Tag: Parliamentary Question

  • Lord Alton of Liverpool – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Lord Alton of Liverpool – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Alton of Liverpool on 2015-12-10.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of East Kent Hospitals University NHS Foundation Trust’s decision to list Down’s syndrome as a reason to issue a Do Not Resuscitate order to a patient.

    Lord Prior of Brampton

    The Department expects National Health Service trusts and NHS foundation trusts to have in place local policies on resuscitation that are based on expert professional guidance. We have commended, as a basis for local policies, professional guidance, Decisions Relating to Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (2014), published jointly by the British Medical Association, the Resuscitation Council (UK) and the Royal College of Nursing. The guidance is clear that any resuscitation decision must be tailored to the individual circumstances of the patient and must not be made on the basis of blanket assumptions. A copy of the guidance is attached.

    Where a person lacks capacity to make decisions about their care or treatment, the Mental Capacity Act makes clear that doctors must act in the best interests of patients. Doctors must take account as far as possible of the known wishes of the person and consult with relatives and colleagues as appropriate to help inform their decision.

    Departmental officials have recently contacted the Trust about recent media coverage concerning an incident when Down’s syndrome was listed as a reason to issue a Do Not Resuscitate order. The Trust confirms it accepts that it failed to consult with the family and has apologised unreservedly for this isolated incident by a junior doctor.

    In regards to any disciplinary action taken against the doctor this would be an operational issue for the Foundation Trust. We have written to Ms Nikki Cole, Chair of East Kent Hospitals University NHS Foundation Trust informing her of the Noble Lord’s enquiry. She will reply shortly and a copy of the letter will be placed in the Library.

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

    David Crausby – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Crausby on 2016-01-21.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps his Department is taking to improve access to specialist care for people with muscular dystrophy.

    Jane Ellison

    Through the Mandate we have asked NHS England to make measurable progress towards making our health service among the best in Europe at supporting people with long-term conditions such as muscular dystrophy, to live healthily and independently, with much better control over the care they receive.

    NHS England commissions specialised neurological services at a national level, including for patients with muscular dystrophy. The neurosciences service specifications set out that patients with neuromuscular conditions, such as muscular dystrophy should have access to, including a multidisciplinary team (MDT) to will assess, diagnose and provide support. The MDT team will include neuromuscular consultants, neuromuscular physiotherapists, specialist nurses, occupational therapists, speech and language therapists and other care professionals. One of the key service outcomes of the specification is that all patients with long-term neurological conditions have an individualised care plan.

  • Jamie Reed – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    Jamie Reed – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jamie Reed on 2016-02-19.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what the objectives are of the Sellafield workforce reform initiative; and if she will make a statement.

    Andrea Leadsom

    The Nuclear Decommissioning Authority has a responsibility to UK tax payers to ensure that Sellafield Ltd has maximum opportunity for improved performance: accelerating hazard reduction and delivering value for money. A new model, part of a suite of changes designed to increase efficiency in the business, is being put in place to help achieve that. The rationale for this model is set out in the Sellafield Model Change (SMC) Outline Business Case.

    Details of the change programme are available at http://www.nda.gov.uk/contracts-and-competition/sellafield-model-change-programme/.

  • Joan Ryan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Joan Ryan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Joan Ryan on 2016-03-07.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to the Answer of 3 March 2016 to Question 28945, what the statistics referred to in that question were for (a) Barnet Hospital, (b) Chase Farm Hospital and (c) Royal Free Hospital.

    Jane Ellison

    Data on accident and emergency (A&E) attendances, emergency admissions, and performance against the A&E waiting time standard is not published for individual hospital sites. The data is published at trust level only, and this information is available at the links provided in the response to question 28945.

  • Baroness Jones of Whitchurch – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Baroness Jones of Whitchurch – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Jones of Whitchurch on 2016-04-11.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they are considering banning the routine use on farms of antibiotics classified by the World Health Organisation as critically important for treating bacterial infections in people.

