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Politics
Press release: St. Paul’s Canonry: Jonathan Brewster
The Queen has approved that the Reverend Jonathan David Brewster, MA, Vicar of Christ Church with St John and St Saviour, Highbury and Area Dean of Islington in the diocese of London, be appointed to a Residentiary Canonry of St Paul’s Cathedral in succession to the Reverend Canon Philippa Jane Boardman, MBE, MA.
The Reverend Jonathan Brewster was educated first at University College Buckinghamshire and then trained for the ministry at Trinity College, Bristol. He studied for an MA at Kings College, London. He served his curacy at St John the Evangelist, Great Horton, in the Bradford Diocese from 1994 to 1998. From 1998 to 2003 he was Chaplain to the University of Westminster. Since 2003 he has served as Vicar of Christ Church with St John and St Saviour, Highbury in the Diocese of London as well as being Area Dean of Islington since 2014.
Jonathan is married to Sarah. They have two adult and two younger children. He taught in South India, was on the UK Board of Trustees for the Oasis Charitable Trust and is a member of the Islington Faiths Forum. He enjoys playing and listening to Jazz music, reading and walking the dog.
read moreEconomy Secretary launches UK’s first statutory list of historic place names
The List of Historic Place Names of Wales aims to promote Wales’ rich legacy of place names through the ages and encourage their modern day use. The statutory list is the first of its kind in the UK and is being launched by the Economy Secretary at an event in Yr Hen Lyfrgell in Cardiff.
The online list pulls together place names gathered from a variety of historical sources. It provides fascinating insights into the land use, archaeology and history of Wales and reflects how place names have evolved over centuries of Welsh life.
Economy Secretary Ken Skates said:
“Wales’ historic place names are an important part of our history and culture, which is why the Welsh Government included the requirement for a statutory list in its Historic Environment (Wales) Act.
“It is just one of a series of historic firsts that the Act has introduced for Wales and it is important to stress that the list we are launching today, with already nearly 350,000 entries, is just the beginning.
“With ongoing support from the Welsh Government, the list will continue to expand to record the rich legacy of our nation’s historic place names. It will help to emphasise their value to our heritage and encourage individuals and public bodies to keep these precious names alive.”
Dr Eurwyn Wiliam, Chair of the Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Wales, who have compiled the list on behalf of the Welsh Government said:
read more“We are delighted to be launching this ground-breaking website today. The enormous value of historic place names is that they can record the sometimes forgotten people, practices, monuments or events of the past, fixing them at a point in the landscape.
“The study of these names reveals the legacies of past environments, battles, invasions, industrial and agricultural revolutions. They are a hugely important element of the historic environment of Wales and we hope that many people will enjoy using this new website to learn more about, and recognise the value of, the historic place names of Wales.”
£12m Welsh Government investment is catalyst for world’s first compound semiconductor cluster
The state of the art facility is the first project to be supported by the £1.2bn City Deal and is the latest development in the Welsh Government’s plans to make Wales the global centre of expertise for compound semiconductors.
The creation of the compound semiconductor industry facility will put Wales at the forefront of technological advancements in this area and is expected to attract up to £365m of private sector investment over the next 5 years.
Compound semiconductors are the key technology driving advances in a host of areas ranging from wireless technology and smart phones, to solar energy and power stations, from healthcare for new imaging devices and diagnostics, to transport.
Describing the project as a major coup for South East Wales, First Minister Carwyn Jones said:
read more“I am delighted our initial £12m investment has kick-started the creation of the world’s first compound semiconductor industry cluster in Newport.
“Our support for the Institute for Compound Semiconductor Technology has been widely recognised as the catalyst for developing this world-leading cluster, which is expected to create more than 2,000 well paid jobs and be the cornerstone of a truly transformative project for the area.
“Today’s major investment puts Wales at the cutting edge of this exciting technology, which has the ability to change the way we live. This is great news for Wales – and the first of many new exciting projects set to make a real difference to the economy of South East Wales.”
Labour’s new manifesto ambition to make Britain’s children the healthiest in the world
Labour are today (Monday) announcing that a Labour government will mount a major programme to improve health and wellbeing of every child in the country. Our ambition is to make the next generation the healthiest the world has ever seen.
Jonathan Ashworth, Labour’s Shadow Health Secretary, will set out the party’s plans to combat health inequalities and end the scandalous link between deprivation and child health.
Labour will:
· Introduce a new Index of Child Health to measure progress against international standards and report annually against four key indicators: obesity, dental health, under 5s, and mental health.
· Legally require all Government departments to have a child health strategy to set out how they will support the UK’s ambition to have the healthiest children in the world.
· Support school nurses and health visitors to make sure that all children have access to the healthcare they are entitled to.
· Set up a £250m annual child health fund to support the strategy, by clamping down on management consultancy costs in the NHS.
· Ensure extra funding for Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services and support for counselling in every school.
· Ring-fence the public health budget over the course of the Parliament to allow councils to invest in leisure activities and health awareness campaigns
Today (Monday) Labour is outlining the first stage of its plan focusing specifically on obesity which is costing the NHS £6bn a year.
Labour pledge to ban adverts promoting unhealthy food from being broadcast during primetime television, such as the X Factor, Hollyoaks and Britain’s Got Talent. A ban on pre-watershed junk food advertising would reduce children’s viewing of junk food adverts by 82%.
Labour’s Shadow Health Secretary, Jonathan Ashworth, will pledge that a Labour Government elected after the General Election would:
· Halve childhood obesity within ten years and make Britain “the healthiest country in the world to grow up in.”
· Introduce legislation banning junk food advertising from being broadcast before 9pm
· Publish a new childhood obesity strategy within the first 100 days outlining a roadmap to halving childhood obesity rates within ten years
Jonathan Ashworth, Labour’s Shadow Health Secretary, will say:
“The scandal of child ill-health is a long-standing, growing and urgent challenge. It should be matter of shame that a child’s health is so closely linked to poverty and that where and in what circumstances you grow up can dramatically affect your life chances.
“Evidence shows the link between deprivation and poor health in childhood, so with child poverty on the rise, the need for action becomes more acute.
“The UK has one of the worst childhood obesity rates in Western Europe. Tooth decay is the single most common reason why children aged five to nine require admission to hospital. Around 13% of boys and 10% of girls aged 11-15 have mental health problems.
“When it comes to our children we should be ambitious. It’s time we invested properly in the health of the next generation. That means the sort of bold action we are outlining today to tackle obesity and invest in mental health provision.
Labour will put children at the heart our health strategy and put measures in place to make Britain’s children the healthiest in the world.”
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