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Oct 20 2024

Ministers to oversee HS2 and contractors face review as costs allowed to ‘spiral out of control’ | Politics News

Ministers will oversee the HS2 project as the cost of delivering the high-speed train line has been allowed to “spiral out of control”, the transport secretary has said.

Louise Haigh announced on Sunday she has launched an independent review into how costs have been allowed to balloon “without sufficient explanation”.

The transport secretary and her ministers will now have oversight of the project “to ensure greater accountability”, while former Crossrail (now the Elizabeth Line) CEO Mark Wild will take over HS2 Ltd, which runs the project, as chief executive “to get a grip on costs”.

Politics latest: ‘Difficult choices’ coming in budget

HS2’s main contractors will also be reviewed, which could lead to some contracts being renegotiated or amended, the Department for Transport (DfT) warned.

Ms Haigh ruled out resurrecting Phase Two of the project, from Birmingham to Manchester and Leeds, which was cancelled by Rishi Sunak in October last year, following rumours Labour was going to reinstate it.

However, she has hinted previously her government could extend the line from Old Oak Common station in west London’s suburbs to Euston in the capital’s centre.

The projected cost of the Phase One line from London to the West Midlands, which is still under construction, increased from £30bn to as much as £59.7bn using 2019 prices, according to a leaked document dated 2022/23 seen by The Sunday Times this week.

However, HS2 Ltd, which oversees the project, gave an upper projection to the government in September 2023 amounting to £74bn using the headline rate.

The government said costs had soared due to “poor management, inflation and poor performance from the supply chain, without sufficient explanation of what is to be done to deliver to budget”.

The Department for Transport said the review will “bring the project back on track”.

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Ms Haigh said: “It has long been clear that the costs of HS2 have been allowed to spiral out of control, but since becoming transport secretary I have seen up close the scale of failure in project delivery – and it’s dire.

“Taxpayers have a right to expect HS2 is delivered efficiently and I won’t stand for anything less.

“I have promised to work fast and fix things and that’s exactly why I have announced urgent measures to get a grip on HS2’s costs and ensure taxpayers’ money is put to good use. 

“It’s high time we make sure lessons are learnt and the mistakes of HS2 are never repeated again.”

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James Stewart will lead the review and report back this winter, then the government has said it will publish six-monthly reports on HS2’s progress.

Mr Stewart is the former chief executive of Crossrail and former infrastructure chairman at consultancy firm KPMG, and has overseen infrastructure projects on the M25, London Underground and the London Olympics.

As part of bringing HS2 under ministerial oversight, there will be regular meetings with Ms Haigh, rail minister Lord Hendy and Darren Jones, chief secretary to the Treasury.

They will “challenge delivery and remove obstacles to securing the full benefits of the railway more effectively”, the DfT said.

A spokeswoman for HS2 Ltd said: “We welcome the secretary of state’s priorities for HS2 Ltd and are committed to working with the new government to improve delivery. We also fully support James Stewart’s governance review and look forward to his recommendations.

“HS2 Ltd recognises that there are many lessons to be learned from delivery to date and, under new leadership, are actively implementing the changes within our control to stabilise costs.

“HS2 is a complex project of strategic importance to the UK’s rail network, which will not only provide better journeys, more services and fewer delays for rail passengers, but will unlock economic growth and tackle regional inequality.”

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Sep 13 2024

Assisted dying should be allowed in England, according to ‘citizens’ jury’ | UK News

Assisted dying should be legalised in England, according to a panel made up of members of the public.

The so-called “citizens’ jury” – a randomly selected group brought together to discuss the topic by the Nuffield Council on Bioethics (NCOB) – deliberated for eight weeks.

It concluded that if a person has a terminal illness and capacity to make their own decision about an assisted death, they should be able to legally access both physician-assisted suicide (where healthcare professionals prescribe lethal drugs to eligible patients to take themselves) and voluntary euthanasia (where healthcare professionals administer lethal drugs to patients with the intention of ending their life).