    Lord Gardiner of Kimble

    The legislation that controls veterinary medicines and medicated feed within the EU is currently under revision. To reflect the rising threat of antibiotic resistance the new proposed frameworks set out additional controls on antibiotics. This includes a ban on the routine preventative use of antibiotics, including those classified as critically important, something the UK supports.

    Negotiations on the frameworks are expected to continue until late 2017. There are no plans to significantly revise or amend the Veterinary Medicines Regulations 2013 until the Commission’s work on the review of legislation has been completed.

  • 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 2016-05-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what plans his Department has to raise awareness of World AIDS Day before 1 December 2016.

    Jane Ellison

    In preparation for World AIDS Day 2016 Public Health England (PHE) will publish the annual HIV in the UK situation report and associated data tables in mid-November 2016. This report will include the latest HIV epidemiology for the United Kingdom, providing national and local systems essential information to inform their World AIDS Day 2016 awareness campaigns. Alongside this HIV Prevention England, co-ordinated by Terrence Higgins Trust and commissioned by PHE will provide a national HIV testing campaign ‘HIV Testing week’. This will commence prior to World AIDS Day and run for one week from the 19 November 2016.

  • Lord Hylton – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Lord Hylton – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hylton on 2016-07-08.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what conclusions they have drawn from the reports of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights and the Bassiouni Commission on the solitary confinement, torture and ill-treatment of prisoners in Bahrain; and whether they plan to ask the International Committee of the Red Cross to inspect prison conditions in Jaw Central Prison, Al-Hawd Al-Jaf prison and all other prisons and places of detention, and to make recommendations.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    The British Government unreservedly condemns torture and cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment and it is a government priority to combat it wherever it occurs. We are aware that there have been allegations in Bahrain, and we raise concerns with the authorities. Our support to Bahrain’s reform programme focuses on strengthening independent oversight bodies such as the Ministry of Interior Ombudsman and the Prisoners and Detainees Rights Commission (PDRC) who provide oversight of police behaviour and detention standards. In May, the PDRC released an independent report which included testimonies of detainees and highlighted a number of key concerns in respect to prison conditions at Jau Prison. We welcome the transparent approach taken by the PDRC, and the Ministry of Interior’s commitment to implement all recommendations made in the report. We continue to call upon the Government of Bahrain to agree a visit of the UN Special Rapporteur on Torture.

  • Caroline Lucas – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

    Caroline Lucas – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Caroline Lucas on 2016-10-07.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, whether the Carbon Plan will outline policies that ensure that the UK meets the emissions limit in the fourth carbon budget of a 50 per cent reduction in annual emissions on 1990 levels.

    Mr Nick Hurd

    We are engaging with a wide range of stakeholders and other government departments in order to meet the shared challenge of moving to a low carbon economy. The Emissions Reduction Plan will set out how we will meet our carbon budgets through the 2020s (the period covering the fourth and fifth carbon budgets).

  • Tim Loughton – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Tim Loughton – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tim Loughton on 2015-11-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps the Government is taking to encourage Saudi Arabia and other parties to the conflict in Yemen to refrain from using explosive weapons with wide-range effects in populated areas in order to avoid high levels of civilian casualties.

    Mr Tobias Ellwood

    We are aware of reports of alleged violations of International Humanitarian Law in Yemen by all sides to the conflict and take these very seriously. This includes alleged airstrikes resulting in civilian casualties and damage to civilian infrastructure. We have received repeated assurances from the Saudi Arabian-led coalition that they are complying with International Humanitarian Law, and we continue to engage with them on those assurances. The Saudi Arabian authorities have their own internal procedures for investigations and we encourage them to be open and transparent in this. We continue to urge all parties to the conflict to adhere to International Humanitarian Law. We have also raised our concerns with the Houthis. We will continue to do this.

  • and (4) more than 30 – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    and (4) more than 30 – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by and (4) more than 30 on 2015-12-10.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government, on the current definition of coasting”

    Lord Nash

    No school can be defined as coasting under the government’s proposed coasting definition until after the 2016 results are available. The definition of coasting is determined by performance over a three year period.