Tag: Kevin Foster

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kevin Foster on 2016-09-02.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what forms of medical evidence his Department accepts for personal independence payments claims from a person suffering from (a) myalgic encephalopathy and (b) other illnesses with variable symptoms that permit part-time work.

Penny Mordaunt

Personal Independence Payment (PIP) is a non-means-tested, non-taxable cash benefit that is paid regardless of the employment status of the claimant. It has been designed to take full account of fluctuating and variable conditions.

The Department encourages claimants to provide as much relevant evidence as necessary to support their claim. The “How your disability affects you” form and accompanying guidance sets out the range of information that can help the Department reach a decision. The guidance for Health Professionals also sets out sources of further evidence which could help inform their advice to the Department (Section 2.3 Further Evidence); this includes family members, carers or anyone else who supports them.

This guidance can be accessed on the gov.uk website:

https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/547146/pip-assessment-guide.pdf

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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kevin Foster on 2016-10-07.

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether her Department has plans to bring forward proposals to amend the legislation requiring statutory declarations to be dated within six months of the date of the Gender Recognition Certificate application.

Dr Phillip Lee

I refer the hon. Member to my answer to PQ 44155.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kevin Foster on 2016-09-09.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will make a comparative assessment of the level of the proposed night time premium under the new junior doctors’ contract with the night time premium for (a) airline pilots, (b) fire fighters, (c) police officers, (d) consultants and (e) nurses, midwives and physios.

Mr Philip Dunne

Under the new contract the night time premium proposed for junior doctors means that they will be paid a higher supplement rate than consultants and nurses in the National Health Service and significantly more than other public sector employees.

	Night Window	Payment
Junior doctors	9pm-7am or until the end of the night shift up to 10am	Time + 37%
Consultants	7pm-7am	4 hour Programmed Activity is reduced to 3 hours, effectively time + 33%
Nurses	8pm-6am	Time + 30%
Airline Pilots*	1am-7am	Time + 14-17% for captain
Police Officers*	8pm-6am	Time + 10%
Firefighters *	n/a	Shift duty covers shifts 24 hours, 7 days. No premia

*Income Data Services study

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kevin Foster on 2016-10-07.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether the Government plans to give people with dyslexia in the armed forces protection under the Disability Discrimination Act 1995.

Mark Lancaster

There are no plans to extend the provisions of the Equality Act 2010 to cover Service personnel who have dyslexia. The Defence Direction for Specific Learning Difficulties (contained within Joint Service Publication 898 ‘Defence Direction and Guidance on Training, Education and Skills’) provides direction to all Service personnel who have dyslexia, and line managers, trainers and commanders who are required to manage Service personnel with dyslexia. It provides a learning support framework for those identified with dyslexia, ensuring that the Ministry of Defence meets its obligations as a responsible employer.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kevin Foster on 2016-09-09.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will estimate how many consultants earn more than the Prime Minister.

Mr Philip Dunne

It is estimated that 8,000 consultants earn more than £142,500. This figure relates to the earnings of consultants employed by the NHS Hospital and Community Health Service (HCHS) in England, and is based on NHS Earnings Estimates and Workforce Statistics published by the Health and Social Care Information Centre (HSCIC).

Sources: HCHS Consultants earnings figures based on statistics published by the HSCIC, from NHS Electronic Staff Record data, in NHS Staff Earnings Estimates to December 2015. The NHS Electronic Staff Record is the HR and Payroll system used by almost all National Health Service trusts and foundation trusts in England. HCHS Consultant numbers published by the Health and Social Care Information Centre in NHS Workforce Statistics.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kevin Foster on 2016-10-07.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many Legion d’Honneur applications are outstanding in his Department.

Harriett Baldwin

The Ministry of Defence has received approximately 5,300 applications from veterans for the French award of the Legion d’Honneur. We have passed the majority of these to the French in accordance with the maximum permitted rate of 100 per week. We now only have 85 remaining applications to pass to the French, which will be submitted next week, and 130 applications with missing information which, therefore, cannot be processed – the Department is working to resolve these.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kevin Foster on 2016-09-09.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of the potential effect of the proposed new junior doctors’ contract on reducing rota gaps.

Mr Philip Dunne

The new contract is part of the solution to rota gaps. It contains protections that mean that safe working hours will be enforced and light will be shone on rota gaps by the Guardian of Safe Working Hours reporting to the Board of each trust. Where action is not taken, this will be escalated to the Care Quality Commission, the General Medical Council and Health Education England. These protections simply do not exist in the current contract. In terms of covering rota gaps, no junior doctor can be asked to work more than an average of 48 hours a week and cannot work more than an average of 56 hours a week if they opt out from the Working Time Directive. The new contract rules for instance on rest periods and consecutive night shifts also apply to any additional work done.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kevin Foster on 2016-09-09.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of the potential effect of the proposed new junior doctors’ contract on ensuring safe working hours.

Mr Philip Dunne

The new contract includes stronger limits on working hours and patterns of work and a robust oversight mechanism to ensure that prompt action is taken if needed. This will be an integral part of how trusts meet their statutory obligations to keep staff and patients safe. Required action includes a review of work schedules to ensure safe working, payment for additional work done and fines where the limits in the contract are breached. There are no such protections under the current contract. For instance, at present, junior doctors can be asked to work up to 91 hours a week, up to seven night shifts in a row and every weekend under the current contract. The Guardian of Safe Working Hours will be tasked with ensuring that rotas reflect the hours that juniors work and they are within the new contractual limits.

These limits under the new contract are a maximum of 72 hours per week (compared to 91 currently), and the limit on average weekly hours will remain 48 hours (and be limited to 56 hours where a doctor opts out of the Working Time Regulations).

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kevin Foster on 2016-09-09.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how much basic pay will increase for each grade under the proposed new junior doctors’ contract.

Mr Philip Dunne

Pay for Foundation 1 doctors will be 15% higher than the current basic starting salary.

Pay for Foundation 2 doctors will be 8% higher than the current basic starting salary.

The new basic starting salary for Specialty Registrars at ST1 will be 19% higher than the current basic starting salary.

The salary for those at ST3 will be 32% higher than the current pay point for those progressing through training without delay.

The overall increase for all juniors is over 10%.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kevin Foster on 2016-09-09.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many guardians of safe working have been appointed to NHS organisations; and what the responsibilities will be of those roles.

Mr Philip Dunne

177 out of 217 trusts had appointed Guardians of Safe Working Hours as at 4 September 2016, with interim arrangements in place in a further 14 trusts; meaning 88% have arrangements in place. NHS Improvement is aiming for appointments or interim arrangements to be in place for all 217 shortly.

The Guardian of Safe Working Hours will act as the champion of safe working hours for doctors in approved training programmes and ensure that action is taken to ensure that the working hours within the trust are safe. They will provide assurance to the trust board or equivalent body that doctors are safely rostered and are working hours that are safe and in compliance with the Terms and Conditions of Service (TCS). The Guardians will also record and monitor compliance with the restrictions on working hours stipulated in the TCS, through receipt and review of all exception reports in respect of safe working hours.