Thank you to New Zealand for your generous hospitality.

I am genuinely delighted to be able to attend today’s event which starts the official handover of the International Working Group on Women and Sport from New Zealand to the UK.

It is great that the event could be happening at the very same time as Birmingham 2022, which – and this is worth repeating – has the largest female sport programme in the history of the Commonwealth Games and will be the first time a major multi-sport event will feature more women’s than men’s medal events and I think that is fantastic.

I am absolutely committed to supporting women’s sport at every opportunity – pushing for greater participation, employment, commercial opportunities and visibility in the media. The fantastic success of the Lionesses this weekend shows just how far we have come.

The UK has a strong track record and strong history of empowering women and girls through sport. There is a long way to go but we have much to be proud of in this area.

The media profile of women’s sport is continuing to rise and recent research shows that two-thirds of UK sport fans currently follow some form of women’s sport, and half have attended an event featuring women’s athletes.

Our domestic initiatives, like This Girl Can, are inspiring millions of women and girls to get physically active. Something that is particularly important as we recover from the pandemic.

We have also seen the growth in audiences for women’s sport.

Recent research published by Women’s Sport Trust shows that domestic women’s sport attracted a record British broadcast audience of nearly 33 million in 2021, the main drivers being The Hundred and the FA Women’s Super League.

And the leadership role of certain media outlets is very important, including the BBC, which made the strategic decision to make sure that many of those matches were on BBC One, peak time. It worked. It showed that there is a mass audience for women’s sport. And that is pivotal. If the eyeballs are there, then the money and commercial opportunities start flowing. Instead of just doing that because it is the right thing to do, we will have increasing competition to hold these events and make sure these events are on TV because they are commercially viable and commercially lucrative.

And a record crowd of more than 87,000 attended this year’s UEFA Women’s Euros final – the highest attended match at either a men’s or women’s European Championship.  I was lucky enough to attend some of the matches including the final and I can honestly say that there was a superb atmosphere. The spectators were evenly balanced and importantly, more than 100,000 children were spectators in those matches. I know the whole nation will have been inspired by the Lionesses.

There have also been record sponsorship deals struck with women’s sports leagues, such as Barclays’ sponsorship of the Women’s Super League, the premier women’s football league in England.

And the UK is due to host a number of high profile women’s sports events this year, including the Rugby League World Cup and the Billie Jean King Cup. Plus Birmingham 2022 of course which is going on at this moment in time.

We are working tirelessly to make the most of these events in showcasing women’s sport, and encouraging more women and girls to get active as a result. But we recognise that we need to go further.

The IWG is a great opportunity to build on this success and not only share the fantastic work we are doing but to learn from other countries too.

The UK Secretariat’s vision for a ‘just and sustainable post-pandemic world where women and girls play a full and equitable role’ is something that I feel passionately about.

It is vital that we continue to strive for greater equality and opportunity in sport.

We have been working with our women’s sport working group in the UK, which many of you have attended, to look at some of the challenges and opportunities that exist and I am really keen that we continue to make progress as a result of these discussions.

I would also like to commend the work of the current hosts New Zealand in sharing, promoting and supporting stories of inspiring change from around the world.

Their development of the world’s first IWG Insight Hub as a home for the world’s best research, insight, case studies, news and interactive programmes such as training and seminars has also been ground breaking.

I believe the IWG can be a catalyst for women’s sport as we recover from the impact of the pandemic.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank you for the role you have all played in securing the IWG secretariat for the UK.

It’s absolutely essential that we work collectively to share the messages behind the bid of inclusivity, equity and collaboration.

I look forward to continuing to work with you to ensure that women’s sport continues to thrive not just in the UK but on the international stage.

As of 4 August, there are 2,859 confirmed and highly probable cases of monkeypox in the UK.

Analyses of the current UK outbreak shows that monkeypox continues to be transmitted primarily in interconnected sexual networks of gay, bisexual, or other men who have sex with men (GBMSM). The median age of confirmed cases in the UK was 37 years old. In England, 73% are known to be London residents over the course of the outbreak.

