Tag: Parliamentary Question

  • David Mackintosh – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    David Mackintosh – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Mackintosh on 2016-04-12.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that all people diagnosed with HIV have access to (a) pre-exposure prophylaxis and (b) other treatments.

    Jane Ellison

    Pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) is a new use of HIV drugs which has shown clinical effectiveness in research trials at preventing HIV in people at high risk of getting HIV such as men who have sex with men and people with HIV-positive partners. PrEP would not be suitable for people who already have diagnosed HIV. However, in July 2015, NHS England approved a significant new investment in a ‘Treatment as Prevention’ programme whereby HIV drugs are offered to all newly diagnosed patients whatever their CD4 count. Previously, treatment would begin when the CD4 count has declined to 350 cells/mm3 or less. This will significantly decrease the chance of HIV transmission between individuals and also reduces the risk of illness in the person with HIV.

    The National Health Service continues to deliver excellent HIV treatment and care for people with HIV with referrals into services within two weeks of diagnosis.

  • David Anderson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    David Anderson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Anderson on 2016-05-19.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many meetings NHS England has had with PTC Therapeutics to discuss an agreement on price for Translarna to treat Duchenne muscular dystrophy since 15 April 2016.

    George Freeman

    NHS England has advised that on 4 May 2016 the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) asked NHS England and PTC Therapeutics to continue to work towards agreeing an acceptable managed access arrangement for Translarna (ataluren) for the treatment of children aged five and over with Duchenne muscular dystrophy caused by a nonsense mutation.

    NHS England and the company have been asked to reach agreement on the cost of the drug to the National Health Service by 7 July.

    NHS England has advised there have not been any commercial meetings with PTC Therapeutics in the period since 15 April 2016, however, it is in regular contact with the company.

    NHS England will be meeting with PTC Therapeutics when it has concluded the detailed preparatory work required to effectively respond to NICE’s request within the set timescale.

  • Carolyn Harris – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Carolyn Harris – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Carolyn Harris on 2016-07-13.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what representations he has received on the effect on the gaming industry of the timing of Triennial review of stake and prizes; and if he will make a statement.

    Jane Ellison

    The Chancellor receives a large number of representations on a wide range of issues and it is not normal practice to release details of such representations.

  • Luciana Berger – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Luciana Berger – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Luciana Berger on 2016-09-14.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the levels of sexual harassment and sexual violence in schools.

    Edward Timpson

    The Department contributed a written submission to the Women and Equalities Select Committee’s inquiry into the scale and impact of sexual harassment and sexual violence in schools in 2016. This is published on the Parliament website.[1] The Committee published the report of its inquiry on 13 September, and the Government will make a formal response to the usual timetable.

    The Department does not collect information on the number of cases of sexual harassment or sexual violence either by pupils or by teachers – and it has not produced any estimates.

    The closest information held on levels of sexual harassment and sexual violence by pupils is the number of permanent and fixed period exclusions for sexual misconduct, which includes lewd behaviour, sexual abuse, sexual assault, sexual bullying, sexual graffiti and sexual harassment.

    Exclusions information, broken down by reason for exclusion, is published annually by the Department in the ‘Permanent and fixed-period exclusions in England’ National Statistics release.[2]

    The 2015 National Foundation for Educational Research’s teacher voice survey is a nationally representative survey commissioned by the Department. Teachers were asked questions on a range of topics, including common forms of bullying. Sexual bullying was not included as a category, however, a minority reported that homophobic, biphobic, or transphobic bullying was common at their school. The report and data have been published by the Department.[3]

    The closest information held on sexual harassment and sexual violence by teachers relates to the number of cases of teacher misconduct relating to sexual misconduct reported to the Department. However, cases of teacher misconduct relating to sexual misconduct cover a broad range of incidents and it is not recorded whether these relate to incidents that took place on school sites.

    [1] http://data.parliament.uk/writtenevidence/committeeevidence.svc/evidencedocument/women-and-equalities-committee/sexual-harassment-and-sexual-violence-in-schools/written/34902.pdf

    [2] https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/statistics-exclusions

    [3] https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/teacher-voice-omnibus-june-2015-responses

  • Emily Thornberry – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Emily Thornberry – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Emily Thornberry on 2015-11-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to his Department’s press release, Prison building revolution announced by Chancellor and Justice Secretary, published on 9 November 2015, what discussions he has had with prison and probation staff on the planned closure of prisons in central London.

    Andrew Selous

    On 9 November the Chancellor and Secretary of State announced their intention to build a prison estate which allows prisoners to be rehabilitated, thereby enabling them to turn away from a life of crime. This will involve building nine new prisons and closing old and inefficient prisons which do not support the aims of a redesigned estate. No decisions have yet been made on where new prisons will be built.

    We are currently considering which of our old and inefficient prisons will close. We will engage with stakeholders during the process of sale including valuation experts and potential developers in order to maximise the value achieved.

    Any relocation of prisoners will be done with careful planning. Where staff are affected they will be managed through the process of change using processes deployed during previous closures.

  • Greg Mulholland – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Greg Mulholland – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Greg Mulholland on 2015-12-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what assessment he has made of the potential benefits to businesses of using daylight saving time all year.

    Nick Boles

    The Department has not made such an assessment.

    In 2012, the Government published a review of the available evidence concerning the likely effects of moving to single double summer time in the UK. This is available on the Government website at the following link. https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/34587/12-1036-review-evidence-putting-clocks-forward.pdf

  • Rosie Cooper – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Rosie Cooper – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Rosie Cooper on 2016-01-21.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, which local authorities have recovered their costs for (a) flood prevention measures and (b) sandbags under the Bellwin Scheme to date.

    James Wharton

    To date, 35 local authorities have registered an intention to claim under the activated Bellwin scheme but no final claims have yet been received.

  • Greg Mulholland – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Greg Mulholland – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Greg Mulholland on 2016-02-19.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what information his Department holds on the number of war widows who remarried between 6 April 2005 and 1 April 2015.

    Mark Lancaster

    Between 6 April 2005 and 1 April 2015, 195 war widow(er)s remarried regardless of when they became a war widow(er).

    After becoming a war widow prior to 6 April 2005, 135 women remarried between 6 April 2005 and 1 April 2015.

    In line with Defence Statistics’ Rounding Policy for War Pension Scheme data, figures have been rounded to the nearest five.

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

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

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Steve Reed on 2016-03-07.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how much funding for investment has been made available for local authorities through the European Regional Development Fund during the 2014 to 2020 programme.

    James Wharton

    England has been allocated €3.6 billion (approximately £2.6 billion) through the 2014-20 European Regional Development Fund Programme.

    No funding has been specifcially ring-fenced for local authority areas. Local authorities are able to respond to open calls for projects and compete alongside other potential funding receipients.

  • Diane Abbott – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Diane Abbott – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Diane Abbott on 2016-04-12.

    To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what assessment she has made of the effect on Africa’s development needs of the recent downward revision of economic growth in sub-Saharan Africa by the World Bank.

    Justine Greening

    Our assessment highlights a mixed picture: the slowdown in aggregate economic growth for SSA is dominated by a few large economies affected by the fall in commodity prices (e.g. Nigeria), but growth remains robust among some other DFID priority countries (e.g. Tanzania). DFID’s programme and policy support to African countries is designed to address the economic and human development challenges these countries face.