“This is a significant finding that will be valuable for policy makers who are considering whether and how to take forward legislative change,” said Professor Anne Kerr, chair of the Nuffield Council on Bioethics’ Assisted Dying Advisory Board.

Twenty-eight members of the public made up the jury, participating in an eight-week process designed to explore the complexity of assisted dying.

They heard from a range of experts and considered evidence before voting on whether the law should be changed to allow assisted death.

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Twenty members either strongly agreed or tended to agree the law should change to permit assisted dying in England, while seven said they either strongly disagreed or tended to disagree with a law change and one person was undecided.

Assisted dying is legal in several countries including Australia, New Zealand, Canada and Switzerland, and remains illegal in the UK.

Encouraging or assisting a suicide in England and Wales can lead to criminal prosecution and up to 14 years in prison.

The top two reasons for supporting a change in the law were to stop pain and a belief in an individual having the choice to end their own life legally.

The top two reasons against a change in the law were that it could be used for the wrong reasons if safeguarding is not in place, and that it could be misinterpreted or misused causing challenges for both society and the legal system.

Professor Katherine Sleeman, Laing Galazka Chair in Palliative Care at Kings College London warned safeguarding in this issue is not straightforward.

“The Nuffield Council’s jurors agreed that vulnerable people should not be pressured into choosing assisted deaths,” she told Sky News.

Professor Sleeman pointed to this week’s Darzi review and a recent King’s College London/Marie Curie Time To Care report which highlighted the perilous state of NHS services, and inadequacies in palliative and end of life care, with difficulty accessing services and support for dying people all too common.

“The big question is how to ensure this in a context where health and care services for dying people are frequently inadequate,” Professor Sleeman said.

Nearly all jury members felt that more funding should be put towards improving NHS palliative care.

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Jul 29 2024

Bristol University student, 62, allowed to graduate 41 years late – on the same day as his son | UK News

A former university student has finally been allowed to graduate 41 years after completing his degree – on the same day as his son.

Jonny Clothier, 62, studied architecture at the University of Bristol and finished his studies in 1983.

But after the pet parrot of one of his flatmates defaced their accommodation – they were left with a bill of £64.80 for the final term – despite going to live elsewhere.

A long-abandoned rule dictated that students with outstanding debts were allowed their degrees – but not a graduation ceremony.

Mr Clothier has always refused to pay on principle.

But last Thursday the university decided to waive its usual restrictions, enabling Mr Clothier to graduate on the same day as his youngest son, Carter.

Carter studied biology and is hoping to pursue a career in sustainability.

After his mother and father met and studied alongside each other at Bristol – Carter is the last of his family to graduate from the university.

The Clothiers’ daughter Tiger studied law and works in marketing, while her brother Quito studied music – and now works as an art dealer.

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Their mother Helen, 60, read Russian and French and worked making TV documentaries in Russia.

Mr Clothier, who lives in Petersfield, Hampshire, said: “They haven’t mentioned the money, so I’m keeping quiet.

“It’s not really about me, it’s about them, and signing off on the 20-year project to get the kids through the whole cycle of education.”

But he added he “loved his time doing architecture”. “We worked really hard but we also played hard. We danced, we partied and then we went back to work,” he said.

“It’s been really nice watching the kids go through the same things 30 years on.”

He left architecture for a career in TV, but has returned to his original vocation, currently working on a contemporary net-zero treehouse in the Forest of Dean.

Carter Clothier said: “It’s definitely a unique experience graduating with your dad, but it was an amazing day and a beautiful ceremony. It was the perfect way to close off an incredible three years at Bristol.”

Professor Evelyn Welch, the university’s vice-chancellor and president, conferred Mr Clothier’s degree.

She said: “After 41 years, we thought it was finally time to waive the bill and it was great to see Jonny officially graduate.

“We are so pleased that Jonny, Carter and the rest of the family had such a great day, and we wish them all the best of luck in the future.”

