Tag: 2016

  • Catherine West – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Catherine West – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Catherine West on 2016-04-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what guidance his Department issues on what evidence should be used to determine basic treatment for people presenting with acute urinary tract infections.

    Jane Ellison

    The Department does not determine which treatments should be available for what ailments. National Health Service commissioners are responsible for making decisions on individual treatments on the basis of the available evidence, taking into account guidance from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) where available.

    NICE guidance is always evidence based, assuring us of the latest clinical thinking and research to determine the best treatment for patients.

    The guidelines from NICE for urinary tract infections can be found here:

    https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/cg171/chapter/1-recommendations

    NHS England published new guidance on 16 November 2015 to help improve the care and experience of people with continence issues. This includes the most up to date evidence to support commissioners and providers. The guidance can be found on NHS England’s website and accessed via the following link:

    https://www.england.nhs.uk/2015/11/16/continence-care/

    “

  • Ian Austin – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Ian Austin – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ian Austin on 2016-05-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, by what means she will assess the risk to bee populations when considering emergency applications for the use of neonicotinoid pesticides on crops.

    George Eustice

    Emergency authorisation is a procedure set out in law which allows for the authorisation of a pesticide product for a period not exceeding 120 days, for “limited and controlled use, where such a measure appears necessary because of a danger which cannot be contained by any other reasonable means”.

    All applications for emergency authorisation in the UK, including those for neonicotinoids, are decided according to these criteria following an expert assessment of the scientific data.

  • Baroness Hollins – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    Baroness Hollins – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Hollins on 2016-06-28.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Neville-Rolfe on 16 June (HL576), whether the trial of Mazher Mahmood is among those cases she refers to as connected to the subject of the Leveson Inquiry and which must conclude before they will consider Part 2 of the Leveson Inquiry, and which other criminal proceedings are also in that category.

    Baroness Neville-Rolfe

    There are a number of on-going cases captured by the Leveson criteria, which were laid down to avoid the risk of prejudice to the right to fair trials in the criminal courts. The trial of Mazher Mahmood is one of these.

  • Tom Watson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Tom Watson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tom Watson on 2016-09-08.

    To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many officials of his Department provide secretariat support to unpaid advisors.

    Ben Gummer

    There are no unpaid special advisers in the Cabinet Office.

  • Grahame Morris – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Grahame Morris – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Grahame Morris on 2016-01-15.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, whether (a) clinicians and (b) patient groups were consulted on the changes to NHS England’s National Clinical Director structure after April 2016.

    George Freeman

    No patient groups were consulted on the changes, which are being made to ensure that this important resource is focused on clinical areas where we are taking forward major programmes of work, or areas that have otherwise been identified as priorities for service improvement. The changes have been discussed with the Academy of Medical Royal Colleges, some individual Colleges and NHS England’s senior medical leaders.

  • Andrew Percy – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Andrew Percy – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Percy on 2016-02-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps he is taking to give greater support to people with mental health vulnerabilities who come into contact with the criminal justice system.

    Andrew Selous

    Liaison and Diversion services place clinical staff at police stations and courts to assess and identify offenders for a range of health problems, including mental health, and then make referrals to treatment and support services. Information about their health needs can be shared so that court proceedings, decisions and sentences can be tailored to meet needs. Where appropriate offenders can be diverted towards appropriate interventions.

    In April 2014, services were launched in 10 trial areas, and extended in April 2015 to a further 15 areas. This brings current coverage to over half of England. We are also exploring how problem-solving courts can support people with complex needs. A working group has been established in partnership with the judiciary which will make recommendations in due course.

  • Kevan Jones – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Kevan Jones – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kevan Jones on 2016-03-07.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, which organisations and projects have received funding from the £35 million transferred to his Department from HM Treasury derived from Libor fines.

    Mark Lancaster

    All £35 million of LIBOR funding has been allocated to projects which support the Armed Forces Community. For details of the organisations and projects which benefited from this money, I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 2 June 2015 to Question 428 to the hon. Member for St Helens North (Mr McGinn). http://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/written-questions-answers-statements/written-question/Commons/2015-05-28/428/

    Organisations that have received LIBOR funds are required to provide a monthly report of progress; these are reviewed and monitored by the Ministry of Defence (MOD) Armed Forces Covenant Team and, where appropriate, action taken to ensure that the project is on track. At the end of each project, recipients of LIBOR funding also complete a close of project report and an assessment is conducted against the original terms and conditions. This enables the MOD to confirm the closure and record lessons learnt for future grants. Where appropriate, the MOD Armed Forces Covenant Team have engaged with projects on a one-to-one basis.

  • Michelle Donelan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Michelle Donelan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Michelle Donelan on 2016-04-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what recent assessment his Department has made of the state of morale among junior doctors.

    Ben Gummer

    The most recent assessment of the state of morale among junior doctors was from engagement scores in the 2015 NHS Staff Survey published in February which showed a score for junior doctors of 3.85/5, up from 3.81/5 the previous year. On 11 February my Rt. hon. Friend the Secretary of State announced that a new national juniors’ contract will be introduced. He also announced a review into some wider and more deep-seated issues relating to junior doctors’ morale, wellbeing and quality of life, which will be led by Professor Dame Sue Bailey, the President of the Academy of Medical Royal Colleges.

    The Government and junior doctors want to do the same thing by improving patient care at weekends. A contract that is safer for patients as well as fair and reasonable for junior doctors is a step towards that.

  • David Amess – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    David Amess – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Amess on 2016-05-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to the Answer of 21 April 2016 to Question 34094, by what deadline clinical commissioning groups will be required to report on whether they have increased investment in mental health services above their overall increase in allocation each year.

    Alistair Burt

    Spending on mental health is expected to increase to £11.7 billion and clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) are required to continue to increase their spend on mental health each year.

    NHS England’s published planning guidance for 2015/16 for commissioners made the expectation clear that each CCG’s spend on mental health services in 2015/16 should increase in real terms, and grow by at least the same percentage as each CCG’s allocation increase.

    Detail on planned spend on mental health is captured as part of the National Health Service financial plan returns for 2016/17 with follow up as part of the plan assurance process. This information is being assessed during May by NHS England.

  • Steve McCabe – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Steve McCabe – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Steve McCabe on 2016-06-28.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what criteria his Department uses to decide when and how to negotiate the UK’s tax treaties with other countries.

    Mr David Gauke

    HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) have responsibility for negotiating the UK’s double taxation agreements, subject to oversight by HM Treasury. HMRC run a periodic consultation exercise to establish the negotiating priorities, which are then approved by ministers. As part of this exercise they consider representations made by UK businesses, non-governmental organisations and government departments, as well as the UK’s diplomatic missions throughout the world. The results of the last such review were published by HMRC on the gov.uk website in November 2015.

    Decisions on the negotiation or renegotiation of a tax treaty are taken on the basis of a range of factors including the results of HMRC’s periodic review of the tax treaty network, economic factors, the need to counter avoidance and evasion, and the role of treaties in promoting development. We also receive requests from countries to negotiate with us, and we will endeavour to accommodate them as time and negotiating resources permit. Given the number of treaties the UK already has, most of the programme will involve renegotiating existing agreements.