Politics

Minister for International Trade Greg Hands welcomed the news, saying:

As a member of the Equator Principles steering committee, UKEF will play its role in promoting sustainable business practices among the global trade community. Its appointment is a recognition of the UK government’s commitment to sustainable financial decision-making.

The Equator Principles, which UKEF adopted in April 2016, is a global set of standards that promotes sustainable environmental, social and human rights decision-making in financing projects.

As a member of the steering committee, UKEF will play a leading role in ensuring that the standards are comprehensively applied across project and other financing. UKEF will also contribute to the future development of the Equator Principles.

Since their introduction in 2003, the standards have been adopted by 90 financial institutions in 37 countries, covering over 70% of international project finance in emerging markets. The Equator Principles Association has brought these financial institutions together with stakeholders, including non-governmental organisations, business and industry, to develop mutual environmental and social principles.

UKEF joins nine other financial organisations on the steering committee, which is currently chaired by Standard Bank Group.

Find out more about the Equator Principles here.

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In December 2016, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) granted permission to Firmus Energy (Distribution) Ltd (FE) to appeal on 4 grounds against the UR’s decision to modify its licence.

FE has the licence to develop a gas distribution network in 10 towns across Northern Ireland (NI). This appeal relates to the price control on FE, which was one of the price controls made by the UR for the 6-year period from January 2017 to December 2022.

In its determination, the CMA has allowed the appeal on some of the grounds. It has allowed the appeal on one ground, concerning the incentive to connect new customers to the gas network. The CMA has also allowed the appeal in part on one other ground in relation to FE’s operational expenditure (opex) – the amount allowed for the costs of operating its gas distribution network. It will therefore quash the UR’s decision on those points. The CMA rejected FE’s appeal in whole on 2 other grounds.

The CMA has remitted the connection incentive matter back to the UR for reconsideration, requiring it to determine the appropriate value within 6 months.

In addition, the CMA determined that the opex allowance for FE should include an allowance for extra costs for one omitted item. The UR has already, last month, implemented a modification to FE’s licence allowing an increase in opex allowance to account for these costs.

The UR announced the details of the price controls in September 2016 and published its final decision on 28 October 2016.

The final determination will be published shortly on the case page, where other information relating to this appeal can be found.

Notes

1. An energy licence holder may appeal to the CMA against a decision by the UR to amend the conditions of its licence. The CMA must decide whether the appellant has demonstrated that the UR’s decision was wrong on one or more of the grounds set out in its notice of appeal.

2. The CMA’s group of panel members determining the appeal (the Group) has been: Phil Evans (Chair), Roger Finbow and Jon Stern.

3. The Group received and considered submissions from interested parties in addition to those from FE and the UR.

4. The appeal has been conducted according to the CMA’s published rules and guidance for energy licence modification appeals.

5. There were 4 grounds of appeal, with 12 sub-grounds in total. The 2 grounds which were rejected in whole concerned the treatment of under-recoveries (through which FE can delay receipt of allowed revenue), and the appropriate weighted average cost of capital and the ability of FE to finance its operations.

6. The ‘connection incentive’ is a mechanism designed to promote connections by customers to the gas network.

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I wish you a happy and peaceful Eid Mubarak.

This is a time when families come together in faith to pray and celebrate, and share in the spirit of togetherness. And while this festival always holds great importance for the UK Muslim community, as it does around the world, for many this week’s festivities will carry an even greater emotional weight.

The entire country has been left shocked and saddened by the many tragic events of the last few months – the latest being the horrific attack on the Muslims in Finsbury Park as they left late special Ramadan prayers. And as you gather together in faith and take well-deserved comfort from the company of family and friends, I hope you also feel the friendship and best wishes of those of all faiths and none.

With every Eid celebration we are given another opportunity to reflect on the invaluable contribution British Muslims make to our lives and why they are such an important part of the fabric of our society.

I am sure I am not alone in having such contributions at the forefront of my mind over the past few months.

I was reminded by the Muslim men, women and children, awake in the early hours for their pre-dawn meal, who saved countless lives by alerting sleeping neighbours to the terrible fire at Grenfell Tower. And later the mosques that opened their doors and arranged food and supplies for those who had been left with nothing.

I was reminded by the expressions of solidarity from the Muslim community for victims of the terror attacks at Westminster, London Bridge and in Manchester, and by their condemnation of the twisted individuals who claimed to carry out those atrocities in the name of their religion.

And I was reminded when, just moments after their community had found itself the target of a terrorist attack, an Imam and several worshippers from the Muslim Welfare House protected the man who would later be arrested in relation to that attack.

These terrible acts were carried out to divide us, but only serve as a reminder that the Muslim Community is an inseparable part of this country. Extremists try to convince us that being Muslim and being British are incompatible, but it is clear that our core values are one and the same.

We must unite together as one community to rid ourselves of these twisted ideologies. The strength and resilience I have seen over the past few months makes me more confident than ever that the UK is equal to the challenge.

In the meantime Muslims and people of all faiths must feel safe from violence and persecution. We are working together to tackle hate crime and using the full force of the law to protect every person in the UK.

Last year I published the government’s hate crime action plan and launched a £2.4 million fund to provide protective security for places of worship which are at risk of hate crimes. Many mosques have already benefited from funding. But following last week’s attack I am making another £1 million available to ensure that mosques and other places of worship have all the protection they need.

I am immensely proud to live in a diverse and vibrant country which counters hate with love and which bands ever closer together when cowards try to divide it.

So to all Muslims, in this country and around the world, I want to say a blessed Eid al-Fitr.

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On Grenfell Tower specifically, the Prime Minister received an overview from the Met Police on the work around victim identification and there were also updates on rehousing, where the Secretary of State for the Department of Communities and Local Gov… read more

[unable to retrieve full-text content]The Queen has approved the appointment of Sir Keir Starmer to the Privy Council. read more