The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2015-11-23.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what recent discussions he has had with the Royal Colleges on the treatment of kidney disease caused by diabetes.
Jane Ellison
There have been no recent discussions with the Royal Colleges on the treatment of kidney disease caused by diabetes.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Lester of Herne Hill on 2015-12-14.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will introduce a new independent system for investigating the deaths of persons detained under the Mental Health Act 1983, as requested by the Care Quality Commission.
Lord Prior of Brampton
Every unexpected death of a patient in a mental health hospital is a matter of concern. In March 2015 NHS England issued their Serious Incident Framework. This gives guidance on good practice in responding to patient deaths, including those of people detained under the Mental Health Act 1983. This includes guidance on the circumstances in which National Health Service organisations should set up an independent investigation, in addition to the Coroner’s inquest. A copy of the Framework is attached.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Fiona Bruce on 2015-11-23.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what recent discussions his Department has had with health bodies on ensuring timely treatment for people with alcohol-related illnesses.
Jane Ellison
Departmental officials have regular meetings with various stakeholders, including health bodies, in which a wide range of topics are discussed. Ministers are involved at appropriate points. There have been no recent discussions on timely treatment for people with alcohol-related illnesses.
Local communities, services and businesses are best placed to tackle alcohol-related issues in their area and enforce the behaviour and develop the cultures that they want.
Local authorities and the Health and Wellbeing Board partners have responsibility for planning the full range of alcohol services, from early intervention and prevention, through to commissioning alcohol treatment services to meet the need in their areas. They are supported to deliver their public health priorities by Public Health England.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Blunkett on 2015-12-14.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Nash on 9 December (HL3996), what assessment is being made of the impact on the provision of child and adolescent mental health services, broader special needs support and psychological services, of reductions announced in the Autumn Statement to the provision for areas of education spending in England that are not ring-fenced.
Lord Nash
As set out in the response to the previous question from the noble Lord, Lord Blunkett (HL3996), the £600 million reduction to the Education Services Grant, announced in the Spending Review and Autumn Statement, should have no direct impact on the provision of child and adolescent mental health services, broader special needs support, or psychological services.
Support for special educational needs is funded from the core schools budget, which we are protecting in real terms.
The government has made children and young people’s mental health support a priority and we are investing an additional £1.4 billion in children and young people’s perinatal mental health services over the next five years. Each Clinical Commissioning Group has put in place a local transformation plan for children and young people’s mental health to set out how services will be improved. These have been drawn up in partnership with local authorities, schools and colleges to ensure they cover the full spectrum of interventions, from prevention to support and care for existing or emerging mental health problems, transitions between services, and addressing the needs of the most vulnerable.
Local authorities have statutory duties to provide services and support for children and young people with SEND, including providing educational psychologist expertise. Local authorities are best placed to judge local priorities and to make local funding decisions, and it is therefore for them, in consultation with local people and having regard to the range of statutory responsibilities placed on them, to determine the exact nature of provision in their areas, including how best to allocate resources and how to fulfil their obligations.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Julian Lewis on 2015-11-23.
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will make it her policy not to levy telephone charges for enquirers to the International Enquiry Service in addition to the standard rate until such time as the free alternative methods of contacting the organisation are working reliably.
James Brokenshire
The Home Office will continue to charge for telephone calls to the International Enquiry Service. Customers can access a range of information on our application processes for free through our pages on gov.uk. The Home Office works closely with the Government Digital Service to review and improve our guidance on gov.uk.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Sharon Hodgson on 2015-12-14.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of the level of (a) current imaging capacity within the NHS and (b) imaging capacity required to meet the Independent Cancer Taskforce’s recommendation that all GPs have direct access to investigative tests by the end of 2015; and if he will make a statement.
George Freeman
The extension of direct access to diagnostic tests for primary care is an issue for clinical commissioning groups and local commissioners. Although the Independent Cancer Taskforce report did estimate that some additional diagnostic capacity was needed, it did not consider possible increases in capacity required specifically as a result of increasing general practitioner (GP) direct access to testing.
