Tag: Michael Fabricant

  • Michael Fabricant – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Michael Fabricant – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Michael Fabricant on 2015-12-16.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, with reference to his Department’s response of 16 December 2015, reference DE000001003266, to the Freedom of Information request made by the hon. Member for Lichfield on 18 November 2014 regarding that Member’s meeting with the Minister for Public Health at the Department of Health at 2pm on 1 December 2014, for how long the notes taken by officials at that meeting were retained.

    Jane Ellison

    Notes of ministerial meetings are retained as long as business needs require. It is not known how long any notes taken at the meeting in question were retained. However, a previous Freedom of Information request asked for the note of this meeting and was answered on the 23 June 2015 and that any notes taken were not available by that date.

  • Michael Fabricant – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the House of Commons Commission

    Michael Fabricant – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the House of Commons Commission

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Michael Fabricant on 2016-05-18.

    To ask the Rt. hon. Member for Carshalton and Wallington representing the House of Commons Commission, if the Commission will take steps to ensure that the Union flag is regularly flown from the existing flag pole on the premises at 14 Tothill Street.

    Tom Brake

    Parliament flies three union flags on a permanent basis, on the Victoria Tower, and at 1 Parliament Street and Portcullis House. There are currently no plans to fly a flag at 14 Tothill Street.

  • Michael Fabricant – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Michael Fabricant – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Michael Fabricant on 2016-01-05.

    To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, if she will make it her policy to provide aid to Barbados; and if she will make a statement.

    Mr Desmond Swayne

    Barbados does not qualify for Official Development Assistance (ODA) by the Department for International Development under internationally agreed ODA criteria.

  • Michael Fabricant – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Michael Fabricant – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Michael Fabricant on 2016-05-23.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how he plans to ensure that former sex workers and ex-intravenous drug users will be involved in the SaBTO blood donations review group; and if he will make a statement.

    Jane Ellison

    The Advisory Committee on the Safety of Blood Tissues and Organs (SaBTO) is carrying out a review of blood donor selection criteria. Representatives of health charities that work with sex workers and those with a history of intravenous drug use are members of the review group. A public meeting was held on 11 April 2016, which provided an opportunity for anyone with an interest in the review to participate in information exchange.

    The terms of reference for the review, and membership, together with questions and answers from the public meeting will shortly be available on the SaBTO website. The review will be holistic and evidence relating to the risks of blood-borne infections in people who have previously injected drugs or received money or drugs for sex will be included. The review will be incremental, with published progress reports and any intermediate advice.

  • Michael Fabricant – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Wales Office

    Michael Fabricant – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Wales Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Michael Fabricant on 2016-01-05.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, what progress the Government has made on the return of the Prince of Wales’ regalia to Wales.

    Stephen Crabb

    I fully support the campaign to return His Royal Highness the Prince of Wales’ regalia to Wales, in this the 40th Anniversary Year of the Prince’s Trust. There has been a lot of interest in this for a number of years and I welcome the agreement of HM the Queen for the symbolic regalia to be displayed in Llandovery.

  • Michael Fabricant – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Michael Fabricant – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Michael Fabricant on 2016-06-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when he expects work to commence on providing disabled access to all platforms at Lichfield Trent Valley railway station in response to his Department’s review of the Access for all programme; and if he will make a statement.

    Claire Perry

    We are working with Network Rail to identify how Access for All projects will be delivered and we will be responding to the Hendy Report later this year. The majority of projects should still be delivered by 2019 or have a design completed so that they can start work on site as soon as available funding allows. Option selection and design work for the project at Lichfield Trent Valley is ongoing.

  • Michael Fabricant – 2022 Parliamentary Question on Recruiting Civil Servants from the Private Sector

    Michael Fabricant – 2022 Parliamentary Question on Recruiting Civil Servants from the Private Sector

    The parliamentary question asked by Michael Fabricant, the Conservative MP for Lichfield, in the House of Commons on 8 December 2022.

    Michael Fabricant (Lichfield) (Con)

    Whether he is taking steps to increase the number of senior civil servants recruited from the private sector.

    The Minister for the Cabinet Office and Paymaster General (Jeremy Quin)

    We have strengthened the policy of advertising senior civil service jobs externally by default. To increase private sector recruitment and attract a broader range of applicants, new guidance will support Departments working with external search providers to identify new and experienced talent to join our excellent colleagues delivering for the country.

    Michael Fabricant

    But it is not just about senior civil servants. I think middle-ranking and junior civil servants could also benefit from a fresh influx of the dynamism and different attitudes that people from the private sector may enjoy, so why is my right hon. Friend not chasing those people for middle-ranking civil service positions too?

