The plight of the Rohingya refugees must not be forgotten, International Development Secretary Penny Mordaunt said during her second visit to Cox’s Bazar in Bangladesh.

The UK is providing vital humanitarian aid to many of the one million Rohingya refugees and vulnerable local communities in Cox’s Bazar.

Ms Mordaunt, the first UK cabinet minister to visit Bangladesh since the country’s elections, met Rohingya refugees living in Kutupalong camp at a food distribution centre, spoke with women being protected from violence, and saw how children with disabilities were getting the therapy and treatment they need, all supported by UK aid.

Since 25 August 2017, UK aid from British taxpayers has provided £129 million in funding to the refugee crisis and Ms Mordaunt’s visit focused on exploring longer term solutions by supporting education, developing skills and improving access to training opportunities.

In Dhaka, Ms Mordaunt told Bangladeshi ministers she would push for the changes needed in Burma to help the Rohingya return to their homes. But she said now was the time to look beyond short-term live-saving assistance support, to give them the skills they need to create sustainable lives both for themselves and their families.

International Development Secretary Penny Mordaunt said:

This major man-made humanitarian crisis has been ethnic cleansing on an industrial scale and I urge the Government of Burma to create the necessary conditions that would allow those Rohingya currently living in Bangladesh to return.

UK aid and donations from the generous British public, are providing life-sustaining humanitarian assistance to many of the almost one million Rohingya refugees and vulnerable host communities in Cox’s Bazar.

The Government and people of Bangladesh have shown great generosity and humanity in hosting the Rohingya. But we recognise that Bangladesh can’t shoulder this responsibility alone and I’m proud of the UK’s leading.

The plight of the Rohingya refugees to return home must not fall off the international agenda and they must be given justice.

In Dhaka Ms Mordaunt also visited the icddr, b, a world-renowned medical research centre which also houses a hospital specialising in cholera and other water-borne diseases.

UK aid supports the hospital’s research and the development of simple life-saving innovations such as breathing apparatus for small babies that was created using an empty shampoo bottle.

Experts at the hospital have also advised humanitarian workers in Yemen on how to treat deadly outbreaks of cholera.

Ms Mordaunt’s visit builds on the 2017 refugee crisis when the British public donated incredibly generously towards the crisis through the Disasters Emergency Committee (DEC) Appeal, raising £30 million, including £5 million matched pound-for-pound by the UK government.

This funding provided:

• 351,500 people receive life-saving food

• 34,000 families receive household essentials, such as sleeping mats, blankets, clothes, and pots and pans

• 124,400 people have safe drinking water and toilets

• 19,500 families receive materials to build a shelter

• 42,300 people receive medical care and some form of health assistance

• 28,200 vulnerable people receive some form of protection, such as safe spaces for women, children and older people

Notes to editors

International Development Secretary Penny Mordaunt first visited the Rohingya refugee camp in Cox’s Bazar in November 2017.

Download photos of the visit

Organisations are invited to bid through e-Tendering sto deliver housing and debt services from 1 May 2019 f in a small number of geographic areas.

Where is this work available?

Housing and debt service contracts are being offered in:

About the tender

This tender is non-competitive and is being run under the 2018 Standard Civil Contract.

It is open to both current legal aid contract holders and new entrants. All organisations assessed as being suitable and as meeting the minimum service requirements will be awarded a contract.

A part-time presence or outreach arrangements will be considered if procurement areas do not attract successful bids from applicants meeting the minimum requirements in full.

Contracts will be offered for an initial period up to 30 August 2021. This is subject to the LAA’s rights of early termination and the right to extend.

Tender deadline

The tender process to procure these contracts will close at 9am on 22 March 2019.

Further information

Civil 2018 contracts tender – to find out more and download the Information For Applicants document

e-Tendering system – to submit your tender

Published 19 February 2019

The two organisations are uniting to advise tens of thousands of drivers and passengers who head towards the national stadium for England games, cup finals, summer concerts, and more.

Many of these fans use the country’s motorways and trunk roads to get to the 90,000-seater stadium – the home of the Three Lions – including the M1, M4, M40 and Britain’s busiest motorway, the M25. Highways England will work with The Football Association (FA) to help drivers plan their journeys and warn them of any incidents, delays or congestion, using social media channels and the extensive array of digital messaging signs on motorway gantries.

Highways England director of communications Simon Montague said:

We’re delighted that we can help motorists who are heading for major events at Wembley by joining forces with such an influential partner as The FA. By making joint use of our social media channels and variable message signs, we can provide the information that drivers want and make their journeys easier and safer.

We know that tens of thousands of fans use our major roads to get to Wembley, and now we can help them plan so that they get there on time, drive sensibly, and find out about any impact on their journeys from our multi-billion-pound programme of investment in improving and maintaining the country’s major road arteries.

The FA’s Operations Director, Jon Sellins, added:

Each and every event held at the national stadium plays host to thousands of fans who choose to travel via the country’s roads. It’s essential they are able to do so safely, in plenty of time and with access to constantly evolving travel information.

Highways England has already made significant strides to improve the event day experiences of these fans, so I am delighted the partnership has now been formally announced and look forward to working together in this area.

The safety of people who use and work on the motorway network is the number one priority for Highways England, and is helped by good journey information. A new safety campaign warns drivers of the dangers of tailgating, urging them not to be a Space Invader. Driving too close to the car in front is linked to one in eight road casualties, with more than 100 people killed or seriously injured ever year. Nearly nine out of ten drivers say they have been tailgated or seen it, and more than a quarter admit to doing it.

