Category: Speeches

  • Lord Hylton – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Lord Hylton – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hylton on 2015-11-19.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they are assisting Burundi and its neighbours to prevent further sectarian violence.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    The UK has been actively working with the international community to prevent sectarian violence in Burundi. Our activities in New York, the EU and the region, including calls from the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my hon. Friend the Member for Rochford and Southend East (James Duddridge), to the Burundian Foreign Minister, Ugandan Foreign Minister and African Union (AU) Peace and Security Commissioner have had an impact. There are signs the Burundian government is taking a more conservative approach in using the police and security forces. We have also pushed for the EU to start Article 96 negotiations with Burundi. Burundi has agreed to participate in Article 96 negotiations, having initially refused. We support a sanctions regime for Burundi whereby four individuals have been listed so far and the EU and AU are considering further sanctions on individuals. We continue to work with the AU who are mobilising the financial and political resources to assist with the mediation process between the East Africa Community and Burundi.

  • Lord Sharkey – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Lord Sharkey – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Sharkey on 2015-12-07.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many cases are currently being dealt with by the Channel programme, and how many of those have been because of suspected vulnerability to extremist Islamist views, and how many for other reasons.

    Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon

    Since Channel was rolled out nationally in 2012, over 4000 people have been referred to the programme, and hundreds successfully supported. National Counter Terrorism Policing has published its own data on Channel at the following URL:

    http://www.acpo.police.uk/ACPOBusinessAreas/PREVENT/NationalChannelReferralFigures.aspx

  • Baroness Tonge – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Baroness Tonge – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Tonge on 2016-01-18.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what representations they have made to the government of Bahrain concerning their alleged use of torture.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    The British Government consistently and unreservedly condemns torture and cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment, and it is a priority for us to combat it wherever and whenever it occurs. The Government of Bahrain has previously committed to consider ratifying the Optional Protocol of the Convention Against Torture. The UK strongly supports this and we have been working with the authorities to share best practice on torture prevention measures. We also continue to call upon the Government of Bahrain to agree a visit of the UN Special Rapporteur on Torture.

  • Dan Jarvis – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Dan Jarvis – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Dan Jarvis on 2016-02-04.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what support the Government is providing to the government of Libya.

    Mr Tobias Ellwood

    The UK strongly supports the Libyan Political Agreement (LPA) signed at Skhirat on 17 December by the majority of the Libyan delegates to the UN facilitated political dialogue, and by a wide range of representatives of Libyan society, municipal leaders and political parties. The Agreement paves the way for a Government of National Accord (GNA) and was unanimously endorsed by the UN Security Council Resolution 2259. Only a unified national government can begin the difficult work of establishing effective, legitimate governance, restoring stability and tackling the threat posed by Daesh. That is why we have been at the forefront of efforts to coordinate international support for the GNA.

    The UK hosted a meeting with the UN and international donors and agencies in October to discuss plans for coordinated support from the international community to the GNA. This has been followed up through UN-hosted coordination meetings in Tunis. Two UK-funded advisors are already working closely with Libyan PM designate Fayez Serraj’s Presidency Council, and we stand ready to work with the international community to deliver a significant package of support to help a Government of National Accord to deliver a stable and prosperous future for all Libyan citizens. The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for Runnymede and Weybridge (Mr Hammond) and I both spoke recently with PM designate Serraj and also with UN Special Representative Kobler to underline the UK’s continued support for the GNA process and UN efforts in this area. The Secretary of State plans to meet PM designate Serraj and House of Representatives President Agileh shortly to discuss what further support Britain can provide.

  • Baroness Masham of Ilton – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Baroness Masham of Ilton – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Masham of Ilton on 2016-03-01.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of how the price of 100 grams of five per cent coal tar ointment on the NHS Drugs Tariff for England and Wales compares with (1) the price of that treatment from manufacturing pharmacies, and (2) the price of that treatment on the Scottish NHS Drugs Tariff; and whether they will provide those figures.

    Lord Prior of Brampton

    No comparison has been made between the NHS Drug Tariff reimbursement price for England and Wales and the price of coal tar preparations produced by National Health Service hospital manufacturers. Any comparison would need to be treated with caution as some hospitals’ prices will not include the same overhead costs as commercial suppliers, nor might they have the infrastructure needed to supply to any pharmacy or indeed all pharmacies.

