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Lord McColl of Dulwich – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord McColl of Dulwich on 2016-02-25.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many EEA nationals with ongoing applications for discretionary leave to remain as victims of human trafficking have been issued with minded to remove” letters or administrative removal papers since 1 January 2014.”

Lord Bates

Since 01 January 2014, no EEA Nationals with ongoing applications for Discretionary Leave to Remain in the United Kingdom as victims of human trafficking have been served with ‘minded to remove’ letters or administrative removal papers whilst their applications were being considered.

In the same time period,fewer than five applicants were served with papers before they made an application for Discretionary Leave to Remain.

01/01/2023
Lord Mawson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Mawson on 2016-02-25.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they or NHS England have made of the effectiveness of minor ailments services provided by community pharmacies in reducing pressure on GP practices and other parts of the NHS, and what assessment they have made of the impact of their planned pharmacy cuts on such services.

Lord Prior of Brampton

NHS England has taken account of the potential impact of a pharmacy minor ailments service on general practitioner services and other parts of the National Health Service. The findings of the Minor Ailment Study (MINA), conducted by the University of Aberdeen, in collaboration with NHS Grampian and the University of East Anglia, on behalf of Pharmacy Research UK in 2014, were considered. The study’s main conclusions were:

– consultations for minor ailments continue to be a burden on high cost service providers but there needs to be consensus amongst healthcare professionals regarding what constitutes a minor ailment suitable for treatment in the community pharmacy setting;

– the evidence considered suggests that community pharmacy-based minor ailment schemes are an effective and cost-effective strategy for managing patients;

– health professionals and patients need to be confident in the ability of pharmacists and their staff to manage minor ailments; and

– future initiatives to shift demand from high cost settings to community pharmacy should adopt an interdisciplinary approach to explore and address patient decision-making behaviour.

In addition, evaluations of local minor ailments schemes have continued to inform decision-making about local commissioning of such schemes.

Community pharmacy is a vital part of the NHS and can play an even greater role. In the Spending Review the Government re-affirmed the need for the NHS to deliver £22 billion in efficiency savings by 2020/21 as set out in the NHS’s own plan, the Five Year Forward View. Community pharmacy is a core part of NHS primary care and has an important contribution to make as the NHS rises to these challenges. The Government believes efficiencies can be made without compromising the quality of services or public access to them. Our aim is to ensure that those community pharmacies upon which people depend continue to thrive and so we are consulting on the introduction of a Pharmacy Access Scheme, which will provide more NHS funds to certain pharmacies compared to others, considering factors such as location and the health needs of the local population.

The Government’s vision is for a more efficient, modern system that will free up pharmacists to spend more time delivering clinical and public health services to the benefit of patients and the public.

We are consulting the Pharmaceutical Services Negotiating Committee, other pharmacy bodies and patient and public representatives on our proposals. An impact assessment will be completed to inform final decisions and published in due course.

Local commissioning and funding of services from community pharmacies, such as minor ailment services, will be unaffected by these proposals.

01/01/2023
Lord Mawson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Mawson on 2016-02-25.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the impact of their planned pharmacy cuts on patients and health services in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets.

Lord Prior of Brampton

Community pharmacy is a vital part of the National Health Service and can play an even greater role. In the Spending Review, the Government re-affirmed the need for the NHS to deliver £22 billion in efficiency savings by 2020-21 as set out in the NHS’s own plan, the Five Year Forward View. Community pharmacy is a core part of NHS primary care and has an important contribution to make as the NHS rises to these challenges. The Government believes efficiencies can be made without compromising the quality of services or public access to them. Our aim is to ensure that those community pharmacies upon which people depend continue to thrive and so we are consulting on the introduction of a Pharmacy Access Scheme, which will provide more NHS funds to certain pharmacies compared to others, considering factors such as location and the health needs of the local population.

The Government’s vision is for a more efficient, modern system that will free up pharmacists to spend more time delivering clinical and public health services to the benefit of patients and the public.

We are consulting the Pharmaceutical Services Negotiating Committee, other pharmacy bodies and patient and public representatives on our proposals. An impact assessment will be completed to inform final decisions and published in due course.

