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Tag: 2016

  • Kerry McCarthy – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Kerry McCarthy – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kerry McCarthy on 2016-01-14.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 5 January 2016 to Question 20502, if she will make it her policy to update the Veterinary Medicine Regulations and the Summary of Product Characteristics of antibiotic products in order to end the preventative administration of antibiotics where no disease has been diagnosed in any of the animals in the group being to treated.

    George Eustice

    The Government will consider the need to revise the Veterinary Medicines regulation after the conclusion of the current review of the EU legislative framework on veterinary medicines and medicated feedingstuffs.

    In the meantime the Government has reissued guidance on the responsible use of animal medicines on the farm to emphasise that we do not support the routine preventative use of antibiotics, or the use of antibiotics to compensate for poor animal husbandry.

    In the UK, antibiotic veterinary medicines are only available through a prescription from a veterinary surgeon, who in turn can only prescribe to animals under their care following a clinical assessment. Using antibiotics responsibly is a requirement of the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons Code of Professional Conduct for Vets.

  • Baroness Walmsley – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Baroness Walmsley – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Walmsley on 2016-02-09.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assurances the Department of Health has received that neurology services will not be disadvantaged in comparison to other condition areas by the absence of national clinical leadership for neurology services, in the light of NHS England’s decision not to renew the role of National Clinical Director for adult neurology.

    Lord Prior of Brampton

    Sir Bruce Keogh, NHS England’s Medical Director, has undertaken a review of the National Clinical Director (NCD) resource designed to focus clinical advisory resources on areas where major programmes of work are currently being taking forward, or areas identified as priorities for improvement. As a result of the review, NHS England has proposed to change the way in which clinical advice is received in speciality areas in the future.

    Where there will no longer be a specific NCD role, NHS England will secure expert clinical advice from its Clinical Networks and through its relationships with professional bodies and by appointing clinical advisors. For neurology it is planned that access to advice will be through clinical leads and members of the NHS England-funded neurology clinical networks, the Neurology Clinical Reference Group and Royal Colleges. It is expected that these new arrangements will be in place from 1 April 2016.

    The Neurology Intelligence Network (NIN) is a joint partnership programme between Public Health England (PHE) and NHS England to support the generation and dissemination of neurology related health intelligence. PHE currently funds the on-going design, development and management of the NIN.

  • Luciana Berger – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Luciana Berger – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Luciana Berger on 2016-03-04.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what safeguards his Department has in place to ensure that people with mental health problems who are unable to attend a work capability assessment or report to the jobcentre when requested due to their mental health problems do not have their benefits sanctioned as a result.

    Priti Patel

    Claimants with mental health conditions are considered “vulnerable”, therefore if they failed to attend a Work Capability Assessment, attempts will be made to contact them by telephone and, if appropriate, to arrange a “safeguarding home visit” before a decision on entitlement is made.

    The Jobcentre Plus sanctions regime has a range of safeguards for vulnerable claimants, including ensuring all requirements are reasonable and taking into account individual capability and circumstances, such as mental health conditions.

  • Louise Ellman – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Louise Ellman – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Louise Ellman on 2016-04-12.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what information (a) his Department and (b) the Vehicle Certification Agency holds on Vehicle Certification Agency staff who have left to join vehicle manufacturers in the last 10 years.

    Mr Robert Goodwill

    Any staff who left the Vehicle Certification Agency to join vehicle manufacturers in the last 10 years should have done so in accordance with the Business Appointment Rules. There is no requirement under those rules, for the Central Department and the Vehicle Certificate Agency to keep record of Vehicle Certification Agency Staff leaving to join vehicle manufacturers within that time frame.

    The Business Appointment Rules outline that for staff at Senior Civil Service Pay Band 1 and below, a Business Appointment Rules application is required only if one or more of the criteria at paragraph 13 applies.

  • Lord Alton of Liverpool – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Lord Alton of Liverpool – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Alton of Liverpool on 2016-05-05.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Prior of Brampton on 25 April (HL7390), what assessment the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA) has made of how the currently stated aim of research licence R0152 to improve outcomes of ART for the treatment of infertility” relates to any reasonably foreseeable applications of nuclear transfer that accord with the statutory tests and the originally stated purpose of the proposed research in the initial application for that licence; and on what grounds the HFEA Licence Committee was “content that the revised objectives and lay summary were consistent with the activities and purposes for which the product was licensed”.”

