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  • John Glen – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    John Glen – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by John Glen on 2014-06-27.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will make it his policy that there should be equality of access to treatment for patients in England with specialised conditions.

    Jane Ellison

    Since April 2013, NHS England has been responsible for the commissioning of services that have been identified as specialised. NHS England’s role is to ensure that the National Health Service delivers better outcomes for patients requiring these specialised services in a consistent manner across the country.

    NHS England is committed to commissioning and planning a healthcare system that seeks to reduce health inequalities. In line with the UK Strategy for Rare Diseases, NHS England promotes equity of access to allow everyone with a rare disease to follow a clear, well defined care pathway, in order to achieve high quality services for every individual through integrated personal care plans. The aim is to ensure no one gets left behind just because they have a rare disease.

    NHS England has advised that the review of specialised services commissioning was initiated at the start of May and will run for an initial period of three months. Dr Paul Watson, Regional Director for the Midlands and East Region, is leading the specialised commissioning taskforce. National discussions took place at the end of April and the taskforce was established in April 2014 in order to make some immediate improvements to the way in which NHS England commissions specialised services, and to put commissioning arrangements on a stronger footing for the longer-term. This taskforce comprises of seven distinct work streams, which will focus on financial control in 2014-15, and planning for the 2015-16 commissioning round. The seven work streams each have a distinct portfolio of work, some of which is short-term, and some of which includes looking to the future and the development of a sustainable and effective model of specialised commissioning.

    Around 50 additional individuals, from different disciplines, have been drawn from across NHS England, coming together to support intensive, focussed attention in a number of these work streams.

    There are aspects of the work which will require engagement with clinical commissioning groups (CCGs). In consultation with the Commissioning Assembly, a specific working group has been established to enable the joint discussions with CCGs to take place. The first meeting of this group was on 4 July.

    NHS England advise that there are currently no plans to consult on the outcome of the work of the taskforce.

  • David Amess – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    David Amess – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Amess on 2014-06-27.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of the British Medical Association’s press release of 27 May 2014 entitled Abortion guidance ignores gender complexity; and if he will make a statement.

    Jane Ellison

    We have noted the views of the British Medical Association on this issue.

  • David Amess – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    David Amess – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Amess on 2014-06-27.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what his policy is on the taking of minutes in meetings conducted by his departmental officials with representatives of (a) other Government departments and (b) outside organisations; and if he will make a statement.

    Dr Daniel Poulter

    Where meetings of formally constituted committees or boards are held, a minute of the meeting must be produced for governance purposes. For other less formal meetings, a note or minute is produced at the discretion of the officials concerned.

  • Frank Field – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Frank Field – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Frank Field on 2014-06-27.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, further to the Answer of 25 June 2014, Official Report, column 210W, on human trafficking, how many calls in each of the years from 2011 to 2014 came from (a) victims, (b) other police forces, (c) the UK border force, (d) other professionals and (e) the public; and how many (i) traffickers were arrested and (ii) victims rescued as a result of information provided by those calls.

    Karen Bradley

    This information is recorded by the Trafficking and Kidnap Unit at the
    Metropolitan Police Service. The breakdown of data requested is only available
    from 2013 onwards. This is detailed in the tables below:

  • Naomi Long – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Naomi Long – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Naomi Long on 2014-06-27.

    To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, which community-based women’s organisations in Burma receive funding from her Department to assist victims of sexual violence by the Burmese army.

    Mr Alan Duncan

    DFID is providing £500,000 through the United Nation’s Population Fund (UNFPA) to strengthen the network and capacity of agencies working on gender-based violence in Rakhine and Kachin those areas.

  • Mark Tami – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Mark Tami – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mark Tami on 2014-06-27.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to the Decision Notice of 14 May 2013 on the extension of the reserved legal activities, what steps he is taking to educate consumers on (a) the different types of providers, (b) their respective protections and (c) options for redress.

    Mr Shailesh Vara

    In the Lord Chancellor’s Decision Notice of 14 May 2013, as well as confirming that he had decided not to make will writing a reserved legal activity, he indicated that further efforts should be made to see if alternatives to regulation could be made more effective in improving standards in relation to will writing.

    Since then, the Legal Services Board (LSB) has taken a number of steps, with the intention of encouraging and supporting measures to improve standards, in both the regulated and unregulated legal service sectors.

    In relation to the regulated sector, the LSB has written to the approved regulators, to encourage them to take steps to address concerns about the quality of will writing by authorised persons. In May 2014, the Solicitors Regulation Authority issued guidance for solicitors on will-writing.

    In relation to the unregulated sector, the LSB convened a roundtable with industry stakeholders, including leading will writing trade bodies, in January 2014, to explore ways to improve the coverage and effectiveness of voluntary schemes and codes. At this roundtable, the LSB and stakeholders also discussed how to improve consumer information, to better educate consumers about the differences between regulated and unregulated will providers, and related protections and redress routes.

  • Nicholas Brown – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Nicholas Brown – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nicholas Brown on 2014-06-27.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, for what reasons he decided against change following his review into his Department’s check-off system for employees’ trade union subscriptions.

    Jeremy Wright

    Check-off arrangements are kept under review.

  • Stephen Doughty – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Stephen Doughty – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Doughty on 2014-06-27.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how much was spent on car driving lessons and tests for prisoners in 2013.

    Jeremy Wright

    My officials are currently working to provide the information requested but it has not proved possible to produce it in the time allowed. I will write to you in due course.

  • Stephen Doughty – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Stephen Doughty – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Doughty on 2014-06-27.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many prisoners recorded as taking car driving lessons or tests in 2013 (a) absconded and (b) attempted to abscond during such lessons or tests.

    Jeremy Wright

    My officials are currently working to provide the information requested but it has not proved possible to produce it in the time allowed. I will write to you in due course.

  • Stephen Doughty – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Stephen Doughty – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Doughty on 2014-06-27.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the (a) security category and (b) sentence type was of each prisoner recorded as taking car driving lessons and tests in 2013.

    Jeremy Wright

    My officials are currently working to provide the information requested but it has not proved possible to produce it in the time allowed. I will write to you in due course.