Tag: 2015

  • Julian Sturdy – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Julian Sturdy – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Julian Sturdy on 2015-12-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what representations he has received on reforming of NICE’s procedure for appraisal of medicines.

    George Freeman

    We receive representations about the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence’s (NICE) technology appraisal programme from hon. Members, members of the public, clinicians and the pharmaceutical industry.

    NICE is the independent body that provides guidance on the prevention and treatment of ill health and the promotion of good health and social care and is responsible for its own processes and methodology.

    NICE regularly reviews these and its internationally renowned technology appraisal programme has evolved constantly to meet new challenges. NICE has demonstrated its ability to adapt to changes in the health and care environment, and we expect it will continue to evolve in the future, in particular through the recommendations of the Accelerated Access Review which NICE is centrally involved in.

    Further guidance on NICE’s processes of technology appraisal is available at:

    www.nice.org.uk/article/pmg19/chapter/Foreword

  • Mark Durkan – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Mark Durkan – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mark Durkan on 2015-11-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what his estimate is of the number of human rights activists and community leaders killed in Colombia during the first eight months of 2015.

    Mr Hugo Swire

    The latest report from the NGO coalition ‘Somos Defensores’ recorded 51 murders of human rights defenders in the first nine months of 2015, compared to 55 for the whole of 2014 which indicates a worrying upward trend. Despite recent significant developments on the peace process we remain concerned by this increase in violence and threats against human rights defenders there. I again raised the issue of human rights with the Colombian Deputy Foreign Minister, Patti Londono, on 29 September. Officials in London met British NGOs on 9 November, to understand their concerns in greater detail.

  • Charlotte Leslie – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Charlotte Leslie – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Charlotte Leslie on 2015-12-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what formal guidance exists on the role of social care providers in helping to formulate discharge procedures within NHS hospitals.

    Alistair Burt

    The Care Act 2014 requires the National Health Service to notify local authorities whenever a hospital patient is likely to have care and support needs once they are discharged from hospital. This requirement was part of the wide ranging consultation on the draft regulations and guidance for implementation of the Act. The Care and Support Statutory Guidance sets out these procedures in more detail; they are designed to ensure that local authorities and the NHS work together to ensure that people have the correct support on leaving hospital.

    In addition, NHS England’s guidance on Monthly Delayed Transfer of Care Situation Reports highlights the importance of the role of the multi-disciplinary team, including social workers, in determining patients’ on-going health and social care needs once they leave hospital.

    The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence also recently published its guideline on transition between hospital inpatient settings and community or care homes for adults with social care needs. It aims to improve people’s experience of admission to, and discharge from, hospital by better coordination of health and social care services.

  • Andrew Rosindell – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Andrew Rosindell – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Rosindell on 2015-11-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what his Department’s aims are for the visit of Indian Prime Minister, Narendra Modi.

    Mr Hugo Swire

    The Government was pleased to welcome Prime Minister Modi to the United Kingdom. Prime Minister Modi is the head of world’s largest democracy. The visit was a celebration of a rich, wide-ranging and mature relationship between our two countries, symbolised by 1.5 million Britons of Indian origin. We want to deepen our extensive trade and investment links further. We will also discuss how to enhance our defence and international security partnership to enable both our countries to address together the many common global threats we face.

  • Jim Shannon – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Jim Shannon – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2015-12-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many people from Pakistan applied for asylum and requested certification under section (a) 94(1) and (b) 94(2) of the Nationality, Immigration and Asylum Act 2002 in each of the last three years.

    James Brokenshire

    The basis of an individual’s asylum claim is not recorded on Home Office systems. It is not therefore possible to differentiate Pakistani applicants claiming for reasons of religious persecution and discrimination from Pakistani applicants claiming for one or more other reasons in the Detained Fast Track (DFT) or the non-detained process.

    Certification under section 94 of the Nationality, Immigration and Asylum Act 2002 is not requested by an applicant. It is applied by the Secretary of State in circumstances where the applicant’s claim is refused and considered to be so lacking in merit as to be clearly unfounded.

    The number of initial certified refusals for Pakistan main asylum applicants, from year ending September 2013 to year ending September 2015, was 604. The Home Office publishes data on asylum applications and decisions on a quarterly and annual basis. The information supplied on certified refusals is based on initial decisions which do not necessarily relate to applications made in the same period.

    No assessment has been made of any difference that might exist between grant rates in respect of Pakistani applicants in the DFT process when it operated, and cases entering the non-detained process at the same time. However, as the DFT process avoided claims involving particular complexity and/or vulnerability, and prioritised cases which appeared to be late or opportunistic, it is to be expected that the DFT would have fewer grants than the non-detained process.

  • Poulter – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Poulter – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Poulter on 2015-11-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what estimate he has made of the average frequency of evening and weekend work by junior doctors in the most recent period for which figures are available.

    Ben Gummer

    NHS Employers’ evidence to the Review Body on Doctors’ and Dentists’ Remuneration – “Reform of national contracts for consultant doctors and doctors and dentists in training”1 – published in December 2014 during the hon. Member’s tenure as a Minister, included a profile of how the hours worked by doctors in training were spread across the week.

