School building safety warning "prompted by beam collapse" The warning that school buildings made from reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC) could be unsafe or face closure was prompted by a beam collapse, the schools minister has said. Nick Gibb said a beam at a school, previously thought to be no risk, collapsed during the summer. He told the BBC: What we discovered over the summer was a number of instances, in schools and in non-schools, in England and outside England, where RAAC that had been considered to be a low risk actually turned out to be unsafe. So over the summer – given this evidence – we had to take a decision. And some of that evidence, by the way, was as late as last week. We had to then decide what to do given the previous advice. A beam that had no sign ... that it was a critical risk and was thought to be safe, collapsed. He added that buildings at more than 50 schools in England were at risk of sudden collapse due to dangerous concrete. Evening summary Here is a round-up of the day’s main headlines: More schools could be told they need to immediately shut classrooms because they are fitted with a concrete that could suddenly collapse, the schools minister has admitted. Nick Gibb said on Friday that a collapse over the summer of a beam that had been considered safe sparked an urgent rethink on whether buildings with the aerated concrete could remain open. Though not confirmed, it is estimated that around 24 schools in England have been told to close entirely because of the presence of reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC), the PA news agency understands. The warning that school buildings made from reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC) could be unsafe or face closure was prompted by a beam collapse, Gibb said. He said a beam at a school, previously thought to be no risk, collapsed during the summer. The government will cover “all capital costs” over any disruption to educational buildings caused by concerns from the use of concrete prone to collapse, Gibb added. Asked on Sky News who will pay if schools need to either fully or partially relocate, he said: “We will pay for that. We’ve made it very clear we will cover all capital costs. “So if in the worst-case scenario, we need Portacabins in the school estate for an alternative accommodation, we will cover all those costs. So there has been some speculation that we won’t cover those costs. We absolutely will.” Labour has renewed calls for the government to publish a full list of schools affected by crumbling concrete and have called for an urgent investigation into which other public buildings – such as hospitals, courts and prisons – are affected. Steve Reed, the shadow justice secretary, said on the Today programme on BBC Radio 4: “After 13 years of Conservative failure, the fabric of our public sector is literally crumbling.” Scottish ministers are being urged to take the risk of school building collapse seriously amidst claims they have pushed responsibility for fixing potentially fatal problems onto already cash-strapped local councils. In June, the Scottish Liberal Democrats revealed through FOI work that RAAC was present in 37 schools across Scotland, and then in July the Scottish health secretary, Michael Matheson, confirmed that health boards had identified 254 buildings with likely RAAC. All NHS trusts should have access to the necessary funding to replace concrete that has been deemed unsafe “as soon as possible”, a health chief has said. The government has committed to rebuilding seven hospitals most affected by RAAC by 2030, PA Media reports. The lightweight material was used in public buildings from the 1950s up to the mid-1990s, but is now assessed to be at risk of collapse. Two schools in the north-east of England are among those unable to open for the new autumn term. Ferryhill chool in County Durham confirmed in an email that two of its buildings are affected by potentially dangerous RAAC and cannot open on Tuesday as planned, the Northern Echo reports. Earlier, the schools minister, Nick Gibb, said the government had taken action on the issue of crumble-risk concrete in schools “as soon as the evidence emerged” (see 7.48am) that it might be a safety risk. However, Hansard shows shows that this very issue was debated in parliament back in June. The Home Office has placed more than 100 lone asylum-seeker children in hotels in recent weeks, despite the practice having been found unlawful by the high court. The government’s continued use of hotels has been condemned by human rights and refugee organisations since more than 200 children have gone missing, including dozens who vanished from one hotel in Brighton. The UK could pull out of the international energy charter treaty if attempts to reform it fail, the energy minister, Graham Stuart, has said. The energy charter treaty (ECT) is a system of secret courts that enables companies to sue governments over policies that would cut their future profits. Companies have sued over phasing out coal-fired power stations, ending offshore oil drilling and banning fracking, with some receiving large taxpayer-funded payouts. The Liberal Democrats will try to force the Conservative party to hold the Mid Bedfordshire byelection at the start of October. With parliament scheduled to reconvene on Monday, concerns have arisen that the prime minister, Rishi Sunak, might postpone the byelection in Nadine Dorries’ former seat to avoid scheduling conflicts with the Conservative party conference. The average number of people in each small boat crossing the