41 million people in Bangladesh, India and Nepal have been directly affected by flooding

MUMBAI, India — More than 1,000 people have died in floods across South Asia this summer.

Floods covered the streets last week in Agartala, the capital of Tripura State in India.
CreditArindam Dey/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images

Sheets of incessant rain pummeled the vast region on Tuesday, worries grew that the death toll would rise along with the floodwaters.

According to the United Nations, at least 41 million people in Bangladesh, India and Nepal have been directly affected by flooding and landslides resulting from the monsoon rains, which usually begin in June and last until September.




Read more on the story in the Telegraph

Lord Jericho destroys Terry Pratchett's unfinished novels

Unpublished works are lost for ever with crushing of computer hard drive – as the late fantasy novelist had instructed

 Terry Pratchett asked that his unfinished work ‘be put in the middle of a road … for a steamroller to steamroll over them all’. Photograph: Rob Wilkins/PA

The unfinished books of Sir Terry Pratchett have been destroyed by a steamroller, following the late fantasy novelist’s wishes.

Terry Pratchett docudrama reveals moment author realised he was 'dead'

 

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Pratchett’s hard drive was crushed by a vintage John Fowler & Co steamroller named Lord Jericho at the Great Dorset Steam Fair, ahead of the opening of a new exhibition about the author’s life and work.

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Plastic Bag usage down by 83 percent

Since its introduction, the 5p plastic bag charge has reduced use by over nine billion bags – enough to wrap around the world more than 100 times. 

Money raised from the charge has generated £95 million for good causes.

Samantha Harding, litter programme director at the Campaign to Protect Rural England (CPRE), reflected on the latest statistics:

“It is fantastic to see that the huge reduction in bag use has been sustained since the scheme was introduced over 18 months ago. Over time, it will have a positive effect on the disastrous plastic pollution in our seas and countryside, and it proves that the public support environmental incentives.”

From:

Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs and The Rt Hon Michael Gove MP

Part of:

Environmental quality, Waste and recycling, and Marine environment

Published:

21 July 2017

Tesco will no longer sell carrier bags

Tesco replaces single use carrier bags with new ‘Bag for Life’ that will fund community projects across the UK

Tesco has today announced that from 28 August single use carrier bags will be replaced by a new ‘Bag for Life’ made from 94% recycled plastic. The new bag will be priced at 10p and sales of the bag will fund community projects across Britain.

.thisismoney.co.uk

The announcement follows a successful 10-week trial in Aberdeen, Dundee and Norwich, where Tesco found that customers bought significantly fewer bags. Sales of bags in trial stores have since reduced by 25% and customers found that the Bag for Life, which is replaceable for free if damaged, helped them move to re-useable bags.

Tesco has given out 1.5 billion fewer single use bags since the introduction of the carrier bag charge in England in 2015, but still sells over 700 million of these each year. Removing single use carrier bags will significantly reduce the number of bags sold and will therefore help reduce litter and bags sent to landfill.

Online customers will still be able to opt for single use carrier bags for their shopping or select a bagless delivery, which 57% of Tesco’s online customers are now doing. Tesco also revealed today that it will be removing single-use wine carriers and lowering the price of its ‘Carry me bottle bag’ from £1 to 40p.

Over two thousand young people from England and Wales will take part in a national concert

Over two thousand young people from England and Wales will take part in a national concert to mark the centenary of the end of the First World War.

Minister for Faith Lord Bourne confirmed the ‘Lest We Forget’ concert, backed by £90,000 government funding will take place in November 2018 as part of the government’s centenary programme of ceremonial events, cultural activity and education.

34m export deal with the Philippines

Beef reared in the UK will now join pork, poultry, lamb and dairy on the list of UK food and drink shipped to the Philippines.

CopyrightJohn Woracker Photography

New export deal will soon see British beef on dinner plates and menus across the Philippines. The Department of International trade team at the British Embassy Manila provided significant support to Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) to secure an export deal estimated to be worth £34 million to the UK economy.

From:

Foreign & Commonwealth Office

Part of:

Exports and inward investment and Philippines

Published:

15 August 2017

House Prices up by 4.9% on the Island

According to the UK House Price Index (HPI) for June 2017

The Isle of Wight House Price Index has risen by 4.9%

This means according to the data gathered by the HM Land Registry house price have risen on the island making the average price of £204,673 in June 2017. The annual rise is just below the national average of 5.2% (excluding London).

The London property market fell in June 2017 0.7% with an annual rise of 2.9%.

