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  • Lord Turnberg – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Lord Turnberg – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Turnberg on 2016-07-20.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Verma on 7 July 2016 (HL799), what discussion they have had with the Palestinian Authority about its non-attendance at meetings with Israeli officials on the Joint Water Committee.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    Continuity of water supply to the West Bank is essential for both the basic needs of Palestinians and for stability and security more widely. The UK regularly raises the issue of water in the Occupied Palestinian Territories with the Palestinian Authority and Government of Israel. We encourage both parties to find a swift resolution to this issue and to reconvene the Joint Water Committee.

  • Lord Blencathra – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Lord Blencathra – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Blencathra on 2016-07-20.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many International Monetary Fund (IMF) reports have, since 2006, (1) commented on the state of the UK economy; (2) commented on the state of the UK economy and have been shown to be erroneous; and (3) made comments on the state of the UK economy that the IMF have had to revise or retract due to the inaccuracy of the forecast.

    Lord O’Neill of Gatley

    The information requested in relation to the evaluation of comments and forecasts about the UK could only be provided at disproportionate cost. However, the Independent Evaluation Office of the IMF produce a report evaluating the forecasts of the organisation and the most recent one was published in 2014.

    The UK economy is assessed by the IMF on an annual basis as part of the Article IV process. The IMF also produce quarterly forecasts for the UK economy in their World Economic Outlook (WEO) reports and WEO Updates.

    Article IV reports and World Economic Outlooks and Updates are readily available on the IMF website and include recent revisions to forecasts.

  • Lord Blencathra – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Exiting the European Union

    Lord Blencathra – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Exiting the European Union

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Blencathra on 2016-07-20.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they plan to transfer operational command and control of the EU units from all other departments to the Department for Exiting the European Union.

    Lord Bridges of Headley

    The Department for Exiting the European Union will be made up of staff from various departments across Government, including from the UK’s Permanent Representation to the EU.

  • Lord Blencathra – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Exiting the European Union

    Lord Blencathra – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Exiting the European Union

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Blencathra on 2016-07-20.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they plan to suspend immediately the implementation of all pending and future judgments of the European Court of Justice.

    Lord Bridges of Headley

    The UK remains a member of the EU until our withdrawal is completed. We will exercise our rights and meet our obligations as a member of the EU accordingly.

  • Roger Godsiff – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Roger Godsiff – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Roger Godsiff on 2016-09-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what proportion of GDP has been spent on healthcare in each of the last five years.

    Mr Philip Dunne

    The table below shows United Kingdom public spend on health as a proportion of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) from 2011-12 to 2015-16.

    Year

    UK public health spend £ billion

    UK public spend on health as % of GDP

    2011-12

    121.3

    7.4%

    2012-13

    124.3

    7.4%

    2013-14

    129.4

    7.4%

    2014-15

    134.1

    7.3%

    2015-16

    138.7

    7.4%

    Source: Table 4.2/Table 4.4 HMT Public Expenditure Statistical Analyses 2016

    Latest available data from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) shows that the estimated 2015 UK spend on health, both public and private, is 9.8% of GDP which is higher that the OECD average of 9.0%.

  • Roger Godsiff – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Roger Godsiff – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Roger Godsiff on 2016-09-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, for what reason the decision was taken that NHS England will in future fund only one stem cell transplant for blood cancer patients; what estimate he has made of the number of patients who will be affected by that decision; and what assessment he has made of the potential effect of that policy change on blood cancer survival rates.

    David Mowat

    The provision of second stem cell transplants was considered as part of NHS England’s annual prioritisation process by the Specialised Commissioning Oversight Group (SCOG). Decisions by SCOG are based on recommendations made by Clinical Priorities Advisory Group (CPAG) which uses a defined process to prioritise treatments based on a combination of cost and patient benefit.

    NHS England announced on 2 August that CPAG will re-run the prioritisation process to include proposals previously prioritised in levels 3, 4 and 5. The re-run of the prioritisation process is expected to take place later in the year. Until the process is completed clinicians, on behalf of their patients can continue to apply for funding for second transplant for relapsed disease where there is clinically exceptional or clinically critical need.