Channel has hit a new monthly high, figures show, indicating the use of larger vessels. In August, 5,369 people crossed the Channel in 102 boats, which equates to an average of about 53 a vessel. Analysis of provisional government data by PA Media shows this is the highest monthly average since records began in 2018. Theresa May has expressed regret for using the term “hostile environment” and has criticised Home Office staff for an “inbuilt cynicism” she believes contributed to the Windrush scandal. May devotes a chapter to the scandal, which unfolded while she was prime minister, in her forthcoming memoir, The Abuse of Power. She concludes that it was an abuse of power and describes the treatment of the Windrush generation who were wrongly classified as illegal immigrants as “shocking”. Rishi Sunak’s top spin doctor in Downing Street has quit after less than a year in the job. Amber de Botton, who had a decade-long career as a broadcast journalist, was hired by the prime minister as his director of communications a few days after he entered Downing Street. A former UK environment secretary is to take a consultancy role with a waste management firm that had to pay £36,000 after an Environment Agency (EA) investigation found contamination of groundwater at a site. George Eustice, who was the secretary of state for environment, food and rural affairs from February 2020 until September 2022, is joining Augean, a waste treatment company with sites across the UK. The Aslef general secretary, Mick Whelan, has criticised the appointment of the former transport secretary Grant Shapps as defence secretary. Shapps clashed with union leaders while in the transport brief and Whelan, standing at a picket line in Euston, north London, joked of the appointment: “I keep looking at the skies waiting for the missiles to rain down. He’s had five departments in 12 months, I’m not sure if that’s a ringing endorsement or an indictment.” That’s it from me, Tom Ambrose, and indeed the UK politics live blog for today. Thanks for following along. When Liz Truss addressed the nation from Downing Street in her first speech as prime minister, she promised “action this day, and action every day”. It was meant to be a Churchillian call to arms demonstrating her determination to solve the intractable issues facing Britain. Instead, it foreshadowed the most chaotic period in recent political history. As the sole survivor through the cabinets of the three previous Conservative-led governments, Truss was used to putting pragmatism above principles. But that approach was cast aside when she swept in to No 10. In her first week in office, an aide suggested she should “be like Blair” and avoid immediately rocking the boat. He was slapped down. Truss told him to stop talking – and the aide was said to have been cut out of further meetings. Such single-mindedness quickly collided headlong with the realities of government. With an inexperienced team in No 10, and a divided party, the foundations of her administration were shaky from the start. Within 49 extraordinary days, it had fallen apart. A former UK environment secretary is to take a consultancy role with a waste management firm that had to pay £36,000 after an Environment Agency (EA) investigation found contamination of groundwater at a site. George Eustice, who was the secretary of state for environment, food and rural affairs from February 2020 until September 2022, is joining Augean, a waste treatment company with sites across the UK. The Advisory Committee on Business Appointments (Acoba) gave Eustice permission to take the role as a strategic adviser, responsible for providing “strategic counsel […] on how to navigate existing permitting and regulatory regimes’ processes [and] offering wider advice on the environment, social and governance issues”. He is banned from lobbying the government or using his contacts in Whitehall on behalf of Augean until September 2024. Eustice declined to answer questions on how much he would be paid for his role and what experience he would rely on in his work for Augean. He said if a financial interest did arise it would be declared through the parliamentary register. In Acoba’s advice letter, neither Eustice nor the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs made any mention of the investigation by the EA, an arms-length body of Defra. The investigation resulted in Augean South, a subsidiary of Augean, paying £25,000 to an environmental charity in Northamptonshire, where the company’s site is located, as well as £11,058.90 to cover the costs of the EA inquiry. Sunak"s director of communications quits after less than year in role Rishi Sunak’s top spin doctor in Downing Street has quit after less than a year in the job. Amber de Botton, who had a decade-long career as a broadcast journalist, was hired by the prime minister as his director of communications a few days after he entered Downing Street. Unlike an impartial civil servant, she was a special adviser able to give political advice to ministers, defend the government’s actions and criticise opposition parties, PA Media reports. Writing on X, formerly known as Twitter, de Botton said: It has been an honour and a privilege to serve as the prime minister’s director of communications but I have decided it is the right time to move on. I would like to take this opportunity to thank the prime minister for his support and his leadership. The team he has built around him is dedicated and focused because those are the qualities he inspires. I also want to thank my colleagues - No 10 is a demanding and high pressure