Residents parking restrictions are set to be introduced across large areas of Exmouth.

Daniel Clark www.devonlive.com 

Councillors on the East Devon Highways and Traffic Orders Committee on Friday unanimously agreed to advertise the traffic regulation orders that would enable the parking restrictions to be put in place.

It followed a consultation back in October 2019 which received over 1,200 responses from around 1,000 address in Exmouth, which saw more than 60 per cent of the respondents in the areas affected back proposals to introduce a residents’ parking scheme.

The East Devon HATOC heard that as a result, it was proposed that restrictions are progressed in the zones where the majority of responses are in favour of a scheme.

Residents Parking sign

The report of Meg Booth, chief officer for highways, said: “It should be noted that this may include some roads where residents may be opposed to a scheme, but it is not practical or appropriate to exclude that road from the proposals being developed. A number of residents from Bicton Place have submitted comments as part of the consultation to request that they be included in a scheme and it is recommended that the proposals be amended to include this road.”

Restrictions will be introduced in five Zones:

· Zone A – Colonies Area

· Zone B – Withycombe Road Area

· Zone C – St Andrews Road Area

· Zone D – Albion Street Area

· Zone E – Carter Avenue Area

But she added that a sixth zone around the town centre area (EX6) saw a very low response rate of just 6.2 per cent, and as those responding had mixed views, but slightly more were opposed to a scheme, it is recommended that the proposed restrictions are not progressed in this area.

Following discussions with the local members, it is proposed that the residents parking scheme apply 8am to 8pm on all days to maximise the benefits of a scheme at times it can be enforced.

The consultation responses saw that the times that most people found difficult to park outside their homes were either after 4pm in the evening, or at weekends

Cllr Richard Scott, who represents Exmouth, backed the proposals which were ‘a massive piece of work to try and solve the problem of parking’. He added: “I hope the members can see the detail and I ask that you support the largest change in parking restrictions in Exmouth.”

His fellow ward member, Cllr Jeff Trail added: “This is a massive change for the residents who have faced parking issues and a lack of residents unable to park near their homes.”

The proposals were unanimously supported by the East Devon HATOC, and subject to no objections being received to the traffic regulation order process, will then come into force, at a date yet to be determined.

Thrown-away flatscreen televisions and vacuum cleaners are among electrical items now being sold at recycling centres in Exmouth and Exeter for the first time.

eastdevonnews.co.uk 

Safety-checked and function-tested devices have been added to the re-conditioned stock of low-cost shops at some tips – and even come with a 30-day guarantee.

The new scheme to give the discarded products a fresh lease of life comes following public demand for the popular ‘re-sale’ outlets to expand their offering.

Knowle Hill Recycling Centre in Exmouth and Pinbrook Recycling Centre in Exeter are among five across the county taking part in the initiative.

Concerns over the number of confirmed coronavirus cases has prompted Devon County Council’s leader to warn the county may not drop down to Tier 1 when the grades are reassessed.

[Isn’t a couple of weeks too soon after the transition from lockdown 2 to Tier2* to make any “meaningful” case? – Owl]

Anita Merritt www.devonlive.com

When the current tiered system is reviewed next Wednesday, December 16, some areas could move into a lower tier – while others may move up.

Authorities have a week to make their case for moving down a tier. The review will consider the opinions of local public health directors, with a final decision on whether any changes will take place being made at a cabinet committee.

Areas which are approved for tier changes will see the switch take place on December 19.

Devon County Council leader John Hart has shared concerns about the number of people still being tested positive for coronavirus in Devon, which is currently in Tier 2.

Yesterday, Devon Live reported the latest Covid figures for Devon show the total number of infections in Exeter over the past seven days now stands at 130 – continuing a steady downward trend in the city.

A total of 10 people tested positive, according to the latest data from Public Health England.

The ward with the highest infection rate in the city is Wonford and St Loyes, which has an infection rate of 253 per 100,000 people. Its 21 cases was unchanged on Monday.

Areas seeing an increase include St Leonard’s; Heavitree East & Whipton South; Central Exeter; and Exwick and Foxhayes.

It now means there have been 2,777 Covid-19 cases in Exeter since the pandemic started.

Exeter’s coronavirus case rate per 100,000 is currently 98.9. That is above the Devon county rate of 76.6.

The highest infection rate can currently be found in East Devon. Honiton North & East has 16 cases and a rolling rate of 264.6.

In North Devon all the wards have less than 10 cases. Figures in Torbay remain low. In Torridge, Holsworthy, Bradworthy and Welcome has seen nine new cases, taking the total to 21.

Cllr Hart said: “As much as I would like to see restrictions lifted a little in order to support our local tourism and hospitality industry, I fear case numbers are not yet coming down sufficiently to warrant a move to Tier 1.

“In particular, there is still real concern about positivity rates among older people and the pressure this could put on local hospitals.

“I fully recognise that there is a very fine and difficult balance to strike between lives and livelihoods here in Devon.

“If we are to stay in Tier 2 then I would like to see more support from the government for our hard pressed local businesses, and the hospitality trade in particular.

“While there will be the relaxation of tier restrictions between December 23 and 27 to enable families to get together for Christmas, we must all make sure we continue to make the right choices and do not drop our guard otherwise we will pay a heavy price in January with the inevitable prospect of tighter restrictions needed if numbers start to rise again.”

A government plan to deliver discounted starter homes has left 85,000 young people waiting in vain for an affordable place to live, in a policy branded “deplorable” by a cross-party committee of MPs.

Robert Booth www.theguardian.com

The 2015 initiative to build 200,000 homes and sell them at a 20% discount was formally scrapped this year without a single home being built. But £173m was spent buying land, a damning report by the Commons public accounts committee said. It is now on course to deliver only 6,600 homes and is being replaced by a new scheme.

The influential committee highlighted the abandoned scheme as a waste of time and resources as part of a broadside against government housing policy, which it said has been “stringing expectant young people along for years” with housing policies that “come to nothing as ministers come and go with alarming frequency” – there have been 19 since 1997.

It also criticised the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) for failing to say how it will reach its ambition of building 300,000 homes a year in England and accused ministers of an “alarming blurring” of the definition of affordable housing.

The attack came a week after annual figures showed construction of the cheapest social housing remained at close to its lowest level since the 1980s, with just 6,566 homes built between March 2019 and April 2020. Affordable homes of all kinds numbering 57,644 were built in England but social housing experts have estimated 145,000 new affordable homes are needed annually. Official figures on Tuesday revealed housebuilding starts fell by almost 40% during the pandemic.

“The department for ‘housing’ is at risk of losing the right to the title,” said Meg Hillier MP, chair of the committee. “It has serially, constantly failed to deliver affordable new homes or even make a serious attempt to execute its own housing policies or achieve targets before they are ditched, unannounced – costs sunk and outcomes unknown.… MHCLG needs to ditch the false promises and set out clear, staged, funded plans, backed by the necessary laws and with a realistic prospect of delivering.”

The Starter Homes scheme fizzled out when mortgage lenders raised the difficulty of valuing properties with discounts applied.

David O Leary, policy director at the Home Builders Federation, said its failure “demonstrates the importance of ensuring that proper consideration is given to the practical implementation of interventions and their market impacts as early as possible”.

The PAC said the government remained unable to say when its new starter home policy – called First Homes, which offers 30% discounted homes to local first-time buyers – will deliver the first properties to purchase.

“Its reliance on developer contributions to fund First Homes is part of an opaque, complex mechanism which risks less money being available to local authorities for housing and infrastructure,” the report said. “The department does not have a timetable or target for delivering First Homes but is planning a pilot to build 1,500 First Homes ‘within the next couple of years’, which it wants to learn from before further planning of the new scheme.”

It also said it was “wearily familiar” that the MHCLG is “unable or unwilling” to clarify how it will achieve its ambition of 300,000 new homes per year by the mid-2020s.

David Renard, the Local Government Association’s housing spokesperson, said: “The government must hand councils the powers to build new homes at a scale not seen since the 1970s when local authorities built 40% of new homes. Councils fully support the aspiration of people wanting to buy their own home and helping those that want to buy to be able to. However not everybody is ready to buy.”

“This report shows how the government’s approach to solving the housing emergency has been focused on all the wrong solutions,” said Polly Neate, chief executive of Shelter. “The government has persisted with schemes for expensive homes which often end up not getting built. There is wide public and political support for social housing across the country, but progress is nonexistent.”

