The below Parliamentary question was asked by Rosie Cooper on 2016-07-18.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what estimate he has made of the average annual financial cost incurred by mental health trusts as a result of unavailability of beds on mental health wards requiring patients to be placed into care homes; and which body bears the costs of such cases.
Nicola Blackwood
The information is not collected centrally.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alex Cunningham on 2016-10-10.
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what his Department’s policy is on carbon capture and storage for coal and gas; and if he will make a statement.
Jesse Norman
We will continue to work with industry going forward and will set out our future approach to carbon capture and storage in due course.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kate Green on 2015-11-10.
To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, how many of his Department’s policies have been assessed against the family test; what steps he has taken to publish the outcome of such assessments; and if he will make a statement.
Stephen Crabb
The Family Test was announced by the Prime Minister in August 2014 and introduced in October 2014. DWP published guidance for Departments and officials on how the test should be applied when formulating policy and my Department follows that guidance.
The Family Test is an integral part of the policy making process and is applied in a proportionate way in the development of all new policy in line with the Family Test guidance. While the guidance states that departments should consider publishing assessments carried out under the Test, there is no requirement to do so.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Derek Twigg on 2015-12-09.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps his Department and NHS England are taking to ensure that autism diagnosis waiting times for (a) children and (b) adults meet NICE guidance (a) in Halton and (ii) nationally.
Alistair Burt
The Department issued new statutory guidance in March this year for local authorities and National Health Service organisations to support the continued implementation of the 2010 Autism Strategy, as refreshed by its 2014 Think Autism update. This sets out what people seeking an autism diagnosis can expect from local authorities and NHS bodies.
The Department has also discussed with NHS England the difficulties that people on the autistic spectrum can have in getting an appropriate diagnosis in a timely manner. With support from the Department, NHS England and the Association of Directors of Social Services will undertake a series of visits to clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) to discuss good practice in meeting the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) Quality Standard 51 Autism, and those that do not, with the aim of supporting more consistent provision. The Quality Standard, which applies to children, young people and adults, recommends that there should be a maximum of three months between a referral and a first appointment for a diagnostic assessment for autism. We expect the NHS to be working towards meeting the recommendations.
We understand that NHS Halton CCG is working on improvements to the paediatric neurological pathway which incorporates children with autism. This will see the Child Development Centre (CDC) in Halton become a single access point of assessment for the most complex children. It is expected that the CDC will ensure that the first appointment for a child referred to them is well within the three months recommended by NICE.
The service commissioned by Halton CCG will also comply with NICE guidelines by ensuring that the appropriate mix of clinicians is available for a multi-disciplinary assessment, which also includes Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services.
In regard to adults, NHS Halton CCG is currently meeting its statutory requirements with autism by purchasing a diagnostic service on a cost per case basis from our provider of mental health services, 5 Boroughs Partnership NHS Foundation Trust. The CCG is working with other partners who receive the same service from the same provider with a view to pooling resources to commission a diagnostic and post diagnostic service.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hunt of Kings Heath on 2016-01-19.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Prior of Brampton on 6 January (HL4745), on what evidence the forecast in Health Education England’s (HEE) commissioning and investment plan for 2016–17 of a rise in podiatry workforce demand of 1.5 per cent between 2015 and 2020 is based; and why HEE decided to reduce the number of commissioned education and training courses in podiatry in 2016–17 by 9.7 per cent compared to 2015–16.
Lord Prior of Brampton
National Health Service future workforce demand is based on a comprehensive collection of NHS provider forecasts taken up by Health Education England (HEE) and discussed both locally and nationally with commissioners and professional leaders as to likely direction of travel.
In order to afford the expansion of priority areas such as adult nurse, paramedic and mental health training numbers, HEE has taken a risk assessment based approach to deciding on where to focus commissions for training places in 2016/17.
The HEE commissioning and investment plan – 2016/17 includes a forecast increase in the level of podiatry commissions of 36.4% by 2020.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Christopher Chope on 2016-02-11.
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 23 July 2015 to Question 6280, what work has been carried out to mitigate the risks identified from the EU’s accession to the European Court of Human Rights.
Dominic Raab
Opinion 2/13 of The European Court of Justice raises a number of complex issues which have fundamental implications for any proposed agreement for the EU to accede to the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR). It will be very difficult for the EU and contracting parties to the ECHR to work out where this leaves the accession process and to negotiate a revised accession agreement on that basis. There is clearly no prospect of accession being achieved any time soon. In any discussions we will continue to make our ongoing concerns clear.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Barry Gardiner on 2016-03-03.
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, pursuant to the Answer of 25 January 2016 to Question 22766, on the sustainable development goals, what role she plans officials of the Cabinet Office will have in overseeing the implementation strategy of those goals.
Justine Greening
The UK Government as a whole is committed to implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals and the Government’s manifesto sets out the plan of action for which it will be held accountable by the British people. This includes commitments relevant to each of the Goals, and it will guide our efforts to achieve them.
The Global Goals are the starting point for, and will be embedded across, DFID’s work. Other Government Departments will lead on their respective policy areas.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Thangam Debbonaire on 2016-04-19.
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, if his Department plans to promote clearer pathways into the arts and cultural sectors to develop a more diverse leadership and workforce in those sectors.
Mr Edward Vaizey
In the recently published Culture White Paper we made it clear that more needs to be done to encourage diversity in leadership positions. We will promote clearer pathways into the sectors, and we will work with Arts Council England to understand the barriers that prevent people from lower income households and under-represented groups from becoming professionals in the arts.
In December 2015, the Arts Council announced four new strategic funds for diversity, totalling £8.6 million. This included a new £2.6 million Change Makers fund to build long-term relationships between National Portfolio Organisations and aspiring arts leaders from the BME and deaf and disabled communities. Arts Council England has also made a significant change in its approach to diversity by launching The Creative Case for Diversity, which asks the organisations it funds to make themselves and their work more reflective of the communities they serve.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by William Wragg on 2016-05-26.
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, if she will place in the Library copies of all letters, leaflets and other material from her Department circulated to (a) stakeholders and (b) members of the public on the EU referendum; what the costs of the production and distribution of that material has been since 1 January 2016; and what she estimates the cost of any further production and distribution of such material will be between 6 May 2016 and 23 June 2016.
Mr Nick Hurd
Copies of the Government’s published documents on the Referendum are available in the Libraries of both Houses. It is not normal practice to publish letters to members of the public and stakeholders. Costs relating to the Referendum will be accounted for in the usual way in Annual Report and Accounts.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Paula Sherriff on 2016-07-18.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of the effect on NHS services of private providers of those services entering into administration or suffering serious financial difficulty; and what contingency provisions he has put in place to mitigate such effects.
Mr Philip Dunne
It is the primary responsibility of commissioners to ensure continuity of commissioned services through contracting and contingency planning. Where a provider is considered hard to replace in the event of failure, its services can be designated as Commissioner Requested Services. This requires the provider to obtain a provider licence, if not otherwise required to hold a licence, and places the provider in NHS Improvement’s financial oversight regime for private providers of essential NHS services.