    A comparison of the reimbursement prices of specials listed on the Scottish Drug Tariff with those on the English Drug Tariff in Autumn 2015 showed there were 40 products listed on both Tariffs that were the same or similar. Out of these, 50% were more expensive on the Scottish Drug Tariff in comparison with the English Drug Tariff. The products are not necessarily exactly the same and the reimbursement arrangements in Scotland operate in different ways to those in England.

  • Greg Mulholland – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    Greg Mulholland – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Greg Mulholland on 2016-04-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, pursuant to paragraph 2.256 of Budget 2016, when he plans to announce further details of the Government’s support for a bid to host the 2021 Rugby League World Cup.

    David Evennett

    My officials are holding regular discussions with the Rugby Football League (RFL) and UK Sport about establishing the support the RFL requires for a successful bid. The government will make a further announcement ahead of the bid deadline in June.

  • Hannah Bardell – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Hannah Bardell – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Hannah Bardell on 2016-05-03.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps the Government is taking to raise awareness of Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome.

    George Freeman

    The Department has taken steps to increase public awareness of all rare diseases including conditions such as Ehlers-Danlos syndrome, through the implementation of the UK Strategy for Rare Diseases. The Strategy includes specific commitments to raise awareness of rare diseases.

    The Strategy is currently being implemented across all four countries of the United Kingdom with progress monitored by the UK Rare Disease Forum. The first progress report by the Forum was published in February 2016.

  • Joan Ryan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Joan Ryan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Joan Ryan on 2016-06-15.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what recent assessment he has made of the standard of treatment in North Middlesex University Hospital NHS Trust’s emergency department.

    Ben Gummer

    NHS England is the responsible organisation for emergency planning and resilience in London. As such, it has well-established contingency plans in place which take effect in the event of emergency departments (EDs) having to temporarily reduce their scope of operations in order to ensure the best standards of patient care, our central concern.

    As the Rt. hon. Member is aware, following an unannounced inspection by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) at North Middlesex University Hospital NHS Trust, the CQC issued a Warning Notice. The Warning Notice, published on 6 June 2016, requires the trust to significantly improve the treatment of patients attending its emergency department.

    The CQC is responsible for assessing whether the Trust is providing the right standard of care and ensuring that improvement plans meet the level of improvement required.

    NHS Improvement is working alongside NHS England and the local health and care system to ensure that the Trust has the resources it needs to ensure that patients receive safe, high quality care.

    We are informed by NHS Improvement that, in order to address the poor performance at the Trust’s ED, it has devised a plan titled Safer, Faster, Better. This is a whole system programme with the primary objective of improving performance, patient experience and outcomes for patients.

  • Jon Trickett – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Jon Trickett – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jon Trickett on 2016-09-12.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will make an assessment of the adequacy of the numbers of staff at Pinderfields Hospital; and if he will make a statement.

    Mr Philip Dunne

    This is a matter for Mid Yorkshire NHS Trust, which operates Pinderfields Hospital. Staffing levels are the responsibility of trust boards.

  • 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 2016-10-19.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what data his Department (a) records and (b) publishes on the nationality of NHS staff.

    Mr Philip Dunne

    The Department does not record or publish data on the nationality of staff working in the National Health Service. Data on nationality is published twice a year by NHS Digital and turnover data is published quarterly and available by nationality.

    Nationality is a data item within the National Workforce Data set used with a range of other data items to support workforce planning, analysis of staff movement and equality monitoring. It is not mandatory, but self-declared.

    In 2015 and 2016 requests for nationality data on NHS staff in England were published on the supplementary information part of the NHS Digital website, rather than as part of the routine Hospital and Community Health Services statistical publications. In 2016, following NHS Digital’s public consultation, NHS Digital now routinely publish tables showing the self-declared nationality of staff in staff groups and regions, bi-annually, together with quarterly turnover statistics which show the nationality of joiners and leavers to and from the NHS in England.

    The latest nationality data was published in March 2016 and the next set will be published in December 2016 showing the position at September 2016.

    The latest turnover data published in September 2016 covers the 12 month period to 30 June 2016.