The below Parliamentary question was asked by Greg Mulholland on 2015-10-13.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, when he expects NICE to publish its final guidance on the Vimizim treatment.
George Freeman
The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence currently expects to publish its final guidance on elosulfase alfa (Vimizim) for mucopolysaccharidosis (type IVA) or Morquio Syndrome in December 2015.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Greg Mulholland on 2015-10-13.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what recent assessment he has made of staff morale in NHS England.
George Freeman
NHS England has regularly surveyed staff opinion and experience since it was established in 2013. The most recent staff survey was conducted in July 2015 and was open to all employees of the organisation. 66% of all employees responded to the survey and the overall morale and engagement score was 63% positive.
Informed by feedback from the staff surveys, NHS England launched a programme of work to enhance staff engagement and diversity, build skills and capabilities and improve business processes, as the survey identified these as issues that impact upon staff morale and satisfaction levels.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Dr Matthew Offord on 2015-10-13.
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many of the ePassport gates at Stansted Airport were fully functional on the evening of Monday 12 October 2015.
James Brokenshire
All fifteen ePassport Gates were open and fully functional at Stansted Airport on the evening of Monday 12 October 2015.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Caroline Lucas on 2015-10-13.
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the reasons are for the time taken to change regulations to allow mothers’ names to be recorded on marriage certificates; what timetable is in place for that change to be made; whether she has made an assessment of the feasibility of allowing that change to be phased in as marriage registers are replaced; and if she will make a statement.
James Brokenshire
The Home Office is working with all interested parties to confirm the most efficient and effective way to enable mothers’ names to be recorded on marriage certificates.
Achieving this is likely to require additional funding and changes to legislation, IT systems and administrative processes.
The Government will confirm a timetable for the introduction of the changes in due course.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Roger Godsiff on 2015-10-13.
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will ensure that at least 1,000 Syrian children are brought to settle in the UK before Christmas 2015.
Richard Harrington
Scaling up the system in a way that protects the interests of all concerned, including local communities, will take a little bit of time. It will take several months to reach full capacity. However, on 19 October, I set out our intention to welcome 1,000 Syrian refugees (adults and children) before Christmas. This is the ambition that the Home Office are working towards and we will report on it after Christmas.
We are not expecting the refugees arriving in the first months of the scheme to include unaccompanied children.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Rosindell on 2015-10-13.
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps his Department plans to take to ensure that automotive manufacturers have not falsified emissions data in the same manner as Volkswagen has done.
Andrew Jones
In the UK, the Vehicle Certification Agency conducts tests on vehicles and components to ensure they meet the minimum standards required by European and UN-ECE legislation.
Emissions tests are carried out to determine that the level of pollutants emitted from a vehicle is below the required limits. The test is a laboratory based test under controlled conditions in order to achieve repeatable results.
The Department for Transport recognises the current test cycle for emissions is outdated and no longer represents normal driving patterns. Discussions have taken place over recent years to replace this with an updated more relevant laboratory test. The Department anticipates this will be implemented from 2017. In addition, a new real world driving emissions test is being implemented to ensure emissions in normal driving comply with the legal obligation. These new tests will remove the ability of car manufacturers to falsify test results.
All new vehicles are tested in accordance with EU law to ensure that they meet the legislated requirements for emissions. There is no evidence that these emissions tests have been falsified in the UK.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Owen Smith on 2015-10-13.
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate his Department has made of the level of administration fees and interest charges to pensioners under the Support for Mortgage Interest loan scheme.
Justin Tomlinson
The interest rate charged on the loans will be tied to the Office for Budget Responsibility’s (OBR) forecast for gilts rates, so that the interest reflects the government cost of borrowing.
The rate will be updated every 6 months and is forecast to be 2.9% in 2018/19. (OBR forecast Budget 2015).
The fees charged will reflect the forecast average cost of administering the loans scheme. Until a provider has been appointed it is not possible to state what those fees might be.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Luciana Berger on 2015-10-12.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what provisions are in place to support and promote the mental wellbeing of the NHS workforce.
Ben Gummer
Employers across the National Health Service are responsible for the mental health and wellbeing of their staff.
The Department commissions NHS Employers to help trusts improve staff mental health and wellbeing through advice, guidance and good practice[1].
In addition, trusts have access to local data from the NHS Staff Survey, the staff Friends and Family test as well as local information to help them develop and implement local improvement plans.
The recent launch of the How are you feeling NHS?[2] Toolkit by NHS Employers is aimed at enabling staff to talk more openly about their emotional health, improving the assessment of the impact emotional wellbeing has on staff and patients and enabling action planning to improve staff emotional health and wellbeing. Since it launched on 29 July it has had more than 16,000 views.
[1] http://www.nhsemployers.org/search-results?q=supporting+staff+who+are+experiencing+mental+health+issues
[2] http://www.nhsemployers.org/your-workforce/retain-and-improve/staff-experience/health-work-and-wellbeing/protecting-staff-and-preventing-ill-health/how-are-you-feeling-nhs-toolkit
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Timms on 2015-10-12.
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many people were accepted onto the Metropolitan Police National Fast Track Programme in the last 12 months; and how many such people did not subsequently pass the vetting procedure and therefore did not take up their places on the programme.
Mike Penning
The College of Policing delivers the fast track and direct entry programmes. According to its data, seven external officers and 25 internal officers started the fast track programme with the Metropolitan Police in September. There were 1,952 applicants for the 2015 external fast track programme, of which 421 were to the Metropolitan Police. The public need to have confidence that police officers have been subject to extensive vetting before they join, and it is for individual forces to make decisions on recruitment.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Stephenson on 2015-10-12.
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 14 September 2015 to Question 8612, on female offenders, if he will publish the updated membership and terms of reference of the Advisory Board on Female Offenders.
Caroline Dinenage
The Terms of Reference for the Advisory Board on Female Offenders and its updated membership are set out below.
Board members have considerable understanding of and expertise in addressing factors underlying women’s offending, including domestic abuse, and will take full account of these as the Board takes forward its programme of work.