Highways England keep drivers informed with real time traffic information to help fans get to from Wembley safely. The organisation will tweet to inform road users of incidents and works on major roads leading to and from Wembley using @HighwaysSE and @ HighwaysEast. Further information about transport in the Wembley area will be tweeted by @WembleyStadium and @TfL. Highways England will also inform traffic broadcasters about any delays and incidents as they happen.

Having come agonisingly close to success at last summer’s World Cup in Russia, England kick off their qualifying for Euro 2020 when they host the Czech Republic on Friday 22 March. Wembley will host seven matches of next summer’s pan-European tournament, including the semi-finals and the deciding match.

Highways England is improving trunk roads and motorways across the country, including in the London region. Examples include an upgraded junction between the M25 and A2, east of the capital, that is due to open this summer. A £10 million package of improvements is planned for the Dartford Crossing and the multi-billion pound Lower Thames Crossing, due to open in 2027, will nearly double road capacity across the River Thames.

General enquiries

Members of the public should contact the Highways England customer contact centre on 0300 123 5000.

Media enquiries

Journalists should contact the Highways England press office on 0844 693 1448 and use the menu to speak to the most appropriate press officer

The UK’s employment rate is a joint-record 75.8%, rising by 3.55 million since 2010.

UK wages are increasing at their joint-fastest rate in a decade, with unemployment remaining low at 4 per cent. The figures, published today by the Office for National Statistics (ONS), showed that wages outpaced inflation for the eleventh month in a row.

The new figures confirmed that 2018 was a year of widespread employment opportunity showing:

• a record high employment rate for people from ethnic minority backgrounds of 66.2%
• 145,000 more disabled people found work since last year, an overall increase of 930,000 in the last 5 years
• more women are in the workplace than ever before, 15.31 million. The female employment rate is also a record – 71.4%

Minister of State for Employment Alok Sharma said:

While the global economy is facing many challenges, particularly in sectors like manufacturing, these figures show the underlying resilience of our jobs market – once again delivering record employment levels.

Our pro-business policies mean we have started the new year with a strong labour market, with wages outpacing inflation for the eleventh month in a row, and more people in work than ever before. It’s also excellent news that we see the rate of women in employment at a record high.

Of course, we need to ensure that we continue to provide one-to-one support for anyone whose jobs may be at risk, or who might be looking to move to a new role.

The government is helping even more people benefit from a well-paid job by:

• backing businesses to create good jobs with our modern Industrial Strategy, while ensuring they play by the rules, so we are closing tax loopholes, strengthening workers’ rights, and tightening the rules big businesses must follow
• investing in the infrastructure, training and apprenticeships we need for our future, with public investment at the highest sustained level in 40 years
• introducing Universal Credit which is helping people move into work faster and stay in it longer, while recent

Budget measures mean 2.4 million families will keep up to an extra £630 a year of what they earn:

• helping people stay in work longer with our Fuller Working Lives strategy, which supports employers to recruit, re-train and retain older workers
• tackling inequalities in employment highlighted by the Race Disparity Audit, through targeted support in 20 areas around the country and £90 million announced by the Prime Minister to help young people.

Media enquiries for this press release – 020 3267 5162

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Environments like nuclear, offshore, space and deep mining can be challenging for people to work in, with potentially extreme temperatures, pressure and high levels of radiation.

Up to £2 million is available to fund feasibility studies and collaborative R&D projects that develop electronics, sensors and photonics that can cope with these conditions.

Robots for a safer world

This competition is part of the Industrial Strategy Challenge Fund to develop safer and more productive technologies for working in extreme environments. Funding is provided by UK Research and Innovation and delivered by Innovate UK.

Through the robots for a safer world challenge, government is investing £93 million in advanced robotics that remove people from potentially harmful operations, improve productivity, and open up new, cross-disciplinary opportunities.

As well as this competition, the programme is funding robotics research hubs and innovation projects that will support improved delivery of public services.

One funded project is using robots to fix underground pipes and reduce roadworks.

More robust systems for robotics

The aim of this competition is to improve how robots operate in extreme environments by developing robust devices and components, including:

• sensing and actuation
• on-board electronics
• radio frequency electronics
• power supplies
• control systems
• task-oriented payloads

Competition themes

The competition is for feasibility studies and collaborative research and development.

Projects could look at the following.

Optics and photonics-based sensing

This includes the use of light detection and ranging technologies for high-resolution 3D mapping of terrain in areas like space to help with navigation and awareness.

Compound semiconductor-based electronics

This includes design and development of components and integrated circuits that support robotics and AI systems, such as advanced sensing, communication or actuation. Reducing the size and weight of power-supplies also falls under this theme.

Packaging

This includes the design of electronics, photonics and sensors components, circuits and devices to make them more resilient.

Modelling and simulation

This could include projects that investigate electromagnetic effects or modelling radiation shielding for use on robotics and AI systems.

Competition information

• this competition opens on 11 March 2019, and the deadline for applications is midday on 8 May 2019
• for feasibility studies, a UK business SME must lead the project, working with other businesses, research, public sector or third sector organisations. Total project costs can be between £25,000 and £100,000, and projects can last up to 12 months
• for collaborative research and development, a UK business of any size can lead a project, working with at least one SME and other businesses, research, public sector or third sector organisations. Total project costs can be between £50,000 and £250,000 and projects can last up to 18 months
• businesses could get up to 70% of their project costs
• projects must end no later than 31 March 2021