Tag: Mark Durkan

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mark Durkan on 2016-01-13.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what discussions the his Department, NHS England and NICE have had on the effect of proposed Cancer Drugs Fund (CDF) changes on patients prescribed current CDF treatments who will not receive interim funding under that proposed new scheme.

George Freeman

NHS England and the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence are currently consulting jointly on draft proposals on the future direction of the Cancer Drugs Fund (CDF). The consultation document states that all patients receiving treatment funded through the CDF on 31 March 2016 will continue to receive treatment until the point that they and their consultant agree that it is appropriate to stop.

NHS England has advised that the aim of the future CDF is to help patients receive new treatments with genuine promise, while real world evidence is collected for up to two years on how well they work in practice. This will then help determine whether the treatment should be accepted for routine use in the National Health Service in the future. It is not possible to make comparisons between the current and future CDF until such time as the consultation has concluded and the responses reviewed.

The consultation was published on 19 November 2015 and is open until 11 February 2016. Further information is available at:

www.engage.england.nhs.uk/consultation/cdf-consultation

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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mark Durkan on 2016-02-24.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if his Department, NHS England and NICE will publish work undertaken to analyse variation between areas in treatment for patients during the transition from the current Cancer Drugs Fund (CDF) to proposed a new CDF scheme.

George Freeman

NHS England has advised that it plans to publish analyses of variation in use of Cancer Drug Fund (CDF) drug indications according to geographical areas in the spring of 2016 and then routinely in the future for the new CDF.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mark Durkan on 2016-05-19.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if his Department will make representations to the government of Sudan on the arrests and daily reporting conditions imposed on at least six clergymen and two lay members from three church denominations in Khartoum since December 2015.

James Duddridge

Freedom of religion or belief in Sudan continues to be an area of concern for the UK. We have consistently called on the Government of Sudan to ensure all legislation is in line with the commitment to their citizens in the Interim Constitution of 2005; within which religious freedom is enshrined. Our Embassy in Khartoum raised the detention and requirement to report on a daily basis to the National Intelligence and Security Service, with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on 10 May.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mark Durkan on 2016-10-07.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how many UK citizens have been deported by Israel after initially being granted entry to the state in the last 12 months.

Mr Tobias Ellwood

​We are not aware of any British nationals that have been deported after being allowed entry, with the exception of people who have overstayed their visa.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mark Durkan on 2015-11-05.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will ensure that any agreement on a central registry of beneficial ownership in Anguilla will include access for the public with legitimate reason.

Mr Hugo Swire

I refer the Honourable Gentleman to the answer given by my Rt Hon Friend, the Member for South West Hertfordshire (David Gauke MP), the Financial Secretary to the Treasury, to questions 10437, 10438 and 10448, which sets out the criteria we expect the Overseas Territories to meet in relation to their central register of company beneficial ownership, or similarly effective system.

We are continuing our dialogue with the Anguilla authorities on this and have offered any technical support that might be required as they develop their proposals.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mark Durkan on 2016-01-18.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, with reference to the Royal College of Anaesthetists’ report entitled, Core Standards for Pain Management Services in the UK, published in October 2015, whether his Department has given any consideration to the contents of that report.

Jane Ellison

NHS England has welcomed the publication of the Core Standards for Pain Management report in the United Kingdom, published by the Faculty of Pain Medicine of the Royal College of Anaesthetists in October 2015. Andrew Baranowski, the Chair of NHS England’s Clinical Reference Group for Specialised Pain contributed to this work, which sets out core standards and key recommendations in the management of pain; the commissioning of pain management services and the development of the workforce.

The report is available at:

http://www.rcoa.ac.uk/system/files/FPM-CSPMS-UK2015.pdf

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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mark Durkan on 2016-02-26.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what discussions his Department has had with NHS England on funding for Erbitux from April 2016.

George Freeman

I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 24 February 2016 to Question 27585.

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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mark Durkan on 2016-05-19.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what reports he has received on the reported raid of Nabil Adib’s office by Sudan’s national security and intelligence services and the alleged assault and arrest of people in that office.

James Duddridge

The International Federation for Human Rights, World Organisation Against Torture and African Centre for Justice and Peace Studies have all reported on the alleged raid on Nabil Adib’s office on 5 May. We have raised our concerns about this case directly with the Government of Sudan, most recently during the visit of the UK Special Representative for Sudan and South Sudan on 11 to 12 May. We will continue to monitor this case closely.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mark Durkan on 2016-10-07.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how many UK citizens are known to have been detained, interrogated and subsequently denied entry by Israel in the last 12 months.

Mr Tobias Ellwood

​According to Israeli figures 129 000 British nationals have visited Israel since 1 January 2016, and 50 British nationals have been refused entry into Israel through Ben-Gurion Airport. Of these, 25 sought assistance from the British Embassy. A further 65 British nationals have been refused entry at the Allenby Bridge.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mark Durkan on 2015-10-09.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what representations he has made to his Colombian counterpart on the number of Colombian human rights defenders assassinated in the last six months.

Mr Hugo Swire

Human rights continue to be an integral part of our dialogue and relationship with Colombia. We remain concerned by the number of threats that continue to be made against human rights defenders (HRDs) in Colombia and I raised the issue of human rights with the Colombian Deputy Foreign Minister, Patti Londoño, on 29 September 2015 during the UN General Assembly.

Although the number of HRDs murdered fell by a third between 2013 and 2014, threats and assassinations continue. Colombian non-governmental organisation Somos Defensores reports 32 murders and 332 threats from January to July of 2015. Our Embassy is supporting a project on collective protection measures for HRDs in rural areas through our Human Rights and Democracy Fund and regularly raises concerns about the violence and intimidation suffered by human rights defenders in Colombia with the Colombian government. In his last meeting before leaving Post, the then British Ambassador met the Colombian Interior Minister on 5 August 2015 and raised a number of human rights cases of concern. We continue to monitor the situation closely.