In the past few weeks, there have been a small number of women confirmed to have monkeypox but there is not enough evidence currently to suggest that there is sustained transmission outside of interconnected sexual networks. Twenty-two cases in women have been identified and 99% of all UK cases are male.

A small number of cases with no known travel history during their incubation period have been detected prior to 6 May, pre-dating the previous first-known report of a monkeypox case in the UK. This is not unexpected given our understanding of the outbreak to date.

Dr Meera Chand, Director of Clinical and Emerging Infections, UKHSA, said:

While the most recent data suggests the growth of the outbreak has slowed, we cannot be complacent. Be vigilant of and check yourself for monkeypox symptoms, including rashes and blisters.

If you are concerned that you may have monkeypox symptoms, take a break from events, meeting with friends or having sexual contact. Instead, stay at home and contact 111 or your local sexual health service for advice.

The smallpox vaccine is being offered to individuals at higher risk of coming into contact with monkeypox in order to offer them protection and to reduce the spread of disease.

The briefing now includes monkeypox genomic surveillance data from the UK. As is described globally, the majority of outbreak cases in the UK belong to a distinct genetic lineage (B.1) which has mutations of unknown significance when compared with the closest previously characterised monkeypox virus genomes.

UKHSA will continue to publish regular technical briefings as the response to the outbreak continues.

• Health and Social Care Secretary, Steve Barclay thanked NHS staff at two sites in Warwickshire for their unwavering work busting the Covid backlogs
• He visited the new Community Diagnostic Centre at George Eliot Hospital that will further support people access tests and scans locally and more rapidly
• Visits highlight continued commitment to ensure patients can get timely, quality care from the NHS

Patients across Warwickshire are benefiting from use of innovative digital health technologies and the opening of a new Community Diagnostics Centre to improve access to services and bust the Covid backlogs.

The George Eliot Hospital CDC, which will open mid-August, will host a new x-ray suite and dedicated clinical areas, opening up capacity for up to 12,000 ultrasound scans and 19,000 x-rays each year. This will speed up appointment times so patients are able to access treatment quicker, easier, and closer to home.

Visiting the region today (Friday 5 August), Health and Social Care Secretary Steve Barclay went to both the new George Eliot Hospital, and Manor Park Surgery to thank NHS staff for their tireless efforts to provide care to their local communities.

Health and Social Care Secretary Steve Barclay said:

With the backlogs due to covid it is vital that we innovate to speed up diagnosis and treatment. So  it was great to see the state of the art new diagnostic centre in Nuneaton, which opens in 10 days time, and to discuss with local GPs how this will also help them deliver improved patient care.

Diagnostic one-stop-shops, like the George Eliot Hospital, are right at the heart of local communities and are helping to speed up access to X rays, lung funtion tests, ultrasound, and endoscopy. By bringing under one roof cardiac and respiratory diagnosis with access to pathology investigations, it will allow patients to attend once rather than need repeat visits. It is also good for staff retention and progression to have these new facilities with state of the art equipment.

This, combined with other innovations in the region like remote monitoring at Manor Park Surgery are supporting the NHS on the biggest catch up programme in history.

The Health and Social Care Secretary also met with radiographers at the George Elliot hospital who are doing vital work carrying out diagnostic imaging and intervention procedures to bust the backlogs and ensure people are being seen quickly. Combined, CDCs in the Midlands region have delivered 257,239 tests between November 2021 and 17 July 2022 – which has helped thousands of people across the region to get tests earlier, speeding up diagnosis of a range of conditions from cancer to heart or lung disease, and enabling patients to access treatment faster.

At Manor Court Surgery in Nuneaton the Health and Social Care Secretary met dedicated staff to discuss what the surgery is doing to support patients. The practice, which forms part of the Nuneaton and Bedworth Primary Care Network, told the Secretary of State about their innovative use of remote monitoring to better support patients in care homes and those with long term conditions. Remote monitoring, where patients monitor their condition via technology and feedback to their doctor home, both improves patient experience, receiving the care they need from their home, and frees up valuable time.

Over 280,000 people have already used remote monitoring at home and in care homes across the country in the last year and increasing the availability of remote monitoring across the country could support a further 500,000 people receive personalised care from home by March 2023.

