Tag: Parliamentary Question

  • Dan Jarvis – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Dan Jarvis – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Dan Jarvis on 2016-05-23.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if his Department will take steps to ensure that the proposals to more closely align the approval process for the new cancer drugs fund with the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence do not limit access to potential life-saving treatments such as Avastin for the treatment of ovarian cancer.

    George Freeman

    Since October 2010, the Cancer Drugs Fund (CDF) has helped over 84,000 people in England in accessing life-extending cancer drugs that would not otherwise have been available to them.

    NHS England is responsible for the operational management of the Fund and has consulted, jointly with the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence, on new arrangements for the CDF which will go live on 1 July 2016.

    NHS England has advised that, under these new arrangements, it envisages that a greater number of cancer drugs will be funded from baseline commissioning. This will be as a consequence of more appropriate pricing arrangements proposed by pharmaceutical manufacturers and better evidence being available through the Fund as to longer term patient outcomes.

  • Lord Richards of Herstmonceux – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Lord Richards of Herstmonceux – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Richards of Herstmonceux on 2016-07-18.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they plan to terminate the contract with CarillionAmey for service family accommodation, and if so, what plans they have for the service to be provided in-house.

    Earl Howe

    In response to the ‘Get Well Plan’ agreed with the Secretary of State for Defence in February, CarillionAmey’s performance has improved. The Ministry of Defence (MOD) is now seeking assurances that the performance improvements made are sustainable over the life of the contracts for which CarillionAmey is responsible. The MOD will continue to prepare contingency plans, for potential termination, in the event that sustained improvements are not made.

  • Catherine West – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Catherine West – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Catherine West on 2016-10-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what discussions she has had with her counterparts in (a) Chad, (b) Cameroon, (c) Niger and (d) Nigeria on the humanitarian situation in the Lake Chad basin.

    James Wharton

    We are deeply concerned about the scale of the humanitarian crisis across the Lake Chad Basin. This will require a sustained, multi-year response to support communities devastated by the conflict. The UK is scaling up our support.

    In addition to the £90 million of humanitarian assistance we are already delivering in the region, the UK has now pledged a further £80 million of humanitarian funding. £50 million will go towards meeting the needs of the worst affected communities in Nigeria with food assistance and access to essential household items and services, and £30 million to support those who have been affected by the spread of Boko Haram into Cameroon, Chad and Niger.

    HMG is using a range of opportunities to push our partners and governments across the region on scaling up and improving the quality of the response. This includes calling for a Security Council briefing on the humanitarian situation which took place in July 2016; a joint demarche to the UN with the French and USA on the need to improve humanitarian capacity and performance in mid-August; chairing a Lake Chad Basin meeting in the margins of UN General assembly in September 2016, and ongoing high level bilateral meetings with UN officials.

  • Louise Haigh – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Louise Haigh – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Louise Haigh on 2015-10-29.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will reduce the cost of an application for a certificate of travel to the same levels as for a convention travel document.

    James Brokenshire

    The estimated cost of processing a certificate of travel is currently £382 for those over the age of 16 and £244 for those under the age of 16.

    Fees for applications for certificates of travel reflect estimated processing costs. The Geneva Convention requires that Convention Travel Document fees must not exceed those for UK passports. Immigration and nationality fees are reviewed and updated annually and reflect changes in estimated costs and passport fees.

  • Lord Marlesford – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Lord Marlesford – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Marlesford on 2015-11-19.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what plans they have to limit the access of charities and other non-governmental bodies to the Police National Computer.

    Lord Bates

    Access to the Police National Computer is strictly controlled, and decisions about who may have access to it are made by Chief Constables, through the Police Information Access Panel (PIAP). There are no plans at present to change these arrangements.

  • Caroline Lucas – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Caroline Lucas – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Caroline Lucas on 2015-12-17.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent progress has been made on the London and South Coast Rail Corridor Study covering the establishment of a Brighton Mainline 2; and if he will make a statement.

    Claire Perry

    The London and South Coast Rail Corridor Study is examining the strategic case for investment in the Brighton Main Line corridor, and alternate schemes such as the Brighton Main Line 2 concept. Initial findings of the Study were shared with the Department in late 2015 and the Study is expected to be completed early in 2016.

  • Andrew Gwynne – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Andrew Gwynne – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Gwynne on 2016-01-27.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether his Department has an insurance policy in place for civilian residents on the land around RAF Northolt to cover possible damage to their properties.

    Mark Lancaster

    The Ministry of Defence does not purchase insurance policies in the UK but accepts its own risks and acts as its own insurer.

  • David Nuttall – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    David Nuttall – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Nuttall on 2016-02-24.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether the commitments by the UK not to create obstacles to, but facilitate such deepening of the Eurozone, to sincere cooperation with the Eurozone, not to impede the implementation of legal acts directly linked to the functioning of the euro area to refrain from measures which could jeopardise the attainment of the objectives of economic and monetary union contained in the Decision of the Heads of State or Government, meeting within the European Council, on 18 and 19 February 2016 are legally binding; and if he will make a statement.

    Mr David Lidington

    The Decision of the Heads of State or Government, meeting within the European Council, concerning a new settlement for the United Kingdom within the European Union, is legally binding. The Prime Minister, my right hon. Friend the Member for Witney (Mr Cameron), has been clear that this deal protects the UK’s rights as a country outside the Eurozone, and from any future integration.

  • Steve McCabe – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Steve McCabe – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Steve McCabe on 2016-03-15.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, if he will take steps to introduce mandatory five yearly electrical safety checks in the private rented sector.

    Brandon Lewis

    The Government has committed to carry out the necessary research to understand what, if any, legislative changes regarding electrical safety checks in the private rented sector should be introduced.

    Feedback on this research will be provided during the Lords Report stage of the Housing and Planning Bill.

  • Norman Lamb – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Norman Lamb – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Norman Lamb on 2016-04-20.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment his Department has made of the effect of primary care inspections by the Care Quality Commission on improving clinical outcomes for patients.

    Ben Gummer

    The Care Quality Commission (CQC) is the independent regulator of health and adult social care providers in England. It is responsible for assessing whether providers are meeting the fundamental standards below which care should not fall.

    The CQC has provided the following information.

    As of 31 March 2016, 3,281 general practitioner (GP) practices had received at least one overall published rating from the CQC. Of these, 4% are rated outstanding, 83% are rated good, 10% are rated requires improvement and 3% are rated inadequate. In addition to each overall rating, each practice also receives ratings for each of the CQC’s five key questions, is the service safe, effective, caring, responsive and well-led set out above. This set of ratings for each practice, along with the overall rating provide a strong basis for improving clinical outcomes by highlighting where care is already good and where improvement is required.

    106 GP practices have been re-inspected following an overall rating of requires improvement or inadequate. Of these locations, 81 have had an improvement in their overall rating following re-inspection.

    There have been 153 GP practices / Out of Hours services placed into special measures. Subsequently, 43 have exited special measures and the majority of locations placed in special measures that have been re-inspected, have improved. At present 84% have improved, with over half of those improving moving up two categories to an overall good rating. Where the CQC has found unacceptably poor care, patients have been protected with a total of 16 de-registrations to date.