NHS England has a statutory duty to ensure the adequate provision of NHS pharmaceutical services across England and will ensure that duty continues to be met, including in respect of the London Borough of Tower Hamlets.

01/01/2023
Lord Lester of Herne Hill – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Lester of Herne Hill on 2016-02-25.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they plan to respond to the European Parliament’s call for an arms embargo on Saudi Arabia, and if so, how.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns

It is up to individual member states, not the European Parliament, to make national arms export licensing decisions.

The Government takes its arms export responsibilities very seriously and operates one of the most robust arms export control regimes in the world. All export licence applications are assessed on a case-by-case basis against the Consolidated EU and National Arms Export Licensing Criteria, taking account of all relevant factors at the time of the application.

We are able to review licences and suspend or revoke as necessary when circumstances require.

The Government is satisfied that extant licences for Saudi Arabia are compliant with the UK’s export licensing criteria.

01/01/2023
Lord Lester of Herne Hill – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Lester of Herne Hill on 2016-02-25.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will give guidance to local authorities about the limits on their powers to engage in political boycotts overseas.

Lord Bridges of Headley

On 17 February, the Crown Commercial Service (CCS) published procurement guidance for public authorities that makes clear that boycotts in public procurement are inappropriate outside where formal legal sanctions, embargoes and restrictions have been put in place by the UK Government.

This new guidance gives no consideration to matters of common law, which is a matter for the courts. However, the guidance makes it clear that local level boycotts can be unlawful and lead to severe penalties against the contracting authority and the Government.

01/01/2023
Lord Hylton – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hylton on 2016-02-25.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they are making representations to the government of Israel about the case of Mohammed Al-Qeeq; and in particular what representations they have made in the light of the reports of force-feeding and drips being inserted against his will.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns

We understand that Mr Al Qeeq has now ended his hunger strike. We have been following the case closely and officials from our Embassy in Tel Aviv have spoken to Amnesty International about Mr Al Qeeq. Our Consulate General in Jerusalem has received regular updates on the condition of Mr Al Qeeq from Palestinian officials and organisations. We remain concerned about Israel’s extensive use of administrative detention. Administrative detention should, according to international law, be used only when security makes it absolutely necessary rather than as routine practice, and as a preventative rather than a punitive measure. Officials from our Embassy in Tel Aviv have raised the matter of Mr Al Qeeq’s condition with Israeli authorities.

01/01/2023
Lord Hylton – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hylton on 2016-02-25.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Verma on 18 February (HL5926), whether they intend to propose a system of sharing of expenditure by EU member states whereby those that accept smaller numbers of refugees for settlement proportionate to their own population size pay a higher fraction of national income towards programmes benefitting refugees both in Europe and outside it.

Baroness Verma

The UK encourages other EU member States to support programmes of assistance to refugees, as demonstrated most recently at the February Conference on Syria and the Region.

The UK is at the forefront of the response to the Syria crisis, committing over £2.3 billion. We are prioritising our aid in Syria and neighbouring countries, where the scale of displacement is greatest. The Government has no plans to propose a system as suggested by the noble Lord.

01/01/2023
Baroness Hodgson of Abinger – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Hodgson of Abinger on 2016-02-25.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government how they will promote their Preventing Sexual Violence in Conflict Initiative at the Commission on the Status of Women meeting in March.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns

At the current time, four UK Ministers (from the Department for International Development, the Ministry of Defence and the Department for Education) are planning to attend the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) and promote UK objectives, including the Preventing Sexual Violence in Conflict Initiative (PSVI). Tackling violence against women and girls is a key UK objective. We will be actively participating in the Review Theme and a significant number of side events focused on tackling all forms of violence against women and girls including sexual violence. We will use the opportunity of these different discussions to promote PSVI.

01/01/2023
Baroness Hodgson of Abinger – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Hodgson of Abinger on 2016-02-25.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what their side events will be at the Commission on the Status of Women meeting in March.

