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  • Peter Kyle – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Peter Kyle – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Peter Kyle on 2015-11-05.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will ask the Care Quality Commission to investigate the project run by South East Coast Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust between December 2014 and February 2015 on the treatment of emergency calls to NHS 111.

    Jane Ellison

    The Care Quality Commission (CQC), the independent regulator of health and adult social care, advises the South East Coast Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust is scheduled for a comprehensive inspection in 2016.

    The CQC advises it has attended a recent risk summit conducted by NHS England. The decisions or actions arising from the NHS England risk summit will be one of the factors considered in the timing of any forthcoming CQC inspection.

    NHS England undertook an external investigation of the project, the report of which was published by NHS England on 5 November 2015.

    We are advised that Monitor is taking action with South East Coast Ambulance Service Foundation Trust regarding concerns about the project and the regulator is working with the Trust now to identify the negative impact this project could have had on patients. It is Monitor’s function to undertaken such investigations independently of the Department. Monitor and Departmental officials regularly discuss such issues on a routine basis.

    As part of regulatory action, Monitor advises it has asked the trust to carry out a detailed independent review of the impact the project had on patients. Monitor has asked the Trust to do this with the help of an external expert, who the regulator will select. The full details of what the review will look at and how long it will take are being worked on by the trust and Monitor, including consideration of publication of the review findings.

  • Philip Davies – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Philip Davies – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Philip Davies on 2015-11-05.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, which regulations his Department introduced as a result of EU legislation in (a) 2013, (b) 2014 and (c) 2015 to date; which regulations his Department expects to implement as a result of EU legislation in (i) 2016 and (ii) 2017; and what estimate he has made of the cost of such regulation to the (A) public purse and (B) private sector.

    Jane Ellison

    In the years indicated, the Department has introduced the following regulations, either wholly or partially, as a result of European Union legislation:

    2013

    – Statutory Instruments 2013/1855 and 2013/2593 concerning the regulation of medicines.

    – Statutory Instrument 2013/2327 concerning the regulation of medical devices.

    – National Health Service (Cross-Border Healthcare) Regulations 2013 (SI 2013/2269).

    – The Infant Formula and Follow-on Formula (England) (Amendment) Regulations 2013 (SI 2013/3243).

    – Medical Profession (Responsible Officers) (Amendment) Regulations 2013.

    2014

    – Statutory Instrument 2014/490 concerning the regulation of medicines.

    – Quality and Safety of Organs Intended for Transplantation (Amendment) Regulations 2014 (SI 2014/1459).

    – Health Care and Associated Professions (Indemnity Arrangements) Order 2014 (Order 2014/1887).

    – The Human Tissue (Quality and Safety for Human Application) (Amendment) Regulations 2014 (SI 2014/2883).

    – The Human Fertilisation and Embryology (Quality and Safety) Regulations 2014 (SI 2014/2884).

    – General Medical Council (Fitness to Practise) (Amendment) Rules Order of Council 2014.

    – General Medical Council (Licence to Practise and Revalidation) (Amendment) Regulations Order of Council 2014.

    – General Medical Council (Restoration following Administrative Erasure) (Amendment) Regulations Order of Council 2014.

    – General Medical Council (Voluntary Erasure and Restoration following Voluntary Erasure) (Amendment) Regulations Order of Council 2014.

    – Medical Act 1983 (Amendment) (Knowledge of English) Order 2014.

    – The Human Medicines (Amendment) Regulations 2014.

    2015 to date:

    – National Health Service (Cross-Border Healthcare) (Amendment) Regulations 2015 (SI 2015/139).

    – General Chiropractic Council (Indemnity Arrangements) Rules Order of Council 2015.

    – General Osteopathic Council (Indemnity Arrangements) Rules Order of Council 2015.

    – General Medical Council (Fitness to Practise and Over-arching Objective) and the Professional Standards Authority for Health and Social Care (References to Court) Order 2015.

    – Health Care and Associated Professions (Knowledge of English) Order 2015.

    – Health Care and Associated Professions (Knowledge of English) Order 2015 (Commencement No 1) Order of Council 2015.

    In the years indicated, the Department expects to implement the following regulations as a as a result of EU legislation:

    2016

    – The Human Fertilisation and Embryology (Quality and Safety) Regulations 2016.

    – The Human Tissue (Quality and Safety for Human Application) (Amendment) Regulations 2016.

    – Regulation (EU) 609/2013, concerning detailed requirements as to the composition of certain specific types of food (infant and follow-on formula; processed cereal-based foods and baby foods; foods for special medical purposes; and total diet replacement for weight control), and the nutritional information that must be provided in respect of such foods.

    – The European Qualification (Health and Social Care Professions) Regulations 2016.

    – The Tobacco and Related Products Regulations 2016.

    2017

    – Regulations implementing the EU Regulation on Clinical Trials and Regulations implementing the two EU Regulations on Medical Devices and In-vitro Medical Devices.

