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  • Lord Birt – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Lord Birt – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Birt on 2014-05-06.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they intend to reduce the ratio of national debt to gross domestic product to below 40 per cent; and, if so, in which year.

    Lord Deighton

    As set out in Budget 2014, given the costs and risks of high levels of debt, once the supplementary debt target has been met, any future government will need to ensure that debt continues to fall as a percentage of GDP. Even in the absence of future shocks sustained action will be needed to bring down debt.

  • Baroness Greengross – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Baroness Greengross – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Greengross on 2014-05-06.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many (1) non-cancer and (2) cancer-based lymphoedema and lipoedema patients were identified by the National Health Service in each of the last three years; how many such patients were treated by the National Health Service in each of the last three years; and what was the cost of those treatments.

    Earl Howe

    Hospital Episode Statistics (HES) data does not separately identify those cases of lymphoedema that are associated with cancer from those that are not, and is unable to identify cases of lipoedema as there is no coding available for this condition, based on the tenth revision of the International Classification of Diseases (ICD).

    Further to this, HES data is not linked to costing information and therefore this information cannot be provided.

    In the following table we have provided the number of finished admission episodes (FAEs) for patients with a primary diagnosis of lymphoedema from 2010-11 to 2012-13.

    Year

    FAE

    2010-11

    1,887

    2011-12

    2,026

    2012-13

    2,099

    Note:

    An FAE is the first period of admitted patient care under one consultant within one healthcare provider. FAEs are counted against the year or month in which the admission

  • Baroness Greengross – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Baroness Greengross – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Greengross on 2014-05-06.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what research they support into the number of patients identified by the National Health Service as having lymphoedema or lipoedema.

    Earl Howe

    Hospital Episode Statistics (HES) data does not separately identify those cases of lymphoedema that are associated with cancer from those that are not, and is unable to identify cases of lipoedema as there is no coding available for this condition, based on the tenth revision of the International Classification of Diseases (ICD).

    Further to this, HES data is not linked to costing information and therefore this information cannot be provided.

    In the following table we have provided the number of finished admission episodes (FAEs) for patients with a primary diagnosis of lymphoedema from 2010-11 to 2012-13.

    Year

    FAE

    2010-11

    1,887

    2011-12

    2,026

    2012-13

    2,099

    Note:

    An FAE is the first period of admitted patient care under one consultant within one healthcare provider. FAEs are counted against the year or month in which the admission

  • Margaret Ritchie – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    Margaret Ritchie – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Margaret Ritchie on 2014-05-06.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, pursuant to the Answer of 30 April 2014, Official Report, columns 712-3W, on floods: Cumbria, when the results of his public consultation will be published; and whether plans are in place for moving the nuclear waste stored at the Drigg Low-Level Waste Repository if the site is deemed at risk.

    Michael Fallon

    The Environment Agency carried out a public consultation exercise between November 2013 and February 2014 on LLW Repository Ltd’s variation application to dispose of further radioactive waste at the Low Level Waste Repository. Submissions received as part of this exercise are available on the Environment Agency’s Public Register. Responses will be published by the Environment Agency before the end of 2014, as part of a second consultation on a draft decision on the variation application. It is then anticipated that a final decision will be published in the spring of 2015.

    As part of the Environmental Safety Case for the repository, LLW Repository Ltd were required to consider the need to move some or all of the radioactive waste disposed of at the facility given the best current understanding of likely coastal erosion timescales and all relevant technical factors. This work has demonstrated that the risks presented by leaving the radioactive waste in place are consistent with relevant legislation, standards and guidance. The most appropriate option for the environment and people, now and into the future, is not to recover and move the radioactive waste and therefore no plans have been put in place for this.

  • Baroness Greengross – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Baroness Greengross – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Greengross on 2014-05-06.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what estimate they have made of the potential savings to the National Health Service and social services of providing care for lymphoedema and lipoedema patients from the time of diagnosis.

    Earl Howe

    Hospital Episode Statistics (HES) data does not separately identify those cases of lymphoedema that are associated with cancer from those that are not, and is unable to identify cases of lipoedema as there is no coding available for this condition, based on the tenth revision of the International Classification of Diseases (ICD).

