On Monday (April 3) we had a huge success. A majority of the House of Lords voted to include our amendments in the Government’s Energy Bill. To recap, these amendments are based on our Local Electricity Bill, which would enable community energy schemes to sell their clean power to local people.
In a few weeks the Energy Bill will enter the House of Commons, where our amendments will be debated and voted on by MPs. We need your help to keep up this momentum.
From today until next Thursday at 12pm (20th to 27th April) any donation to the Community Energy Revolution campaign will be doubled, pound for pound. That’s one donation, twice the impact.
If you wish to donate, you can click here to find out more.
If you get an Emergency Alert on your phone tomorrow (April 23), you’ll hear a loud, siren-like sound. A message on your screen will tell you about the emergency and how best to respond. You’ll be able to check an alert is genuine and opt out at gov.uk/alerts
Please be aware that it is anticipated that criminals may seek to take advantage of this and may use the test to try and trick phone users into handing over personal data.
It is vital that you are aware no action is required if you receive the alert with regards to handing over information, downloading any app, or sending any information.
Reporting scam calls and texts is easy using the 7726 service which most major providers are signed up too.
To report a scam text you copy the content of the text and start a new message to 7726, paste in the content and send the message. The service will then reply to you asking for the number the message was sent from. You copy and paste the number or manually type it in and send it as a message.
To report a scam call number you just need to copy the number, put it into a text writing ‘Call’ before you put the number in and send it to 7726.
A UK-wide emergency alert service is being tested at 3.00pm on Sunday 23 April.
The alerts will be sent directly to mobile phones across the UK to warn people about life-threatening events such as wildfires and severe flooding, the government has said.
The government said that the alerts will be secure, free to receive, and will not reveal anyone’s location or collect personal data.
What happens when you get an emergency alert
Your mobile phone or tablet may:
make a loud siren-like sound, even if it’s set on silent
vibrate
read out the alert
The sound and vibration will last for about 10 seconds.
An alert will include a phone number or a link to the GOV.UK website for more information.
You’ll get alerts based on your current location – not where you live or work. You do not need to turn on location services to receive alerts.
What you need to do
When you get an alert, stop what you’re doing and follow the instructions in the alert.
If you’re driving or riding when you get an alert
You should not read or otherwise respond to an emergency alert whilst driving or riding a motorcycle.
If you are driving, you should continue to drive and not respond to the noise or attempt to pick up the mobile phone and deal with the message.
Find somewhere safe and legal to stop before reading the message. If there is nowhere safe or legal to stop close by, and nobody else is in the vehicle to read the alert, tune into live radio and wait for bulletins until you can find somewhere safe and legal to stop.
It is illegal to use a hand-held device while driving or riding.
People who have their phones switched off will not receive the message – but it will sound if your phone is switched to silent.
It is possible to turn the alerts off, something domestic abuse charity Refuge is advising vulnerable people how to do ahead of the test.
Investment scams are often conducted over the phone or online and increasingly via social media such as Facebook or Instagram.
Investment scams can result in people losing thousands of pounds for non-existent investment opportunities such as stocks & shares, wine or art investments, carbon trading or cryptocurrencies.
There has been a huge increase in cryptocurrency scams where the entities and persons coordinating the scams are all based abroad and there is no way to take enforcement action or recover any funds. We have also seen an increase in reports where people are engaged by scammers on dating sites and introduced to ‘investments scams’ during a ‘relationship’. Average losses are very high and in some cases people lose their whole life savings and pensions.
Please be very cautious in investing any money and take advice from a legitimate and trusted financial advisor prior to parting with any money. Often a little research online can result in finding out which are genuine investments and which are scams.
Call Citizens Advice Consumer Helpline 0808 223 1133 or visit https://www.citizensadvice.org.uk/ to report a scam or if you require further advice in regards to scams or consumer matters.
To find out the latest news on what is being planned in your local area, check out our latest Planning Report with up-to-date information on Planning Applications including developments in:
Addiscombe Road
The Glade
Hanbury Mews
Orchard Avenue
Orchard Way
Wickham Road
Woodmere Avenue and Woodmere Gardens.
Also, take a look at the MORA Planning App, which gives you an easy way to track all the current and recent planning applications within the MORA area. It’s simple to use and free for you to access.