From:

HM Land Registry

Published:

15 August 2017

Mandatory CCTV in all slaughterhouses under new animal welfare plans

Environment Secretary Michael Gove has announced a series of measures to further strengthen animal welfare standards in England.

CCTV will be mandatory in all slaughterhouses in England under new plans announced today (11 August 2017) by Environment Secretary Michael Gove, as he outlined a series of measures to cement the UK’s position as a global leader on animal welfare.

The proposals will deliver a manifesto commitment for CCTV to be required in every slaughterhouse in England in all areas where live animals are present, with unrestricted access to footage for Official Vets - reassuring consumers that high welfare standards are being effectively enforced.

The Government has also confirmed it will raise standards for farm animals and domestic pets by modernising statutory animal welfare codes to reflect enhancements in medicines, technology and the latest research and advice from vets. The codes will remain enshrined in law and the first to be updated will cover chickens bred for meat.

Environment Secretary Michael Gove said:

We have some of the highest animal welfare standards in the world and the actions I am setting out today will reinforce our status as a global leader.

As we prepare to leave the EU, these measures provide a further demonstration to consumers around the world that our food is produced to the very highest standards.

Under the new plans for CCTV, footage would be accessible to the Food Standards Agency’s (FSA) Official Veterinarians (OVs), who monitor and enforce animal welfare standards in the slaughterhouse. The FSA has strict processes in place for the approval of slaughterhouses, and specially trained vets carry out checks to make sure the welfare of animals is protected throughout their time in the slaughterhouse. If breaches are found, a slaughterhouse can be given a welfare enforcement notice, have its staff’s licences suspended or revoked, or be referred for a criminal investigation.

From:

Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs and The Rt Hon Michael Gove MP

Part of:

Animal welfare

Published:

11 August 2017

Looking at buying some new shoes

Gucci

You may wonder what The Maritime and Coastguard Agency get up too?

The Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) announced today that ten foreign flagged ships were under detention in UK ports during July 2017 after failing Port State Control (PSC) inspection.

Photographer: Ashley Hunn

Vessel Name: SEA TRIDENT

GT: 964.

IMO No: 7393169.

Flag: PANAMA (white list)

Company:

Classification Society: Expired

Recognised Organisation: Expired

Recognised Organisation for ISM DOC:

Recognised Organisation for ISM SMC:

Date and Place of Detention: 17 June 2016, West Cowes

Summary: Seventeen deficiencies with seventeen grounds for detentions

Defective item	Nature of defect	Ground for Detention
01101 - Cargo ship safety equipment cert	Expired	Yes
01102 – Cargo Ship safety construction cert	Expired	Yes
01104 – Cargo ship safety radio cert	Expired	Yes
01108 – Loadline cert	Expired	Yes
01117 – IOPP (International Oil Pollution Prevention cert	Expired	Yes
01119 – International Sewage Pollution Prevention cert	Expired	Yes
01124 – International Air Pollution Prevention cert	Expired	Yes
01137 – Civil liability for bunker oil pollution damage cert	Expired	Yes
01199 – Other certs (Certificate of class)	Expired	Yes
01201 – Certificates for master and officers	Missing	Yes
10111 – Charts	Not updated	Yes
10116 – Publications Nautical	Not updated	Yes
11108 – Inflatable liferafts	Expired	Yes
11116 – Distress flares	Missing	Yes
07109 – Fixed fire fighting extinguishing installation	Not as required	Yes
07110 – Fire fighting equipment & appliances	Not as required	Yes
01140 – Declaration of Maritime Labour Compliance	Missing	Yes

This vessel was still detained on 31st July 2017

The Maritime and Coastguard Agency

We work to prevent the loss of life on the coast and at sea. We produce legislation and guidance on maritime matters, and provide certification to seafarers.

Responsibilities

We are responsible for:

• the safety of everybody in a vessel in UK waters
• the safety of all seafarers on UK flagged vessels
• making sure all equipment on UK vessels is fit for purpose
• making sure all seafarers on UK vessels have correct documentation
• the environmental safety of UK coast and waters
• the accuracy of hydrographic data on UK charts
• overseeing coastal rescue volunteers, hydrographics, seafarer certification and the port state control inspection regime

MCA is an executive agency, sponsored by the Department for Transport.

https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/maritime-and-coastguard-agency/about

From:

Maritime and Coastguard Agency

Published:

8 August 2017

Parkhurst to have new Urban Village

The Department for Communities and Local Government has also awarded grant funding for critical infrastructure to drive the delivery of other large-scale housing projects across the country. This includes:

