Tag: Parliamentary Question

  • Gregory Campbell – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Gregory Campbell – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gregory Campbell on 2014-06-25.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will make representations to his Sudan counterpart on that government’s attitude towards its Christian communities.

    Mark Simmonds

    We regularly raise our concerns with the Government of Sudan about religious persecutions and the need to respect freedom of religion or belief for all its citizens. My officials have recently made representations to the Foreign Minister, urging the Government to respect the right to freedom of religion or belief including one’s right to follow the religion or belief of choice. This right is enshrined in international human rights law as well as in Sudan’s own 2005 Interim Constitution. We will continue to raise these issues.

  • Stewart Jackson – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Stewart Jackson – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stewart Jackson on 2014-06-25.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will take steps so that Public Health England introduces a case-finding spirometry test component as part of the NHS Health Check for people aged between 40 and 74.

    Jane Ellison

    Public Health England (PHE) is responsible for advising the Department on potential content changes to the NHS Health Check programme. The agency has established an Expert Scientific and Clinical Advisory Panel to oversee this process. The panel includes representation from the National Screening Committee, National Institute for Health and Care Excellence and wider experts.

    It is not feasible to make frequent changes to the programme. PHE reviews new content proposals every 12 months and will consider spirometry when it next begins this process in the winter of 2014.

  • Graham Evans – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Graham Evans – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Graham Evans on 2014-06-25.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the Answer of 25 April 2014, Official Report, column 717W, on human trafficking, what tailored support is given to victims who have received Conclusive Grounds decisions to integrate into the UK; where such victims came from in January to March 2014; which organisations provide her Department with information on the progress of the victim integration process; and what information her Department holds on how victims have integrated into the UK.

    Karen Bradley

    Currently, there is no specific integration package for those who have received
    a positive Conclusive Grounds decision and wish to stay in the UK. The
    Salvation Army, which delivers the Government’s support service for adult
    victims of human trafficking, provides support to those victims leaving its
    service by facilitating access to mainstream benefits, housing and local
    services as well as pastoral support such as assistance with completing
    application forms.

    Care and support for victims, once they receive a positive Conclusive Grounds
    decision is being considered as part of the review of the National Referral
    Mechanism and as part of the re-tender of the Government’s victim support
    service.

  • John Mann – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    John Mann – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by John Mann on 2014-06-25.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what representation he has received from magistrates and the judiciary since 1 June 2014 on service delivery; and if he will seek feedback as part of Test Gate 4 on whether the sale of Community Rehabilitation Companies contracts is having a detrimental impact on sentencing and court processes.

    Jeremy Wright

    On 1 June, as part of our ongoing Transforming Rehabilitation Programme of reform, the new National Probation Service (NPS) and Community Rehabilitation Companies (CRCs) formally commenced operation. My officials have been in regular contact with the judiciary and magistracy throughout the transition process, but we have had no specific representations from them concerning service delivery.

    We have made it clear throughout this process that we will manage the reforms in a controlled way and we will not proceed to share sale until thorough testing is complete and we are satisfied that it is safe to do so.

  • Lord Eames – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Lord Eames – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Eames on 2014-06-25.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they intend to encourage the devolved administrations of Wales and Northern Ireland to consider the effect on them of an affirmative vote in the forthcoming referendum on Scottish independence.

    Lord Wallace of Saltaire

    The Government has no such plans. The Government has been clear that it is the Government for all of the United Kingdom including Scotland. It continues to act in the interests of all of the people of the UK, including people in Scotland.

  • Lord Black of Brentwood – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Lord Black of Brentwood – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Black of Brentwood on 2014-06-25.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in the light of the publication of the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence clinical guideline 180, what action they are taking to ensure appropriate risk stratification and uptake of anti-thrombotic therapy among patients with atrial fibrillation.

    Earl Howe

    NHS England is taking a number of actions to improve the care and management of people with atrial fibrillation (AF). It has published Our Ambition to Reduce Premature Mortality: A resource to support commissioners in setting a level of ambition, which identifies improved management of AF as a priority for reducing premature mortality. The resource can be found at:

    www.england.nhs.uk/ourwork/sop/red-prem-mort/

    National Health Service Improving Quality’s Living Longer Lives programme includes promoting the use of a simple but effective audit tool called Guidance on Risk Assessment and Stroke Prevention for Atrial Fibrillation (GRASP-AF) which simplifies the process of identifying patients with AF who are not receiving the right treatment. NHS Improving Quality is currently collaborating with partner organisations, including charities, to support the nationwide roll-out of GRASP-AF.

    This work will be supported by the publication of an economic analysis commissioned by NHS Improving Quality using GRASP data which demonstrates both the current and potential impact of atrial fibrillation management on the number of AF related strokes.

    Discussions are also underway to consider whether opportunistic testing for atrial fibrillation (AF) should be encouraged nationally as part of the NHS Health Check programme.

  • Lord Ahmed – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Lord Ahmed – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Ahmed on 2014-06-25.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have made any representations to the government of Sri Lanka regarding the murder of Muslims and the destruction of commercial property in Colombo.

    Baroness Warsi

    I refer my noble Lord to the reply I gave on 25 June 2014, Official Report, columns WA171-172.

  • Jonathan Edwards – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Jonathan Edwards – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jonathan Edwards on 2014-06-24.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what assessment he has made of the effect of the US-EU Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership on the cost of medicine procurement for the NHS.

    Michael Fallon

    Previous trade agreements outline a number of high-level principles in relation to arrangements for controlling the prices of medicines. We do not expect the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership to include any additional obligations in this area.

  • Graham Jones – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Graham Jones – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Graham Jones on 2014-06-24.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps he is taking to ensure Ofsted is able to undertake the proposed increase in inspections of apprenticeship providers.

    Matthew Hancock

    Our apprenticeship reforms will improve quality by involving employers in defining the new standards and assessment and by controlling the funding of apprenticeships. Ofsted will continue to play an important role in ensuring the quality of teaching and learning in registered training providers. We are discussing the arrangements with Ofsted as part of the Trailblazer project.

  • Cheryl Gillan – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Cheryl Gillan – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Cheryl Gillan on 2014-06-24.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that the Care Act 2014 Part I regulations are compatible with the revised Adult Autism Strategy (a) in general and (b) in relation to autism training for community care assessors.

    Norman Lamb

    The core principles of the Care Act 2014 and the regulations and statutory guidance which supports its implementation are to maintain the wellbeing of people who have care and support needs; support them in living independent lives; and ensuring there is a vibrant market to offer choice on how their needs might be met. These enhance the areas of action set out in the 2010 Autism Strategy and reaffirmed recently in Think Autism.

    The Act will require local authorities to ensure all assessors are appropriately trained to carry out assessments. This builds on the statutory guidance Implementing Fulfilling and Rewarding Lives which followed the 2010 Adult Autism Strategy for England, and which required autism awareness training to be available to all staff working in health and social care and specialist training for those in key roles that have a direct impact on access to services for adults with autism.

    Due to the complexities of assessing people who are deafblind, regulations under the Act will require their assessments to be carried out by a specialist assessor. One of the questions in the consultation document is whether specialist assessors should be required to carry out the assessment of people with other conditions, such as autism, and to explain why this should be the case. Based on the evidence we receive through the consultation we will consider if this requirement should be extended to other conditions.

    The draft regulations and guidance were co-produced with stakeholders, and this included engaging with the National Autistic Society. The public consultation runs until 15 August 2014.