The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Nuttall on 2015-11-23.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what representations he has received about funding allocated by his Department to the organisation Action on Smoking and Health.
Jane Ellison
To identify relevant representations the Department has received would result in disproportionate cost.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Anne Main on 2015-12-15.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many people in (a) St Albans, (b) Hertfordshire, (c) East of England and (d) the UK have Lyme disease; and what steps is he taking to better treat such people.
Jane Ellison
In 2014, there were 730 laboratory confirmed Lyme disease cases reported in England & Wales. The data submitted is at the level of referring hospital; it does not indicate either where the patient lived or where they were when they contracted the disease and is not recorded at county or regional level. Most Lyme disease cases are diagnosed clinically and treated by general practitioners (GPs).
The National Health Service provides treatment for Lyme disease following current international best practice, and Public Health England (PHE) have issued guidance notes for medical professionals aimed at improving recognition, as well as a referral pathway for GPs to follow to seek specialist help for patients who suffer complications from the disease. PHE are investigating the feasibility of creating a network of physicians to develop standardised investigation and treatment protocols for Lyme disease patients with the aim of improving outcomes.
With Liverpool University and partners internationally, the rare and imported pathogens laboratory is setting up a research programme into the diagnosis of Lyme disease.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Howe of Idlicote on 2016-01-26.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Faulks on 22 December 2015 (HL4639), what recent discussions they have had with the National Offender Management Service about bringing the guidance on Incentives and Earned Privileges schemes for men’s prisons in line with the guidance for women’s prisons set out in issue 297 of Prison Service Order 4800, which states that incentive schemes should never be linked to any access to family visits”.”
Lord Faulks
Men and women prisoners have the same entitlements to visits. Both are eligible to family days where relevant, in addition to the normal visits entitlement. Prisons should not treat men and women prisoners differently with respect to visits solely on the basis of their gender.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Falconer of Thoroton on 2016-02-23.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what plans they have, if any, to reform legal aid provision for victims of domestic abuse in the light of the Court of Appeal judgment The Queen (On The Application Of Rights Of Women) v The Lord Chancellor And Secretary Of State For Justice [2016] EWCA Civ 91 on 18 February.
Lord Faulks
We are pleased the court confirmed that the Lord Chancellor did have the power to set domestic violence evidence requirements. We are now carefully considering the judgment as we decide how best to respond to the court’s concerns. We are determined to make sure victims of domestic violence can get legal aid whenever they need it.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Huw Irranca-Davies on 2016-03-10.
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, with reference to the Memorandum of Understanding on renewable energy trade agreed between the UK and Ireland in January 2013, what progress has been made on reaching an intergovernmental agreement with Ireland.
Andrea Leadsom
We recognise the benefits of cooperation mechanisms and of opening our renewable support schemes to foreign generation in principle. This is why we signed the Memorandum of Understanding with Ireland. Whilst we have yet to agree with Ireland on any particular project, we remain open to new proposals.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Louise Haigh on 2016-04-15.
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, which consultants other than McKinsey bid for the tender to consider his Department’s BIS 2020 programme.
Joseph Johnson
Proposals to consider the Department’s BIS 2020 programme were received from McKinsey & Company and The Boston Consulting Group.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Doughty on 2016-05-24.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, whether (a) he and (b) ministers of his Department have had discussions with the new Welsh Government on support arrangements for people infected with contaminated blood.
Jane Ellison
There have been no discussions at ministerial level with the new Welsh Government on this issue. Departmental officials continue to discuss the operation of the current schemes and the on-going analysis of the responses to the recent consultation on the reform of the infected blood payment scheme with their opposite numbers.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Willoughby de Broke on 2016-07-12.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answers by Lord Gardiner of Kimble on 17 June (HL446) and 27 June (HL808), whether when providing those answers they were aware that the payment window had already been extended to October, and if so, why that was not reflected in those answer.
Lord Gardiner of Kimble
The deadline for 2015 Basic Payment Scheme (BPS) payments remains 30 June 2016 and as stated in the response of 17 June, this is the deadline the Rural Payments Agency was working towards for the remaining top up BPS payments. On 8 June, Commissioner Hogan confirmed his intention to extend the date by which Member States may make CAP direct payments without the usual reductions in the rate of reimbursement from the EU to the Member States concerned. This does not constitute an extension to the payment window. It means that, subject to a successful request, payments can continue to be made after 30 June without the application of the usual reductions for late payments on the Member State.
We are currently assessing the UK position in terms of the value of payments made by 30 June and the expected value of payments to be made before 15 October for each of the four UK paying agencies. Once this assessment has been completed we will be in a position to decide whether the UK needs to submit a request to the Commission for such penalties to be waived.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Steve McCabe on 2016-10-07.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to the Answer of 12 September 2016 to Question 44621, how investments made from the public purse for mental health services in the community are monitored for their effectiveness.
Nicola Blackwood
Information on investment in community mental health services is not held centrally. Clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) are responsible for commissioning community mental health services for their local population. CCGs are required to increase their spending on mental health each year, at least in line with the growth in their overall funding allocations. From this year, NHS England’s financial reporting will be aligned to mental health priorities, increasing transparency and allowing resources to be tracked at CCG level.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2015-11-23.
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what discussions she has had with Brittany Ferries on the carriage of game birds on their ships.
James Brokenshire
Home Office Ministers and officials have meetings with a wide variety of international partners, as well as organisations and individuals in the public and private sectors, as part of the process of policy development and delivery. Details of ministerial meetings are passed to the Cabinet Office on a quarterly basis and are subsequently published on the Gov.uk website: http://data.gov.uk/dataset/ministerial-data-home-office