An MHCLG spokesperson rejected the PAC report, saying it was “misleading”. “Since 2010 over 663,000 households have been helped into home ownership through government schemes,” they said. “We’re also investing over £12 billion in affordable housing over the next five years – the largest investment in a decade – and our new First Homes scheme will help local people and key workers buy their own home, in the area they already live, at a discount of 30%.”

[Couldn’t make it up – Owl]

Government demands information from council after Mayor arrest

Liam Thorp www.liverpoolecho.co.uk 

The government has written to Liverpool City Council requesting information as it investigates the situation at the authority following the arrest of Mayor Joe Anderson.

The letter reveals that the city council’s Chief Executive Tony Reeves met with Local Government Secretary Robert Jenrick at his request on Monday following Friday’s dramatic news.

Mayor Anderson was arrested on Friday on suspicion of conspiracy to commit bribery and witness intimidation.

Last December the council’s Director of Regeneration Nick Kavanagh was arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to defraud and misconduct in a public office nearly a year ago.

Now Catherine Frances, the Director General of Local Government, Strategy & Analysis at the Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government has written to Mr Reeves requesting key information as the government looks to decide what level of intervention may be required at Liverpool City Council.

The letter states: “Dear Mr Reeves, As you are aware, Merseyside Police have been conducting an investigation which has resulted in a number of arrests made on suspicion of fraud, bribery, corruption and misconduct in public office, in December 2019, in September 2020 and most recently on 4 December 2020 in connection with offences of bribery and witness intimidation.

“This investigation involves a significant connection to Liverpool City Council.

“As you are also aware, the Secretary of State has a range of powers available to him under the Local Government Act 1999 in relation to the ‘Best Value’ duty on councils.

“You met with the Secretary of State at his request on Monday 7 December and gave him a range of assurances about the steps you have taken to improve governance in the Council, to ensure that the Council is now operating properly and in line with the duty.”

The letter adds: “Following that conversation, and given the seriousness of the issues, this letter invites your authority to provide by 3pm on 11 December 2020: a) Information about any proposals or plans for your authority to enter into any commitment to dispose of, or otherwise transfer to third parties, or relating to the development of, any real property other than existing domestic property for the purposes of residential accommodation.

“This information should include identifying the property, and indication of its value, and the current position and likely future timetable for the disposal, transfer, or commitment relating to the development of the property.

“b) Information on the steps the authority has taken and proposes to take to secure effective governance, with particular reference to its planning, highways, regeneration and property management functions, and to provide regular updates to the department on these steps.”

Ms Frances continues by asking Mr Reeves to keep her informed on a regular basis about ‘the Council’s ongoing response to these issues.’

She wrote: “As the Secretary of State said to you when you spoke yesterday, the department stands ready to provide the council with the support it needs to ensure that it is able to support the people and City of Liverpool as effectively as possible at this challenging time.”

Responding to the letter, a spokesperson for Liverpool City Council said: “The council will be responding to the terms of the letter within the timescale requested.”

If not by the French…….. An early Christmas quiz: What caught Owl’s eye in this article? Hint it’s all in the name of a trawler and remember quotas and the “Nina May”

Steven Morris www.theguardian.com 

Even before the sun rose, the harbour-side of Brixham, which bills itself as the birthplace of the trawling industry, was bustling.

Fishermen, market workers and merchants were busy with their early morning tasks, landing, preparing, and auctioning off gleaming hauls of dover sole, monkfish and scallops.

But in the background, thoughts of the Brexit negotiations taking place hundreds of miles away in London and Brussels were hovering.

“I wish they’d get on and get it sorted,” said Dave Brown as he unloaded a catch of bass from his boat, The Thankful. “This could be a really significant moment for our industry. We want our waters and our quotas back.”

Brown has worked from this famous old Devon port for 40 years. He does not feel fishermen from mainland Europe should be barred completely from British waters. “There’s got to be some compromise but it’s just not fair at the moment.” Is he optimistic a favourable deal will be reached? “Not very, to be honest.”

In truth, there was precious little optimism at the harbour. The most common responses – accompanied by a variety of colourful expletives – were variations on: “We’ll be sold down the river again” or “We’ll be shafted, we always are.”

The mood in Brixham is not helped by a tragedy. Local man Adam Harper, 26, was one of two fishermen who died when the boat the Joanna C sank three miles out to sea last month.

“That is a reminder of the human cost of fishing,” said James Walsh, who manages the fishmonger at Rockfish on the harbourside.

Jamie Walsh: ‘I’d just like to see a fairer deal for the fisherman.’ Photograph: Jim Wileman/The Guardian

“I’d just like to see a fairer deal for the fisherman. We should have a better share of our waters. We’re happy to share but the split needs to favour us more than them. At the moment they [boats from mainland Europe] have free roam and are taking money out of British pockets.”

Brixham has been a fishing port since the middle ages and in the 18th century pioneered the use of sailing trawlers, fast powerful robust boats that targeted demersal fish – cod, sole, plaice, haddock.

In more recent decades the industry has shrunk and the seafood sector, which includes fishing, aquaculture and processing, represents only 0.1% of the UK economy.

But in places such as south Devon it is still hugely important and Brixham is England’s largest market by value of fish sold. This autumn the port enjoyed a run of million-pound weeks, with sales of cuttlefish, scallops and more than 40 types of fish regularly reaching seven figures.

Mike Sharp, the owner of two Brixham beam trawlers, said this was the simple reason why the French and other nations were so keen to maintain excellent access to British waters.

“From Dover to the Isle of Scilly we have the best fish in the world,” said Sharp. “That’s why the French are kicking off so much.”

“We want what I think Boris is trying to achieve – full sovereignty of our waters. Once we have that we can have a yearly agreement to decide who can come in and swap that with the French for access to their waters.”

Sharp, who took part in the pro-Brexit flotilla protest on the Thames in London during the EU referendum campaign, said he is not worried by the prospect of no deal. “I don’t mind if it breaks down. I don’t think that will be bad for fishing at all.”

But compromises have been floated, such as a transition period or taking some fish – for example, pelagic species such as herrings and tuna – out of the negotiations.

Barrie Deas, the chief executive of the National Federation of Fishermen’s Organisations, the body representing fishermen in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, said the industry was opposed to a transition period that has been mooted with reviews at the end of three, five, seven or 10 years.

“Justice deferred is justice denied,” he said. “The industry feels that it’s been in a relationship with the EU that has worked systematically to its disadvantage for 40 years, so there’s not really a huge sympathy or appetite for extending anything that looks like being tied into the common fisheries policy.”

Deas added that the industry will be looking to see the detail of the quota arrangements and that reports that the EU had offered to hand up to 18% of fish caught in British waters back was “meaningless” as there were quota shares for 140 different fish species.

“Behind every stock, there’s a story, behind every quota, there’s a story, there’s a community,” he said.

One crucial factor haunting Brixham, however, is that the EU is its largest customer with more than 70% of its catch exported to France, Belgium, the Netherlands and Spain.

Trevor Sclater, the skipper of Brixham’s newest and biggest beam trawler, Georgina of Ladram, is a rare beast – a anti-Brexit fisherman prepared to speak about it.

“I’ve been anti-Brexit from the start,” he said. “I think it’s disgusting what we’re doing.”

Sclater is for equality. “It should be a level playing field. If we have to stay outside the French 12-mile limit then they should stay outside ours. But, he argues, the industry worked well before Brexit. “We fished, we made a living. Why fix something that isn’t broken?”

He fears that if boats from mainland Europe are banned from fishing off the British coast, countries such as France will stop accepting the fish caught by UK boats.

“I can see on 2 January us not being able to sell our fish. We shouldn’t be putting gateways between ourselves and our nearest neighbours. That’s crazy.”

Four more coronavirus-related deaths have been recorded in East Devon and another nine in Exeter, according to the latest weekly figures.

East Devon Reporter eastdevonnews.co.uk 

Office for National Statistics (ONS) data published today (Tuesday, December 8) shows the seven-day toll of 40 across Devon and Cornwall is the region’s highest since the start of May.

They relate to deaths which occurred in the week of November 21 – 27 and were registered up to December 5.

Three of the deaths recorded in East Devon were at hospital and one was at home.

