Tag: Parliamentary Question

  • Kevin Barron – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Kevin Barron – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kevin Barron on 2016-01-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what discussions he has had with the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency about the requirement for some generic medicines to be given a brand name for clinical reasons; and what steps he is taking to ensure patients receive the brand name medicine specified.

    George Freeman

    The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) is the Executive Agency of Department of Health with overall responsibility for medicines licensing.

    The responsibility for prescribing rests with the practitioner who has clinical responsibility for their patient’s care and we would expect practitioners to take any relevant guidance into account when making their prescribing decisions.Prescribers utilise a wide range of information to inform their prescribing decisions including decision support systems and authoritative guidance such as that from the MHRA, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence and the British National Formulary.

    In primary care, if it is clinically appropriate for an individual patient to be maintained on a specific manufacturer’s product then the prescriber can specify this on the prescription for that product to be dispensed. Officials from the Department and MHRA liaise as required on the application of this policy.

  • Corri Wilson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Corri Wilson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Corri Wilson on 2016-02-05.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the incidence of members of the public receiving multiple letters from HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) conveying conflicting information; and what steps HMRC is taking to reduce such occurrences.

    Mr David Gauke

    HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) does not hold this data. However, they regularly publish general performance reports at Gov.uk.

  • Andrew Murrison – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    Andrew Murrison – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Murrison on 2016-03-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment he made of the flag flying policies adopted by other European states in respect of national monuments in developing his policy on that matter.

    David Evennett

    No specific assessment has been made of the policy adopted by other European states in respect of national monuments. The decision as and when to fly flags is largely a decision for individual organisations.

  • Anne-Marie Trevelyan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Anne-Marie Trevelyan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Anne-Marie Trevelyan on 2016-03-24.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many people from other EU member states receive support through the Work Programme.

    Mr Shailesh Vara

    The information requested, for those participating in the Work Programme by nationality, is not readily available and could only be provided at disproportionate cost.

  • Henry Smith – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    Henry Smith – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Henry Smith on 2016-05-04.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what assessment she has made of the implications for her policies of the recent proposals published by the Competition and Markets Authority on competition in the energy market on 22 April 2016.

    Andrea Leadsom

    The Competition and Markets Authority has produced a strong package of provisional remedies which will help deliver a fair deal to all consumers. They build on action already taken by the Government to improve competition.

    The Government will take forward appropriate implementation of the remedies once the Competition and Markets Authority has finalised its recommendations which are due by June.

  • Lord Storey – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Lord Storey – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Storey on 2016-06-09.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is the total cost to the NHS of insurance premiums for clinical negligence; which Foundation Trust pays the highest amount as a percentage of its budget; and what percentage of its budget that cost represents.

    Lord Prior of Brampton

    The question has been interpreted to mean contributions to the Clinical Negligence Scheme for Trusts (CNST) which provides indemnity for National Health Service bodies. These are not insurance premiums.

    The total cost for 2014-15, which is the last available published figure, is £1,037,742,810.

    The information as to which NHS Foundation Trust pays the highest amount as a percentage of its budget is not held centrally.

  • Lord Skelmersdale – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Lord Skelmersdale – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Skelmersdale on 2016-09-06.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government when they expect to publish an affirmative order to amend the law on public footpaths.

    Lord Gardiner of Kimble

    I am unable to confirm a precise date at present. The Government expects to publish an affirmative order later in the session. I would be happy to meet my Noble Friend and other interested peers to discuss progress with the whole package of reform.

  • Lord Maginnis of Drumglass – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Lord Maginnis of Drumglass – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Maginnis of Drumglass on 2016-10-21.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what guidance they have given to local authorities, in particular Brighton and Hove Council, concerning requests for information about children’s self-perception of their sexual orientation.

    Lord Nash

    The Department for Education do not require schools or local authorities to collect any information on the sexual orientation of children. Any information collected locally by schools and / or local authorities on sexual orientation for their own purposes is a matter for them to manage locally.

    The Department for Education has provided schools with guidance on complying with the Equality Act.

