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  • Heidi Alexander – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Heidi Alexander – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Heidi Alexander on 2016-03-23.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to the Answer of 16 March 2016 on Question 30222, what further work in the collection and publication of data on secondary breast cancer by hospital trusts in England is being scoped.

    Jane Ellison

    Data on breast cancer recurrence has been mandated in the Cancer Services and Outcomes Dataset (COSD) for diagnoses from 1 January 2013. The National Cancer Registration and Analysis Service (NCRAS) in Public Health England (PHE) estimates about one-quarter of recurrences are currently submitted. NCRAS will support trusts to improve their submission of data by producing reports on the number of recurrences submitted by each National Health Service trust. These will enable the identification of best practise to be shared, and enable us to engage with trusts that are not submitting data.

    Data on all cancer recurrence has been mandated in COSD since 31 July 2015.

    In addition further work is being scoped by NHS England and PHE based on the recommendation in the recent Independent Cancer Taskforce report to establish robust surveillance systems to collect relapse and recurrence data on all cancers.

  • Robert Flello – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Robert Flello – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Robert Flello on 2016-03-23.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what representations he has received about concerns identified by the Care Quality Commission at a British Pregnancy Advisory Service abortion clinic in Richmond; and if he will make a statement.

    Jane Ellison

    One representation has been received in relation to the Care Quality Commission’s (CQC) inspection of BPAS Richmond. The CQC is responsible for ensuring that requirements under the Health and Social Care (HSC) Act 2008 are met by the providers of termination of pregnancy services including meeting the fundamental standards of quality and safety as set out in Part 3 to the 2014 Regulations, and Regulation 20 of the Care Quality Commission (Registration) Regulations 2009, which is specific to independent sector termination of pregnancy providers. The CQC is responsible for ensuring that the requirements under the HSC Act 2008 are maintained through a system of monitoring and, where appropriate, inspection visits. It is for the CQC and the provider to address required and recommended actions identified following an inspection.

    Independent sector providers are also required to comply with the Department of Health’s Required Standard Operating Procedures.

    Departmental officials meet regularly with representatives from the British Pregnancy Advisory Service (BPAS) but have not met since the CQC report on BPAS Richmond was published.

  • Heidi Alexander – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Heidi Alexander – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Heidi Alexander on 2016-03-23.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to the Answer of 16 March 2016 on Question 30222, when he expects that data on secondary breast cancer will be complete.

    Jane Ellison

    Data on breast cancer recurrence has been mandated in the Cancer Services and Outcomes Dataset (COSD) for diagnoses from 1 January 2013. The National Cancer Registration and Analysis Service (NCRAS) in Public Health England (PHE) estimates about one-quarter of recurrences are currently submitted. NCRAS will support trusts to improve their submission of data by producing reports on the number of recurrences submitted by each National Health Service trust. These will enable the identification of best practise to be shared, and enable us to engage with trusts that are not submitting data.

    Data on all cancer recurrence has been mandated in COSD since 31 July 2015.

    In addition further work is being scoped by NHS England and PHE based on the recommendation in the recent Independent Cancer Taskforce report to establish robust surveillance systems to collect relapse and recurrence data on all cancers.

  • Greg Mulholland – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Greg Mulholland – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Greg Mulholland on 2016-03-23.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps he is taking to ensure accurate and early diagnosis of Kawasaki disease.

    George Freeman

    The Government published the UK Strategy for Rare Diseases in November 2013. The strategy contains over 50 commitments to ensure people living with a rare disease, such as Kawasaki disease, have access to the best evidence-based care and treatment that health and social services, working with charities, researchers and industry can provide.

    It is the responsibility of the professional regulators to set the standards and outcomes for education and training and approve training curricular to ensure newly qualified healthcare professionals are equipped with the knowledge, skills and attitudes to provide high quality patient care. This includes training in both scarlet fever and Kawasaki disease.

    Health Education England works with bodies that set curricula such as the General Medical Council and the Royal Colleges to seek to ensure training meets the needs of patients.

    The Department and its arm’s length bodies have not published any specific guidance on the similarities between Kawasaki disease and scarlet fever.

    The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence’s guideline on the assessment and initial management of fever in under 5s sets out the circumstances in which a diagnosis of Kawasaki disease should be considered, and Public Health England (PHE) has endeavoured to keep healthcare professionals, schools and the general public informed of the increased incidence of scarlet fever through timely information, news stories and updates on the PHE website and by using social and other media. These awareness raising measures assist general practitioners and other frontline healthcare professionals in reaching a correct diagnosis more quickly and encourage patients to seek medical advice early so that suspected cases receive prompt antibiotic treatment to reduce the risk of complications and limit further transmission.

  • Greg Mulholland – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Greg Mulholland – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Greg Mulholland on 2016-03-23.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what guidance his Department provides to medical practitioners on the similarities between Kawasaki disease and scarlet fever.

    George Freeman

    The Government published the UK Strategy for Rare Diseases in November 2013. The strategy contains over 50 commitments to ensure people living with a rare disease, such as Kawasaki disease, have access to the best evidence-based care and treatment that health and social services, working with charities, researchers and industry can provide.

    It is the responsibility of the professional regulators to set the standards and outcomes for education and training and approve training curricular to ensure newly qualified healthcare professionals are equipped with the knowledge, skills and attitudes to provide high quality patient care. This includes training in both scarlet fever and Kawasaki disease.