Eight of the fatalities in Exeter were in hospital and one was in a care home.

There were seven deaths in Plymouth; nine in Torbay; three in Teignbridge, two in both North Devon and Mid Devon; and one in the South Hams.

Three deaths due to coronavirus were recorded in Cornwall.

The previous seven-day period saw 34 Covid-related deaths – two of them in East Devon and two in Exeter – recorded across Devon and Cornwall.

In total, 61 Covid-19 deaths have now been registered in East Devon; 27 of them in hospital, 29 in care homes and five at home.

The total for Exeter is 52; 28 of them in hospital, 22 in care homes and two at home.

Some 738 coronavirus-related deaths have been registered across Devon and Cornwall; 422 in hospitals, 255 in care homes, 57 at home, one in a hospice and three ‘elsewhere’.

Of these, 125 have been in Plymouth, 97 in Torbay, 47 in Teignbridge, 32 in North Devon, 27 in Torridge, 25 in Mid Devon, 22 in West Devon, and 20 in the South Hams

A total of 231 deaths due to the virus have been registered in Cornwall.

The ONS figures for Devon and Cornwall include people who have died at home, in hospital, in care homes, hospices, ‘other’ communal places, or ‘elsewhere’.

They are broken down by the local authority area in which the deaths were registered.

Government figures show at total of 1,718 Covid-19 cases have been confirmed in East Devon to date. The number for Exeter is 2,777.

The Lancet: Oxford COVID-19 vaccine is safe and protects against disease, first published results from phase 3 trials

The results are the first full peer-reviewed efficacy results to be published for a COVID-19 vaccine, and are published in The Lancet.

www.eurekalert.org 

• First full results from interim analysis confirm that the Oxford COVID-19 vaccine (AZD1222) has an acceptable safety profile and is efficacious against symptomatic COVID-19 disease, with no hospitalisations or severe disease reported in the COVID-19 vaccine group so far
• First clinical efficacy results of the vaccine are based on a pre-specified pooled analysis of phase 3 trials in UK and Brazil (11,636 people), alongside safety data from a total of 23,745 participants in 4 trials in the UK, Brazil and South Africa

Interim results of the Oxford COVID-19 vaccine trials find that the vaccine protects against symptomatic disease in 70% of cases – with vaccine efficacy of 62% for those given two full doses, and of 90% in those given a half then a full dose (both trial arms pre-specified in the pooled analysis). The results are the first full peer-reviewed efficacy results to be published for a COVID-19 vaccine, and are published in The Lancet.

The vaccine was found to be safe, with only three out of 23,745 participants over a median of 3.4 months experiencing serious adverse events that were possibly related to a vaccine; one in the vaccine arm, one in the control arm, and one in a participant who remains masked to group allocation. All participants have recovered or are recovering, and remain in the trial.

Study author, Dr Merryn Voysey, University of Oxford, UK, says: “The results presented in this report provide the key findings from our first interim analysis. In future analyses, with more data included as it becomes available, we will investigate differences in key subgroups such as older adults, various ethnicities, doses, timing of booster vaccines, and we will determine which immune responses equate to protection from infection or disease.” [1]

Study lead author Professor Andrew Pollard, University of Oxford, UK, says: “Control of the pandemic will only be achieved if the licensing, manufacturing and distribution of these vaccines can be achieved at an unprecedented scale and vaccination is rolled out to those who are vulnerable. Our findings indicate that our vaccine’s efficacy exceeds the thresholds set by health authorities and may have a potential public health impact.” [1]

The Oxford COVID-19 vaccine uses a chimpanzee adenovirus viral vector that cannot cause disease in humans and expresses the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein. This means the vaccine delivers the spike protein genetic code into vaccinated people’s cells, which then produce the protein, and teaching the immune system to recognise and attack the virus. Past trial results have found that the vaccine induces antibody and T cell immune responses, and is safe in adults aged 18 years and over, including older adults [2].

For the new study, the authors analysed data from 23,745 adults in the UK, Brazil and South Africa (11,730, 10,002, and 2,013 in each country, respectively). The interim analysis published today pools the data from these for analysis, providing greater precision for efficacy and safety outcomes than possible in individual trials and giving a broader understanding of the use of the vaccine in different populations [3].

In the trial, half of the participants were given the COVID-19 vaccine and the other half given a control (either a meningococcal conjugate vaccine or saline [4]). The trial was originally designed to assess a single dose of the vaccine, but following review of the immune response data in the UK phase 1/2 study (which found a second dose boosted immune responses) another dose was added to the trial protocol, then, once approved, second doses were given to participants.

Participants in the COVID-19 vaccine group received two doses each containing 5×1010 viral particles (a standard dose). However, a subset (1,367 people) in the UK received a half dose as their first dose, followed by a full second dose. This was because of differences in the results of quantification methods between batches of the vaccine. The low-dose/standard-dose group did not include adults over the age of 55 years as the low-dose was given in an early stage of the trial before recruitment of older adults had commenced.

The authors used the numbers of cases of symptomatic and asymptomatic infection to determine vaccine efficacy.

Overall, most participants were aged 18-55 years (82%,19,588/23,745) as people aged 56 years and older were recruited later and will be studied in future analyses of the trial. In the 11,636 people included in the vaccine efficacy against symptomatic disease analysis, 12% (1,418/11,636 people) were older adults and most were white (83%, 9,625/11,636 people).

Findings from the trial safety data

Safety was monitored for a median of 3.4 months in all 23,745 participants from the UK, Brazil and South Africa. Out of 23,745 participants, 168 experienced a total of 175 severe adverse events over the period, but 172 events were unrelated to the COVID-19 or control vaccines. One event was in the control group (a case of haemolytic anaemia), one event was in the COVID-19 vaccine group (a case of transverse myelitis considered possibly related to the vaccine), and a case of severe fever (> 40oC) was reported in South Africa in a participant who remains masked to group allocation and recovered rapidly without an alternative diagnosis and was not hospitalised. All three participants have recovered or are recovering, and continue to be part of the trial.

Safety monitoring of all participants in the trial continues.

Vaccine efficacy against symptomatic COVID-19 disease

The primary outcome of the study was to determine how many cases of symptomatic COVID-19 disease (confirmed by positive test, and the participant having a fever, cough, shortness of breath, or loss of smell or taste) there were in participants who had received two doses of the vaccine (with the first dose being either low or standard dose, and the second dose being standard dose), compared with controls. Only cases that occurred 14 days after the second vaccination had been given were included (11,636 participants in the UK and Brazil trials).

There were 131 cases of symptomatic COVID-19 disease more than 14 days after the second vaccine dose in these 11,636 people. This included 30/5,807 (0.5%) cases in the vaccine group and 101/5,829 (1.7%) cases in the control group, which equates to a vaccine efficacy of 70%.

When breaking this down based on vaccine dose, those who received two standard doses of the vaccine saw a vaccine efficacy of 62% (based on 27/4,440 (0.6%) cases in the vaccine group, and 71/4,455 (1.6%) cases in the control group), and the low-dose/standard-dose group vaccine efficacy was 90% (based on 3/1,367 (0.2%) cases in the vaccine group, and 30/1,374 (2.2%) cases in the control group).

The authors completed exploratory subgroup analyses at the request of peer-reviewers to study the difference in efficacy against symptomatic disease in the low-dose/standard-dose group and two standard doses group. These were to help understand whether the difference was related to the dose or other factors (participant age and time between vaccine doses [5]). They found that, irrespective of age or time between doses, their analyses suggested higher efficacy in the low-dose/standard-dose group. However, these exploratory analyses provide a suggestion, and will require further research as more data becomes available from the trial.

Five cases of symptomatic COVID-19 disease occurred in people aged over 55 years old, but vaccine efficacy in older age groups could not be assessed as there were too few cases. The authors say that this analysis will be completed in future.

“In order to assess vaccine efficacy, we need to have a sufficient number of COVID-19 cases among participants to indicate that the vaccine is protecting them from disease. Since recruitment of older adults started later than in younger adults there has been less follow up time for these cohorts and less time to accrue COVID-19 cases. This means we have to wait longer to have sufficient data to provide good vaccine efficacy estimates in smaller subgroups.” says Dr Voysey. [1]

Asymptomatic transmission

The trial also measured protection against asymptomatic infection by asking 6,638 UK participants to complete weekly COVID tests. However, it is important to note these data are secondary outcomes [6] and findings need to be confirmed when there is more data available from the trial.

