Tag: Oliver Colvile

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Oliver Colvile on 2016-09-02.

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps her Department is taking to combat the supply of drugs into prisons.

Mr Sam Gyimah

The Justice Secretary is clear that safety is fundamental to the proper functioning of our justice system and a vital part of our reform plans. There are a number of factors, including the availability of drugs in prisons, which must be tackled in order to make our prisons safe and places of rehabilitation.

We have introduced tough new laws which will see those who smuggle packages over prison walls, including new psychoactive substances, face up to two years in prison. Those who involve themselves in the distribution of drugs in our prisons should know that they could face prosecution and extra time behind bars. We have a range of security measures and searching techniques in place to detect drugs, and to prevent smuggling into prisons.

I am looking closely at this important issue, and will be setting our further plans in due course.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Oliver Colvile on 2016-01-18.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what early intervention and education support is available for children who are on the autism spectrum to prevent them developing mental health difficulties later in their school career.

Edward Timpson

Our reformed system for meeting the needs of children and young people with Special Educational Needs (SEN) and Disabilities is designed to ensure that their needs are identified at an early stage, that the right support is in place, and that problems do not escalate.

All early years providers are required to have arrangements in place to identify and support children with SEN or disabilities and to promote equality of opportunity for children in their care. All schools should have a clear approach to identifying and responding to SEN and must use their best endeavours to ensure that children with SEN, including those with autism, get the support they need.

As part of their Initial Teacher Training, all teachers are expected to learn to identify and address various types of SEN, including autism. The Government is also funding the Autism Education Trust in 2015-16, providing £650,000 to provide tiered training at universal, enhanced and specialist levels for early years, school and post-16 staff to help them understand how best to recognise and support children and young people with autism.

The Department does not hold data on the numbers of autistic children who are home educated nor the numbers of children who are not in school. The Alternative Provision Census does collect data about children who are not in school or in a pupil referral unit. However, it covers as a single ‘Not in School’ category only those who are educated otherwise than at school under arrangements made and funded by local authorities. The information does not reflect types of special educational need.

The data may be available from Plymouth City Council, since it has a duty under Section 22 of the Children and Families Act 2014 to carry out its functions with a view to identifying all the children and young people in its area who have or may have special educational needs or a disability, and also a duty to provide children of compulsory school age with an education.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Oliver Colvile on 2016-04-27.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what estimate his Department has made of the number and area of marine protected areas established beyond national jurisdiction through regional seas agreements or other instruments.

James Duddridge

The Foreign and Commonwealth Office is aware of eight Marine Protected Areas that have been established beyond national jurisdiction. One has been designated by the Commission on the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources and seven have been designated by the OSPAR Commission in the North-East Atlantic. The UK plays an active role in both of these organisations and is fully supportive of their work to establish networks of Marine Protected Areas in the Antarctic and the North-East Atlantic.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Oliver Colvile on 2016-09-02.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many non-medical prescribing nurses there are at level (a) PL1, (b) PL2, (c) PL3 and (d) PL4.

Mr Philip Dunne

This information is not collected by the Department.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Oliver Colvile on 2016-01-18.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps his Department is taking to simplify and make more accessible the diagnostic pathway in order to improve speed of diagnosis and access to support.

Jane Ellison

In September 2015, the NHS England Board approved the development of a personalised medicine strategy for the National Health Service which will be based around four overarching principles: the prediction and prevention of disease; more precise diagnoses; targeted and personalised interventions; and a more participatory role for patients.

The strategy will build on the 100,000 Genomes Project, which is moving the NHS to a new model of diagnosis and treatment based on the understanding of underlying genetic causes and drivers of disease and a comprehensive phenotypic characterisation of the disease (rather than deduction from symptoms and individual diagnostic tests). Personalised medicine informs the selection of the most appropriate treatment and better outcomes for individual patients – the right drug at the right time, earlier screening and treatment, smarter monitoring and the adjustment of treatments.

Furthermore, the Independent Cancer Taskforce recognised the need for more accessible molecular diagnostic provision in their report ‘Achieving World-Class Cancer Outcomes’ published in July 2015. In September 2015, the Department confirmed a commitment from NHS England to implement the Taskforce’s recommendations on molecular diagnostics.

NHS England is currently working with partners across the healthcare system to determine how best to take forward the recommendations of the Taskforce, and has appointed Cally Palmer as National Cancer Director to lead on implementation, as well as new cancer vanguards to redesign care and patient experience.

She has set up a new Cancer Transformation Board to implement the strategy, and this met for the first time on Monday 25 January 2016. There will also be a Cancer Advisory Group, chaired by Sir Harpal Kumar, to oversee and scrutinise the work of the Transformation Board. Timeframes and phasing for implementation will be dependent on the final financial settlement reached as a result of the spending review.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Oliver Colvile on 2016-04-27.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what proportion of areas beyond national jurisdiction is covered by (a) regional seas agreements (b) regional fisheries management organisations and (c) other relevant instruments which are legally mandated to establish marine protected areas where the most important environmental impacts are effectively addressed.