place to work - yet the professionalism and talent they display every day is exceptional. She was deputy head of politics at Sky News for five years until 2017 and then worked at ITV News as head of politics and then as head of news. The PA news agency understands she will be replaced by the PM’s press secretary Nerissa Chesterfield. Monthly number of people per small boat crossing Channel hits new high The average number of people in each small boat crossing the Channel has hit a new monthly high, figures show, indicating the use of larger vessels. In August, 5,369 people crossed the Channel in 102 boats, which equates to an average of about 53 a vessel. Analysis of provisional government data by PA Media shows this is the highest monthly average since records began in 2018. The averages for the past three months have each set a new record. The second-highest average of 52 was in July, when 3,299 people made the journey in 63 boats. The third-highest average of 49 was reached in June, when 78 boats carried 3,823 people. This suggests bigger boats are being used for crossings with larger numbers of people onboard. So far this year, 20,101 people have arrived in the UK after crossing the Channel. No arrivals have been recorded for the past two days amid poor weather conditions at sea. This is about 20% lower than this time last year, when more than 25,000 people had crossed on small boats. In the whole of August 2022, 8,574 people were detected making the journey, Home Office data shows. All NHS trusts should have access to the necessary funding to replace concrete that has been deemed unsafe “as soon as possible”, a health chief has said. The government has committed to rebuilding seven hospitals most affected by reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC) by 2030, PA Media reports. The lightweight material was used in public buildings from the 1950s up to the mid-1990s, but is now assessed to be at risk of collapse. Earlier this year, NHS Providers published a report calling for the “long-neglected” NHS estate in England to be brought “into the 21st century”. It also described RAAC as presenting a “major and unjustifiable safety risk”. The government said it “remains committed” to eradicating RAAC from the NHS estate by 2035. Willowbrook Mead primary academy on the outskirts of Leicester was a hive of activity on Friday morning as staff moved tables, chairs and bookcases from brick buildings into a nearby portable building. But the activity is not the usual hustle and bustle of a new academic year. Just two days into the new term, Willowbrook Mead has been forced to close its doors to students while safety works are carried out. It is one of a number of schools that have had the beginning of term plunged into chaos after the government found more than 150 schools contain buildings made from potentially dangerous reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC), which has been assessed as being at risk of collapse. “It was a bit of a surprise, the kids have just gone back to school, and we just found out yesterday,” said Mohammad Younis, who has a 10-year-old daughter at the school. “It is alarming if something like this is there in a lot of schools and it’s taken them this long to reach the conclusion that it can be dangerous. But I’m sure they are sorting it out so the kids can go back soon.” The school, which has about 450 pupils and is run by the Mead Educational Trust, said it had been contacted by the Department for Education warning that part of its site contained RAAC. The UK could pull out of the international energy charter treaty if attempts to reform it fail, the energy minister, Graham Stuart, has said. The energy charter treaty (ECT) is a system of secret courts that enables companies to sue governments over policies that would cut their future profits. Companies have sued over phasing out coal-fired power stations, ending offshore oil drilling and banning fracking, with some receiving large taxpayer-funded payouts. Critics of the ECT include the European Union, which says staying in the treaty would “clearly undermine” climate targets. France, Germany, Spain and eight other countries have already said they will leave and the EU is also set to pull out en masse. The UK and Japan are the only major economies not to have committed to exiting the ECT. The UK has been a “strong advocate” of reforming the treaty but the intention to leave it by numerous countries has created an impasse. Stuart said that if the reforms were not passed by November, the UK would consider withdrawal. “Rather than being stuck indefinitely with an outdated treaty, the UK wants to see an agreement on a modernised treaty as quickly as possible,” Stuart said. “In its current form, the ECT will not support those countries looking to make the transition to cleaner, cheaper energy sources and could even penalise our country for being at the forefront of those efforts.” Cleodie Rickard, trade campaign manager at Global Justice Now said: “It is welcome to hear the UK is finally willing to review its membership of the climate-wrecking ECT. But putting off the decision until November looks like an attempt to keep the UK sitting on the fence.” “The reform process to this treaty has failed,” she said. “Eleven countries are voting with their feet and exiting, meaning there is not enough support to get the so-called modernisation through. Rather than more dither and delay, the UK should be joining a co-ordinated withdrawal now to maximise the benefits of leaving this damaging deal.” You can read the full report below. Patrick Roach, the