There were 69 cases of asymptomatic COVID-19 disease identified in the UK study’s weekly COVID-19 testing of 6,638 people. This included 29/3,288 (0.9%) cases in the vaccine group, and 40/3,350 (1.2%) cases in the control group, leading to a vaccine efficacy against asymptomatic transmission of 27%.

In the low-dose/standard-dose group, there were 7/1,120 (0.6%) cases in the vaccine group and 17/1,127 (1.5%) cases in the control group, resulting in a vaccine efficacy against asymptomatic transmission of 59%. In people given two standard doses, there were 22/2,168 (1%) cases in the vaccine group and 23/2,223 (1%) in the control group, which equates to a vaccine efficacy against asymptomatic transmission of 4%.

Protection against severe disease

Cases of severe disease and hospitalisation were monitored for in all 23,745 participants. From 21 days after the first dose there were 10 cases hospitalised for COVID-19, all in the control arm, and two were classified as severe, including one death. These are also secondary outcomes and will require additional confirmation.

Co-author, Professor Sarah Gilbert, University of Oxford, UK, says: “Despite global spread of COVID-19, a large proportion of the population in many countries have not been infected and are not immune. Vaccines may play an important role in increasing immunity, preventing severe disease, and reducing the health crisis, so the possibility that more than one efficacious vaccine may be approved for use in the near future is encouraging. Here we have shown for the first time that an adenoviral vectored vaccine – a type of vaccine technology which has been in use since 2009 – is efficacious and could contribute to disease control in the COVID-19 pandemic.” [1]

The authors note that they are not yet able to assess duration of protection, as the first trials were initiated in April 2020 and all disease episodes have accrued within six months of the first dose being administered. Further evidence will be required to determine duration of protection and the need for additional booster doses of vaccine.

Writing in a linked Comment, Dr Maria Deloria Knoll and Dr Chizoba Wonodi, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, USA (who were not involved in the study), say: “Oxford-AstraZeneca’s US$2-3 per dose agreement with the COVAX facility holds good promise for equitable access for LMICs, compared with the high cost of the two mRNA vaccines that have also reported more than 90% efficacy. The ChAdOx1 nCoV-19 vaccine can also use routine refrigerated cold chain, which is important since the ultra-low temperature freezers required to store mRNA vaccines could be unaffordable and impractical in many countries and in settings such as nursing homes. However, other challenges with any two-dose regimen will exist in many LMICs where platforms to easily identify, locate, and reach–twice– adults targeted for vaccination are lacking. If the two vaccine injections require different doses, this will add complexity for health workers with little formal training, but can be managed with innovative packaging and proper change management to reduce errors… When faced with vaccine choices, National Immunization Technical Advisory Groups will have to consider all factors and decide which vaccine is right for their setting. Efficacy is an important consideration, but so are pragmatics of delivery, community acceptance, longevity of effect, whether a vaccine reduces infection and transmission as well as disease, efficacy in high-risk groups, and, of course, safety. Despite the outstanding questions and challenges in delivering these vaccines, it is hard not to be excited about these findings and now the existence of three safe and efficacious COVID-19 vaccines, with 57 more in clinical trials. With a range of manufacturers, a very large global investment in production and cooperation in procurement and distribution, it seems likely that 2021 will see COVID-19 vaccines made available to all countries in the world. Perhaps by this time next year, we can celebrate the global control of SARS-CoV-2, in person.”

###

Peer-reviewed / Randomised Controlled Trial / People

**There will be a UK Science Media Centre briefing at 2pm UK time on Tuesday 8 December about this study. Please see details in notes to editors**

NOTES TO EDITORS

This study was funded by UK Research and Innovation, National Institutes for Health Research (NIHR), Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Lemann Foundation, Rede D’OR, Brava and Telles Foundation, NIHR Oxford Biomedical Research Centre, Thames Valley and South Midland’s NIHR Clinical Research Network, and AstraZeneca. A full list of researchers and their institutions is available in the Article.

The labels have been added to this press release as part of a project run by the Academy of Medical Sciences seeking to improve the communication of evidence. For more information, please see: http://www.sciencemediacentre.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/AMS-press-release-labelling-system-GUIDANCE.pdf if you have any questions or feedback, please contact The Lancet press office pressoffice@lancet.com

[1] Quote direct from author and cannot be found in the text of the Article.

[2] https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(20)31604-4/fulltext and https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(20)32466-1/fulltext

[3] A statistical analysis plan for the global pooled analysis of these studies was developed prior to data lock and analysis and finalised with extensive feedback from national and international regulators (see appendix).

[4] In the UK trial arm, meningococcal Group A, C, W and Y conjugate vaccine (MenACWY) was chosen as the control group vaccine to minimise the chance of accidental participant unblinding due to local or systemic reactions to the vaccine. The Brazilian arm of the trial used MenACWY as the control for the first dose and saline for the second dose. In the South African arm, participants randomised to the control group were administered saline solution.

[5] Participants were expected to receive the two injections four weeks apart, but because of the time required to review the data, update and agree the protocol with regulators, and with some manufacturing delays, most participants had delays in receiving their second vaccine. 53% of UK participants (1,459/2,741) in the low-dose/standard-dose group received a second dose at least 12 weeks after their first dose (median 84 days), and 0.8% (22/2,741) received a second dose within 8 weeks or less. For UK participants receiving two standard doses, the median time between doses was 69 days (approximately 10 weeks). However, in the Brazilian trial, the majority (2,493/4,088, 61%) of participants receiving two standard doses received a second dose within 6 weeks of the first dose (median 36 days).

[6] Secondary analyses are planned outcome measures that are not as important as the primary outcome measure but are still of interest in evaluating the effect of an intervention – see https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/help/glossary/secondary-outcome-measure

Disclaimer: AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert system.

A trial is likely to go ahead in January to find out whether mixing and matching Covid vaccines gives better protection than two doses of the same one, the head of the British government’s taskforce has said.

Sarah Boseley www.theguardian.com 

The trial will begin if the University of Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine is approved in the coming weeks, as is hoped. The treatment can only be administered with licensed vaccines.

The news comes as the first British patients begin receiving coronavirus vaccinations from Tuesday, a jab made by Pfizer/BioNTech, a week after the UK became the first country in the western world to approve a Covid vaccine.

Those who take part in January’s trial will get one shot of AstraZeneca’s vaccine and one of the Pfizer injection. A vaccine from US biotech firm Moderna will also be included if it gets approval.

Pfizer’s and Moderna’s vaccines have both been shown to have 95% efficacy at protecting people against the virus. For AstraZeneca’s, efficacy was 62% among the largest cohort given two doses, but rose to 90% among a smaller group given half a dose initially, followed by a full dose.

Kate Bingham, outgoing chair of the UK’s vaccine taskforce, said the “mix and match” trials were not about making limited supplies of the vaccines go further. The UK government has ordered 40m doses of the Pfizer vaccine and 100m of Oxford/AstraZeneca’s candidate.

“It’s not being done because of supplies,” said Bingham. “It’s to do with trying to trigger the immune response and the durability and nothing to do with what vaccines we’ve got.”

The concept is known as a heterologous prime-boost. “It means mix and matching vaccines,” said Bingham. “So you do a prime with one vaccine and then the second – whether it’s 28 days or two months or whatever the agreed periods would be – would be with a different vaccine.”

Viral-based vaccines such as the Oxford jab, which is based on a chimp common cold virus, give a much greater cellular response – prompting the T-cells to kill cells infected with the coronavirus. The mRNA vaccines, like Pfizer’s, tend to generate a bigger antibody response. So the idea is to combine them, in whichever order, to help the immune system respond more powerfully to Sars-CoV2.

“No one’s ever done it live and since we’ll have safe vaccines available we should do that study, because then we have the ability to actually produce better immune responses,” said Clive Dix, deputy chair of the taskforce.

“There is a slight benefit to it, too, in that if prime and boosting either way around work, it may help with the deployment, because it might just be simpler to deploy that way round, but the main reason is to get a stronger immune response.”

Bingham and Dix were speaking at the launch of a progress report on the first six months of the taskforce, which has secured deals for seven different vaccines for the UK.

