The Minister for South Asia, Lord (Tariq) Ahmad of Wimbledon said:

I welcome the agreement between Afghan leaders on forming an inclusive government.

A strong and unified government is vital at this critical time for Afghanistan. There is a real opportunity to end decades of conflict – the devastating impact of which has been brought into focus by recent attacks – and a need to slow the spread of Covid-19 throughout the country. As ever, the UK is ready to support the Government of Afghanistan as they face these challenges.

The Afghan people expect their leaders to follow through on their commitments and to continue to adhere to the principles of good governance, rule of law, human rights and justice. For the benefit of all Afghans, I urge Afghanistan’s leaders to build upon this agreement, set aside their differences and work together constructively to tackle the challenges facing the country.

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As a manager in the National Nuclear Laboratory’s (NNL) operating Active Handling Facility on the Sellafield site, Andy Haile has had to consider measures to protect his own safety and that of his colleagues.

He has continued to attend work since the coronavirus lockdown began, as he explains:

One of the key roles of our facility is to support the EDF programme. That means we need to operate to keep the country’s lights on. As coronavirus hit, it quickly became clear we needed to make some changes to help keep everyone safe.

The first change we made was reducing those who needed to come to work to a minimum. We’d ordinarily have around 100 employees at work, but we’ve reduced this to a quarter of those. Despite this, we still needed to make other changes – after all lockers aren’t 2 metres apart.

We’ve also reduced the number of maintenance jobs taking place, and split jobs up, so fewer people are likely to be in an area at a given time. We’ve staggered start times so people were able to access work more easily.

It has been strange coming to work – I sometimes worry I’ve walked past a no entry sign when there’s no one around me, but of course there are fewer people around.

Our team has been fantastic. They understand that things are surreal and scary, but that we need to continue our essential mission. To help, they are doing all they can to ensure they, and others, are safe.

People have been changing their bait times, to avoid putting pressure on the canteen and you see people checking their exit is safe before they leave a room.

We know that more people will be coming back to site and our NNL facilities, in the near future. But we also know that we have to take small, gradual steps when doing so. The team have been great at giving feedback on what is working and what needs tweaked. This feedback is essential.

Andy recognised that things are unlikely to get back to how they were for quite some time, and NNL are looking at the ‘new normal’.

The biggest concern when more people are back at work will be how people get to work. I think we need to continue to encourage people to work from home when they can. Even if employees do need to come on to site, they should only come here for that specific piece of work. When it’s done, they should leave again. That’s not how we’ve previously worked.

After all, working from home is the safest option, if you can, and it’s the one that protects those of us who do need to be on the site.

The UK Government and Prince of Wales have urged students and furloughed workers to apply for seasonal farm work.

As part of efforts to support British farmers and growers to recruit workers throughout the harvest period, the UK Government launched the Pick for Britain website in partnership with industry to help match up available opportunities with local jobseekers.

Scotland Secretary Alister Jack said:

Many of Scotland’s farms, in particular our soft fruit growers, rely on seasonal labour. As we near peak harvest time I urge jobseekers to sign up for this crucial work at the Pick for Britain website or the GOV.UK Find a job platform.

I am in no doubt British workers and students will seize the opportunity to feed the UK and help the economy in these most challenging of times. Together, the UK Government, industry and workers will save the Scottish strawberry and our other delicious produce.

The UK Government has already confirmed that those who have been furloughed from their jobs due to the coronavirus and who are contractually allowed to work for another employer can take on this seasonal work while continuing to receive 80% of their salary from the government.

Interested parties should continue to check the Pick for Britain website regularly as it will continue to be updated with new opportunities as the demand for fruit and vegetable pickers grows over the coming months.

British workers will continue to have the opportunity to make some extra money and help to feed the nation right up until the autumn months.

Industry best practice guidance is available for growers to help ensure workers are safe and protected in their roles during the pandemic.

On the occasion of the Constitution and State Flag Day of Turkmenistan, British Ambassador Mr Hugh Philpott warmly congratulated the people and government of Turkmenistan. As the state flag is the symbol of nations, the British Ambassador wished unity, harmony and well-being to the people.

Please, enjoy the British Ambassador’s congratulatory message on the Embassy’s Facebook channel.