    Lord Prior of Brampton

    The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA) has advised that research project R0152 has a number of aims, which are summarised in the HFEA inspection report for July 2015, a copy of which is attached. One of the aims of the research project R0152 is to improve outcomes of assisted reproduction technologies (ART) for the treatment of infertility. This relates to gaining a better understanding of the cellular and molecular events occurring during pre-implantation development in vitro, and to determine how these are affected by the routine laboratory procedures, for example the vitrification process to enable storage.

    The aim that refers to nuclear transfer does not specifically relate to the aim of improving outcomes of ART for the treatment of infertility.

    As stated in my Written Answer of 25 April 2016 (HL7390), in 2015 the HFEA Licence Committee was satisfied that the activities licensed were necessary or desirable for the purposes, specified in Schedule 2, Paragraph 3A(2) to the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 1990, as amended, and was, therefore, content with the revised objectives and lay summary.

  • John Spellar – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    John Spellar – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by John Spellar on 2016-06-27.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will take steps to ensure that his Department’s purchasing policies support British (a) industry and (b) agriculture.

    Harriett Baldwin

    In 2013, HM Treasury outsourced the majority of its procurement and commercial services to Crown Commercial Service.

    All procurement activity is undertaken reflecting policy direction communicated via Procurement Policy Notes as issued by Cabinet Office, as well as the Public Contract Regulations 2015.

  • Jonathan Edwards – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Trade

    Jonathan Edwards – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Trade

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jonathan Edwards on 2016-09-14.

    To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what estimate his Department has made of the number of agreements that will need to be renegotiated if the UK is no longer a member of the single market; and which trade agreements those agreements are.

    Greg Hands

    A full list of all EU trade agreements can be found on the European Commission’s website (http://ec.europa.eu/trade/policy/countries-and-regions/agreements/index_en.htm).

    We recognise the need for a smooth transition as the UK leaves the EU which minimises disruption to our trading relationships. We will engage fully with all stakeholders over the coming weeks and months as we prepare for the negotiation with the EU and beyond.

    “

  • Jim Shannon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Jim Shannon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2016-01-20.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps the Government is taking to reduce levels of obesity.

    Jane Ellison

    Tackling obesity, particularly in children, is one of our major priorities. Progress has been made in recent years, but we know we have much further to go. We will be launching our childhood obesity strategy shortly. It will look at everything that contributes to a child becoming overweight and obese. It will also set out what more can be done by all sides.

  • Baroness Scott of Needham Market – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Baroness Scott of Needham Market – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Scott of Needham Market on 2016-02-08.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are planning to take to ensure that council tax billing authorities pass on to parish and town councils the council tax support funding providing for those councils by the Department for Communities and Local Government.

    Lord Prior of Brampton

    The patients with clinically actionable reports from the pilot phase are from rare diseases where improved knowledge of the causal mutation improves the management of the patient, their family members and possible future reproductive decisions. The patients diagnosed by whole genome sequencing had not been diagnosed using existing National Health Service panel tests. We are still evaluating the data from the 100,000 Genomes project to identify options for panel testing or other clinical sequencing strategies.

  • Baroness Deech – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Baroness Deech – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Deech on 2016-03-03.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the reported rise in anti-Semitism in the UK, in particular at universities, and what action they plan to take to tackle anti-Semitism in the light of that assessment.

    Baroness Evans of Bowes Park

    There is no place in our society, including higher education, for bigotry, hatred and any form of racism such as anti-Semitism. We expect universities to act swiftly to investigate and address any anti-Semitic incidents reported to them.

    Responsibility for ensuring students do not face harassment, abuse or violence rests with individual institutions, as a clear part of their duties under the 2010 Equality Act.
    The higher education sector is committed to tackling discrimination and challenging intolerance on campus. Bodies such as Universities UK (UUK), Guild HE and the Equality Challenge Unit provide support to institutions to help discharge their responsibilities through the provision of practical guidance, discussion and networking events to help share best practice across the sector.

    In addition, at the request of the Government, UUK have set up a task force to consider what more can be done to address harassment on campus, including on the basis of religion and belief. The Union of Jewish Students are part of the wider advisory group.