Three of them – Oxford/AstraZeneca, Valneva and Novavax – are being manufactured in the UK. The first doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine have been made in the Netherlands and Germany, but 4m doses are already in the country and most of the rest of the supply will be UK-manufactured.

There remain questions over when the Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine will be approved. The UK regulator has been asked by the government to appraise it following a rolling review, assessing all data and information on safety and efficacy and the quality of the product over recent months as it has become available. But the full data from the late-stage clinical trials, involving 24,000 people, have not yet been published and it is not known how the regulators will view the results.

Dix said the taskforce had no regrets over backing other types of vaccine over mRNA vaccines like Pfizer’s and Moderna’s, adding: “We certainly wouldn’t have got enough [of the Pfizer vaccine] to vaccinate everybody.”

They looked at Moderna but realised they could not get any doses until April, so did not sign a contract. On the day Moderna reported its results, a deal was agreed to buy 5m doses, which was later increased to 7m.

Moments of light relief have been hard to come by this year but the annual ranking of topical Christmas cracker jokes provides some, with the top spot taken by one that has a punchline featuring a Chris Rea song and Dominic Cummings.

Lanre Bakare www.theguardian.com 

The TV channel Gold’s eighth annual ranking, which is chosen by a panel chaired by the comedy critic Bruce Dessau, was put to 2,000 voters who chose: “What is Dominic Cummings’ favourite Christmas song? Driving Home for Christmas”, as the best cracker joke this year.

Other entries riff on more Covid-related themes, with punchlines ranging from quips about pirates and the R number to festive groaners about reindeer and herd immunity.

Dessau said during one of the “strangest and most turbulent years yet, we can always rely on British humour to pull us through”.

The top 10 cracker jokes

1. What is Dominic Cummings’ favourite Christmas song? Driving Home for Christmas.

2. Did you hear that production was down at Santa’s workshop? Many of his workers have had to Elf isolate!

3. Why didn’t Mary and Joseph make it to Bethlehem? All Virgin flights were cancelled.

4. Why are Santa’s reindeer allowed to travel on Christmas Eve? They have herd immunity.

5. Why did the pirates have to go into lockdown? Because the “Arrrr!” rate had risen.

6. Why is it best to think of 2020 like a panto? Because eventually, it’s behind you.

7. Why couldn’t Mary and Joseph join their work conference call? Because there was no Zoom at the inn.

8. Why can’t Boris Johnson make his Christmas cake until the last minute? He doesn’t know how many tiers it should have.

9. What do the Trumps do for Christmas dinner? They put on a super spread.

10. Which Christmas film was 30 years ahead of its time? Home Alone.

The government‘s coronavirus vaccine tsar will leave her post this month weeks after reports a public relations firm was paid £670,000 to advise her.  

www.independent.co.uk 

Confirmation of her departure came as her deputy was announced as her replacement, on an interim basis.  

Kate Bingham was appointed as chairman of the government’s vaccine task force in May.  

Since then she has won praise from ministers for securing millions of doses of the three vaccines, so far, which scientists have found to be effective against Covid-19.  

But she faced criticism when it was reported that Ms Bingham, a former venture capitalist and the wife of Jesse Norman, a Tory minister, had used the services of eight consultants to advise her on media strategy.

Last month reports suggested that Ms Bingham’s contract was due to run out at the end of the year and that she had always intended to leave at that point. 

As her replacement was announced, Boris Johnson said he was “hugely grateful for the hard work and dedication of the vaccine task force, under Kate Bingham’s leadership … the country owes them a debt of gratitude.”  

In response Ms Bingham thanked the prime minister, saying the clear mandate he had given the taskforce had allowed them to strike deals for promising vaccines.  

Clive Dix, currently the deputy chair of the taskforce, will step into her role.  

He warned that although the UK now had vaccines against the virus there was “more for us to do.  

“We must continue to develop our research and response capabilities in the UK and finish the task of building an infrastructure to enable us to manufacture vaccines at scale.”  

Environment agency officials were under pressure on Monday to explain exactly what consent they gave to carry out extensive work on the banks of a protected river in England.

Sandra Laville www.theguardian.com 

Officials from the EA, Natural England and the Forestry Commission moved in last week to stop the work along the River Lugg outside Kingsland, near Leominster in Herefordshire.

The officials – along with the police – issued a stop notice to the landowner, John Price, to halt the works, which the local wildlife trust said had devastated the river and would have dire consequences for wildlife and water quality.

The EA said a legal notice requiring the works to stop immediately was served on the landowner by Natural England earlier last week, the Forestry Commission issued a stop letter requiring an end to any further felling work and the Environment Agency requested no further works to be carried out on the river.

But the landowner Price, a potato and cattle farmer, has insisted that he was asked to do the work by the EA to try to tackle flooding in the area.

On Monday the local parish council told the Guardian it had been in discussion with the EA since July about tackling the flooding in the area. EA officials had attended parish council meetings and walked the site in September.

The EA wrote a short report seen by the Guardian. It said: “We have identified that some tree works are required on the left hand bank directly upstream of the bridge (see picture 0141) which we will again look to secure funding for and if successful make the land owner aware of our intentions.

“In addition the left hand bank directly upstream of the bridge could do some reprofiling due to bank slumping probably as a result of cattle poaching (see picture 0132) to ease conveyance as it is currently partially obstructing the 3rd arch of the bridge and will look to the land owner to carry out these works.”

The EA said on Monday it was continuing to investigate the damage to a river which is protected as a site of special scientific interest (SSSI), and a special area of conservation (SAC). As such no work should be carried out without permission from the EA.

Minutes of parish council meetings confirm that the EA was in discussions with the council about flooding and what work was required to alleviate it.

Minutes of Kingsland parish council meetings from July, September and October of this year contain items about the “maintenance of the Lugg”.

In minutes of a meeting in July concerns were expressed about the risk of river flooding and reference made to discussions with the EA on maintenance of the Lugg.

The minutes detail verbal discussions with the EA. “The levels reached during the floods earlier this year were the highest since 1976. Due to the Covid-19 situation, the riverbank has not been walked since the floods, however this is due to be done soon.

“Dredging can be done where there is a need, but need to keep in mind the dynamic nature of the river which moves the bed levels anyway (diverse nature of river flow).”

In October reference was made to the site visit in September with an EA official. “Cllr Rowsell reported on “a very useful” walkabout with the Environment Agency. Mr W Best, Environment Agency informed the meeting that riparian owners are responsible for maintenance but accepted that this may be beyond their capability at times and provided a helpline number.”

A spokesperson for the parish council said on Monday they were not aware whether the EA had given the landowner official permission to carry out the works.

He said: “We would not be told whether a permit had been issued for the works. The parish council supports work to improve the Lugg to help with flood alleviation measures. Environment Agency officials have been present in parish council meetings to discuss flood alleviation measures.”

Price, of Hay Farm, told the Daily Telegraph, he had acted with permission.

“I have watched this river all my life, and no one knows this river better than myself,” he said.

“I have always looked after the river. I was asked to stop the erosion because I’m the landowner so I’m responsible for the river.”

He said he had not uprooted any trees, but had only cleared those that had come down in floods.

He said flooding in the area had been getting worse over the last 10 years, and that he had the support of the village and parish council in doing the work.

The Environment Agency was asked for a comment. It had not been provided at the time of publication.

Tony Dale, author of this article drew Owl’s attention to its online publication on Dec 4.

Babcock’s involvement in running education services in Devon has also previously been featured in East Devon Watch posts in 2016:

https://eastdevonwatch.org/2016/05/18/why-is-babcock-the-arms-manufacturer-involved-in-monitoring-school-attendance-in-devon/

https://eastdevonwatch.org/2016/09/12/renewed-interest-in-petition-to-cease-schools-monitoring-service-by-babcock/

diem25.org

In the rural county of Devon in the UK lies the historic port of Plymouth, home to Britain’s Trident nuclear weapon system. Managing that facility is Babcock International Group PLC, an arms manufacturer listed on the FTSE 250 with a turnover in 2020 of £4.9bn.

What is much less known, however, is that Babcock also runs the education services in Devon, and in many other areas across the UK. After the global financial crisis of 2008-9, with governments around the world adopting austerity policies, cuts to local authorities ran to more than 40% and local education services were tendered out to the private sector. In Devon, it was Babcock who won the bid to run them.