teachers’ union NASUWT’s general secretary, has called for an immediate survey of school buildings in Scotland. He said: “We are calling on the Scottish government to urgently take steps to assess the safety of the schools estate. “We need to be clear about which buildings may be affected by Raac and what plans are in place to ensure children’s education faces minimum disruption if their schools are found to be unsafe.” Teachers are scrambling to find temporary accommodation in libraries, marquees and Portakabins after at least 156 schools in England were identified as having potentially dangerous aerated concrete, and engineers prepared for a weekend checking more schools at risk of sudden collapse. With an estimated 24 schools already facing temporary closure and the government telling more than 100 to close at least some affected areas, the schools minister, Nick Gibb, said numbers were likely to increase. One schools estates manager told the Guardian that the tally of those affected in some way could eventually rise as high as 1,000, and said the crisis could end up with children being taught in temporary buildings for as long as a decade to come. Scottish ministers urged to investigate building collapse-risk after claims responsibility pushed onto local councils Scottish ministers are being urged to take the risk of school building collapse seriously amidst claims they have pushed responsibility for fixing potentially fatal problems onto already cash-strapped local councils. In June, the Scottish Liberal Democrats revealed through FOI work that RAAC was present in 37 schools across Scotland, and then in July the Scottish health secretary Michael Matheson confirmed that health boards had identified 254 buildings with likely RAAC. The Scottish government now says it is still trying to establish how many schools contain collapse-risk concrete and expects a fuller picture within days. Housing minister Paul McLennan said that following initial assessments two schools in West Lothian and East Lothian had been identified and some classrooms had been closed off. Over the summer, it emerged that two primary schools in Edinburgh were using portable classroom units following the discovery of RAAC, while Perth and Kinross Council and Moray Council announced work to remove RAAC panels from local schools. Scottish pupils have already returned to school as their term begins in mid-August. Scottish Lib Dem leader Alex Cole-Hamilton said: “Does Scotland have to have a tragedy before ministers take this seriously? This issue has been bubbling up for months and its ridiculous that the Scottish Government have failed to use the summer to rigorously assess the scale of the problem and get repairs underway”. “The government need to name the schools which have this concrete in place and say what measures are being taken to make them safe. Ministers must set out how they will support cash-strapped schools, universities, hospitals and more to identify buildings at risk and cope with any necessary remedial works.” PA reports that the local authority in Bradford revealed on Thursday that RAAC was detected in Crossflatts primary school and Eldwick primary school in the West Yorkshire city, making the buildings unsafe Both interim and long-term alteration works are being carried out to ensure children can be accommodated on the two sites, according to Bradford Council. The council said interim alterations to safe areas will be finished by Sunday and temporary classrooms on both school sites have been ordered and should arrive within the next eight-10 weeks at Crossflatts and 14-16 weeks at Eldwick. Elsewhere, the BBC reports affected schools include Ferryhill School, a secondary in County Durham, Willowbrook Mead primary academy in Leicester and Corpus Christi Catholic primary school in Brixton, south London. The possible presence of the concrete was being assessed in Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales, where education is devolved. The Welsh government said councils and colleges have not reported any presence of Raac. Priti Patel, the former home secretary and MP for Whitham who has five schools in her constituency disrupted by the location of RAAC including the closure of a primary, said ministers must explain why the decision to close schools was not taken earlier. “Ministers need to explain why the decision to close schools was not taken sooner so schools and parents could plan and why provision had not been made sooner, which would have prevented the disruption to learning and teaching which we are now about to see. “Since being made aware of the schools affected in my constituency, I have been working with Essex county council to support the schools affected and have been making robust representations to the Secretary of State for Education. The government must act quickly and effectively to address this problem, make our school buildings safe and respond to the questions and concerns that have been raised,” she told the Guardian. Patel, who has been in contact with teachers at St Andrews Junior school in Hatfield Peverel who were told on Thursday tht their school would be closed, said: “The safety of pupils, teachers and staff must always come first and I am extremely concerned about the presence of RAAC in school buildings in my constituency and the risks to safety. This is a very difficult and frustrating situation for the pupils, parents and schools affected and the decision to close some schools when the start of term is imminent will cause inconvenience to many. The Government must fully fund all works necessary to make