  • Eilidh Whiteford – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Eilidh Whiteford – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Eilidh Whiteford on 2016-09-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, with reference to the report by the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation, entitled Voices of the hungry, published in April 2016, what steps his Department plans to take to (a) initiate regular annual monitoring of adult and child food insecurity in the UK and (b) determine a precise estimate on which to base action to reduce food poverty.

    Mr Philip Dunne

    Food insecurity is a global problem which the United Nations (UN) agreed to confront at the World Food Summit in 1996 and has framed subsequent sustainable development goals. Getting accurate and informative data was the motivation for the ‘Voices of the Hungry’ project. This project has established an annual universal metric to measure lack of access to food and the severity of this in over 150 countries, and help inform UN policy. The Department for International Development has provided financial support to enable the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) to take this forward.

    The United Kingdom is committed to the Sustainable Development Goals and to the data the FAO commissions and manages. There are therefore no plans for the Department of Health to independently monitor food insecurity going forward, or determine a precise estimate on which to base action to reduce food poverty.

    The Government is committed to tackling childhood obesity and launched Childhood Obesity: A Plan for Action on 18 August. A copy of the plan is attached and is also available at:

    www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/546588/Childhood_obesity_2016__2__acc.pdf

  • Eilidh Whiteford – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Eilidh Whiteford – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Eilidh Whiteford on 2016-09-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, with reference to the report by the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation, entitled Voices of the hungry, published in April 2016, whether tackling dietary inequality will be a focus of the forthcoming childhood obesity strategy.

    Mr Philip Dunne

    Food insecurity is a global problem which the United Nations (UN) agreed to confront at the World Food Summit in 1996 and has framed subsequent sustainable development goals. Getting accurate and informative data was the motivation for the ‘Voices of the Hungry’ project. This project has established an annual universal metric to measure lack of access to food and the severity of this in over 150 countries, and help inform UN policy. The Department for International Development has provided financial support to enable the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) to take this forward.

    The United Kingdom is committed to the Sustainable Development Goals and to the data the FAO commissions and manages. There are therefore no plans for the Department of Health to independently monitor food insecurity going forward, or determine a precise estimate on which to base action to reduce food poverty.

    The Government is committed to tackling childhood obesity and launched Childhood Obesity: A Plan for Action on 18 August. A copy of the plan is attached and is also available at:

    www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/546588/Childhood_obesity_2016__2__acc.pdf

  • Alex Chalk – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Alex Chalk – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alex Chalk on 2016-09-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps he is taking to improve coordination of bed allocation for adult in-patient treatment for patients with eating disorders.

    Nicola Blackwood

    The Five Year Forward View for Mental Health report published in February 2016 set out the start of a 10 year journey for the transformation of the National Health Service care and a shift towards prevention. The proposed mental health pathway and infrastructure development programme in the report envisages a referral to treatment pathway for eating disorders (adult mental health) being published in 2018/19.

    In the Autumn Statement 2014 increased funding of £150 million over the next five years was announced to improve services for children and young people with mental health problems in England. Particular emphasis was placed on improving services for people with eating disorders.

    As part of the planning processes, specialised commissioning teams review the needs of service for patients and where possible reflect provision. There is currently significant attention on eating disorders, primarily focussing on Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service but this will extend to the adult pathway of care shortly with the expectation of revised National Institute for health and Care Excellence Guidelines in April 2017. A prime focus of the work on eating disorders is about the improved provision of out of hospital care so patients are only admitted to a bed when clinically required.

  • Rebecca Long Bailey – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Rebecca Long Bailey – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Rebecca Long Bailey on 2016-09-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what discussions he has had with (a) GP representatives, (b) primary care providers and (c) mental health organisations on the quality of mental health support provided in primary care.

    David Mowat

    My Rt. hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Health has prioritised improving mental health services in all care settings, and he and his ministerial team meet weekly with a wide range of mental health and primary care professionals to discuss improving the provision of care and support for people with mental health problems.