The arms company, which powers conflict and violence across the world, is now one of just twelve accredited education service providers in the UK.

A statement on its website describes its activities as: “…a unique joint venture between Babcock International Group plc and Devon County Council, combining best commercial practice with the values and principles of the public sector service.”

Such a relationship introduces moral hazard where none existed before. “Best commercial practice” — in other words, competition — is not a public service value, and its application in education has severe consequences for the most vulnerable, as will be shown. Private companies in public service also present challenges for accountability and in this case, the presence of the arms trade raises other moral questions around consent.

Yet Babcock is not the only weapons manufacturer providing education to children. Other UK arms companies, like the giant BAE systems that designed Britain’s Trident nuclear submarines, have also found their way into schools recently, giving them teaching materials and, according to The Guardian, “providing a missile simulator for children to play with”. Commenting on the affair, Andrew Smith, spokesman for the Campaign Against Arms Trade said that: “When these companies are promoting themselves to children they are not talking about the deadly impact their weapons are having. [..] Schools [..] should never be used as commercial vehicles for arms companies.”

It is time, as that same spokesman said, for arms companies to be kicked out of the classroom.

An authoritarian approach; an arrangement that resists public scrutiny

There is a real and worrying question of how the culture of the arms trade, of Babcock, influences the education resources they provide. 

Consider the following case. Babcock’s ‘responsibilities’ in Devon include attendance monitoring and pupil assessment — tasks to which they apply a hardline authoritarian approach. When a child is absent from school, Babcock threatens their parents with £2,500 fines and up to three months imprisonment, as shown in the letter below:

The letter and others like it created a furore among parents of Devon pupils, and in 2016 a petition was started, calling on Devon County Council to cancel Babcock’s contract when it was due for renewal in 2019. The petition gained few signatures (just over a thousand) and the 2019 renewal went ahead. It is now due to end in 2022.

In 2017, a concerned parent filed a Freedom of Information request to Devon County Council for details of their contract with Babcock. It was refused on the grounds of commercial sensitivity. The parent appealed the decision, blaming the Council for “obfuscatory gatekeeping, time delaying, avoidance tactics”, and although the information was finally disclosed the Council was found in breach of the Freedom of Information Act for the delay. A child’s education is of the highest moral importance and those involved should welcome scrutiny. This is clearly not the case with Babcock’s arrangement in Devon.

Off-rolling: pushing out the weakest to stay competitive

The culture of business, especially the business of building and selling weapons, is entirely misplaced in education. Competition is not how you achieve results, and scoring on the schools league table is not a measure of success.

Yet these are the principles being applied. In 2019, Tes, an online education resource provider, reported on a worrying trend. Increasing numbers of parents of pupils who struggled with school were being “coerced, nudged and persuaded” into homeschooling their children — i.e. removing them from the school roll, where their performance could no longer affect the school’s league table ranking — in a practice that has become known as ‘off-rolling’.

The motivation for this practice is simple: it is “triggered by league table position”, according to a 2019 YouGov report. One secondary school Deputy Head Teacher says in the report: “There could be a temptation to off-roll [a pupil] so they don’t bring the school’s results down… Morally I don’t agree with it.” Off-rolling is unethical; it puts intense strain on parents and is, quite simply, unlawful.

Unsurprisingly, Babcock in Devon provides an illustration of this awful practice in action. The tables below are from official documents from Babcock and Devon County Council.

The statistics speak for themselves; the percentage of schoolchildren in Devon registered for home-schooling (EHE) rose from 1.1% in 2015/16 to 1.9% in 2019/20. This points to an additional 889 children having been ‘off-rolled’ out of Devon’s schools by Babcock.

A vital choice that parents are denied

The last issue has to do with belief and choice. The right to religious freedom is compromised when, for example, you are forced to take part in religious services not of your own religion. The UK is a secular society and such rights are strongly defended, but do they extend further? Everyone pays for defence through taxation in a kind of ‘received consent’, but it is unjust that those who profit from it should be able to come back to take a second slice of the public finance cake. There is no similar ‘received consent’ over the arms trade providing education.

With the tendering out of local education services to the private sector, the arms trade is where the education money is going, beyond the defence budget. And if your child needs an education, you find yourself unwittingly complicit in building a respectable public profile and increasing profits for people who sell guns. There is a saying in market culture ‘there are two sides to every trade’. The arms trade exists for its customers and its shareholders; it is morally unacceptable for parents of schoolchildren to be included as part of its commercial operations.

What happens to the contract between Devon County Council and Babcock in 2022 could be down to public pressure. It is an important test case for whether we, as citizens, as progressives, can get the arms trade out of our schools. Shall we give it a try?

DiEM25 members are currently discussing possible actions to address the issue discussed in this article. If you’d like to be involved, or if you have knowledge, skills or ideas to contribute on this, join the dedicated thread in our forum and introduce yourself, or get in touch with the author of this piece directly.

Photo Sources: CDC from Pexels and Wikimedia Commons.

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Builders are running short of everything from power tools and screws to timber and roof tiles as the gridlock at UK ports holds up crucial deliveries and sets off alarm bells in the run-up to Brexit.

Zoe Wood www.theguardian.com 

The UK’s ports have been grappling with a surge in freight volumes at a time when their ability to process it all is hindered by coronavirus restrictions.

Since September, the country’s biggest container port, Felixstowe, has been handling about 30% more goods than usual, with businesses rushing to replenish stock after the end of lockdowns and building stockpiles before the end of the Brexit transition period.

High street chains have already reported shortages of essential goods such as washing machines and fridges, and also toys, as they struggle to get shipments through the Suffolk port.

The fallout from the congestion, which has spread to other major ports including Southampton and London Gateway, is being felt in a number of industries.

John Newcomb, the chief executive of the Builders Merchants Federation, said the ports were becoming a “major issue” for its members. They have enjoyed bumper sales as locked-down Britons renovated their homes but were experiencing availability problems because they “can’t get materials in quicker”. The squeeze was also pushing up the price of goods.

“There appears to be an increasing issue getting products through ports,” Newcomb said. “Rather than taking a maximum of one week to unload, it is taking up to four.”

Timber is of particular concern (the price is up between 20% and 40% because of supply problems in Scandinavia) but there is also a diminishing supply of roof tiles, screws, fixings, tools and white goods such as washing machines and fridges, he said.

In recent weeks the congestion at Felixstowe as well as other ports has encouraged vessels to “cut and run” – either partially unloading or skipping UK calls altogether and dumping cargo at Rotterdam, Antwerp and Zeebrugge instead, said Mirko Woitzik, an analyst at the supply chain risk advisory firm Resilience360. Some carriers are discussing not calling at Felixstowe until February because of fears it will remain clogged, he said.

The shortage of building materials had so far been felt by the retail chains that supply jobbing builders but Newcomb said that, with the situation unlikely to be resolved for several months, it would also become a problem for big contractors. The BMF has raised the issue with the government as the high level of demand has prevented the building trade from stockpiling in the run-up to Brexit.

The coronavirus pandemic has destroyed the equilibrium that usually exists in the maritime supply chain. Robert Keen, the director general of the British International Freight Association, said that over a 10-week period logistics firms went from having no work to a situation where almost no ships were idle. These extremes had led to a “breakdown of the conveyor belt of ships and containers, and the return flow of empty containers”, which was a major cause of congestion, he said.

The resurgent demand has resulted in a fight for space on the container ships that ply the shipping routes from low-cost manufacturing hubs, such as China, to big consumer markets including the US and Europe. UK businesses are reporting stratospheric increases in shipping costs, which are likely to add to the pressure on prices in the new year.

Simon Midwood, the managing director of the family-run building materials supplier Timco, said its shipping costs had increased by more than 300%. That extra cost was pushing up cost prices by between 3% and 17%.

Sign up to the daily Business Today email or follow Guardian Business on Twitter at @BusinessDesk

With port delays already causing shortages of popular toy sets such as Barbie, the retailer The Entertainer said it was facing soaring import costs from China, up from $1,000 six weeks ago to more than $6,000.

Gary Grant, the chain’s co-founder, said that could mean higher prices for shoppers in 2021 as retailers struggled to absorb rising costs. The situation was compounded by uncertainty surrounding the import taxes that will apply after Brexit, he added.