    Further to this, HES data is not linked to costing information and therefore this information cannot be provided.

    In the following table we have provided the number of finished admission episodes (FAEs) for patients with a primary diagnosis of lymphoedema from 2010-11 to 2012-13.

    Year

    FAE

    2010-11

    1,887

    2011-12

    2,026

    2012-13

    2,099

    Note:

    An FAE is the first period of admitted patient care under one consultant within one healthcare provider. FAEs are counted against the year or month in which the admission

  • Margaret Ritchie – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Margaret Ritchie – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Margaret Ritchie on 2014-05-06.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what recent discussions he has had with the Minister for Health in Northern Ireland on the establishment of a cancer drugs fund; and if he will make a statement.

    Norman Lamb

    We have had no such discussions.

  • The Lord Bishop of St Albans – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The Lord Bishop of St Albans – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by The Lord Bishop of St Albans on 2014-05-06.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government how they intend to ensure the continuing affordability of liquid petroleum gas and oil for those households which are not on mains gas supply.

    Baroness Verma

    Her Majesty’s Government is acutely aware of the difficulties people have experienced with the price of liquid petroleum gas and heating oil. The price of LPG and oil is influenced by a range of factors, including crude oil prices (the major factor), refinery capacity, stock levels, distribution costs and retail margins.

    We believe that the consumer is best served by open competition between companies. The Office of Fair Trading studied the heating oil market in 2011 and found few competition concerns. Most areas of the UK are supplied by a variety of heating oil suppliers and there are low barriers to entry for new businesses who may want to compete. The OFT study also commented on the generally positive initial impact of the Competition Commission Orders from 2009 to make it easier for domestic bulk LPG consumers to switch supplier, and there is a statutory duty to keep under review the effectiveness of and compliance with these Orders.

    My Rt. Hon. Friend the Minister of State for Energy will chair a third Ministerial Roundtable meeting on heating oil and LPG supply on 21 May. The Roundtable brings together a wide range of interests including Government, regulators, advisory and charitable bodies, the fuel supply industry and others to work together to improve the security and affordability of off-grid fuel supply.

  • The Lord Bishop of St Albans – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The Lord Bishop of St Albans – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by The Lord Bishop of St Albans on 2014-05-06.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will act to reduce the unit price paid by those consumers who are able to purchase electricity only from a supplier because they are not on mains gas supply and so cannot benefit from a dual fuel tariff.

    Baroness Verma

    The decision to offer a dual fuel discount to customers who take a gas and electricity supply from one supplier is a commercial matter for the companies concerned. The discount reflects savings made by the company by combining administrative costs of providing the two separate supplies. Dual fuel discounts typically range from £10 to £25 per year. It would not be appropriate for Government to intervene by requiring suppliers to reduce electricity prices for just one specific segment of customers.

  • Margaret Ritchie – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Margaret Ritchie – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Margaret Ritchie on 2014-05-06.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the effect of the Goods Vehicle Levy in Northern Ireland.

    Mr Robert Goodwill

    The levy is supported by a majority of hauliers in Northern Ireland, all of whom pay it alongside their Vehicle Excise Duty. Hauliers from Ireland must also pay before they use roads in Northern Ireland. A typical large HGV from Ireland visiting Northern Ireland twice a day, as would be the case for a round trip, would effectively pay only £1.28 per visit if they had purchased an annual levy. Smaller vehicles pay less, and those under 12 tonnes pay nothing. These represent small amounts compared to the running cost of a UK HGV of £80,000 to £100,000 per year, and much less than the tolls a typical Northern Ireland HGV would face doing a round trip to Dublin at around £8. Parliament has already debated the exempting of some border roads in Northern Ireland, totalling around 7 miles. These exemptions are a practical measure meaning that vehicles entering Northern Ireland for a short distance do not have to pay the levy, and exempting them simplifies enforcement.

  • Margaret Ritchie – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Margaret Ritchie – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Margaret Ritchie on 2014-05-06.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, when he last met the Minister for Justice in Northern Ireland; and what subjects were discussed at this meeting.

    Damian Green

    The Secretary of State for Justice had a meeting with David Ford, the Northern Ireland Justice Minister on 6 February 2013 in Belfast at which they discussed matters of mutual interest in relation to justice policy.