these buildings safe and provide support to all pupils and schools directly affected by the disruption being caused.” Afternoon summary Here is a round-up of the day’s main headlines so far: More schools could be told they need to immediately shut classrooms because they are fitted with a concrete that could suddenly collapse, the schools minister has admitted. Nick Gibb said on Friday that a collapse over the summer of a beam that had been considered safe sparked an urgent rethink on whether buildings with the aerated concrete could remain open. Though not confirmed, it is estimated that around 24 schools in England have been told to close entirely because of the presence of reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC), the PA news agency understands. The warning that school buildings made from reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC) could be unsafe or face closure was prompted by a beam collapse, the schools minister has said. Nick Gibb said a beam at a school, previously thought to be no risk, collapsed during the summer. The government will cover “all capital costs” over any disruption to educational buildings caused by concerns from the use of concrete prone to collapse, the schools minister has said. Asked on Sky News who will pay if schools need to either fully or partially relocate, Nick Gibb said: “We will pay for that. We’ve made it very clear we will cover all capital costs. “So if in the worst-case scenario, we need Portacabins in the school estate for an alternative accommodation, we will cover all those costs. So there has been some speculation that we won’t cover those costs. We absolutely will.” Labour have renewed calls for the government to publish a full list of schools affected by crumbling concrete and have called for an urgent investigation into which other public buildings – such as hospitals, courts and prisons – are affected. Steve Reed, the shadow justice secretary, said on the Today programme on BBC Radio 4: “After 13 years of Conservative failure, the fabric of our public sector is literally crumbling.” All NHS trusts should have access to the necessary funding to replace concrete that has been deemed unsafe “as soon as possible”, a health chief has said. The government has committed to rebuilding seven hospitals most affected by reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (Raac) by 2030, PA Media reports. The lightweight material was used in public buildings from the 1950s up to the mid-1990s, but is now assessed to be at risk of collapse. Two schools in the north-east of England are among those unable to open for the new autumn term. Ferryhill School in County Durham confirmed in an email that two of its buildings are affected by potentially dangerous Reinforced Autoclaved Aerated Concrete (RAAC) and cannot open on Tuesday as planned, the Northern Echo reports. Earlier, the schools minister Nick Gibb said the government had taken action on the issue of crumble-risk concrete in schools “as soon as the evidence emerged” (see 7.48am) that it might be a safety risk. However, Hansard shows shows that this very issue was debated in parliament back in June. The Home Office has placed more than 100 lone asylum-seeker children in hotels in recent weeks, despite the practice having been found unlawful by the high court. The government’s continued use of hotels has been condemned by human rights and refugee organisations since more than 200 children have gone missing, including dozens who vanished from one hotel in Brighton. The Liberal Democrats will try to force the Conservative party to hold the Mid Bedfordshire by-election at the start of October. With parliament scheduled to reconvene on Monday, concerns have arisen that the prime minister, Rishi Sunak, might postpone the byelection in Nadine Dorries’ former seat to avoid scheduling conflicts with the Conservative party conference. Theresa May has expressed regret for using the term “hostile environment” and has criticised Home Office staff for an “inbuilt cynicism” she believes contributed to the Windrush scandal. May devotes a chapter to the scandal, which unfolded while she was prime minister, in her forthcoming memoir, The Abuse of Power. She concludes that it was an abuse of power and describes the treatment of the Windrush generation who were wrongly classified as illegal immigrants as “shocking”. The Aslef general secretary, Mick Whelan, has criticised the appointment of former transport secretary Grant Shapps as defence secretary. Shapps clashed with union leaders while in the transport brief and Whelan, standing at a picket line in Euston, north London, joked of the appointment: “I keep looking at the skies waiting for the missiles to rain down. He’s had five departments in 12 months, I’m not sure if that’s a ringing endorsement or an indictment.” All NHS trusts should have access to the necessary funding to replace concrete that has been deemed unsafe “as soon as possible”, a health chief has said. The government has committed to rebuilding seven hospitals most affected by reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (Raac) by 2030, PA Media reports. The lightweight material was used in public buildings from the 1950s up to the mid-1990s, but is now assessed to be at risk of collapse. Earlier this year, NHS Providers published a report calling for the “long-neglected” NHS estate in England to be brought “into the 21st century”. It also described Raac as presenting a “major and unjustifiable safety risk”. The government said it “remains committed” to eradicating Raac from the NHS estate by 2035.