    Health Education England works with bodies that set curricula such as the General Medical Council and the Royal Colleges to seek to ensure training meets the needs of patients.

    The Department and its arm’s length bodies have not published any specific guidance on the similarities between Kawasaki disease and scarlet fever.

    The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence’s guideline on the assessment and initial management of fever in under 5s sets out the circumstances in which a diagnosis of Kawasaki disease should be considered, and Public Health England (PHE) has endeavoured to keep healthcare professionals, schools and the general public informed of the increased incidence of scarlet fever through timely information, news stories and updates on the PHE website and by using social and other media. These awareness raising measures assist general practitioners and other frontline healthcare professionals in reaching a correct diagnosis more quickly and encourage patients to seek medical advice early so that suspected cases receive prompt antibiotic treatment to reduce the risk of complications and limit further transmission.

  • Robert Flello – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Robert Flello – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Robert Flello on 2016-03-23.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps he is taking to ensure that safeguarding policies at British Pregnancy Advisory Service abortion clinics reflect national guidance on sexual exploitation of children and risks of female genital mutilation.

    Jane Ellison

    In May 2014, the Department published updated requirements (Procedures for the Approval of Independent Sector Places for the Termination of Pregnancy (Abortion)) which the providers of independent sector abortion services, including the British Pregnancy Advisory Service, must agree to comply with to be approved by the Secretary of State to perform abortions. This includes compliance with legal requirements and having regard to any statutory guidance relating to children, young people and vulnerable adults and having policies and protocols in place for dealing with these groups. A copy of the guidance is attached.

    All clinical staff working in abortion services should be trained to at least level 3 of the intercollegiate framework, Safeguarding Children and Young people: roles and competences for health care staff.

  • Jim Cunningham – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Jim Cunningham – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2016-03-23.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what estimate his Department has made of the proportion of the NHS budget spent on general practice in each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement.

    Alistair Burt

    NHS England has confirmed that the funding it invests in general practice will increase by an average of 4.5% each year from 2016/17 to 2020/21.

    The below table shows the proportion of spend on general practice for each of the last five years for which data is available. The figures for spend on general practice are taken from the Health and Social Care Information Centre’s Investment in General Practice 2011-2015 report, which is the most comprehensive source of data on investment in general practice. The NHS Revenue Expenditure data is taken from the Department’s accounts.

    2010/11

    2011/12

    2012/13

    2013/14

    2014/15

    NHS Revenue Expenditure under Clear Line of Sight Rules (£ billion)

    97.47

    100.27

    102.57

    106.5

    110.56

    Spend on general practice (£ billion)

    8.350

    8.397

    8.459

    8.766

    9.001

    Spend on General Practice as a proportion of total

    8.6%

    8.4%

    8.2%

    8.2%

    8.1%
  • Christian Matheson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Christian Matheson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Christian Matheson on 2016-04-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether his Department issues guidance to bus operators on air pollution control and leaving bus engines running idle while at a bus stand.

    Andrew Jones

    The Government fully recognises the potential hazards to health and the environment that pollutant emissions from motor vehicles can cause, including when vehicle engines are left idling. Whilst the Government has not issued specific guidance on the subject of idling by bus operators, under Regulation 98 of the Road Vehicles (Construction and Use) Regulations 1986, as amended, it is an offence to cause emissions or noise by leaving a vehicle’s engine running unnecessarily whilst stationary on the road – other than when in traffic. Local authorities also have powers under the Road Traffic (Vehicle Emissions) (Fixed Penalty) (England) Regulations 2002 to issue fixed penalty notices for this offence.

    We are committed to improving the UK’s air quality, reducing health impacts and fulfilling our legal obligations. Our air quality plan for nitrogen dioxide, published on 17 December 2015, sets out a comprehensive approach to meeting our ambition for the UK to have some of the cleanest air in the world, including by implementing a new programme of Clean Air Zones. Under the Plan, by 2020 the most polluting vehicles, including older polluting buses, will be discouraged from entering the centres of Birmingham, Leeds, Southampton, Nottingham and Derby. As part of the plan, London also has a well-developed strategy for improving air quality, including the implementation of an ultra-low emission zone by 2020 – which will cover a range of vehicles, also including buses.

  • Louise Ellman – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Louise Ellman – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Louise Ellman on 2016-04-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 11 June 2015 to Question HL248, when Network Rail is expected to complete the impact assessment of the European Rail Traffic Management System.

    Claire Perry

    Network Rail and Industry are evaluating the optimal deployment options for the European Rail Traffic Management System. These will be presented to the Department for Transport toward the end of 2016.

  • David Mackintosh – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    David Mackintosh – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Mackintosh on 2016-04-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps his Department is taking to limit the effect that engineering works on rail lines have on travel over long bank holidays.

    Claire Perry

    An independent review of how the rail industry plans and schedules major improvement work was carried out last year. The review concluded that Christmas, Easter and bank holidays were the best times to carry out upgrades requiring major line closures, particularly in and around London where the network is busiest and access for engineers is most difficult.

    Network Rail always looks to minimise the overall impact of these vital projects on passengers. As such, Network Rail and train operators are conscious that many people want to use the railway over holiday periods to reunite with their friends and families, so where possible they try to ensure the vast majority of services are kept running, as well as delivering passenger improvements on time. Network Rail will ensure around 96% of the network will be available during the next May bank holiday.