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Jul 5 2024

Andrew Tate allowed to leave Romania while awaiting trial, court rules | UK News

Andrew Tate will be allowed to leave Romania while awaiting trial on charges of human trafficking, a court has ruled.

The controversial influencer and his brother Tristan can travel within the EU without restrictions while awaiting the trial, the Bucharest Tribunal ruled. Until Friday, the Tates had been banned from leaving Romania where he is awaiting trial.

The decision is not final and can be appealed by prosecutors.

Read more: Who is Andrew Tate?

Tate, 37, was charged in mid-2023 along with his brother for human trafficking, rape, and forming a criminal gang to sexually exploit women.

Two female suspects from Romania have also been charged as part of the case.

They have all denied the allegations against them.

In a post on X on Friday, Tate wrote: “I’m free. For the first time in three years I can leave Romania.”

He also referred to the charges as a “sham case” before advertising a platform that says it teaches the skill of money-making.

Tate, who has almost 10 million followers on X, repeated these sentiments in a video that accompanies the post and adds: “The process is the punishment, in the end I’ll be innocent.

“My judges decided… I’m allowed to leave Romania, so do we take the (Ferrari) SF90 to Italy, the (Maserati) MC20 to Cannes, the (Ferrari) 812 Competition to Paris, where do I go?”

The Tate brothers, both former kickboxers with dual US and British citizenship, were held in police custody during the criminal investigation from late December 2022 until April 2023 to prevent them from fleeing the country or tampering with evidence.

They were then placed under house arrest until August, when courts put them under judicial control, a lighter preventative measure.

“Andrew and Tristan are still determined to clear their name and reputation; however, they are grateful to the courts for placing this trust in them,” the brothers’ lead defence lawyer Eugen Vidineac said in a statement.

Romanian prosecutors have said the Tate brothers recruited their victims by seducing them and falsely claiming to want a relationship or marriage.

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They said the victims were then taken to properties outside the capital Bucharest, and through physical violence and mental intimidation were sexually exploited by being forced to produce pornographic content for social media sites that generated large financial gain.

In a separate case, Tate was served at his home in Romania with a civil lawsuit lodged by four British women after a claim was issued by the High Court in London, according to a statement released in May by McCue Jury & Partners, the law firm representing the four women.

The four allege Tate sexually and physically assaulted them and reported him to British authorities in 2014 and 2015.

After a four-year investigation, the Crown Prosecution Service decided in 2019 not to prosecute him.

The alleged victims then turned to crowdfunding to pursue a civil case against him.

In a third case, the Tate brothers also appeared in March at the Bucharest Court of Appeal after British authorities issued arrest warrants over allegations of sexual aggression in a UK case dating back to 2012 to 2015.

The appeals court granted the British request to extradite the Tates to the UK, but only after legal proceedings in Romania have concluded.

Tate, a self-described misogynist, has gained millions of fans by promoting an ultra-masculine lifestyle that critics say
denigrates women.

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May 15 2024

Schools won’t be allowed to teach children that they can change their gender ID, reports say | Politics News

Teachers in English schools will not be allowed to teach children that they can change their gender identity, according to reports.

Age limits are also set to be imposed for the first time on when children can be taught sex education.

The Times reports that education ministers will warn schools in England today that gender identity is “highly contested” and that teaching the issue could have “damaging implications”.

If asked, school staff should teach the “biological facts” about sex, the government will say, The Times adds.

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has become concerned gender identity is becoming “embedded” in schools as an uncontested fact, the newspaper says.

Under other proposals, schools will be told not to teach children any form of sex education until year 5, when pupils are aged nine.

The plans will also rule out any explicit conversations about sex until the age of 13, The Times report also says.

Thirteen would also be the age threshold for pupils to be taught about contraception, sexually transmitted infections, and abortion.

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The new guidance is reportedly part of the government’s response to concerns children are receiving age-inappropriate relationships, sex and health education (RSHE).

Schools will reportedly be required to provide parents with samples of the material their children will be taught.

RSHE became compulsory in all English schools in September 2020.

