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  • Baroness Jones of Whitchurch – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Baroness Jones of Whitchurch – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Jones of Whitchurch on 2014-06-11.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in relation to their proposals to extend the power for local authorities to outsource their children’s social work functions including child protection, what assessment has been made of (1) the risks to children and young people, (2) the risks to the impartiality and integrity of statutory decision-making and interventions, and (3) the risks of conflicts of interest arising for third-party providers that bid for social work functions and for commissioned care placement.

    Lord Nash

    The Government is considering the outcome of its consultation on delegation of children’s social care functions. The proposals would place no obligations on local authorities and do not remove their statutory accountability for child protection and wider children’s social care.

    Should the proposals proceed, local authorities will need to ensure that any arrangements they put in place allow them to meet their statutory duties and properly manage questions of risk and conflicts of interest.

    Ofsted will consider these arrangements as part of local authority inspections and hold the authority to account for the quality of its children’s services.

  • Baroness Jones of Whitchurch – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Baroness Jones of Whitchurch – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Jones of Whitchurch on 2014-06-11.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many, and which, local authorities have made representations to the Department for Education asking it to legislate to extend the power to outsource children’s social work functions, including child protection, under the Children and Young Persons Act 2008.

    Lord Nash

    Formal representations concerning outsourcing of social care functions, potentially including child protection, have been made by Staffordshire, Kingston, and Richmond local authorities. In addition a number of informal discussions on this topic have taken place with other local authorities.

  • Baroness Tonge – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Baroness Tonge – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Tonge on 2014-06-11.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what discussions they have held with the government of Bahrain concerning the number of children who have been arrested there since 2011.

    Baroness Warsi

    Our Embassy in Manama has raised the rates of imprisonment of young people with the Ministry of the Interior and senior members of the Government of Bahrain on several occasions. This included supporting the decision by the Ombudsman’s Office of the Ministry of the Interior to investigate fully concerns about the imprisonment of children set out by human rights non-governmental organisations last year.

  • Baroness Tonge – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Baroness Tonge – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Tonge on 2014-06-11.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what action they plan to take to promote the education of United Kingdom citizens about the events of 1948 in Palestine.

    Lord Nash

    The new national curriculum for history, to be taught in maintained schools in England from September 2014, requires that 11-14 year olds be taught about the challenges for Britain, Europe and the wider world from 1901 to the present day. This can cover Britain’s place in the world since 1945, including the events of 1948 in Palestine. It is for schools to decide what to teach and how to teach it. In accordance with Section 407 of the Education Act 1996, we would expect that the teaching of any issue in schools be consistent with the principles of balance and objectivity.

  • Baroness Tonge – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Baroness Tonge – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Tonge on 2014-06-11.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their most recent assessment of the level of medical supplies in Gazan hospitals.

    Baroness Northover

    DFID is deeply concerned at the shortage of medical supplies and drugs in Gazan hospitals. The World Health Organisation (WHO) has estimated that in Gaza at 29% of drugs are at zero stock (less than 1 month’s supply). DFID is supporting the UN Access Coordination Unit to work with the WHO, Israel, the Palestinian Authority, and aid agencies to facilitate the transfer of medical equipment and supplies and patient referrals in and out of Gaza.

  • Baroness Tonge – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Baroness Tonge – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Tonge on 2014-06-11.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what discussions they have had with the new President of Egypt concerning the opening of Rafah crossing to Gaza, in order to facilitate travel and the transfer of medical supplies.

    Baroness Northover

    We continue to urge the Egyptian authorities to ease the movement of bona fide travellers and humanitarian aid through Rafah. We call on Israel, Egypt and the Palestinian Authority to work together to enable a sustained increase in the legal flow of goods and persons from and to the Gaza Strip.

  • Baroness Tonge – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Baroness Tonge – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Tonge on 2014-06-11.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the impact of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office-sponsored report, Children in Military Custody, on Israeli interrogation methods of Palestinian children; and what follow-up to the report they intend to undertake.