    Jeremy Quin

    My hon. Friend is always the very embodiment of dynamism. I absolutely agree: there is a huge amount of talent that we seek, and I am delighted to say that our focus is not just on the senior civil service. We wish to go and get the very best all the way through. Our apprenticeship schemes have been launched for the next three years, and we want to have 5% of the entire civil service formed of apprentices. That is yet another example of how we are reaching out to all starters to make certain that we get the very best talent.

  • Michael Fabricant – 2022 Parliamentary Question on University Places for Medical Students

    Michael Fabricant – 2022 Parliamentary Question on University Places for Medical Students

    The parliamentary question asked by Michael Fabricant, the Conservative MP for Lichfield, in the House of Commons on 6 December 2022.

    Michael Fabricant (Lichfield) (Con)

    What recent discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Education on increasing the number of university places for medical students; and if he will make a statement.

    The Minister of State, Department of Health and Social Care (Will Quince)

    The Department has commissioned NHS England to develop a long-term workforce plan. That plan will help to ensure that we have the right numbers of staff, including doctors with the right skills, to deliver high-quality services fit for the future. The plan will be independently verified. We have funded 1,500 more medical school places in England and opened five new medical schools in Sunderland, Lancashire, Chelmsford, Lincoln and Canterbury, and there are record numbers of medical students in training.

    Michael Fabricant

    I thank my hon. Friend for his answer. He will know that it takes five or six gruelling years to get a Bachelor of Medicine or a Bachelor of Surgery degree—or Doctor of Medicine in Scotland—but many students, having graduated, think that they would prefer more structured development by working as hospital doctors. What can we do to encourage young graduates to go into general practice?

    Will Quince

    We have record numbers going into general practice, which is the remit of the Under-Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, my hon. Friend the Member for Harborough (Neil O’Brien), but part of the plan is to make it more attractive through practice improvement through cloud-based telephony, the additional roles reimbursement scheme, the 24,000 extra staff in primary care, developing multi-function staff so that people can develop their skills and have specialism but still practise as a GP, increasing the use of pharmacy, moving towards more continuity of care and the new GP contract for 2024-25.

    Chris Bryant (Rhondda) (Lab)

    But when are we going to see the workforce plan? The other day I spoke to a radiologist who runs a radiology department. There are meant to be 15, but there are only five and they have not had a single person apply. It needs more radiologists and radiographers. We have a national shortage of dermatologists, which is one reason why skin cancers are not being picked up, and a national shortage of pathologists and histopathologists. We need a dramatic increase in the number of people working in the NHS. When are we going to see that workforce plan?

    Will Quince

    As I said, we have committed to publishing a comprehensive workforce strategy, which, as the Chancellor set out, will be independently verified. That will come soon. We have also set out new pension flexibilities. However, it is important to point out that we have 29,000 more nurses and we are on track to meet our 50,000 target. We have 3,700 more doctors compared with last year, 9,100 extra nurses and 2,300 more GPs.

  • Michael Fabricant – 2022 Parliamentary Question on Excluding Russia from the G20

    Michael Fabricant – 2022 Parliamentary Question on Excluding Russia from the G20

    The parliamentary question asked by Michael Fabricant, the Conservative MP for Lichfield, in the House of Commons on 17 November 2022.

    Michael Fabricant (Lichfield) (Con)

    The Leader of the Opposition correctly said that Russia is losing this war. Like a wounded animal, it is now lashing out with weapons from, we believe, Iran and North Korea. Was any consideration given to additional sanctions on those two countries and possibly excluding Russia from membership of the G20?

    The Prime Minister

    The G20 is not like the G7. It is a broader grouping of countries that works by consensus, so it is not possible to expel Russia in the same way, but my hon. Friend will take comfort from our using the opportunity to unequivocally condemn Russia’s actions. With regard to sanctions on Iran and others, he will be aware that we have recently imposed new sanctions on Iran that relate specifically to the treatment of protesters in the recent demonstrations. That is the right thing to do as the behaviour of the Iranian regime is not acceptable and we should hold it to account.

  • Michael Fabricant – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Michael Fabricant – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Michael Fabricant on 2015-10-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what discussions he has had with the Welsh Government on (a) the mandatory display by restaurants of ratings and (b) empowering local authorities to charge restaurants for reassessment under the Food Standards Agency’s food hygiene rating scheme; if he will bring forward legislative proposals to make the display of such ratings by restaurants mandatory; and if he will make a statement.

    Jane Ellison

    The Food Standards Agency is collecting evidence on the effectiveness of the mandatory display of Food Hygiene Ratings Scheme ratings. The Government will consider this evidence carefully once it is available.