Tag: Luciana Berger

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Luciana Berger on 2014-06-17.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps he is taking to encourage the uptake of chlamydia screening.

Jane Ellison

The Public Health Outcomes Framework includes a chlamydia diagnosis rate indicator – one of three sexual health indicators in the framework. Public Health England (PHE) encourages local authorities to work towards achieving a rate of 2,300 diagnoses per 100,000 young adult populations.

The National Chlamydia Screening Programme (NCSP) supports this aim through:

– Publishing chlamydia screening standards, to form the basis of local screening planning, delivery and quality assurance;

– Producing guidance to support local commissioners and providers in the delivery of chlamydia screening, including forthcoming publication ‘Achieving the diagnostic rate indicator’;

– Reviewing and summarising the latest evidence to inform evidence-based and cost-effective approaches to chlamydia screening;

– Collecting and publishing chlamydia data, at a national and local level, to monitor screening and detection activity;

– Providing information to young adults on chlamydia, chlamydia screening and wider sexual health matters (e.g. condom use, contraception), including via a website;

– Supporting the implementation of specific programmes to increase chlamydia screening rates, such as the ‘3Cs & HIV Programme’. This is currently being piloted across England to encourage the routine offer of chlamydia screening, alongside information on contraception and condoms, to young adults during primary care appointments;

– A team of PHE sexual health facilitators, who are linked closely into local commissioner and provider sexual health networks, with a focus on promoting chlamydia screening; and

– Evaluating the impact of the NCSP, including development of different approaches to estimate and monitor prevalence, such as mathematical modelling.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Luciana Berger on 2014-06-04.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what Government-funded education and support on alcohol consumption during pregnancy is available to pregnant women.

Jane Ellison

The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence’s 2008 guideline includes recommendations for doctors and midwives on the advice they should give to pregnant women about drinking alcohol.

This advice is complemented by Government funded information provided through the Start4Life Information Service for Parents, Start4Life and NHS Choices websites.

The Government funds the Start4Life Information Service for Parents service, which provides pregnant women/new mothers and their partners with comprehensive advice on staying healthy in pregnancy, preparing for birth and looking after their baby, and includes advice on risks of drinking before conception and during pregnancy.

The Information Service for Parents is a digital service which provides National Health Service and other quality assured advice, including on alcohol consumption via regular text and email updates. Since launching on 18 May 2012, 339,277 new parents have signed up to the service (as of 1 June 2014).

The Government is also committed to improving the labelling of alcoholic drinks, including a warning for women who are pregnant or trying to conceive.

As part of the Public Health Responsibility Deal, alcohol retailers and producers have a responsibility to help raise this awareness and committed to putting an agreed warning or a pregnancy warning logo on 80% of labels on bottles and cans by the end of 2013. An independent market survey is underway to measure compliance.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Luciana Berger on 2014-06-11.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of the (a) prevalence and (b) effect of the sale of the unlicensed drug Melanotan (i) online and (ii) in shops.

Dr Daniel Poulter

There are strict legal controls governing the sale and supply of medicinal products in the United Kingdom.

The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) considers Melanotan products to be medicinal products within the meaning of the Human Medicines Regulations 2012 and as such, the manufacture, sale and supply are subject to UK regulatory control. No Melanotan product holds a marketing authorisation (product licence) for use in the UK and consequently advertising and sale or supply would be in breach of regulatory requirements.

The MHRA is aware that Melanotan is being sold through some outlets such as gyms and beauty salons and is available more widely on the Internet through certain websites.

During the past 12 months, the MHRA has worked with Internet Service Providers in the UK and abroad to suspend more than 100 websites illegally trading in Melanotan.

The MHRA issues regular warnings to the public about the dangers involved in the use of unlicensed medicines, including Melanotan and officials have participated in Press campaigns and specific media coverage of the problem.

As of 12 June 2014, the MHRA has received a total of 22 reports of Adverse Drug Reactions associated with the use of Melanotan (product names Melanotan I, Melanotan II and Ubertan), describing a total of 93 adverse reactions. However, it is important to note that the reporting of a suspected adverse reaction does not necessarily mean it is related to the drug.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Luciana Berger on 2014-06-17.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to the Answer of 12 June 2014, Official Report, column 281W, on food banks, whether (a) he and (b) other Ministers in his Department plan to visit a food bank in order to assess the contribution of food banks to public health and nutrition.

Dr Daniel Poulter

There are nocurrent plans for ministers in the Department to visit a food bank, but this does not preclude planned visits in their wider capacities or as constituency MPs. We would consider undertaking an official visit, if an invitation was received.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Luciana Berger on 2014-05-01.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what estimate he has made of the (a) number and (b) proportion of patients presenting at accident and emergency departments because of an accident in the home in each year since 2010.

Jane Ellison

The information requested is not available centrally.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Luciana Berger on 2014-06-04.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, when he plans to bring forward secondary legislation on (a) banning smoking in cars with children in them and (b) the introduction of standardised packaging of tobacco.

Jane Ellison

The Children and Families Act 2014 provides regulation-making powers for the introduction of standardised packaging of tobacco and banning smoking in cars.

Regulations for making it an offence to smoke in private vehicles carrying children are being drafted at present.

A final, short consultation in order to ensure that a final decision on whether to introduce standardised packaging is properly and fully informed will be published shortly.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Luciana Berger on 2014-06-11.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what estimate his Department has made of the number of companies who have signed up to one or more pledges set out in the Responsibility Deal; and what estimate he has made of the proportion of those companies which are meeting all of the pledges they have signed up to.

Jane Ellison

675 partners are currently signed up the Responsibility Deal. Details of these partners, the pledges they are committed to taking action on and their annual updates are available in full on the Responsibility Deal website at:

https://responsibilitydeal.dh.gov.uk/partners/