7220posts
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Our response to the Rock Review: one year on
Our response to the Rock Review set out our commitments in light of its recommendations. It is now one year since we published our response. And, of the 75 commitments, we have completed or are working on 64. In this post, we’ll summarise the progress we have made over the last year. We also shine a light on the role of the Farm Tenancy Forum and the collaborative approach of one farm in Oxfordshire.
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EX Auream Petram
Twenty eight staff members and officer cadets from Birmingham, Bristol, Wales, and Devon University Royal Navy Units (URNU) visited Gibraltar for a week-long programme. The cadets, who are all university students, participate in a placement at the URNU for approximately …
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Accounting for discounts and incentives in developer applications
Explaining the difference between discounts and incentives in HM Land Registry terms, and why it is vital to get this right when submitting applications.
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A high five for everyone driving Nature recovery – but we must not rest on our laurels
Tony Juniper CBE, Chair of Natural England Today marks five years since I became Chair of Natural England, which seems to me an appropriate point at which to take stock of the important progress made towards recovering Nature in that …
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Many Happy Returns for Earth Day 2024
For Earth Day 2024, we caught up with world renowned chemist, Professor Anthony Ryan, OBE, from the University of Sheffield to find out about an innovative project on plastic reuse funded by UKRI. The Grantham Centre at the University of …
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Coverage of the UK-wide ban on wet wipes containing plastic
There has been coverage, including in the Telegraph, Sky News, The Independent, Daily Mail, The Times and The Mirror of the publication of the government response to our consultation on a ban on plastic-containing wet wipes. Today’s announcement sets out the next steps to ban the sale and supply of wet wipes containing plastic across the UK.
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Conservation covenants: putting environmental commitments into law
Conservation covenants are legally binding agreements to protect nature or heritage features on land. In this post, we explore their benefits - including how they help to expand the market for biodiversity net gain offsite units.
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Apply now for a water screening study
From today, small groups of farmers in England can apply for a Local Resource Option (LRO) screening study. An LRO is a water resources scheme that improves the resilience or supply of water in a local area. LRO screening studies are one way farmers and growers can better understand their options to improve the supply or resilience of water. In this post, I’ll share the background, explain how the studies work and include links to learn more and apply.
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Tackling plastics in woodland creation
This Earth Day (22 April), Woodland Officer Katie explains some of the partnership work the Forestry Commission is involved in to help reduce the use of plastic associated with tree planting and creating woodlands.
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Environmental principles: putting nature at the heart of our policy making
Environmental principles — how does it fit into the vision for a Modern Civil Service? A Modern Civil Service is about being skilled, innovative and ambitious – and equipped for the future. The environmental principles duty is an excellent example …
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Join the Funding Service team
The Funding Service team is hiring! Do you work in engineering, user research or interaction design, and are looking for a fulfilling and impactful career opportunity? Join us online, meet our teams and potentially get hired.
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Watch online - Webinar on visiting care homes, hospitals and hospices
Visits from family and loved one’s are an important part of life when living in care settings. During the pandemic the challenges faced by both families and those living in care facilities were huge. We want to make sure, whenever …
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Empowering people: Unlocking democracy’s superpower
Cabinet Office civil servant, Catherine Day, visited the London Borough of Waltham Forest’s Neighbourhood Policing Citizens’ Assembly to explore how such assemblies work and their impact. She convenes a cross-government participatory methods forum to improve broad-based participation in policymaking. As …
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Coverage about upcoming border checks
Today’s blog outlines the government response to recent inaccurate coverage on upcoming border checks
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What will the minimum wage be next year?
‘What will the minimum wage be next year?’ This is a common question we hear from workers and employers on our visits around the country. Though the final recommended rate is agreed by Low Pay Commissioners through a negotiated process, …
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Being assessed and assessing – a tale of two perspectives: Part one
Jenny Taylor shares her experiences of having her work to design a new Defra Forms service assessed, and how she will apply the learnings in her future work.
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From valves and control systems to AI and robotics: is Sellafield the ultimate engineering training ground?
David Jones, Sellafield Ltd’s head of Operational Technology Group, explains why our nuclear heritage creates the ultimate engineering training environment for budding engineers.
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Update on the Renters (Reform) Bill
Today it has been confirmed by the Leader of the House of Commons that the Renters (Reform) Bill will return to the House on Wednesday next week, 24 April . This landmark legislation will provide a fairer private rented sector …
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Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games - delivering the highest quality global events with big local impact
Guest blog by Sam Lister, Director General at DCMS When thinking about the different kinds of jobs civil servants do, you might be surprised that these include organising a major international sporting event. An evaluation report published in April marked …
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Taking action for our ocean: reflections from the UN Ocean Decade Conference
In this post, Defra Chief Scientific Adviser Gideon Henderson and Senior Policy Advisor Frances Bird share their highlights and reflections from the UN Ocean Decade conference.
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Predicting emerging technologies – how did we do in 2023?
Jan Murdoch reflects on what the Defra Technology Innovation team got right with their 2023 Emerging Technology radar report, and the lessons they can take as they think about the next iteration.