• £9.6 million for the development of Parkhurst Urban Village on the Isle of Wight

Published: 

10 August  2017 gov.uk

Extract from the previous consultation iwight.gov.uk

Google.co.uk 

Extracted from Mod development control 14-8-01 paper-b3

Camp Hill Estate
Site E (approved)	1 unit	1 unit
Albany Estate
Site J (deferred)	132 units
Site D (approved)	56 units	188 units
Parkhurst Estate
Site B (to be considered 14 August 2001)	9 units
Site K (to be considered 14 August 2001)	38 units
Site H (to be considered 14 August 2001)	25 units
Site A (to be considered 14 August 2001)	20 units
Site M (deferred)	125 units
Site C (approved)	14 units	231 units
	Total 420 units

Whisky galore! Bid to make UK exports like Scottish tipple flow freely

I am slightly confused about this one, most Scottish Whisky is made in Scotland who has there own Government!

UK government is looking to boost iconic UK exports even further.

The Scotch Whisky Association published a report at the beginning of this year on its economic impact in the UK, estimating that:

• Scotch whisky adds £3.2 billion of value to the UK economy and a further £1.7 billion through indirect and induced impacts
• 10,800 people are directly employed in the industry with a further 29,300 indirect and induced jobs

The UK government has set its sights on reducing high tariffs as part of a drive to boost overseas trade in world-renowned UK products such as Scotch whisky, International Trade Secretary Dr Liam Fox said today.

Work is underway at the Department for International Trade (DIT) to make it easier for UK companies to benefit from further trading opportunities across the world post-Brexit.

The announcement comes as Scottish Secretary David Mundell meets with representatives of the Scotch Whisky Association and Diageo at the iconic Caol Ila distillery in Islay today, to discuss how the UK government is laying the groundwork to reduce export tariffs on unique Scottish produce.

Tariffs – which trading partners can impose on exports – can be particularly high in some markets, hindering businesses from making the most of the overseas demand for UK products.

Now DIT officials are looking to see where future trade agreements and stronger trade ties with key trading partners around the world could reduce export tariffs for iconic Scottish goods such as Scotch whisky, smoked salmon and gin.

For Scotch whisky, these tariffs can be over 150% of the value of the product. Tariffs on gin can reach similar levels, whilst smoked salmon tariffs average 13%.

DIT is also investigating how reductions in non-tariff barriers to trade – such as complex regulation and licensing rules – could form part of future negotiations in key markets, providing a further boost to British exports.

The UK exported over £300 billion of goods in 2016, with the majority of these sent to non-EU countries, while 7 of the UK’s top 10 whisky export markets lie outside of the EU.

With whisky worth over £5 billion to the UK economy and accounting for 20% of our total food and drink exports, the UK government is ensuring that as we leave the European Union the industry is able to tackle the tariffs and boost overseas sales.

From:

Department for International Trade and The Rt Hon Liam Fox MP

Part of:

Exports and inward investment and Free trade

Published:

3 August 2017

Manufacturers urged to combat threats from hackers as cars become more intelligent.

A new generation of internet-connected cars will have to be better protected from hackers, under tough new government guidance issued today (6 August 2017).

Copyright JohnWoracker.com

Smart vehicles are increasingly becoming the norm on British roads – allowing drivers to access maps, travel information and new digital radio services from the driving seat.

But while smart cars and vans offer new services for drivers, it is feared would-be hackers could target them to access personal data, steal cars that use keyless entry, or even take control of technology for malicious reasons.

Now new government guidance will ensure engineers developing smart vehicles will have to toughen up cyber protections and help design out hacking. The government is also looking at a broader programme of work announced in this year’s Queen’s speech under the landmark Autonomous and Electric Vehicles Bill that aims to create a new framework for self-driving vehicle insurance.

The legislation will put Britain at the centre of the new technological developments in smart and autonomous vehicles – but while ensuring safety and consumer protection remain at the heart of the emerging industry.

Measures to be put before Parliament mean that insuring modern vehicles will provide protection for consumers if technologies fail.

This comes alongside new guidance that means manufacturers will need to design out cyber security threats as part of their development work.

This will cement the UK as a world-leading location for research and development for the next generation of vehicles. And it forms part of the government’s drive to ensure the country harnesses the economic and job-creating potential of new tech industries.