The existing guidance outlines broad lesson modules, stating primary school children should be taught about alternative types of families and healthy relationships.

Secondary-school-aged children are taught more complex topics, including puberty, sexual relationships, consent, unsafe relationships, and online harms.

The Department for Education said it could not confirm the newspaper reports, and that it would not speculate on leaks.

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Feb 22 2024

Officers should be allowed to ban drug and drink-drivers at the roadside, police chiefs say | UK News

Police chiefs are calling for new powers to allow officers to instantly disqualify drink or drug-drivers at the side of the road.

They say the new powers would allow police to take drivers who pose a risk to others off the road “immediately”.

Currently, drivers charged with drug or drink-driving offences are banned following a sentencing hearing at a magistrates’ court.

But these hearings can take weeks to get to the court, and, until then, drivers are allowed to get back behind the wheel.

Chief Constable Jo Shiner, the National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC) lead for roads policing, said: “The ability for us to be able to disqualify people either for drink or drug-driving by the roadside would mean that we can immediately take that risk off the road.

“And those people can’t be behind the wheel, particularly if they’ve blown well over the legal limit.”

Under the current system, drivers are checked using a road-side test, which, if positive, is followed by a confirmatory test at a police station.

If that second test comes back positive, they are charged and sent to court.

Force chiefs are currently in early discussions looking at the type of tests that could be used to allow officers to ban people at the roadside.

They are also looking at the legal changes needed to make the move possible.

As well as roadside bans, the NPCC also want tougher punishments for drivers who kill while under the influence, including potential murder charges.

Ms Shiner said: “We should have greater sentencing and far greater sentences, particularly for those people who do kill or seriously injure people on the roads.

“I actually do believe that if someone makes that decision to get behind the wheel, under the influence of drink or drugs, that is a conscious decision they have made to get into a vehicle and therefore to put other people at risk.

“I think we really do need to work hard on making sure that we’re strengthening the sentencing and making sure that we are properly using, where we can, sentencing that is already available to us.”

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The idea of instant disqualification is supported by Ceinwen Briddon, who campaigned for tougher sentences for fatal drivers after her 21-year-old daughter Miriam was killed in a head-on collision with a drunk driver.

Gareth Entwhistle, then 34, was jailed after admitting causing death by undue care while over the prescribed drink-drive limit in 2015.

He served half of a five-year jail term and was banned from driving for five years.

Ms Briddon’s campaigning spurred on a change in the law where those found guilty of causing death by dangerous driving can face a life sentence.

Ms Briddon said: “I would challenge anybody to say to me, how would they feel if they’d killed a person? How would they feel if they’d ruined a family’s life? Could they live with the thought of people hating them, and could they survive a lengthy period in jail?

“I do feel strongly that the length of sentence should reflect the crime.”

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Sep 15 2023

Brixton Academy will be allowed to reopen after deadly crowd crush if it can meet 77 ‘robust’ safety conditions | UK News

The Brixton Academy will be allowed to reopen after a fatal crowd crush at the venue last year – but Lambeth Council said the venue will have to meet 77 conditions to open again safely.

It comes after security guard Gaby Hutchinson, 23, and Rebecca Ikumelo, 33, died at the south London venue on 15 December 2022, when fans without tickets tried to enter a show by Nigerian Afrobeat artist, Asake.

Both victims were in the foyer of the building when they were critically injured, the Metropolitan Police said. About 1,000 people were outside the venue at the time.

The council said the Academy will have to meet 77 “extensive and robust” conditions “designed to promote public safety” before it could reopen, in a decision announced today.

Following the crush, which also injured 10 people, the venue was ordered to shut down after its licence was suspended by Lambeth Council in December.

A hearing of the council’s licensing subcommittee to decide the venue’s ultimate fate began on Monday.

The initial decision to close Brixton Academy was supported by the venue’s owner, Academy Music Group, which offered to voluntarily close the site’s doors over the suspension period.

The Metropolitan Police has also previously urged the council to act.