The Taskforce’s five-year strategy recommends improvements across the cancer pathway, with the aim of improving survival rates, and we will work with the NHS, charities and patient groups to deliver it. We have already announced funding of up to £300 million a year by 2020 to increase diagnostic capacity to meet the new target that patients will be given a definitive cancer diagnosis, or the all clear, within 28 days of being referred by a GP.
In addition, the recently updated National Institute for Health and Care Excellence referral guidelines for suspected cancer also recommend GPs refer direct-to-test in a number of different circumstances. The guidance is available at:
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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Patrick Grady on 2015-11-23.
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps her is taking to monitor the effectiveness of her Department’s aid spending in Nepal.
Mr Desmond Swayne
Across our portfolio in Nepal, monitoring plans are in place for every programme. Our strong focus on results delivery ensures we are well placed to monitor the effectiveness of our programmes in delivering planned development outcomes. Regular monitoring activities include staff undertaking field visits on a mandatory basis to verify progress on the ground, with robust annual review processes in place. We also undertake monitoring approaches that involve the beneficiaries of our programmes having the opportunity to provide feedback on programmes, including public audits and participatory monitoring approaches.
Since the earthquake, DFID Nepal has set up a regional office in Gorkha district to increase oversight of humanitarian and reconstruction programmes. The Risk Management Office also provides effective on-the-ground monitoring directly from the districts where our programmes are implemented.
At the bilateral level, DFID Nepal is a core member of the Nepal Portfolio Performance Review led by the government with development partners on an annual and trimester basis.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Virendra Sharma on 2015-12-14.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to the Answer of 23 November 2015 to Question 16399, whether the Accelerated Access Review team has provided any information on how biosimilar medicines fit into its work stream.
George Freeman
In accordance with the terms of reference the Accelerated Access Review is not excluding any particular type or class of medicine, but is creating a framework through which to accelerate access for National Health Service patients to innovative health technologies including biosimilar medicines where appropriate.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Philip Davies on 2015-11-23.
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many remote sites are operational to enable witnesses to give evidence away from court; in which areas such sites are located; how many such sites are available to children under the age of 18; and how many such sites have been used by children under the age of 18.
Mike Penning
The Ministry is committed to supporting all victims and witnesses, including children, when giving evidence in criminal trials. All victims and witnesses are eligible for special measures to relieve stress when giving evidence, including giving evidence by video remotely.
We have secured over £700m of funding to invest in our courts and tribunals. We have worked closely with the senior judiciary to develop a plan for investing this in reforming the courts and tribunals so they can deliver swifter, fairer justice at a lower cost. This will include digitisation and modernisation of our IT infrastructure. This will mean court users can attend hearings remotely, and not be inconvenienced by having to take a day off work to come to court. It will also mean victims of crime can give evidence from somewhere they feel safe.
Since March 2015 vulnerable and intimidated witnesses, including child abuse victims, can give evidence from a remote site which is away from the court environment. There is at least one remote site in each of the seven Regions in England and Wales, and twelve sites in total.
In addition, the court estate is video-enabled so that any victim or witness can give evidence from a court building other than the trial site to ensure they do not come into contact with the defendant, or their family and supporters.
Whilst HMCTS collates data on the number of witnesses giving evidence by video, the ages of the victims and witnesses are not recorded.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Seema Malhotra on 2015-12-14.
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps he is taking to address the level of UK household debt.
Harriett Baldwin
Household debt as a proportion of income has fallen to 144 per cent in Q2 2015, from a peak of 168 per cent in Q1 2008. To avoid repeating the mistakes of the past we have created the independent Financial Policy Committee (FPC) within the Bank of England to ensure emerging risks and vulnerabilities across the financial system as a whole are identified, monitored and effectively addressed. The FPC recently re-affirmed its view that, given the actions it has taken, household indebtedness did not pose an imminent threat to financial stability.