Tag: Lord Young of Cookham

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Young of Cookham on 2015-12-14.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government how they intend to reduce smoking within the NHS as part of implementing the radical upgrade in prevention and public health” called for in NHS England’s Five Year Forward View.”

Lord Prior of Brampton

Smoking continues to be the leading cause of premature death and health inequality in England, placing a significant burden on the National Health Service.

The Department remains dedicated to the delivery of effective and robust tobacco control and has committed to developing a new tobacco control strategy to further reduce the prevalence of smoking, working with NHS England and Public Health England (PHE) to identify interventions that will make the best contributions to achieving this.

Training material and guidance has been developed to support health professionals deliver effective interventions to pregnant women who smoke.

PHE will continue to support local authorities by developing and distributing information and advice for the commissioning of effective smoking cessation services.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Young of Cookham on 2015-12-14.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether, following the Spending Review 2015, they have undertaken any analysis of the relationship between the value of business rates collected by local authorities and the local level of deprivation according to the English Indices of Deprivation.

Baroness Williams of Trafford

Under the current rates retention scheme, and under the new 100 percent scheme to be introduced by the end of the Parliament, there is, and will continue to be, a measure of redistribution of local tax income. This ensures that those authorities with higher relative spending needs compared to their tax base will receive additional funding through the redistribution mechanism; and means that any comparison of local business rates income and levels of deprivation would be misleading.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Young of Cookham on 2016-06-10.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government when the Secretary of State will make a determination under section 69 of the Housing and Planning Act 2016.

Baroness Williams of Trafford

Before any determination is issued and any payments made under that determination, regulations on the definition of higher value assets must first be passed by both Houses of Parliament. We are currently working on the detail of the regulations.

We shall consult with local authorities and other stakeholders before issuing the determination.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Young of Cookham on 2016-06-10.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government when local authorities have to make the first payment under section 69 of the Housing and Planning Act 2016.

Baroness Williams of Trafford

Before any determination is issued and any payments made under that determination, regulations on the definition of higher value assets must first be passed by both Houses of Parliament. We are currently working on the detail of the regulations.

We shall consult with local authorities and other stakeholders before issuing the determination.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Young of Cookham on 2016-06-10.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government when the Secretary of State will commence making grants to private registered providers under section 64 of the Housing and Planning Act 2016.

Baroness Williams of Trafford

Section 64 of the Housing and Planning Act 2016 enables the Secretary of State to pay grant to private registered providers to cover the cost of the voluntary Right to Buy discount. Grant will only be paid out once a tenant has purchased their home and the provider has submitted a claim. Systems are in place with the five housing associations that are taking part in the voluntary Right to Buy pilot so that the Government can compensate them for the discount that their tenants get when they purchase their home.

We are currently working with the National Housing Federation and the housing association sector on the implementation of the main scheme and will announce more details in due course.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Young of Cookham on 2016-07-13.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what proportion of the lower life expectancy of those on low incomes is due to the higher rates of smoking in that group.

Lord Prior of Brampton

The independent review into health inequalities in England undertaken by Professor Sir Michael Marmot culminated in the publication in 2010 of Fair Society, Healthy Lives. A copy of the review has been placed in the Library. The review identified the most effective evidence-based strategies for reducing health inequalities in England and made the following recommendation:

“Tobacco control is central to any strategy to tackle health inequalities as smoking accounts for approximately half of the difference in life expectancy between the lowest and highest income groups. Smoking-related death rates are two to three times higher in low-income groups than in wealthier social groups.”

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Young of Cookham on 2016-07-11.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government on what date they plan to publish the Tobacco Control Plan for England.

Lord Prior of Brampton

The Tobacco Control Plan is currently being developed and Ministers will decide on an appropriate publication date in due course.