    When the Department makes regulations that transpose EU legislation, it follows the guidance and framework set by the Better Regulation Executive. This requires the Department to prepare and publish an impact assessment only when the net costs to business are greater than £1 million per year. These would be laid with associated regulations and explanatory memorandum.

  • Jamie Reed – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Jamie Reed – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jamie Reed on 2015-11-05.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what estimate he has made of the cost to the public purse of support for people with cerebral palsy.

    Jane Ellison

    NHS England advises that there are currently no plans to develop a national register for people with cerebral palsy.

    Spend on support for people with cerebral palsy is not collected.

  • Jamie Reed – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Jamie Reed – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jamie Reed on 2015-11-05.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, whether he plans to develop a national register for people with cerebral palsy.

    Jane Ellison

    NHS England advises that there are currently no plans to develop a national register for people with cerebral palsy.

    Spend on support for people with cerebral palsy is not collected.

  • Jamie Reed – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Jamie Reed – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jamie Reed on 2015-11-05.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps he is taking to improve access to specialist health facilities for children with cerebral palsy.

    Jane Ellison

    The commissioning of health services generally, including provider facilities, is the responsibility of local clinical commissioning groups (CCGs). When considering what services should be commissioned we would expect CCGs to take account of best practice and guidance such as the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guideline on the management of spasticity in under 19s, and the local Joint Strategic Needs Assessment, and Joint Health and Wellbeing Strategy, which captures local need.

    Children with particularly complex needs may also be eligible for continuing care, commissioned by the CCG to meet the needs of children or young people which cannot be met through universal services. The continuing care framework is currently being updated following a public consultation, to ensure it provides the right guidance on assessing and planning for needs.

    Specialised services are commissioned by NHS England. For cerebral palsy it has commissioned Selective Dorsal Rhizotomy procedures as part of its Commissioning through Evaluation (CtE) programme.

    CtE schemes run in areas where the current evidence base on clinical and cost effectiveness of a particular treatment is insufficient to support routine funding, and where further research is unlikely to be forthcoming. In these circumstances, NHS England identifies funding for a CtE scheme to gather and support a review of the national clinical commissioning policy position.

  • Alistair Carmichael – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Alistair Carmichael – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alistair Carmichael on 2015-11-05.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how many applications for warrants for electronic surveillance he rejected last year.

    Mr Tobias Ellwood

    It is the longstanding policy of successive British governments not to comment on intelligence matters.

  • Philip Davies – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Philip Davies – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Philip Davies on 2015-11-05.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, which regulations his Department introduced as a result of EU legislation in (a) 2013, (b) 2014 and (c) 2015 to date; which regulations his Department expects to implement as a result of EU legislation in (i) 2016 and (ii) 2017; and what estimate he has made of the cost of such regulation to the (A) public purse and (B) private sector.

    Mr David Lidington

    Details of all EU-derived legislation on the statute book in the UK at the present time can be found on legislation.gov.uk. Information on EU legislation in 2016/2017 is not available. Information on the cost of regulations is not available and to collate would incur disproportionate costs.

  • Hilary Benn – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Hilary Benn – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Hilary Benn on 2015-11-05.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what representations he has made to his Russian counterpart on recent Russian military action in Syria.

    Mr Philip Hammond

    I met the Russian Foreign Minister, Sergei Lavrov, in the margins of the Syria talks in Vienna in October 2015. In addition, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) has made numerous representations to the Russian Government regarding military operations in Syria.

  • Hilary Benn – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Hilary Benn – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Hilary Benn on 2015-11-05.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what support the Government is providing to the Women’s League of Burma.

    Mr Philip Hammond

    Officials at the British Embassy in Rangoon regularly meet representatives of the Women’s League of Burma and its member groups of civil society organisations. The UK has also provided occasional funding support to the Women’s League of Burma, including towards the publication of some of their research. Representatives from the Women’s League of Burma attended the Global Summit to End Sexual Violence in Conflict in June 2014 at our invitation, and the UK assisted with the cost of that visit.

  • Hilary Benn – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Hilary Benn – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Hilary Benn on 2015-11-05.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of reported irregularities in the run-up to the Burmese election.

    Mr Philip Hammond

    There were a number of reported flaws and irregularities in Burma’s elections, such as in the voter list arrangements for observing advance voting and the use of religion in the campaign. We are deeply disappointed that holders of Temporary Residence Cards (of which the Rohingya form the largest single bloc) were disenfranchised from the elections by having their identity documents revoked. Nevertheless, the main opposition parties chose to take part in the elections despite these flaws and irregularities. The UK provided practical assistance to mitigate against the risks we have identified, including £2.6m to provide specialist technical advice to the Union Election Commission. British nationals have also been taking part in the EU Election Observation Mission and we funded the training of 5,000 local observers to deter fraud on the day. It is too early to make a definitive assessment of the technical conduct of the elections, but the initial finding of the EU Election Observation Mission was that they were "well-run and competitive", though with "legal reforms and procedural improvements" remaining. Overall, we continue to judge that the election represents the best chance of democracy the people of Burma have had for over 50 years.