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Merseyrail raise
£58,000 and counting for the Royal
STAFF at Merseyrail and
suppliers raised £58,000 last year for the Bone Marrow Transplant
Unit at the Royal Liverpool University Hospital, so that it can
hosted a special event for staff to say thank you and to showcase
the difference this has made to patients on the ward.
The Royal was nominated as Merseyrail's Charity of the Year by Paul
Collins a projects engineer from Warrington, whose wife Anita passed
away in June 2011. Anita, 38, had been undergoing treatment for a
type of bone marrow cancer called multiple myeloma.
During Anita's treatment Paul had been particularly impressed by the
fantastic care his wife had received on the unit, but felt the day
care area could be improved by providing more space, comfort and
facilities to keep patients occupied.
Paul said:- "When you are on the unit, the nurses and doctors
are not just clinicians, they become your friends. They make your
time on the ward so comfortable and never complain even if you have
called for them for the tenth time in an hour. I am glad we have
contributed to the day care side of the unit to make it a more
welcoming and comfortable environment for patients. I will never
forget the care and kindness every single one of the staff gave to
Anita and myself and will work to raise money for the unit
continuously."
The money raised has been used to refurbish and expand the day care
suite which treats patients who have undergone stem cell
transplantation. The refurbishment of this area means that patients
who are suffering from contagious viral infections can now be
treated in two new specialised isolation rooms, improving their
comfort and reducing their risk to other immune-compromised
patients.
Around 80 to 90 people with leukaemia, lymphoma and myeloma are
treated at the Royal's Stem Cell Transplant Unit every year. During
their admission, patients face intense treatment. The treatment
involves high dose chemotherapy, immunotherapy and in some cases
total body radiation. This treatment means the majority of patients
become completely immune-compromised and are at very high risk of
infection. To minimise this risk patients are isolated in especially
filtered rooms for 4 to 6 weeks.
The Royal's stem cell transplant consultant haematologist, Dr Rahuman Salim, said:-
"We are all very touched by the generosity of everyone at Merseyrail.
We have used this wonderful opportunity to improve the environment
for patients on the unit by modernising and updating facilities. It
is fantastic to see the importance Merseyrail places on supporting
local charities and helping to improve care for the people of
Merseyside."
Paul has committed to continue to raise funds for the Bone Marrow
Transplant Unit throughout 2013 and 2014, starting with a 100mile
walk along the Pennine Trail. He also hopes to continue this
activity as a fundraising ambassador for the new Royal over the
coming years.
Merseyrail are also planning to hold an 'It's a Knockout' style
event in May this year which will see the money raised split equally
between the Bone Marrow Transplant Unit and Merseyrail's 2013
charity of the year.
If anyone would like to fundraise or make a donation to for the Bone
Marrow Transplant Unit or find out about fundraising opportunities
with the Trust please contact our fundraising team on:- 0151 706
3150.
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CANNABIS WEEK OF
ACTION - ROUND-UP
WITH more than 1 million
pounds of drugs have been seized by Merseyside Police in a week long
crackdown on cannabis farms it has been a good result in the fight againced drug related crime. Officers from the force have
confiscated almost 1,500 cannabis plants with an estimated yield of
£850,000 along with large quantities of cocaine, heroin and
amphetamine. The force wide 'week of action'
targeted organised criminal groups responsible for operating
cannabis farms in communities and resulted in 94 people being
arrested for drugs and other offences. Handgun ammunition, expensive
watches, drug packaging equipment and mixing agent were also seized
after officers executed almost 100 Misuse of Drugs Act warrants last
week. Superintendent Mark Harrison, who led the operation, said the
results showed the force was successfully tackling the issue of
cannabis farms in people's communities and going after the criminal
gangs running them.
Superintendent Mark Harrison told us that:- "A great deal of
work went into gathering the evidence for these warrants and into
carrying them out so it is good to see them bring about positive
results. We have seized large numbers of cannabis plants worth a
considerable amount of money to the criminal gangs growing them and
arrested almost a hundred people suspected of drugs and money
laundering offences. The fact that we have found ammunition, Class A
drugs and large amounts of unaccounted for cash at some of these
premises shows that cannabis is not a harmless drug. It is linked to
serious and organised crime and the cultivation of cannabis is
damaging our communities so it is imperative that the Police,
Crimestoppers and the general public continue to tackle it. The
Crimestoppers 'scratch and sniff' card initiative was a great way of
educating local people about what to look out for and, with farms
increasingly being set up in residential areas, we need the public
to be our eyes and ears and tell us what they know."
HMRC keeps up
the pressure on tax cheats
TAX cheats who become
insolvent to dodge their companies' tax obligations face up to 5
years' scrutiny from HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC).
Under Managing Serious Defaulters (MSD), HMRC will closely monitor
the tax affairs of more individuals and businesses who have
deliberately evaded tax for up to five years. From 1 April, HMRC is
extending the close monitoring of the tax affairs of those who
deliberately choose not to pay what they owe. MSD will ensure that
they comply with their tax obligations and permanently change their
behaviour.
MSD replaces and expands the Managing Deliberate Defaulters (MDD)
scheme, which was launched in 2011 and aims to keep tax cheats on
the straight and narrow through close monitoring. Early indications
suggest that those monitored are changing their behaviour. This has
led them to disclose concealed income and amend previous tax
returns.
MSD will include evaders who:-
► have received a civil evasion penalty
for dishonestly evading VAT.
► are required to give a security deposit
for VAT, Environmental Taxes, PAYE or NICs.
► become deliberately insolvent as a way
of dodging their business taxation obligations.
David Gauke, Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury, said:-
"Increasingly, evaders are using contrived insolvency to evade tax,
either through liquidation of a business or bankruptcy of an
individual. It is only fair that someone who has deliberately tried
to evade tax should face extra scrutiny from HMRC. This measure,
along with those announced in the Budget, demonstrates that we will
crack down on people who don't pay what they owe."
Jennie Granger, Director General Enforcement and Compliance at HMRC,
said:- "HMRC monitoring has proved effective in making tax
cheats comply with their tax obligations. MSD will keep the pressure
up on even more defaulters."
Extra scrutiny under MSD can include:-
► Unannounced visits by HMRC.
► Asking for records so they can be
checked.
► Carrying out in-depth compliance checks
into persons tax affairs.
► Observing and recording business
activities and cross-checking details in accounts.
Defaulters who fail to keep their tax affairs in order may face
criminal proceedings. |