Last month the Guardian revealed that 11,000 containers of government-procured PPE were part of the problem at Felixstowe. That backlog has been reduced to about 4,000 and should be cleared by Christmas. The port said it expected the increase in container volumes to last into January but was “working hard to minimise the impact on daily operations and to maintain vital supply chains”.

US private equity firm Lone Star on Monday increased its offer to buy McCarthy & Stone, in a move that values the retirement housebuilding group at £647 million.

Joanna Bourke www.standard.co.uk 

The 120p per share offer for the company, which specialises in land buying, developing, selling and managing retirement communities, is higher than the 115p per share bid tabled in October.

The latest offer represents a 44.6% premium to the closing price per McCarthy & Stone share of 83p pence on October 22, the last business day before the commencement of the offer period.

It is also a 64.1% premium to the average share price for the three months to October 22.

The proposal is still below the pre-pandemic price, 158p in February, and the Sunday Times in October reported that one investor said the bid is “opportunistic”.

But McCarthy & Stone directors “consider the terms of the final offer to be fair and reasonable”, the takeover target said today.

Directors at the retirement housebuilder have recommended shareholders vote in favour of the deal. The meeting starts at 4.15 pm today.

When the planned swoop was first announced in October, Donald Quintin, president of Lone Star Europe, said McCarthy is in a “market underpinned by clear fundamentals: a rapidly ageing population and a structural undersupply of suitable housing options for older people”.

Rothschild, Deutsche and Peel Hunt are working with McCarthy and Moelis & Company and Goldman Sachs are advising the suitor.

The newest Navy aircraft carrier is set to be stranded until mid-2021 after a second flood, according to reports.

“It will take months to repair the damage. Costs will run to millions.”

[It’s only your money and mine! – Owl]

Georgia Diebelius www.mirror.co.uk 

HMS Prince of Wales was reportedly banned from leaving Portsmouth on safety grounds this week after a burst fire main damaged electrics.

The £3.1billion vessel was scheduled to set sail to the US to train with F-35 jets, 12 months after she last travelled.

According to The Sun, thousands of gallons of sea water poured into the vessel’s engine room during the flood.

The incident is said to have seen electrical cabinets submerged under the water for more than 24 hours.

A source said: “It’s embarrassing. The America trip took years of planning and we’ve had to say we can’t come.

“It will take months to repair the damage. Costs will run to millions.”

Miles of cables are now reportedly being assessed for damage in the second incident on board the ship.

In May, water was filmed pouring through a ceiling in the vessel’s living quarters. An incident that the Navy described as ‘minor’.

The Navy insists that the HMS Prince of Wales will still be operational by 2023 as it was scheduled to be, The Sun reports.

Earlier this year, the aircraft carrier caused a row in its home port, as its noisy engines kept locals awake at night.

The ship often runs on its diesel generators instead of power from the base and homeowners over the water said the racket was making life a misery.

One, Neil Sutton, said many were sticking “our heads under our pillows at night” in a bid to get some sleep.

He added: “In this lockdown, why can we not open our windows and enjoy peace and tranquillity?”.

The 919ft, 65,000-ton ship, which can carry 36 planes and four helicopters, remains at Portsmouth Naval Base, Hants.

Police and environment agency staff have moved in to stop further damage being done to a protected river, after what one witness described as one of the most egregious acts of ecological vandalism in 25 years.

Sandra Laville www.theguardian.com

A mile-long stretch of the River Lugg outside Kingsland, near Leominster in Herefordshire, has been flattened by a bulldozer. Trees have been felled, the river straightened and the river bed damaged.

Guy Linley-Adams, a lawyer for the charity Salmon and Trout Conservation, who lives nearby, witnessed the destruction to the river, which is protected as an SSSI, site of special scientific interest.

He called for prosecution of those responsible. “This is one of the most egregious acts of ecological vandalism that I have seen in 25 years of working on rivers in the UK,” he said. “I have been on site and I am shaking with anger at what has been done to my local river.

“There can be no excuse if the perpetrator is not now prosecuted to the fullest extent possible. His financial assets should also be taken to pay to restore the river, a restoration that will take decades.”

Damage at the River Lugg. Photograph: Herefordshire Wildlife Trust/PA

Environment Agency staff, West Mercia police, officials from Natural England and the Forestry Commission moved in to stop further damage on Friday.

Dave Throup, the area environment manager for the Environment Agency (EA), said: “We are treating this very seriously along with Natural England and the Forestry Commission, who have taken immediate action in an attempt to prevent any further works at the site. We are mounting a wide-ranging investigation with Natural England, the Forestry Commission and other partners. We are unable to comment further at this stage.”

Throup tweeted: “Fourteen specialist officers from the Environment Agency, Natural England, Forestry Commission, West Mercia police and Herefordshire council now on site gathering information and evidence.”

Critics said more should have been done to halt the destruction last week, on 26 November when the EA was first alerted to activity taking place on the river bank. It is understood the event was designated a category 1 incident; an event which has a serious, extensive or persistent impact on the environment.

But it was not until significant damage had been done that the EA and other officials used their powers of entry to stop the destruction, which environmentalists said would take decades to repair.

The river is protected as it is an important habitat for salmon, otters, lamprey, dragonfly and crayfish. The protection also covers the way the river meanders through the countryside. But after several days of activity, the river banks have been flattened, gravel has been scraped from the riverbed, and the gentle curve of the river has been straightened.

Helen Stace, the chief executive of the Herefordshire Wildlife Trust, said: “A large stretch of one of the UK’s most important rivers, the Lugg, has been devastated with dire consequences for wildlife and water quality downstream. This is a tragedy.

“This is a crime against the environment. Swift action needs to be taken and we want to see the authorities investigate the matter swiftly. We expect this case to be dealt with in a serious and robust manner and any resulting prosecution should act as a deterrent to prevent anyone committing this type of crime ever again. We will also be calling for restoration of the river to its natural channel.”

TV gardener Monty Don, who lives in near Leominster, told local newspaper the Hereford Times: “It breaks my heart but is all too typical of the ignorance, arrogance and sheer wanton destruction of those privileged to care for our countryside.”

A close friend of the prime minister and his fiancee was given an official position at the Home Office without the role being publicly advertised, a freedom of information request has revealed.

Molly Blackall www.theguardian.com

Nimco Ali, who is reportedly godmother to the son of Carrie Symonds and Boris Johnson, was appointed adviser on tackling violence against women and girls in October.

Information released under the Freedom of Information Act to The Critic magazine revealed that she was hired via a “direct appointment process”, without open competition or advertisement for the job.

It appears the role may have been created for Ali, with no mention of it before her appointment. She is paid £350 a day and works two days a month.

Ali is a prominent campaigner against female genital mutilation (FGM), which she was subjected to at the age of seven.

She arrived in Britain as a four-year-old refugee from Somalia and went on to co-found the non-profit Daughters of Eve, and later the Five Foundation – a global campaign to end FGM. She was made an OBE in 2019 in recognition of her work.

Following her appointment to the advisory position, she said more needed to be done to combat violence against women.

Although she stood as a candidate for the Women’s Equality party in 2017, Ali has campaigned for the Conservatives in recent years, becoming a close friend of Carrie Symonds and a vocal supporter of Boris Johnson.

The government said Ali had been appointed to help create a strategy to tackle violence against women and girls that is due to be released in 2021.

The strategy is designed to ensure that victims of gender-based violence receive better support and perpetrators are more effectively targeted. It is also intended to improve the government’s handling of “new and emerging forms of violence”, including upskirting and revenge porn.

A Home Office spokesperson confirmed that she had been hired “via a direct appointment” to lead a short-term project, and said the Cabinet Office Public Appointments Policy team had agreed her appointment.

“Nimco Ali has a strong track record of campaigning on violence against women and girls’ issues, raising awareness and educating people about female genital mutilation,” the spokesperson said. “She brings a huge amount of experience and passion to this role, providing independent advice to help inform government policy and challenge the status quo.

“Direct appointments with no competition are standard for short-term advisory roles and follow an established process.”

Ali declined to comment further.

Devon man Joel Teague launches Co Charger to connect neighbours and communities via electric vehicle charger sharing app.

[Also in the print edition of today’s Sunday Times]

Co Charger pressroom.journolink.com 

Lympstone resident Joel Teague has launched Co Charger, a new platform enabling those who do have electric car chargers, whether motorists, businesses or community buildings to share them with neighbours who don’t.