James Duddridge

The Foreign and Commonwealth Office does not hold details of the proportion of areas beyond national jurisdiction covered by these arrangements. The United Nations Environment Programme has oversight of the 13 Regional Seas programmes. There are also five other “partner programmes” and the UK is a leading member in two of these – the Antarctic Treaty System and the Convention for the Protection of the Marine Environment of the North-East Atlantic (OSPAR Convention). It is also an observer in the Arctic Council.

There are six Regional Fisheries Management Organisations which manage highly-migratory species and ten of which manage fish stocks by geographical area. Each Regional Fisheries Management Organisation has its own underpinning international legal agreement with different powers. The UK does not participate in every Regional Fisheries Management Organisation and we do not hold details of each of their powers. In general, Regional Fisheries Management Organisations cannot create Marine Protected Areas, but some do implement fisheries closures to protect Vulnerable Marine Ecosystems.

The Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources does have the legal power to establish Marine Protected Areas and has designated the South Orkney Marine Protected Area.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Oliver Colvile on 2016-09-02.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps the Government is taking to increase the number of non-medical prescribing nurses.

Mr Philip Dunne

The Department and NHS England have successfully extended prescribing responsibilities to a wider group of health professions, including nurses. This is helping the National Health Service to deliver more timely and effective patient care. These professionals are termed ‘non-medical prescribers’, in order to distinguish them from doctors and dentists.

There are two types of non-medical prescriber:

― Independent Prescribers are able to complete whole episodes of care for a patient, taking responsibility from consultation through to diagnosis and finally, if appropriate, prescription.

― Supplementary Prescribers work in conjunction with a doctor to provide patient care. Supplementary Prescribing is a voluntary partnership between an independent prescriber (in this case a doctor) and a supplementary prescriber, to implement a patient-specific clinical management plan, with the patient’s agreement.

To become a non-medical prescriber, nurses must undertake a recognised Nursing and Midwifery Council accredited prescribing course through a United Kingdom university, sponsored by their employer on the basis of service need.

Local NHS organisations with their knowledge of the healthcare needs of their local population are therefore responsible for investing in training for nurses’ prescribing roles to deliver the best patient care and meet the changing needs of patients and services.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Oliver Colvile on 2016-01-21.

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what criteria have been set to access Dormant Assets Commission funds.

Mr Rob Wilson

The Commission on Dormant Assets will will provide advice on which dormant assets can be brought into an expanded dormant assets scheme. The Committee remit will also include a suggested mechanism through which dormant assets could be redirected by Government to good causes.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Oliver Colvile on 2016-04-27.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps he is taking to (a) promote the protection of marine biodiversity in areas beyond national jurisdiction and (b) ensure that the agreed commitment to establish marine protected areas in 10 per cent of the world’s oceans by 2020 is effectively implemented in such areas.

James Duddridge

The UK is fully committed to promoting the protection of marine biodiversity in areas beyond national jurisdiction.

Without prejudice to Article IV of the Antarctic Treaty 1959, in 2009 the UK led negotiations within the Commission on the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources which resulted in the establishment of the world’s first high-seas Marine Protected Area (MPA) covering 94 000 km2. The UK supports the establishment of further MPAs within the area covered by the Convention on the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources, and is working closely with members to designate MPAs in the Ross Sea, East Antarctic and the Weddell Sea.

The UK is a leading member of the OSPAR Commission which has designated 7 MPAs in the high seas of the North-East Atlantic and works closely with other regional and international organisations to manage these.

We are a signatory to the Hamilton Declaration on Collaboration for the Conservation of the Sargasso Sea 2014, which established the Sargasso Sea Commission to encourage and facilitate voluntary collaboration toward the conservation of the Sargasso Sea.

We support the work of the International Seabed Authority in establishing Areas of Particular Environmental Interest in the Clarion-Clipperton Zone. We also support the work of the International Maritime Organisation in identifying “Special Areas” which benefit from additional pollution protection and “Particularly Sensitive Sea Areas” which may benefit from specific measures to control certain maritime activities.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Oliver Colvile on 2016-09-02.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what improvements to WiFi coverage on trains are being made by Great Western Railways.

Paul Maynard

First Great Western InterCity and Thames Valley trains have been fitted with on-train Wi-Fi. Following the Direct Award Great Western Railway is fitting free Wi-Fi to all Super Express Trains, Electrical Multiple Units and long term diesel trains remaining in the fleet.

The fitted trains include the new AT300 trains providing London to South West services. Great Western Railway state in their ‘Annual Stakeholder Report 2015-16’ that this work will be completed by December 2018.