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Jim Shannon – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2015-11-23.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what discussions he has had with the Royal Colleges on the effect of macrolide antibiotics on the risk of heart failure.

George Freeman

Heart rhythm disturbances are a known potential side effect of macrolide antibiotics. Several observational studies have found a possible association between macrolide antibiotics and heart events. Product information for healthcare professionals and patients includes warnings about the risks of heart rhythm disturbances.

In 2015, European regulators concluded from a review of all available evidence that the risk of heart events was small. As with all medicines, the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency continually monitors the safety of macrolide drugs and will evaluate any new data, seeking independent scientific advice from the Commission on Human Medicines and its Expert Advisory Groups as appropriate, to ensure that the balance of risks and benefits remains positive for this important class of medicines.

01/01/2023
Jim Shannon – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2015-11-23.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what plans he has to introduce blood tests for the detection of ovarian cancer on the NHS.

George Freeman

I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave him on 23 November 2015 to Question 16523.

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01/01/2023

Jim Shannon – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2015-11-23.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many (a) men and (b) women in each age group have been diagnosed with HIV in each of the last five years.

Jane Ellison

The annual numbers of new human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) diagnoses among men by age group over the last five years is shown in Table 1. The numbers for women by age group over the same period is shown in Table 2. The majority of new diagnoses are among persons aged between 25 and 44 years.

Number of men newly diagnosed with HIV by age group: United Kingdom, 2010-2014

Age group	2010	2011	2012	2013	2014	Total
0-14	26	30	23	16	12	107
15-24	457	482	536	583	565	2,623
25-34	1,339	1,408	1,431	1,503	1,609	7,290
35-44	1,402	1,364	1,315	1,219	1,158	6,458
45-54	748	752	821	812	803	3,936
55-64	261	271	286	265	315	1,398
65+	84	96	106	133	149	568
TOTAL	4,317	4,403	4,518	4,531	4,611	22,380

Number of women newly diagnosed with HIV by age group: United Kingdom, 2010-2014

Age group	2010	2011	2012	2013	2014	Total
0-14	46	38	20	19	20	143
15-24	226	179	166	167	162	900
25-34	724	649	517	472	435	2,797
35-44	626	543	572	446	432	2,619
45-54	302	279	313	261	319	1,474
55-64	89	85	108	87	111	480
65+	23	13	40	49	61	186
TOTAL	2,036	1,786	1,736	1,501	1,540	8,599

01/01/2023

Carol Monaghan – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Carol Monaghan on 2015-11-23.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to the contribution of 6 November 2015 by the Minister for Community and Social Care, Official Report, column 1307, what the evidential basis is for his statement that the provisions of the Off-patent Drugs Bill would be potentially harmful.

George Freeman

The current legal framework allows a clinician to prescribe drugs outside their licensed indication where that will best meet the clinical needs of their patient. This clinical freedom is crucial in delivering appropriate healthcare to groups of patients for whom medicines have not historically been licensed, e.g. children. It is also helpful in enabling prescribers to quickly pick up and apply new evidence that will help patients with particular clinical needs. The Off-Patent Drugs Bill would introduce a legal duty to apply for a licence for off-patent drugs where evidence of effectiveness for a new indication becomes available. This will create an expectation that only licensed uses of drugs are acceptable and therefore that off-label use is not appropriate. This would cause unnecessary delays in patients getting the medicines they need by slowing the rapid uptake of new evidence in clinical practice. This is why we believe the proposed legislation could potentially be harmful.

01/01/2023
Christina Rees – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Christina Rees on 2015-11-23.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps he has taken to consult clinicians on his policy on access to off-patent drugs.

George Freeman

Our policy on generic prescribing has been in place for a number of years. The policy helps ensure that patients can access the medicine that best meets their needs and it has been a key driver in the National Health Service making maximum use of off-patent drugs which are also known as generics. We have the best prescribing rate for these drugs in Europe.

To support clinicians who may want to prescribe a product off-label for a patient to and improve the flow of research evidence into clinical practice, the Department hosted a Roundtable Event in February 2015. Attendees included the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence, Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency, Breast Cancer Now and other charities and discussions helped determine those non-legislative measures that could be undertaken. The Government is committed to this work and is holding a further roundtable event with charities.

01/01/2023
Heidi Alexander – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Heidi Alexander on 2015-11-23.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what his official engagements were on (a) Monday 12 October and (b) Friday 20 November 2015.

Jane Ellison

On 12 October and 20 November my Rt. hon. Friend the Secretary of State was fully focused on his priorities for the health service, which included securing a Spending Review settlement that backs the NHS’s own Five Year Forward View with an additional £10 billion a year above inflation by 2020.

01/01/2023
Carol Monaghan – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Carol Monaghan on 2015-11-23.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what research his Department has conducted on the disincentives to prescribing off-patent repurposed drugs.

George Freeman

The Department has conducted no such research. Current arrangements already allow off-patent drugs to be prescribed for new purposes where this is the most appropriate clinical treatment course for a patient. Prescribing decisions are a matter for the clinical judgement of the prescriber concerned.

01/01/2023
Royston Smith – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Royston Smith on 2015-11-23.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will take steps to maintain the in-year budget for public health provision allocated by Southampton City Council.

Jane Ellison

On 4 June as part of wider Government action on deficit reduction announced by the Chancellor, the Department was asked to deliver in year savings of £200 million in 2015/16 through reductions to the Public Health Grant to local authorities.

The Department launched a consultation exercise on 31 July to engage with local authorities on how best to deliver these savings in a way that minimises any impact on services. As a result of the consultation, 6.19% savings was applied to all local authorities in year public health budgets.

01/01/2023
Kevin Brennan – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kevin Brennan on 2015-11-23.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of the role of the Free Syrian Army in the conflict in Syria.

Mr Tobias Ellwood

The Free Syrian Army is a collective term used by a range of moderate opposition groups in Syria who are fighting the regime and ISIL. The Free Syrian Army call for a pluralistic system that respects the rights of all Syrians. They reject terrorism and terrorist tactics, and have condemned Islamic extremism. They have been fighting both the regime and ISIL in Syria for over two years with success in a number of areas, in particular in Idlib and Aleppo in Northwest Syria and in Dera’a Province in the South.

01/01/2023
Greg Mulholland – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Greg Mulholland on 2015-11-23.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with the National Coalition for Syrian Revolutionary and Opposition Forces.

Mr Tobias Ellwood

On 4 November the The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for Runnymede and Weybridge (Philip Hammond) and I met President Khoja and other representatives of the Syrian National Coalition of Revolutionary and Opposition Forces (National Coalition) in London. We discussed the urgent need for political transition in Syria as the only way to solve the conflict and defeat ISIL. We were clear that Assad has no place in Syria’s future and that the new political process in Vienna offers the opportunity to make progress towards Syrian-led negotiations. The National Coalition expressed their readiness to reach out to other moderate political and armed groups in Syria and agreed that the opposition negotiating team must be able to speak for the Syrian people. The UK’s special representative for Syria maintains regular contact with the National Coalition. The UK will continue to work with the National Coalition and our international partners in pursuit of a political solution to the Syrian conflict.

01/01/2023