Tag: Laurence Robertson

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Laurence Robertson on 2016-05-23.

To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what steps he is taking to ensure that there is a sufficient supply of single-storey housing for occupation by elderly people; and if he will make a statement.

Brandon Lewis

The National Planning Policy Framework and planning guidance requires local authorities to plan for a mix of housing based on current and future demographic trends, and the needs of different groups in their area. This includes housing suitable for occupation by elderly people.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Laurence Robertson on 2015-10-22.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, whether addressing barriers to licensing off-patent, repurposed drugs in an aim of the current Accelerated Access Review.

George Freeman

The Accelerated Access Review, chaired by Sir Hugh Taylor, will make recommendations to government on reforms to accelerate access for National Health Service patients to innovative medicines and medical technologies (including devices, diagnostics and digital), making our country the best place in the world to design, develop and deploy these products. This will cover products that may already be on the market and off patent but are being innovatively repurposed to treat conditions other than those in remit of the existing license.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Laurence Robertson on 2015-10-22.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to the Answer of 21 October 2015 to Question 12247, on breast cancer, what assessment his Department has made of the 26 recommendations produced by charities on access to off-patent, repurposed drugs following the roundtable event of February 2015.

George Freeman

The Government hosted a Roundtable Event to explore the issues around off-label prescribing as part of its response to a Private Member’s Bill presented in the last Parliament. The Government’s position on the current Off Patent Drugs Bill and how that relates to issues identified at the Roundtable Event will be shared at the Bill’s second reading on 6 November 2015.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Laurence Robertson on 2015-10-22.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will take steps to monitor the cost to nursing homes of employing agency nurses; and if he will make a statement.

Alistair Burt

The Government has no plans to monitor agency costs to nursing homes.

Care providers are independent businesses and agreements with agency staffing providers are commercial contractual arrangements.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Laurence Robertson on 2015-10-22.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps he has taken to make bisphosphonates routinely available on the NHS to prevent the spread of breast cancer to bones.

George Freeman

Where there is a clinical need to do so for a patient, clinicians are legally able to prescribe bisphosphonates for breast cancer prevention.

NHS England’s Breast Cancer Clinical Reference Group (CRG) has included the use of bisphosphonates in their draft service guidance for breast cancer. The CRG has highlighted bisphosphonates as a key issue for potential improvement in survival outcomes.

NHS England expects the draft service guidance to be finalised and available for dissemination in the autumn of 2015. It will then be up to clinical commissioning groups to consider how they adopt this in to their local commissioning activities.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Laurence Robertson on 2015-10-21.

To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 20 October 2015 to Question 12052, for what reasons Part M building regulations do not apply to extensions to dwellings.

James Wharton

When Part M was introduced in 1999 the then Government decided not to apply the requirements to extensions to dwellings. To do so would require alterations to the existing dwelling (or the approach to the dwelling or extension) in order to accommodate Part M requirements which are not considered to be reasonably practical for dwellings built before Part M was introduced.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Laurence Robertson on 2015-10-26.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent discussions she has had with chief constables about the prevalence of rural crime and the measures they are taking to counter it.

Mike Penning

Police reform is working and crime has fallen by more than a quarter over the last five years, according to the Independent Crime Survey for England and Wales. This means less victims of crime in rural areas as well as urban areas. Overall, people in rural areas are less likely to be the victim of household crime as those in urban areas, according to the Crime Survey. In addition, the 2014 Commercial Victimisation Survey found that crime against the agriculture, forestry and fishing sector was considerably lower than crime against the other sectors surveyed, the wholesale and retail sector and the accommodation and food sector.

The election of Police and Crime Commissioners has given communities – including those in rural areas – a strong voice in determining how police resources are allocated to tackle the crimes that matter most to them. I see this through the work the National Rural Crime Network, which is funded by the Police Innovation Fund, is leading to ensure police forces respond to crime in rural areas, as well as specific activity being taken by police forces across England and Wales

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Laurence Robertson on 2015-10-26.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what recent assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the (a) Bendamustine and (b) Ibrutinib drugs in treating cancer; and if he will make a statement.

George Freeman

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) is the independent body which makes decisions on the clinical and cost effectiveness of products based on a thorough assessment of the best available evidence and in consultation with stakeholders. National Health Service commissioners are required to fund drugs and treatments recommended by NICE technology appraisals.

Bendamustine (Levact) is recommended by NICE as a possible treatment for some people with chronic lymphocytic leukaemia of Binet stage B or C.

NICE is currently appraising ibrutinib (Imbruvica) for the treatment of (i) chronic lymphocytic leukaemia (NICE’s final guidance is expected in June 2016) and (ii) mantle cell, relapsed, refractory lymphoma (NICE’s final guidance is expected in December 2016).

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Laurence Robertson on 2015-10-15.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what estimate he has made of the number of amputations caused by diabetes (a) nationally and (b) in Gloucestershire in the last 12 months; and if he will make a statement.

Jane Ellison

The attached table gives the number of finished consultant episodes with a primary diagnosis of diabetes and a primary or secondary procedure of amputation for (a) England and (b) Gloucestershire based Clinical Commissioning Groups (CCGs), for the years 2013-14 and 2014-15 provisional.

NHS Gloucestershire CCG and its provider partners have established a Diabetes Footcare Group in order to further analyse local amputation rates and ensure that the appropriate service improvements are made to reduce unnecessary complications of diabetes-related vascular disease such as lower limb amputations.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Laurence Robertson on 2015-10-15.

To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, if he will amend building regulations to ensure that building extensions are fully accessible for people with disabilities.

James Wharton

Part M of the Building Regulations requires that extensions to buildings other than dwellings provide suitable independent access to an extension where reasonably practicable. These requirements do not apply to extensions to dwellings, however. We have no plans to amend the Regulations but will keep this under review.