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Offering wraparound childcare at our schools
Executive Deputy Headteacher, Lyndsy Killip, at Queen’s Park Federation tells us about their experience of being an early adopter of wraparound childcare and the benefits wraparound has brought to their school community.
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Gibraltar Defence Police Peer support coordinators course
Three members of the Gibraltar Defence Police and the Defence Guard Service welfare committee recently took part in an online Peer Support Co-ordinators course as part of improving their force’s welfare capabilities. The National Police Wellbeing Service course, which took …
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CMA10 essay competition: winners announced
We ran an essay competition to mark the 10th anniversary of the CMA. 85 students and recent graduates sent in their entries in response to the question: ‘What are the benefits of a strong competition and/or consumer protection regime, and …
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FiPL spotlight: the Central Dartmoor Farm Cluster
In the latest Farming in Protected Landscape (FiPL) project spotlight, I shine a light on the work of the Central Dartmoor Farm Cluster.
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Media factsheet: eVisas
This factsheet has been superseded by a new version here. Overview eVisas are a key part of delivering a border and immigration system which will be ‘digital by default’ by 2025. This process is already underway, and millions of people …
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Engendering passion for our natural world
Toby Strong, award winning cinematographer, and colleague and friend of David Attenborough, shares his reflections on the importance of engendering a passion for our natural world. I was honoured and excited to be at the recent GDSA summit and …
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Our plan for Cambridge
There remains much interest in our plan to unleash the economic potential of Cambridge, by building new homes and increasing the amount of lab space. Cambridge is a key part of our long-term plan for housing and we believe the …
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Madam Speaker and the Minister for Health, Care and Business visit to Royal Navy Gibraltar Squadron
The Minister for Heath, Care and Business, the Hon Gemma Arias-Vasquez, and the Speaker of the Gibraltar Parliament, Judge Karen Ramagge visited Royal Navy Gibraltar Squadron yesterday, Tuesday 16 April. They were greeted by Commander British Forces, Commodore Tom Guy, …
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Announcing the second year of MANIFEST: three new artists placed in policy teams
Policy Lab provides an experimental environment for testing and evaluating new ways to make policy. In our ten-year history we have created space for designers, technologists, ethnographers and other novel practitioners, all with the aim to make policy more effective, …
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Providing guidance to protect habitats and threatened native species
By James Marshall, Deputy Director for Norfolk and Suffolk As the government’s advisers on the natural environment, Natural England’s role is to ensure our environment is conserved, enhanced and managed for the benefit of people and wildlife. Recent media reports …
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Guidance for Local Authorities on Data Analytics in Children’s Social Care
Children’s Social Care is one of the most important functions the government carries out. Children who need help and protection deserve high quality and effective support as soon as a need is identified. Data analytics tools, software that enables categorisation …
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How to register as a childminder and receive a grant worth up to £1,200
We’re making the biggest investment by a UK government into childcare in history. Parents have the flexibility to choose how they spend their government-funded hours – and many are opting to use childminders. Being a childminder is a rewarding role where you can …
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Laying the hedgerow regulations
We are pleased to tell you that legislation to protect hedgerows has today been laid in both Houses of Parliament. If approved by Parliament, the Management of Hedgerows (England) Regulations 2024 will put baseline hedgerow management practices into law, providing a consistent approach across all people operating on agricultural land.
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Stop! Think Fraud: Home Office-led campaign empowers people to protect themselves against fraud
Fraud accounts for around 38% of all estimated crime in England and Wales, that’s nearly one in 17 adults who fall victim to fraud every year, and the cost of fraud to society is estimated to be £6.8 billion a …
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Unmasking deception: join the Deepfake Detection Challenge!
Amid increasing risks, including rapid advances in generative artificial intelligence which are accelerating the evolution of deepfakes, the Home Office, the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology, the Alan Turing Institute, and ACE have come together to launch a Deepfakes Detection Challenge.
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What is social value and how can schools and trusts benefit from it?
Find out why the Get help buying for schools service wants to work with schools and trusts to ensure they are getting not just value for money, but wider social value from their procurements, and why schools shouldn’t be afraid to ask suppliers what additional value they can bring to the table.
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Graham excited by challenges facing the evolving UK NSC
Dr Graham Shortland OBE talks about his roles on the UK NSC as vice-chair and a paediatric specialist and the exciting challenges facing the committee.
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Who’s eligible for the 2024 COVID-19 vaccine, or ‘Spring Booster’?
For information about the 2024 COVID-19 autumn/winter vaccination, visit our relevant blog post. As we move into spring, protection from any earlier COVID-19 vaccination you may have had will be starting to wane. For those who are more likely to …
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Royal Gibraltar Regiment welcomes newly commissioned officers
The Royal Gibraltar Regiment proudly welcomes Officer Cadet Adam Large and Officer Cadet Joseph Pfang, who have successfully completed their training at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst and will now join the Regiment as Second Lieutenants (2nd Lt). 2nd Lts …