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  • Lord Hunt of Kings Heath – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Lord Hunt of Kings Heath – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hunt of Kings Heath on 2015-10-20.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what guidance they and the NHS 111 service give to qualified nurses about the prioritisation of complex cases and more routine calls, in the light of the targets set for that service.

    Lord Prior of Brampton

    The Government has seen successes with the NHS 111 service since its launch, with over a million calls offered to the NHS 111 service in August, of which 93.6% were answered within 60 seconds.

    The Government expects all NHS 111 centres to be appropriately staffed to offer people safe care and advice and treatment at all times and has asked NHS England for assurances that the NHS 111 service is doing all it can to help patients. Furthermore the Care Quality Commission has announced it will inspect and rate NHS 111 services by September 2016 to give additional assurances that minimum levels of quality are attained.

    New Commissioning Standards for Integrated Urgent Care were published last week by NHS England. Developed jointly with commissioners and providers, the Commissioning Standards will support the transformation of urgent care services; introducing the clinical hub employing a broader range of clinical skills, direct booking into general practitioner appointments, improved clinical governance and staff development amongst other developments. Commissioners will now complete their plans to achieve the Commissioning Standards. A copy is attached.

    The commissioning of NHS 111 services is led by local Clinical Commissioning Groups and the safety and effectiveness of NHS 111 services are subject to constant review by local commissioners, monitoring performance and investigating complaints and clinical incidents through existing clinical governance arrangements.

  • Lord Hunt of Kings Heath – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Lord Hunt of Kings Heath – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hunt of Kings Heath on 2015-10-20.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what response they plan to make to the recent article published in the Journal of Public Health reporting on the costs and benefits of health checks for 40 to 74 year olds.

    Lord Prior of Brampton

    Public Health England (PHE) provided a response to Capewell et al’s article on NHS Health Check, which appeared in the same issue of the Journal of Public Health.PHE’s Chief Executive also responded in letters published in the Guardian and the British Medical Journal (BMJ), and through a special e-bulletin to NHS Health Check stakeholders. Copies of the article and responses have been placed in the Library.

  • Lord Hunt of Kings Heath – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Lord Hunt of Kings Heath – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hunt of Kings Heath on 2015-10-20.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what consideration they have given to the assessment by Monitor that the capping of agency staff rates could result in a shortage of staff working for the National Health Service.

    Lord Prior of Brampton

    Price caps for agency staff: proposed roles and consultation was published by the NHS Trust Development Authority (TDA) and Monitor on 15 October 2015. A copy has been attached. The aim of the price caps is to reduce spending on agency staff and to bring the pay of agency workers in line with those of substantive staff employed in the NHS.

    The NHS TDA and Monitor are currently consulting on these proposals. Any decision on introducing price caps will be subject to the results of the consultation.

    The proposed price caps do include mechanisms that enable an overriding of the rules should there be any potential compromise to patient safety.

  • Lord Jay of Ewelme – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Lord Jay of Ewelme – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Jay of Ewelme on 2015-10-20.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they have taken, and to what effect, to secure the release of Andy Tsege from prison in Ethiopia; and what representations they have made to the government of Ethiopia about allowing Mr Tsege’s lawyer to travel to that country.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    The British Government remains deeply concerned by the continued detention of British national, Andargachew Tsege, in Ethiopia and about his welfare. The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs has raised this case with Dr Tedros, the Ethiopian Foreign Minister, on 18 occasions. Most recently on 21 October. He welcomed the improvement in consular access to Mr Tsege, following the Government’s intervention, but noted it must be more regular and must include access to a lawyer. Mr Tsege should be given the ability to challenge his detention through due legal process.

  • Baroness Jones of Whitchurch – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Baroness Jones of Whitchurch – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Jones of Whitchurch on 2015-10-20.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what representations, if any, they have made to British Members of the European Parliament about voting against European Union legislation requiring countries to carry out spot checks on the emissions of vehicles under real operating conditions.

    Lord Gardiner of Kimble

    In July this year, Defra prepared a voting brief for British MEPs concerning the revised National Emission Ceilings Directive. This advised MEPs to oppose an amendment which included the introduction of spot checks on vehicle emissions under real operating conditions, because the aim of the amendment and how it related to existing regimes was unclear. The Government supports the implementation of real driving emissions testing for vehicles but strongly believes that this should be addressed in the appropriate legislation to ensure clarity.

  • Baroness Jones of Whitchurch – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Baroness Jones of Whitchurch – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Jones of Whitchurch on 2015-10-20.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the case for establishing a national testing regime routinely to measure vehicle emissions under real operating conditions.

    Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon

    There has been no assessment made at national level.

    The government has been at the forefront of action at a European level to introduce real driving emissions (RDE) testing, to ensure tests of all new passenger cars and vans accurately represent performance out on the road and ensure public confidence. We will continue to press for the introduction of RDE at the earliest opportunity.

  • Baroness Jones of Whitchurch – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Baroness Jones of Whitchurch – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Jones of Whitchurch on 2015-10-20.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is the timescale for complying with the Supreme Court judgment about tackling illegal levels of diesel fumes in British cities.

    Lord Gardiner of Kimble

    The Supreme Court’s judgement ordered the Government to prepare revised air quality plans and submit them to the European Commission by the end of 2015.

  • Baroness Jones of Whitchurch – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Baroness Jones of Whitchurch – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Jones of Whitchurch on 2015-10-20.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what additional resources will be made available to enable local authorities to introduce clean air zones.

    Lord Gardiner of Kimble

    The Government is currently consulting on draft plans to address nitrogen dioxide levels in the UK, including proposals for a framework for Clean Air Zones in England. The principal responsibility for deciding whether to introduce a Clean Air Zone, or other appropriate measures to tackle air quality, will rest with relevant local authorities. The Government is considering the appropriate incentives required to help secure the delivery of the air quality plans.

  • Baroness Jones of Whitchurch – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Baroness Jones of Whitchurch – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Jones of Whitchurch on 2015-10-20.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the case for a sugar tax on sweetened drinks in order to tackle the rise in obesity.

    Lord Prior of Brampton

    There are no plans to introduce a tax on sugar-sweetened drinks. However, we keep all taxes under review, with decisions being a matter for the Chancellor as part of the Budget process.

    Calorie reduction, including sugar reduction, is being considered as part of the development of the Government’s childhood obesity strategy which is due in the coming months.

  • Baroness Jones of Whitchurch – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Baroness Jones of Whitchurch – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Jones of Whitchurch on 2015-10-20.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether the funding of free school meals for infants schools will be protected in the forthcoming spending review.

    Lord O’Neill of Gatley

    The continuation of universal infant free school meals was a commitment in the Conservative Party’s election manifesto.

    The government is currently conducting a Spending Review across all of its programmes.