Baroness Williams of Trafford

The Government will use the 60th session of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) to ensure that gender equality and women’s empowerment remain at the top of the global political agenda. We will negotiate with other UN Member States to agree a set of ambitious, action-oriented and forward-looking recommendations for governments around the world to accelerate progress on gender equality and ensure accountability.

At the first session after the adoption of the Sustainable Development Goals, we will press for a meaningful follow-up process that places gender equality at the heart of the new agenda while ensuring that the CSW remains the prime global forum on gender equality and the laboratory of ideas that it is today.

Furthermore, we will enhance the UK’s reputation as a world leader in this area by promoting relevant national policies but also by exchanging ideas with other UN Member States. In line with the session’s themes this year, we will be focusing on women’s empowerment and on violence against women and girls in high level discussions, events and bilateral meetings.

In addition, the Government will host and support a number of events to raise the profile of certain issues which still prevent us from achieving equality, such as inequality in the workplace, discrimination in all its forms and violence against women and girls.

Lastly, but very importantly, we are working with civil society to ensure their participation remains an integral part of the CSW programme and their concerns are heard at the national and global levels.

Sixty years after the first session of the Commission on the Status of Women, the UK Government will send a strong signal that gender equality must be at the heart of economic and social development of all countries. We will have a ministerial team of four, led by the Rt Hon Nicky Morgan MP, Secretary of State for Education and Minister for Women and Equalities, and including the Rt Hon Justine Greening MP, Secretary of State for International Development. Parliamentary Under Secretary for Women, Equalities and Family Justice Caroline Dinenage MP and Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for International Development, Baroness Verma, in her capacity as Ministerial Champion for Tackling Violence Against Women and Girls Overseas, will also attend.

The UK Government currently has two confirmed side events at this year’s Commission on the Status of Women. The first one will focus on getting more women and girls into science and technology and the second one will be on the gender pay gap.

We will also be taking part in other events where major issues such as women’s economic empowerment and violence against women are discussed.

01/01/2023
Baroness Hodgson of Abinger – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Hodgson of Abinger on 2016-02-25.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government who will attend the Commission on the Status of Women meeting in March on their behalf.

Baroness Williams of Trafford

The Government will use the 60th session of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) to ensure that gender equality and women’s empowerment remain at the top of the global political agenda. We will negotiate with other UN Member States to agree a set of ambitious, action-oriented and forward-looking recommendations for governments around the world to accelerate progress on gender equality and ensure accountability.

At the first session after the adoption of the Sustainable Development Goals, we will press for a meaningful follow-up process that places gender equality at the heart of the new agenda while ensuring that the CSW remains the prime global forum on gender equality and the laboratory of ideas that it is today.

Furthermore, we will enhance the UK’s reputation as a world leader in this area by promoting relevant national policies but also by exchanging ideas with other UN Member States. In line with the session’s themes this year, we will be focusing on women’s empowerment and on violence against women and girls in high level discussions, events and bilateral meetings.

In addition, the Government will host and support a number of events to raise the profile of certain issues which still prevent us from achieving equality, such as inequality in the workplace, discrimination in all its forms and violence against women and girls.

Lastly, but very importantly, we are working with civil society to ensure their participation remains an integral part of the CSW programme and their concerns are heard at the national and global levels.

Sixty years after the first session of the Commission on the Status of Women, the UK Government will send a strong signal that gender equality must be at the heart of economic and social development of all countries. We will have a ministerial team of four, led by the Rt Hon Nicky Morgan MP, Secretary of State for Education and Minister for Women and Equalities, and including the Rt Hon Justine Greening MP, Secretary of State for International Development. Parliamentary Under Secretary for Women, Equalities and Family Justice Caroline Dinenage MP and Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for International Development, Baroness Verma, in her capacity as Ministerial Champion for Tackling Violence Against Women and Girls Overseas, will also attend.

The UK Government currently has two confirmed side events at this year’s Commission on the Status of Women. The first one will focus on getting more women and girls into science and technology and the second one will be on the gender pay gap.

We will also be taking part in other events where major issues such as women’s economic empowerment and violence against women are discussed.

01/01/2023