    The Public Sector Equality Duty, at section 149 of the Equality Act 2010, is a duty on public bodies (and others carrying out public functions) to consider, in their day to day work, the needs of people who share particular protected characteristics. This includes schools and children’s services.

    Under the Duty, public bodies must have due regard to the need to:

    • eliminate discrimination, harassment, victimisation and any other conducted that is prohibited under the Equality Act 2010
    • advance equality of opportunity, and;
    • foster good relations between people who share a relevant protected characteristic and those who do not.

    The Equality Duty covers the protected characteristics listed in the Equality Act, which includes age, disability, gender reassignment, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex and sexual orientation.

    Guidance on complying with the Act and the Equality Duty can be found on GOV.UK (under Equality Act 2010 guidance). Earlier guidance formed under the Coalition Government has been archived on the National Archives website (under the ‘Equality Bill’ guidance). The Equality and Human Rights Commission has also issued guidance on the Public Sector Equality Duty.

    Local authorities will also have to comply with the requirements of the Data Protection Act 1998 on the data they collect. The Information Commissioner’s Office state that data should only be collected if organisations have legitimate grounds for collecting and using the personal data; that they do not use the data in ways that have unjustified adverse effects on the individuals concerned; that they be transparent about how they intend to use the data, and give individuals appropriate privacy notices when collecting their personal data.

  • Catherine McKinnell – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Attorney General

    Catherine McKinnell – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Attorney General

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Catherine McKinnell on 2015-11-09.

    To ask the Attorney General, how many (a) victim liaison officers and (b) witness care officers were employed by the Crown Prosecution Service in each year since 2010-11.

    Robert Buckland

    The total number of (a) victim liaison officers and (b) witness care officers that were employed by the Crown Prosecution Service at the end of each year since 2010-11, can be seen in the table below.

    Victim Liaison [1]

    Witness Care

    FTE

    FTE

    2010/11

    N/A

    182.5

    2011/12

    N/A

    137.8

    2012/13

    N/A

    118.5

    2013/14

    N/A

    89.2

    2014/15

    44.11

    76.4

    Notes:

    Data extracted from the CPS HR Database iTrent as at the 31st March in each year. Data may be subject to change due to retrospective changes in the HR database. Data may differ from previously published data due to differing specifications.

    There has been a reduction in total staff numbers and the proportion of the workforce that is employed in witness care units from a peak in 2008. Witness care has been dealt with primarily by the joint CPS/police Witness Care Units. However, most of the staff in WCUs are, and have always been, police staff. Witness attendance rates (which are used as a proxy for satisfaction) have remained above 80%.

    [1] Dedicated Victim Liaison Units were established by the CPS in 2014

  • Peter Dowd – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Peter Dowd – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Peter Dowd on 2015-12-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies of the findings of the King’s Fund’s quarterly monitoring report, published in October 2015, that reductions in local authority social care budgets are adversely affecting health services.

    Alistair Burt

    The Department is working closely with both local government and the National Health Service to understand how pressures in adult social care services impact on the NHS, and how the sector can best work together to manage those pressures. The Autumn Statement identified £3.5 billion additional funding for adult social care by 2019/20.

    Since April, the Government’s £5.3 billion Better Care Fund (BCF) has provided much needed investment in better integrated care through locally developed plans and by putting resources where the local NHS and social services think they’re needed. The BCF has been the impetus for a greater degree of joint strategic commissioning between health and social care across England, with local leaders and clinical experts working closely together to both plan and deliver the most appropriate services for their local populations while making efficient use of limited resources.

    We are working closely with the Emergency Care Improvement Programme focusing on the 28 most challenged emergency systems and have embedded four social care professionals within the team to provide specific expertise. From this, eight high impact interventions have been developed which can support local systems in reducing Delayed Transfers of Care.

    Additional resource has been provided to bolster the current sector-led improvement support offer to local authorities, creating a flexible pool of experienced local authority social care experts to provide intensive support to challenged local systems and to deliver action plans designed in consultation with the Directors of Adult Social Services and local NHS colleagues.