Tag: Baroness Walmsley

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Walmsley on 2015-11-05.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what calculation they have made of how much (1) UK tax has been paid by PFI investors on profits and equity gains, and (2) corporation tax has been collected from PFI companies, in each tax year since the inception of PFI contracts for health service projects.

Lord O’Neill of Gatley

HM Treasury does not collect or publish taxation information for any Private Finance company including those within the health sector.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Walmsley on 2015-11-05.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether in assessing the benefits of PFI against conventional procurement they take account of the amount of UK tax paid by PFI investors, as recommended by the Public Accounts Committee in its report of 2011 Lessons from PFI and other projects.

Lord O’Neill of Gatley

In its response to the Public Accounts Committee report, the Government made clear that it did not agree with the Committee’s conclusion and recommendation.

As set out in the response, HM Treasury stated that the initial appraisal of a project takes into account the additional tax receipts that arise from the use of a privately funded project, compared to a publicly funded project.

Managing Public Money directs procuring authorities to ensure that procurement decisions do not rely on any tax advantage that a particular bid may enjoy because of the tax status of the proposed contactor. Any privately financed option will only be pursued if it is better value for money than the publicly funded alternative.

The Treasury’s full response can be found on the gov.uk website.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Walmsley on 2015-11-05.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have introduced arrangements for sharing gains on the sale of PFI equity shares in new PFI projects, as recommended by the Public Accounts Committee in its report of 2011 Lessons from PFI and other projects.

Lord O’Neill of Gatley

In its response to the Public Accounts Committee’s report, the Government has made clear that it does not agree that it would be desirable to seek a share of gains arising from the sale of shares in existing contracts. There would be a significant negative impact on the confidence of investors, particularly foreign investors, in the UK market and new investment in UK infrastructure would be discouraged.

The Treasury’s full response can be found at on the gov.uk website.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Walmsley on 2015-11-05.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government how they define commercial confidentiality” and “exceptional circumstances” in relation to restrictions on FOI requests relating to private companies that provide public services.”

Lord Bridges of Headley

Requests for information under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 are considered on a case by case basis. Section 43 of the Act sets out the circumstances in which information is exempt from disclosure on grounds of commercial interests.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Walmsley on 2015-11-11.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is the timetable for implementing the comprehensive legislative reform of health professional regulation to which they have committed.

Lord Prior of Brampton

This Government is grateful for the work of the Law Commissions of England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland in reviewing the regulation of health and (in England) social care professionals.

The Law Commissions made 125 recommendations to reform the existing complex and burdensome regulatory system. The joint four United Kingdom country response to the Law Commissions was published on 29 January 2015 which accepted wholly or in part the vast majority of its recommendations. A copy of the response is attached.

The Department is currently reviewing how best to take forward the work of the Law Commissions. We hope to be able to provide an update on this work soon.

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.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Walmsley on 2016-02-22.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government when they plan to make the Meningitis B vaccine available on the NHS to children born before 1 May 2015.

Lord Prior of Brampton

The Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI), the independent expert body that advises ministers on immunisation matters, recommended a meningococcal B (MenB) immunisation programme that will protect infants because they are at highest risk, with the peak incidence of MenB being in infants at about five months of age. The MenB vaccine is offered to babies at two months of age, with further doses offered when they reach four and 12 months of age.

The JCVI keeps the eligibility criteria of all vaccination programmes under review and considers new evidence as it becomes available. If the JCVI provides further advice about the programme, we will consider this.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Walmsley on 2016-03-01.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many organ donors are registered in each local authority and Parliamentary constituency.

Lord Prior of Brampton

Providing the complete information on the number of people who have joined the NHS Organ Donor Register by local authority and Parliamentary constituency in the main body of this reply would exceed the word limit for responses to written parliamentary questions. The information is therefore in the attached table.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Walmsley on 2016-03-01.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have assessed the amount of infection brought into hospitals by staff uniforms worn outside.

Lord Prior of Brampton

The Department first published Uniforms and Work wear: An evidence base for developing local policy in 2007, with an update to this guidance published in March 2010. A copy of this document is attached.

The guidance was informed by two extensive literature reviews conducted by Thames Valley University and by practical research on washing uniform fabrics carried out at University College Hospital. Whilst there is a theoretical risk, this work‎ supported the conclusion that there was no evidence that uniforms and workwear played a direct role in spreading infection.

Nonetheless, the clothes that staff wear should facilitate good practice and minimise any risk to patients. Public attitudes and perceptions indicate that it is good practice for staff either to change at work or to cover their uniforms as they travel to and from work. Changing into and out of uniforms at work is included as a good practice example in the guidance.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Walmsley on 2016-05-18.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether total Accident and Emergency (A&E) waiting times are calculated, for the purposes of reporting, from the time the ambulance arrives at A&E or from the time the patient enters the A&E Department.

Lord Prior of Brampton

Accident and emergency (A&E) waiting times for patients who arrive by ambulance start either when the ambulance crew hand over the patient to the A&E department, or 15 minutes after the ambulance registers its arrival at A&E, whichever is earlier.