siemens, the Science Museum Group, Ocado, Usborne, BAE Systems and Crossrail. Teaming up with partners from many different sectors, the government will deliver a year of UK-wide school visits, exhibitions and open doors events – all aimed at encouraging young people and their parents to take a closer look at engineering.

To find out more, visit the Year of Engineering partner website or follow the campaign on Twitter.

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I welcome this session. The international community cannot ignore the desperate plight of the Rohingya muslims. I thank the Bangladesh government for ensuring that refugees receive urgent aid. I am also pleased that the UK has contributed £59 million in support.

The UK is committed to working with international partners to resolve the situation in Rakhine. At September’s Council I called on Burmese security forces to stop committing human rights violations against the Rohingya. Today’s session, together with the overwhelming vote in favour of the OIC-led resolution in the Third Committee and the United Nations – which the UK co-sponsored – reflects growing international outrage at these despicable atrocities.

I welcome the UN Security Council’s adoption of the first Presidential Statement on Burma for ten years. This significant step sent a clear message: international pressure will not relent until the state authorities act to enable refugees to return to Rakhine voluntarily, with dignity and, importantly, in safety.

The authorities must grant full humanitarian access to Northern Rakhine so that affected communities can receive vital assistance. They must also cooperate fully with the UN’s human rights system, including the Independent Fact Finding Mission established by this very Council.

The UK believes that supporting the civilian government is the best way to ensure fair treatment for the Rohingya and respect for human rights. UK Ministers have urged Aung San Suu Kyi and senior members of the civilian government to take the necessary steps.

Mr President, as the UK Prime Minister’s Special Representative on Preventing Sexual Violence in Conflict I want to draw particular attention to the harrowing reports of rape, sexual abuse and brutality from refugees in Cox’s Bazaar, indeed as we heard directly from Special Representative Patten who described this in graphic terms.

Last month, the Head of the UK’s Preventing Sexual Violence in Conflict Initiative joined Ms Patten’s visit to the refugee camps, and heard appalling accounts from survivors.

We have since deployed two civilian experts to Bangladesh. They will make recommendations to the UK government on further support to survivors of sexual violence, including support for the investigation and documentation of these abhorrent crimes.

Today’s Special Session demonstrates the strength of international feeling about the situation facing the Rohingya community. This current crisis was precipitated by long-standing inequality between communities in Rakhine. The state authorities must act swiftly, not only to address this inequality but also to relieve the suffering of the Rohingya and restore security to enable them to return with dignity and in safety and allow them to rebuild their lives.

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This Notice was issued to VetUK Ltd for placing on the market unauthorised products presented for the treatment of joint disorders and as a veterinary wormer contrary to Regulation 4 of the Veterinary Medicines Regulations (VMR). The improvements requ… read more