Tag: Lord Hunt of Kings Heath

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hunt of Kings Heath on 2016-05-09.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what discussions they have had with Health Education England over any action required to stem the loss of consultant clinical pharmacologist posts in the NHS.

Lord Prior of Brampton

Figures published by the Health and Social Care Information Centre show that there has not been a reduction in the number of consultant clinical pharmacologists employed in the National Health Service in England.

As part of its workforce planning, Health Education England (HEE) take account of a range of factors including forecast rates of retirement. HEE has recently undertaken a review of the clinical pharmacology and therapeutics workforce, the findings of which will contribute to future workforce planning for this specialty in England.

It is for the respective Governments in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland to consider workforce planning for their health system.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hunt of Kings Heath on 2016-06-06.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in the light of the draft recommendation from NICE not to recommend the drug Strensiq for the treatment of hypophosphatasia for critically ill infants who are otherwise likely to die, what other treatment options are available.

Lord Prior of Brampton

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) is currently evaluating Strensiq (asfotase alfa) for the treatment of paediatric-onset hypophosphatasia under its highly specialised technologies programme.

NICE’s draft guidance, published in December 2015 for consultation, did not recommended asfotase alfa. However this is not NICE’s final guidance to the National Health Service.

NICE’s draft guidance states that there are currently no other treatments available that specifically prevent or delay the progression of hypophosphatasia.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hunt of Kings Heath on 2016-09-05.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many people are employed full-time and part-time by NHS England as (1) audiologists, (2) cardiac physiologists, (3) gastro-intestinal physiologists, (4) neurophysiologists, (5) respiratory physiologists, and (6) sleep physiologists.

Lord Prior of Brampton

NHS Digital collects data on the number of staff employed full-time and part-time by the National Health Service in England.

Within the data held by NHS Digital it is not possible to definitively identify those staff groups requested. Therefore a best approximation has been provided based on the guidance available to NHS organisations. This information is in the attached table and provides the latest available data as at 31 May 2016.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hunt of Kings Heath on 2016-10-21.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the Age UK report on self-funders in care homes published on 20 October showing that self-funded care home patients are in effect subsidising local authority funded patients.

Lord Prior of Brampton

Care and support is arranged on an open market where prices and fee rates are negotiated locally by commissioners for state funded clients, whilst individuals and their families do so for those who self-fund. The Government has no say in these individual negotiations.

Under the Care Act, councils are under a duty to promote their overall local provider market to ensure it remains sustainable and delivers high-quality services for all local people. Prices and fee rates paid by commissioners to provider organisations must reflect these new duties.

The Department published the Care and Support statutory guidance setting out how councils should meet these new duties when commissioning, including the consideration of the actual costs of care and support when negotiating fee levels. This guidance is an online-only resource, subject to updates.

The Department is aware of the Age UK report Behind the headlines: ‘stuck in the middle’ – self-funders in care homes. There are many reasons why individuals who self-fund may pay more than local authorities, including premium accommodation and services, and discounts that may be available to authorities for bulk purchasing and lower transaction costs.

The Government has no plans to ask the competition authorities or the Care Quality Commission to review the Age UK report, though we maintain a continuing dialogue across government and with the sector to encourage good practice and fairness to consumers.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hunt of Kings Heath on 2015-11-09.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether the Secretary of State has now formally withdrawn the commitment made in The importance of teaching: the schools white paper 2010 concerning the role of local authorities in commissioning new provision and overseeing the transition of failing schools to new management.

Lord Nash

Local authorities are under a statutory duty to secure sufficient school places in their area. They can increase the number of school places by proposing the expansion of a maintained school or seeking to fund the expansion of an academy to meet basic need. Where a local authority identifies the need to establish a new school, s6A of the Education and Inspections Act 2006 requires it to seek, in the first instance, proposals to establish a free school. Local authorities can, if they wish, assess proposals and recommend their preferred provider. However, the Secretary of State makes the final decision on whether or not to enter to enter into a funding agreement with any of the proposers.

The Education and Adoption Bill is clear that all failing schools must become academies and local authorities, along with governing bodies, are under a duty to facilitate the conversion. The latest draft of the Schools Causing Concern guidance, which is currently out for consultation, makes clear that local authorities have an important role in working with Regional School Commissioners to ensure the rapid and effective transferof failing schools to sponsor-led academy trusts.

Local authorities therefore have an important role to play in education and this commitment has not been withdrawn.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hunt of Kings Heath on 2015-11-17.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in the light of the investigation General practice commissioning: in whose interests? by The Times and the British Medical Journal, whether they have plans to require that the boards of Clinical Commissioning Groups cannot enter into contracts with companies in which one or more of their board members has a financial interest.

Lord Prior of Brampton

We do not have any such plans.

However, in all circumstances a clinical commissioning group must manage any actual or perceived conflicts in a way that is transparent, fair, and protects the integrity of their decision making.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hunt of Kings Heath on 2015-11-23.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they are taking any action against the West London Mental Health NHS Trust for allegedly barring Dr Stuart Lorimer from commenting on his being placed on The Independent on Sunday’s Rainbow List; and if so, what.

Lord Prior of Brampton

We are assured by the NHS Trust Development Authority that the West London Mental Health NHS Trust has not sought to prevent Dr Stuart Lorimer or any other member of staff from speaking about the Independent on Sunday’s Rainbow List and the recognition of Dr Lorimer’s work with the Lesbian Gay Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) community. We understand the Trust has congratulated Dr Lorimer on being recognised for his work with the LGBT community.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hunt of Kings Heath on 2015-12-14.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what percentage of pupils in (1) sponsored academies, and (2) maintained schools, take a GCSE in (a) a qualifying language, and (b) a qualifying humanities subject.

Earl of Courtown

The percentage of pupils who took a GCSE in a qualifying language or humanities subject in 2013/14 is given below:

	Percentage of pupils taking a qualifying subject in:
	Languages	Humanities
Sponsored academies	38.9	54.1
LA maintained mainstream schools	49.4	64.5

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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hunt of Kings Heath on 2016-01-12.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether the awarding of the second phase of the National PET-CT contract for England will be delayed pending publication of the investigationcommissioned by NHS England into the circumstances leading up to the termination of the contract between Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Clinical Commissioning Group and UnitingCare Partnership to deliver urgent care for the over-65s and adult community services.

Lord Prior of Brampton

NHS England advises that there is no direct relationship or clinical interdependency between positron emission tomography–computed tomography (PET-CT) and urgent care services, and therefore the investigation of the termination of the contract between Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Clinical Commissioning Group and UnitingCare Partnership has no influence on the PET-CT procurement timescales.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hunt of Kings Heath on 2016-01-18.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government how much has been spent by Commissioning Support Units (CSUs) on external management consultancies since they were established; and how much of that was specifically related to contracts CSUs had with the NHS Commissioning Board.

Lord Prior of Brampton

Commissioning Support Units (CSUs) were formally established in April 2013. As at December 2015, CSUs paid out £81 million on consultancy support. Total spend has been reducing year on year as CSUs develop their own internal capacity, with 2015/16 to date spend at £8.4 million.

It is not possible to accurately apportion this to specific contracts with NHS England.