Gerald Gouriet KC, who represented the Met at an earlier licensing meeting, said officers found “large-scale disorder” with crowds eventually pushing the doors open in the moments before the crush.

A police investigation was launched, and the Security Industry Authority (SIA) opened an inquiry into corruption allegations that some security staff at the venue regularly took bribes.

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Meanwhile, a petition was launched calling for the venue to reopen. It surpassed 100,000 signatures.

Members of well-known bands, such as Blur and The Chemical Brothers, supported the reopening of the venue.

Asake was forced to abandon the gig last December after performing three songs and released a statement saying his “heart is with those who were injured”.

His manager, Stephen Nana, later told Sky News he was “completely speechless and lost for words” after Ms Hutchinson’s death was announced.

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Aug 16 2023

Bank of Ireland glitch ‘allowed customers with no money to withdraw funds from ATM’ | World News

A glitch with Bank of Ireland’s online app reportedly allowed customers with no money to transfer funds and withdraw it from an ATM.

The technical blunder meant people were able to put money into a Revolut digital account and then withdraw it from a cash point.

Some claimed that they were able to access as much as €1,000 (£859), but the bank insisted the daily withdrawal limit is €500 (£429), according to Independent.ie.

Various videos circulating on social media showed long queues at ATMs in various cities, as well as some police guarding pay points.

The bank confirmed it was working on a technical issue that was impacting multiple services, including the mobile app and online banking portal, 365Online, on Tuesday.

It warned customers that any money transferred or withdrawn over normal limits “will be debited from their account”.

“We are conscious customers may not be able to check balances, but should not withdraw/transfer if they are likely to become overdrawn,” it said in a statement posted on X (formerly Twitter).

Apologising for the disruption, the bank said both the app and 365Online, were back working on Wednesday, and that overnight payments “may appear throughout the day”.

“We are aware that the technical issue meant some customers were able to withdraw or transfer funds above their normal limits. These transfers and withdrawals will be applied to customers’ accounts today,” it said in a statement.

“We urge any customer who may find themselves in financial difficulty due to overdrawing on their account to contact us.”

The issue comes after another IT outage at the bank in June, according to Independent.ie.

This did not result in people getting access to funds they did not have in their accounts.

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May 31 2023

Longer lorries allowed on Britain’s roads despite fears over risks to pedestrians and cyclists | UK News

Longer lorries are now allowed on Britain’s roads to enable more goods to be carried on fewer journeys.

This is despite fears about the risks for pedestrians and cyclists as the vehicles have a larger tail swing – meaning their rear end covers a greater area when turning – and extended blind spots.

Lorry trailers up to 61ft (18.55m) long – some 6ft 9in (2.05m) longer than the standard size – are allowed to be used from 31 May.

The DfT has previously said the new lorries will be able to move the same volume of goods as current trailers in 8% fewer journeys.

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The policy is expected to generate £1.4n in economic benefits and take one standard-size trailer off the road for every 12 trips.

An 11-year trial of longer lorries has demonstrated they are safe for use on public roads, according to the DfT.

The study found they were involved in “around 61% fewer personal injury collisions than conventional lorries”, the department said.

A Government-commissioned report published in July 2021 revealed that 58 people were injured in incidents involving longer lorries between 2012 and 2020.

Roads minister Richard Holden said: “A strong, resilient supply chain is key to the Government’s efforts to grow the economy.

“That’s why we’re introducing longer semi-trailers to carry more goods in fewer journeys and ensure our shops, supermarkets and hospitals are always well stocked.”

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However, some organisations are concerned at the move – including Cycling UK.

Its campaigns manager Keir Gallagher said at the time of the government’s decision: “At a time when funding for infrastructure to keep people cycling and walking safer has been cut, it’s alarming that longer and more hazardous lorries could now be allowed to share the road with people cycling and walking.

“Before opening the floodgates to longer lorries rolling into our busy town centres and narrow rural lanes, further testing in real life scenarios should have been done to assess and address the risks.”

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