    Baroness Warsi

    The Minister of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right Hon. Friend the Member for Faversham and Mid Kent (Mr Robertson), wrote to the Israeli Attorney General on 31 March 2014 to welcome the steps taken to date and to call for further measures, including the mandatory use of audio-visual recording of interrogations, investigation into continued reports of single hand ties being used, and an end to solitary confinement for children. These were key UK recommendations at Israel’s Universal Periodic Review session at the UN Human Rights Council on 29 October 2013.

    A progress report published in October 2013 by the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) indicates that Israel has taken some positive steps towards addressing the recommendations in the report. These include: the introduction of legal obligations to inform the child’s parents of an arrest and grant them legal status to be represented in court, as well as to notify minors of their legal rights; and standard operating procedures on methods of restraint. The Israeli military are also piloting a new procedure across the West Bank, whereby children are issued a summons to attend a police station in the morning, rather than being arrested at night, in their homes. The UK believes that the report "Children in Military Custody" has helped contribute to these changes in practice.

  • The Countess of Mar – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The Countess of Mar – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by The Countess of Mar on 2014-06-11.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government who is responsible for signing off Department for Work and Pensions training guidelines and manuals used by Atos and Capita.

    Lord Freud

    In the contract with Atos to deliver the Work Capability Assessment, Health and Wellbeing Directorate (HWD) within DWP sign off all training and guidance material. For Personal Independence Payment (PIP), Atos and Capita develop training and guidance based on policy documentation provided by DWP. The PIP contract requires Atos and Capita to involve DWP in the quality assurance process for their training and guidance but DWP does not sign off this material.

  • Baroness Masham of Ilton – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Baroness Masham of Ilton – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Masham of Ilton on 2014-06-11.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what plans are being made to improve the collection of information about children and adults affected by anti-convulsant drugs during pregnancy.

    Earl Howe

    The Department and The Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency have met representatives of Independent Fetal Anti Convuslant Trust (In-FACT) to discuss issues relating the prescribing of anti-epileptic drugs to women of child bearing age. We are considering what action might be taken. This includes looking at our current data collection systems to see how information on the incidence of fetal anti convulsant syndrome can be improved.

  • Baroness Masham of Ilton – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Baroness Masham of Ilton – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Masham of Ilton on 2014-06-11.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what practical steps are being taken to ensure that the experiences and interests of children with fetal valproate syndrome and their families are represented as an integral part of patient involvement at every level of the reformed National Health Service.

    Earl Howe

    NHS England has developed a delivery model which sets out a systematic approach to the way that it works. Each aspect of its work is underpinned by a commitment to increase patient experience, engagement and participation. This is reflected in their business plan 2014-15 to 2016-17.

    In September 2013, it launched a package of measures designed to ensure that the voices of patients, their carers and the public are at the centre of healthcare services.

    ‘Transforming Participation in Health and Care – The NHS belongs to us all’ has been developed by NHS England with a wide range of stakeholders and partners. Its purpose is to support commissioners to improve individual and public participation and to better understand and respond to the needs of the communities they serve.

    It supports two legal duties requiring clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) and commissioners in NHS England to enable:

    – patients and carers to participate in planning, managing and making decisions about their care and treatment, through the services they commission; and

    – the effective participation of the public in the commissioning process itself, so that services provided reflect the needs of local people.

    The guidance highlights a range of ways in which National Health Service commissioners can fulfil their statutory responsibilities and seize the opportunity to deliver personalised and responsive care to all. It includes a wide range of tools, resources and case studies that commissioners will find useful when developing their own responses.

    The guidance is a starting point and NHS England will be working with partners to develop further resources to support commissioners to develop their approaches to both individual and public participation.

    The reforms to the health and social care system set out in the Health and Social Care Act have also emphasised the need for integration. Central to these reforms is the establishment of statutory health and wellbeing boards to encourage local authorities to take a more strategic approach to providing integrated health and local government services. The boards are intended to bring together bodies from the NHS, public and local government, including Healthwatch as the patient’s voice, jointly to plan how best to meet local health and care needs, and to commission services accordingly.