Transport Minister Lord Callanan said:

Our cars are becoming smarter and self-driving technology will revolutionise the way in which we travel. Risks of people hacking into the technology might be low, but we must make sure the public is protected. Whether we’re turning vehicles into wifi connected hotspots or equipping them with millions of lines of code to become fully automated, it is important that they are protected against cyber-attacks.

That’s why it’s essential all parties involved in the manufacturing and supply chain are provided with a consistent set of guidelines that support this global industry. Our key principles give advice on what organisations should do, from the board level down, as well as technical design and development considerations.

The government will continue to support and work collaboratively with industry to make sure vehicles are protected from cyber-attacks. The guidance principles published today will form a key part of these discussions .

General Interest 2003 Temperatures in UK top 100 F for first time during European heat wave

Whoops sorry that was 2003

On this day in 2003, the United Kingdom records its first-ever temperature over 100 degrees Fahrenheit. Throughout the month, an intense heat wave scorched the European continent, claiming more than 35,000 lives.

Copyright johnworacker.com

August 2003 was the hottest August ever recorded in the northern hemisphere and broke all previous records for heat-related deaths. France was the worst hit, with almost 15,000 victims, followed by Germany, where approximately 7,000 people died. Thousands also died in Spain and Italy. A majority of the victims were elderly, very young, or chronically ill.

Citation from This Day in History

£65 million government support for UK's largest Build to Rent site at Wembley Park

The biggest development of homes built specifically for private rent in the UK is set to receive a £65 million boost from the government.

The biggest development of homes built specifically for private rent in the UK is set to receive a £65 million boost from the government, Housing Minister Alok Sharma announced today (3 August 2017).

The deal will help to unlock over 7,600 new, high quality homes at the Wembley Park development in Brent, London – one of the largest strategic regeneration projects in the country. At least 6,800 of these homes will be for rent.

It will offer more choice for Londoners and comes as the government confirmed widespread support for its proposals to open up the choice of rental properties on the market, to help those currently priced out.

The measures include:

• changing planning rules so councils proactively plan for more Build to Rent homes where there is need
• making it easier for Build to Rent developers to offer affordable private rent in place of other types of affordable home
• introducing longer tenancies which are more family friendly to provide better security for renters – government action in this area has already seen the offer of 3 year or longer tenancies being made available to 35,000 tenants across the country according to British Property Federation estimates.

Build to Rent homes are built at scale for the primary purpose of being rented long-term, they can boost choice and quality in the private rented sector.

Across England the sector is expanding, with 80,855 homes either completed or planned. The industry estimates investment in the private rented sector could grow to £70 billion by 2022. This could provide a further 15,000 homes each year – with the potential to reach at least 240,000 homes built specifically for private rent – by 2030.

Housing and Planning Minister Alok Sharma said:

Whether renting or owning all families should have the security they need to be able to plan for the future.

That’s why as part of our plan to fix the broken housing market we’ve been taking action to create a bigger and better private rental market, supporting new Build to Rent developments so that tenants can have greater choice.

Developments like Wembley Park are a great example of doing just that, boosting the choice and quality of homes on the market – meeting the needs of renters in cities and towns across England.

The Wembley Park development is backed by a loan from the government’s £3 billion Home Building Fund. It will bring over 8,000 jobs to the area and support infrastructure to free up land for development.

Delivered in phases over the next 7 years, the flats will include a mix of studios, 1, 2 or 3-bedroom properties, all located closely to the underground station. The site next to the National Stadium will also include up to 2,350 affordable homes.

Homes and Communities Agency (HCA) Chief Executive Nick Walkely said:

This autumn, the HCA will relaunch as Homes England with the ambition of creating a better housing market. We’re determined to get more homes built now and increase the rate of future development.

This development is a fantastic example of how we fund vital infrastructure to speed up the construction of much-needed quality homes for people to rent.

Quintain Chief Executive, Angus Dodd said:

This £65 million government loan will be match funded by Quintain to provide a £130 million infrastructure investment into Wembley Park to deliver new car and coach parking, an energy centre and the first phase of the new 7 acre public park. Not only will this funding allow these critical elements to be brought forward, it will also support the more rapid delivery of new homes.

We are delighted to welcome the Housing Minister to Wembley Park today. The area is already home to a thriving community and will become the largest build to rent development anywhere in the UK.

Work on the new homes at Wembley Park has already begun and is set to be completed in 2026.

From:

Department for Communities and Local Government, Homes and Communities Agency, and Alok Sharma MP

Part of:

House building and Rented housing sector

Published:

3 August 2017