Dr Catherine Free, Chief Medical Officer at George Eliot Hospital, said:

By putting X-rays, scans and other tests for a large range of conditions in the same location we can begin to provide a one-stop service for patients to improve patient experience and reduce the time people wait between appointments.

The need for tests to help diagnose and treat patients is forecast to increase so we need to ensure we have the right facilities to meet the demand.

This is the first phase of the project and we are waiting to hear confirmation of funding to complete the second phase of the project which will bring CT and MRI scans and all the tests for cancer under one roof, improving outcomes for patients with cancer and other serious conditions.

Backed by £2.3 billion, up to 160 community diagnostic centres will be rolled out across the country by 2025, delivering 9 million tests and checks a year.

Over 90 community diagnostic centres are already open across England and have delivered over 1.5 million checks – including over 700,000 additional CT, MRI, ultrasound, endoscopy, and ultrasound tests, with around 30,000 tests a week.

As a result, good progress towards reducing the longest waits is already being made – the number of patients waiting over two years for treatment falling by more than 80% since February.

Over the next 3 years, a record £39 billion will be invested in the health and social care system to ensure it has the long-term resource it needs while working to bust the Covid backlogs, reducing patient waiting times and speeding up diagnoses.

Shane Boutwell of Rivendell Vale, South Woodham Ferrers, who had entered guilty pleas earlier in the year, was sentenced at Chelmsford Crown Court on 2 August 2022.

The sentencing came after he persistently imported and burnt waste on a large scale at 2 sites in Essex.

In June 2020, officers visited land at Bradwell Wick Leisure Plots, Maldon Road, Bradwell-on-Sea after firefighters raised concerns following several fires at the site.

Officers found large quantities of waste on the site, including waste electricals, household waste, and demolition waste. They also discovered piles of burned waste. They made several further visits and attempted to work with Boutwell, offering him opportunities to stop his activities and clear the site.

Boutwell failed to clear the site and gave officers several different, conflicting accounts.

In September 2020, officers attended another site, owned by Boutwell at Lower Barn Farm, Lower Burnham Road, Latchingdon. They found piles of burning waste with flames up to 2 metres high. Essex Fire and Rescue attended and discovered a gas cylinder amongst the embers before immediately requesting fire engines to attend.

Environment Agency officers identified large piles of soils heavily contaminated with bricks, concrete, paving slabs, and plastics. They were told by a fire officer that the site was a “cause for concern”.

As at Bradwell Wick, Boutwell was given chances to stop depositing, spreading and burning waste at the site. He was advised that all waste on site must be removed by a licensed waste carrier. Boutwell failed to engage.

Prosecuting for the Environment Agency, barrister Barnaby Hone told the court that Boutwell had operated “2 professional, illegal, waste disposal sites.”

Mr Hone explained that Boutwell’s activities had allowed him to avoid the fees and taxes associated with lawful disposal, undermining lawful competitors, and persisting with his offending in the face of intervention by the Environment Agency.

Sentencing Boutwell to 14 months’ imprisonment, Judge Loram QC told him that the 2 sites were, “professional operations for your own gain. The impact of your behaviour on others was profound. You affected legitimate businesses and encouraged others to sink to the bottom like you.”

Judge Loram QC made an order requiring Boutwell to clean up both sites upon his release from prison. She ordered him to return to court in September 2023 for consideration of claims for prosecution costs and the confiscation of the proceeds of his crimes.

Environment Agency Enforcement Team Leader, Lesley Robertson, said:

We take illegal waste activity very seriously and will not hesitate to disrupt criminal activity and prosecute those responsible.

In this case, Boutwell was repeatedly instructed to remove waste from both sites and failed to do so.

He operated at a commercial advantage, importing and burning waste on a significant scale, undermining legitimate business with little or no regard for the environment or residents.

His sentence shows just how serious Her Honour Judge Loram QC considered this to be.

Boutwell previously pleaded guilty to operating 2 waste management facilities, 1 at Bradwell Wick, the other at Lower Burnham Road, without a permit.

He also pleaded guilty to disposing of controlled waste in a manner likely to cause pollution or harm to human health at both sites. He further pleaded guilty to failing to remove the waste from Bradwell Wick.