‘Five years ago a neighbour in Lympstone convinced me, a card-carrying petrolhead to get an electric car,’ explains Joel. ‘The car arrived but my charger was delayed and I found myself giving that same neighbour a few quid to use their charger once a week until mine arrived. It led to a lightbulb moment where I thought of all the people blocked from getting an electric vehicle because they live in a flat or terraced house and don’t have anywhere to charge. It prompted me to launch Co Charger, a ‘matchmaking’ app connecting hosts with a charger with neighbours who want somewhere to charge, helping to create cleaner, greener neighbourhoods and fight climate change. Most importantly, it also means that those who would love to have an electric car will finally be able to buy one – confident in the knowledge that they can charge reliably and economically with a local host.’

The app handles communications, bookings, reminders, calculations and payments. Hosts can set the price they’d like to charge for the service and have the option to make extra income.

Joel, who has lived in Devon for 12 years and used to be a project manager for the Met Office says, ‘Devon – and Exeter in particular was always the perfect place for Co Charger to be created. It has one of the highest levels of EV ownership in the UK plus a wonderful community culture and hunger for innovation. Co Charger was launched under lock down in April, but we have a great team based in the South West working and communicating online to develop and launch the business.’

The Co Charger app is free to download and there are no subscriptions. Hosts can be private individuals or any organisation with an electric charger, such as a community centre, church hall or doctors’ surgery. For more information check out Co Charger.

About Co Charger

Co Charger is developing a community that will help accelerate electric vehicle adoption. Through our app and collaborations we enable people who cannot charge a vehicle at home to do so within a short walking distance.

Co Charger is an environmentally and socially responsible company and aiming to become a B corporation certified organisation.

Co Charger is affiliated with the Co Cars family which also includes Co Bikes and Co Delivery. Together we are accelerating towards a shared, zero-emissions future.

Almost half of the bridges on England’s motorways and A-roads are in a poor or very poor condition, it is claimed.

By Tom Payne For The Daily Mail Mark Duell for MailOnline www.dailymail.co.uk 

Evidence of damage or defects have been found in 4,000 out of around 9,000 bridges and large culverts, according to Highways England data released under freedom of information laws.

Some 858 had at least one crucial section in a ‘very poor condition’ that could put them at risk of failure, The Times reported. The revelations follow the closure of Hammersmith Bridge after years of neglect. 

The West London crossing – which is not owned or maintained by Highways England – is not expected to re-open to traffic until 2027, four years later than planned.

The fiasco has attracted international ridicule and fuelled concern over the state of Britain’s crumbling road infrastructure.

Two people look at Hammersmith Bridge last month after it was shut because of concerns it was structurally dangerous

Highways England released details of bridge defects after an 18-month battle with the UK’s data protection watchdog. They had tried to prevent details being revealed on the grounds it could help terrorists commit an attack. 

Today, the organisation insisted that a rating of ‘poor’ or ‘very poor’ does not mean that a structure is unsafe – rather that it is to record a visual inspection, such as the paint condition, to help plan for future maintenance.

By numbers: Highways England and its bridges 

Highways England is responsible for maintaining:

• 8,857 bridges and large culverts (8,249 excluding non-road bridges)
• 2,276 small span structures (1,143 having span >=1.5m)
• 9,392 road bridges in total

‘Principle’ inspections in the past financial year:

• 1,223 on bridges and large culverts (1,136 excluding non-road bridges)
• 168 on small span structures (all having span >=1.5m)

‘General’ inspections in the past financial year:

• 2,742 on bridges and large culverts (2,551 excluding non-road bridgess)
• 688 on small span structures (347 having span >=1.5m)

Sub-standard and/or weight restricted bridges:

• 95 structures have interim measures such as weight or width restrictions to help them remain fit for service

They said the overall condition of structures has improved over the last five years and that £1.5billion has been earmarked for maintenance up to 2025 – £200million more than in 2015-2020.

However, critics said the findings are cause for concern. 

Matt Rodda, the shadow roads minister, told The Times: ‘It is a major safety concern and real failing of this government that so much of the nation’s vital infrastructure is in such poor condition.

‘Bridges are a critical part of the functioning of any country and it is alarming that so many have fallen into disrepair in the UK.’

Highways England’s chief engineer Mike Wilson said: ‘Our roads connect the country and every day millions of people rely on our structures to get safely to their destination. All our structures are safe and regularly inspected.

‘A rating of ‘poor’ or ‘very poor’ does not mean that a structure is unsafe; it is simply a way of recording a visual inspection, such as the condition of the paint, to allow us to consider the future maintenance requirements.

‘We carry out more than 10,000 inspections a year looking at a range of measures from the condition of the paint through to the integrity of the materials.

‘Considering all these assessments together helps us assess the overall maintenance needs and reduces the likelihood of emergency repairs, meaning the majority of our maintenance can be planned to minimise disruption.’ 

Officials insist inspections are in line with guidance in the official ‘Design Manual for Roads and Bridges’, which considers design, age and the maintenance needs.

Inspections carried out of structures look at defects in reinforced concrete, steelwork and other construction materials. Further investigations can then establish the extent and severity of any defects.  

Hammersmith Bridge, which is not owned or maintained by Highways England, is not expected to re-open to traffic until 2027

Factors affecting the condition of a structure and its grading can include weathering, climate change, high rainfall, type of structure, materials, overloading, bridge strikes and accidents.

Full data on banding of all structures maintained by Highways England 

Critical banding – based on the lowest condition score for the highest importance structural elements and components:

• very good – 5,112
• good – 5,483
• fair – 3,012
• poor – 4,331
• very poor – 1,123

Average banding – based on the average condition of all the structural elements:

• very good – 9,951
• good – 6,983
• fair – 1,970
• poor – 207
• very poor – 13

This data covers structures including bridges, culverts, retaining walls, masts and large signs.

Highways England said the overall condition of stock of structures shows that the overall condition has improved over the last five years. 

They are spending £1.5billion on structures maintenance over the next five years, which is said to be £200million more than in the previous five years.

Officials said they completed a plan in March 2019 to clear all overdue inspections on highway structures – and some 82 per cent of structures are said to be in a ‘good’ or ‘very good’ condition.  

In Hammersmith, the famous Victorian bridge could be re-opened in a year under council plans to build a double-decker crossing over the existing structure.

The cost of fixing Hammersmith Bridge has spiralled to £141million and it is now unlikely to reopen until 2027 – four years later than planned.

The closure of the landmark, which normally carries 16,000 people a day and 22,000 vehicles, has provoked international ridicule and caused misery for local residents.

Ministers are desperate for a solution to re-open the vital crossing amid fear its closure could hurt the Tories in next year’s London mayoral elections.

Hopes were raised last week after the bridge’s owners, the Labour-run Hammersmith and Fulham Council, submitted proposals for a temporary crossing.

The double-decked structure would see the creation of two raised decks built above the road: an upper level for cars and a lower level for pedestrians and cyclists.

Council officials have told Transport Secretary Grant Shapps that they could have the temporary crossing up and running within a year of a contractor being approved.

They say the raised deck would not put pressure on the existing structure and would allow for pedestals, anchors and chains to removed and repaired elsewhere.

Although local residents have welcomed the potential solution, it has provoked scepticism among engineers who fear the Grade II bridge could collapse at any moment. 

One of the most well-known bridges managed by Highways Engand is the M48 Severn Bridge. Its structure rating is unknown

The Orwell Bridge, which was opened to road traffic in 1982 near Ipswich in Suffolk, is also managed by Highways England

The structure is so unstable that river traffic has been banned from passing underneath. The last time the Thames was closed was when the river iced up during the Great Freeze of 1814.

The bridge has been closed to traffic since April last year, when inspectors discovered dangerous ‘micro-fractures’ in the brittle cast iron pedestals.

In August, the bridge was closed off to pedestrians and cyclists after the heatwave triggered a rapid increase in the size of the fractures – putting the bridge at risk of sudden collapse.

The council’s proposal of a double deck crossing was drawn up by property tycoon Sir John Ritblat, the former boss of British Land, along with Foster + Partners and specialist bridge engineers COWI.

It is one of a number of solutions being considered by a Department for Transport taskforce. Another proposal, revealed in the Mail, involves the construction of a temporary road crossing running alongside the bridge.