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  • Justin Madders – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Justin Madders – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Justin Madders on 2016-04-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of the availability of qualified paramedics within the NHS to meet demand.

    Ben Gummer

    Health Education England (HEE) has worked closely with all English ambulance services through the Paramedic Evidence Based Education Project programme, both to modernise the future training of paramedics and other ambulance service workers to be fit for future services.

    The national commissioning of paramedic training has increased significantly since 2013 and in the last year alone HEE has commissioned an additional 605 places on 2015/16 figures, which is an increase of 53.8%.

  • John Pugh – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    John Pugh – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by John Pugh on 2016-04-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what support the Government provides to research into the causes and treatment of brain tumours.

    George Freeman

    The Department funds the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) to increase the volume of applied health research for the benefit of patients and the public, drive faster translation of basic science discoveries into tangible benefits for patients and the economy, and develop and support the people who conduct and contribute to applied health research. NIHR cancer research expenditure has risen from £101 million in 2010/11 to £135 million in 2014/15 (the latest available figure). Most of this investment (£111 million in 2014/15) is in cancer research infrastructure where spend on specific disease areas such as brain tumours cannot be separated from total infrastructure expenditure. This infrastructure including NIHR biomedical research centres and the NIHR Clinical Research Network.

    The Medical Research Council (MRC) is one of the main agencies through which the Government support medical and clinical research. It is an independent research funding body which receives its grant in aid from the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills. The MRC supports research through a range of grants and personal awards to scientists in universities, medical schools and other research institutes and welcomes investigator-initiated research proposals in all areas of research relevant to human health. Between 2010/11 to 2014/15 the MRC spent £10.9 million supporting research into brain and pituitary tumours, spanning basic discovery science, translational projects to progress treatments to clinics and early clinical trials.

    More brain tumour research is needed and, as announced on 18 April, Official Report, columns 258-59WH, I will be convening a working group of clinicians, charities and officials to discuss how working together with our research funding partners, we can address this.

  • Andrew Stephenson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Andrew Stephenson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Stephenson on 2016-04-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how much the NHS spent on Lyme disease laboratory tests in each of the last three years.

    Jane Ellison

    As services for the treatment of Lyme disease are commissioned locally information on the costs associated with laboratory testing and treatment of late stage Lyme disease is not collected centrally. Nor is information collected centrally on the average time to diagnose cases of Lyme disease.

    The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) is developing a clinical guideline on Lyme disease and reports progress on its website. NICE recently consulted on a draft scope for the guideline, and expects to publish final guidance in July 2018.

    Public Health England and NHS Choices publish information on their websites to raise awareness of Lyme disease and encourage timely medical consultation because early diagnosis and treatment of Lyme disease is the best way of limiting complications from infection. Given the need to maintain public awareness these or similar mechanisms are expected to continue beyond 2018. Increased awareness is likely to encourage early consultation but no information on the time taken to seek medical advice is available.

    There are no plans to set targets for diagnosis and treatment as most cases of Lyme disease are diagnosed empirically by general practitioners using their clinical judgement rather than relying on a laboratory test, thus treatment can start immediately. Diagnosis of patients with late or complicated Lyme disease can be difficult and the National Health Service will continue to provide care taking account of the existing evidence base.

  • Andrew Rosindell – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Andrew Rosindell – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Rosindell on 2016-04-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will delay the start date for the introduction of standardised packaging on tobacco products in light of the post-implementation review of the measure in Australia.

    Jane Ellison

    I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 11 April 2016 to Question 32266.

    “

  • Tom Brake – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Tom Brake – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tom Brake on 2016-04-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how many cases of alleged international humanitarian law violations by the Saudi coalition within the Yemen conflict presented to the UK and Saudi authorities by NGOs have been investigated by the Government.

    Mr Tobias Ellwood

    The UK has encouraged Saudi Arabia to investigate allegations of breaches of International Humanitarian Law.

    The Saudi Arabian Government announced on 29 February that they are forming an independent committee to examine military activity in civilian areas in order to minimise possible civilian casualties; assess the Coalition’s rules of engagement; assess accidents, verification and targeting procedures and advise how they can be improved; and provide a clear, full and objective report for each investigation made including conclusions, lessons learnt and recommendations for future actions.

    We monitor the situation closely and we welcome any further information non-governmental organisations can provide to supplement the range of information we consider from a variety of sources.

  • Andrew Rosindell – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Andrew Rosindell – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Rosindell on 2016-04-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps he is taking to monitor the use of military equipment provided by the UK to Saudi Arabia.

    Mr Tobias Ellwood

    The UK operates one of the most robust arms export control regimes in the world. All applications for strategic export control licences for military and dual-use goods are assessed on a case-by-case basis against the Consolidated EU and National Arms Export Licensing Criteria (the Criteria), in a manner consistent with the UK’s international obligations. This assessment takes account of all relevant factors at the time of the application, including how the equipment will be used by the end-user. A licence will not be issued for export of items to any country, including Saudi Arabia, if to do so would be inconsistent with any mandatory provision of the Criteria, including where we assess there is a clear risk that the items might be used in the commission of a serious violation of IHL. The Government is satisfied that extant licences for Saudi Arabia are compliant with the Criteria.

    The British Government monitors the situation in Yemen closely, including reports of alleged violations of International Humanitarian Law (IHL). The Ministry of Defence continues to monitor incidents of alleged IHL violations, using available information, which in turn informs our overall assessment of Saudi Arabia’s IHL compliance in Yemen. We consider a range of information from government sources, foreign governments, the media and international non-governmental organisations. We have provided training and advice to Saudi Arabia to support continued compliance with IHL and minimise civilian casualties.

  • Andrew Rosindell – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Andrew Rosindell – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Rosindell on 2016-04-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent assessment his Department has made of the extent of damage to historical artifacts by ISIS/Daesh in Palmyra.

    Mr Tobias Ellwood

    We have no diplomatic presence in Syria and so are unable to provide an accurate assessment of the damage to Palmyra ourselves.

  • Emily Thornberry – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Emily Thornberry – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Emily Thornberry on 2016-04-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how many and what proportion of Syrian opposition groups which the Joint Intelligence Committee has identified as non-extremist are currently represented in the UN-led peace negotiations in Geneva.

    Mr Tobias Ellwood

    There are currently four representatives of Armed Opposition Groups in the seventeen member negotiating team of the opposition’s High Negotiations Committee in Geneva, including Mohammed Alloush (representing one of the armed groups), who is the Chief Negotiator.

  • Emily Thornberry – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Emily Thornberry – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Emily Thornberry on 2016-04-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how much funding was allocated to the counter-proliferation programme in each of the last six financial years; and how much funding has been allocated to that programme for the 2016-17 financial year.

    Mr Tobias Ellwood

    The current allocation for the FCO Counter Proliferation Programme in 2016/17 is £3,490,591. Figures for the amount spent in previous years are provided below:

    2015/16 – £2,495,771 (subject to end of financial year adjustments)
    2014/15 – £1,616,576
    2013/14 – £1,965,240
    2012/13 – £3,133,999
    2011/12 – £3,252,471
    2010/11 – £2,416,828

  • David Morris – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    David Morris – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Morris on 2016-04-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policy on the Falkland Islands of the recent decision by the UN to grant rights over waters surrounding those Islands to Argentina.

    Mr Hugo Swire

    The UN Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf (CLCS) has no jurisdiction to consider areas subject to competing claims and therefore has no locus to make recommendations in relation to the Falkland Islands. The UN itself has acknowledged that the CLCS could not consider those parts of the original Argentine submission of 2009 that were subject to dispute. This would include the Falkland Islands.