MPP Global's Comic Relief Initiative Exceeds Target

MPP Global, the technology company that delivers eSuite, the world's smartest subscriber management & billing platform, organised several unique events to raise money for Comic Relief. The team at the award winning company, headquartered at Birchwood Park, Warrington, and with offices in:- Manchester, New York, Dubai, Tokyo and Sydney, participated in a Bake Sale event and sold Red Noses, along with sponsoring one of the software developers to become a vegan for the week. The events were capped off by the long serving Head of Software, Simon Johnson, having his hair and famous sideburns shaved off, with the rest of the management team not escaping as they were involved in a:- 'guess the baby photo' competition. The initial target of ₤1,000 has already been exceeded, with the total currently at ₤1,300. Further initiatives are planned over the next couple of weeks, so the company expects the total raised to be even greater.

Paul Johnson, CEO and Co-Founder, MPP Global, said:- "These events have been a lot of fun and everyone approached them with a lot of enthusiasm, but the main purpose was to raise money for such a great cause. We are proud to support Comic Relief this year and look forward to future fundraising activities. Our newly formed Employee Action Group worked hard to come up with ideas that were unique and captured the imagination. The response we saw on social media was excellent and helped to show, in part, the culture of working here at MPP Global."

Debenhams requests a ₤200m lifeline

HIGHSTREET retailer Debenhams, which can trace its roots back to 1778, has recently issued a string of profit warnings, as trading conditions have deteriorated on the UK High Streets. This has also lead to an escalating battle with Mr Ashley, who owns Sports Direct and now a near 30% share in Debenhams, leading to the firm struggling to fend him off. Along with a string of profit warnings comes the announcement that just under 20 stores have been earmarked for closure. Currently, it has now been announced that the firm is seeking to secure a ₤200m funding lifeline from lenders in order to pay a quarterly rent bill of roughly ₤50m, next week, which the company has said it can meet. But it would use the funds from the new funding, if a deal can be reached, to shore up its finances thereby enabling Debenhams to trade through the remainder of the year, while pursuing a broader financial restructuring. Lenders have until Thursday, 4 April 2019, to approve the funding request. If a deal can not be reached, the chain says it might have to take out a ₤150m loan, that would put Mr Ashley in charge. Currently Mike Ashley is its biggest shareholder but under the offer made by the afore mentioned, not only would he be made Chief Executive, but a further 5% of Debenhams shares would have to be issued to his firm, Sports Direct. This is something the the ailing department store chain hopes to avoid. Debenhams has also warned that if they have to go with Mr Ashley, then it could see thousands of job losses, adding to the huge number of redundancies already happening within the retail industry, over the last 12 months. So does this affect you? Please let us know your thoughts and views on this ₤200m funding lifeline request by Debenhams via emailing us to:- News24@SouthportReporter.Com.

Southport School Norwood Primary Steps Up for Autism

TO be autism aware and get active local School Norwood Primary School, Southport, have signed up to Autism Initiatives' 'Walk for Autism.' challenge. The challenge itself involves Primary School pupils walking a total of 10,000 extra steps in one week during World Autism Awareness month, which adds up to about 5 miles! Norwood Primary spoke to us about why they were taking part. "At Norwood we work closely with Autism Initiatives. Autism is much more common than many people think, so we are walking to raise awareness of this and to do what we can to make life better for people on the spectrum."  Including Norwood Primary School, 40 Schools and over 11,000 pupils across the UK and Ireland will be stepping up to:- 'Walk for Autism.' The 'Schools Walk for Autism.' challenge aims to raise awareness and funds to support autistic people and their families. It also coincides with a huge drive to get a so called:- 'indoor generation' spending less time looking at screens and more time out in the fresh air.  Data from a YouGov study states staying inside for prolonged periods of time can negatively affect your mood and that just 10 to 15 minutes extra outside being active can improve the quality of your life. The 'Walk for Autism Schools Challenge' will see the kids outside and active for that extra 15 minutes each day, which is super healthy! In the UK and Ireland more than 1 in 100 people are thought to be on the autism spectrum. 'Schools Walk for Autism.' will raise vital funds for autism projects across the UK and Ireland, with the Schools, like Norwood Primary School, demonstrating how much their School cares and changing lives, 1 step at a time.

Scientists and campaigners to investigate river plastic pollution on Mersey

GREENPEACE volunteers and scientists are collecting water samples from 3 different points along the Mersey using a filtering device called a manta net. The samples will then be sent back to the University of Exeter, where they will be analysed using fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (a cutting-edge infrared plastic detector) and compared with samples from other major rivers across the UK. The results will be collated into a scientific report on the plastic load in UK rivers to be released later this year. Microplastics; very tiny plastic particles that come from degraded plastics and synthetic clothing; can be toxic to wildlife and fragile ecosystems and represent a vast proportion of the plastics that flow directly from our rivers out into the sea. Greenpeace is calling on the UK Government to tackle our plastic crisis, by setting new legally binding targets in the forthcoming Environment Bill to radically reduce single use plastics. Greenpeace is also urgently calling on the Government to create an independent environmental watchdog to ensure that these and other vital targets are met.

Kirsten Thompson, Lecturer in Ecology at University of Exeter says:- "This is the 1st nationwide investigation into micro plastic pollution in Britain's major rivers. There are a lot of studies showing how much plastic is in our seas and oceans, but very few so far investigating the amounts and types of plastics, especially microplastics, carried along, by our rivers. Documentaries like Blue Planet have shown us just how detrimental plastic pollution is to marine wildlife, but we hope that our research on rivers in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland will help uncover exactly where this plastic is coming from and what impact plastic pollution may be having closer to home on creatures like otters, kingfishers and water voles."

Fiona Nicholls, Greenpeace UK plastics campaigner said:- "More frightening facts seem to emerge about plastic pollution every month. It's in our water, our food, the air; it's polluting the most remote parts of our planet. But the scariest fact is that if we carry on with business as usual plastic production is set to quadruple, by 2050. It's clear our rivers and oceans simply can't stomach this. That's why Greenpeace is urging the Government to ensure that their new Environment Bill sets specific targets for reducing the amount of throwaway plastic being made."

Greenpeace would like to thank players of People's Postcode Lottery, and The Postcode Green Trust, without whom this national project would not be possible.