    We have evidence that hospital leaders consider the junior doctors’ contract to be a significant barrier to delivering more seven-day services. NHS Providers’ written evidence to the Review Body on Doctors’ and Dentists’ Remuneration on contract reform for consultants and doctors and dentists in training2 stated that the junior doctor contract is still a significant source of barriers to seven day working and reform of the junior doctor contract is also required to support trusts to deliver more seven-day services. In particular, the pay banding system for junior doctors needs to be reviewed. There were concerns from employers that the banding system is too complicated, can create “perverse incentives” for junior doctors and hospital management, and means that providing more seven-day services is unfeasible, since more junior doctors would be working outside core hours and receive premiums under the current banding system. NHS Providers also believe that more hours in a day and more days of the week need to be defined as core hours, as the current arrangement does not support the delivery of more seven-day services or reflect the needs and expectations of today’s patients.

    Future working patterns are for individual employers to determine. The evidence on doctors’ working patterns has not altered since the hon. Member was a Minister for Health.

    1 http://www.nhsemployers.org/your-workforce/pay-and-reward/pay/medical-pay/ddrb-evidence—in-detail/consultants-and-junior-doctors-contract-reform-submission-of-evidence-to-the-ddrb

    2 http://www.nhsproviders.org/resource-library/written-evidence-ddrb-special-remit/

    “

  • Barry Sheerman – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Barry Sheerman – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Barry Sheerman on 2015-12-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what his policy is on allowing female prisoners with young children access to those children.

    Caroline Dinenage

    The policy and guidance on the treatment of female offenders is contained in Prison Service Order 4800, which can be found at: https://www.google.co.uk/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0ahUKEwj8yJvt2N3JAhVFuBQKHTxXAwcQFggdMAA&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.justice.gov.uk%2Fdownloads%2Foffenders%2Fpsipso%2Fpso%2FPSO_4800_women_prisoners.doc&usg=AFQjCNHEKdUSQ34oce66F47zApSRhF35Iw

    “

  • Nicholas Soames – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Nicholas Soames – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nicholas Soames on 2015-11-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will make an estimate of the number of additional hospitals that will be required to accommodate the predicted population rise over the next 25 years; and if he will make a statement.

    Ben Gummer

    NHS planning must be centred around the changing health needs of patients and the population. Because of this, the way the NHS delivers health and care in 25 years’ time may look very different from the way health and care is delivered today.

    The NHS will take advantage of science and technology to deliver healthcare in different ways, in care settings appropriate to people’s needs. This will include hospitals but also new primary and community settings and in people’s homes, where that suits patients and their families. The NHS will of course also need to change the way healthcare is delivered as people live longer lives, with longer term, more complex, multiple health issues. Many of these needs will be best met by supporting people to live healthier as well as longer lives, in their own homes and communities, rather than admitting them to a hospital. The Government has set a priority to transform out-of-hospital care in every community.

    The NHS Five Year Forward View sets out how the NHS will need to develop to deliver care in new and innovative ways. Different local health communities are being supported as part of the New Care Models Vanguard programme to develop a small number of new care delivery options and models. It is likely that the concept of distinctive health settings, such as within the hospital sector, or within community or primary care, will become less important, as healthcare is delivered in closer partnership with people and coordinated around their needs.

    Allowing successful innovations to be spread throughout the NHS is integral to the design of the healthcare delivery models the Vanguard programme is developing. This will facilitate the continual development of new NHS services, working in partnership with the people using them.

  • Daniel Kawczynski – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Daniel Kawczynski – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Daniel Kawczynski on 2015-12-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of the procurement of bi-modal trains so that more trains can run on the West Coast Main Line and then travel on to parts of the network that are not electrified.

    Claire Perry

    It is for the operator to assess the merits of using such rolling stock. We believe that they are best placed to procure the rolling stock that they require to deliver the necessary levels of service and capacity. Bi-modes clearly provide one option for new rolling stock as can be seen by the current procurement of the Class Hitachi AT-300s by Great Western Railway.

    “

  • Stephen Phillips – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Stephen Phillips – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Phillips on 2015-11-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps she is taking to improve the resilience of healthcare provision in West Africa.

    Grant Shapps

    In countries affected by the Ebola virus, DFID is committed to building resilient health systems and to ensuring we learn the lessons from the crisis.

    The World Health Organisation declared Sierra Leone ‘Ebola free’ on 7 November 2015. The UK’s objective is to maintain the vigilance necessary to prevent any future outbreaks from growing into epidemics. The UK has announced a two-year £240 million package of support to Sierra Leone’s long term recovery, which includes boosting capability to respond to future Ebola outbreaks, and improving basic services including, vitally, healthcare. DFID will also support Liberia’s Health Pooled fund with £6 million to help ensure that health system is resilient to future shocks.

    Beyond Sierra Leone and Liberia, DFID is providing £17 million through its Regional Preparedness Programme, which aims to prevent the transmission and spread of the Ebola in at-risk countries in West Africa; and to strengthen national capacities to accelerate preparedness measures and improve readiness to detect and act to contain disease outbreaks.

    In doing this, as well as through wider health programmes across West Africa, we are helping countries to have better health systems for normal times – as well as in case of emergency.