The below Parliamentary question was asked by Roger Godsiff on 2016-02-11.
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if he will make an assessment for his policies of the findings of the National Federation of ALMOs Welfare reform survey relating to universal credit.
Priti Patel
DWP is currently considering the report from the National Federations of ALMOs and the Minister of State for Welfare Reform will be meeting to discuss their findings in due course.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Roger Godsiff on 2016-02-22.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what his Department’s policy is on junior doctors who whistleblow about safety concerns in the NHS.
Ben Gummer
The Department supports National Health Service staff who wish to raise concerns and is implementing a range of measures to support the development of a culture in which staff are able to raise concerns without fear of repercussion or reprisal. The Department has made clear to NHS organisations that they should have policies and procedures to support and encourage staff to raise concerns, and that those concerns should be acted upon.
Junior doctors are protected by the Public Interest Disclosure Act 1998, as they are employees of the NHS trusts at which they are based.
Junior doctors along with other NHS staff will benefit from a national network of Freedom to Speak Up ‘local guardians,’ led by the National Guardian Dame Eileen Sills, who was appointed on 7 January 2016.
The National Guardian will lead, advise, and support the ‘local guardians’ in carrying out investigations on how concerns are being handled, share good practice, report on national or common themes, and identify any barriers that are preventing the NHS from having a truly safe and open culture.
In addition we are also introducing a new Guardian of safe working appointed jointly with junior doctors.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Roger Godsiff on 2016-02-26.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what research his Department has conducted or commissioned on the length of time taken by doctors to adjust to day shifts after night shifts; and whether his Department has formed a policy on the minimum and maximum number of consecutive night shifts doctors should work.
Ben Gummer
The Department has not directly commissioned such research. A number of previously published papers and studies on shift working informed negotiations with the British Medical Association (BMA). The limits on working hours in the new contract were agreed in discussions with the BMA and include a maximum of four consecutive night shifts and a minimum of 48 hours rest after three or four consecutive night shifts. We have also agreed to review the operation of the contract with the BMA to identify whether we can move further on night working.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Roger Godsiff on 2016-03-10.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what estimate he has made of the number of emergency respite places for people being cared for by family or friends in (a) England, (b) Birmingham and (c) Swindon.
Alistair Burt
The Short and Long Term (SALT) Care data collection for 2014-15 show the number of cared-for people receiving respite or other forms of carer support;
(a) England – 55,735
(b) Birmingham local authority area – 635
(c) Swindon local authority area – 160
The data include other forms of support as well as emergency respite places; a precise figure for emergency respite places is not available. We are working with councils to improve data in this area for future iterations of the SALT Care data collection.
The Government recognises the invaluable contribution made by unpaid carers and the importance of supporting them in their caring roles. That is why we continue to support implementation of the improved rights for carers enshrined in the Care Act 2014. This includes a right to an assessment on the appearance of needs for support. These assessments cover carers’ wellbeing and what support they may need in their caring role.
The Department has provided £104 million of funding to local authorities for these improved carers’ rights in 2015/16. We have also made an additional £400 million available to the National Health Service between 2011 and 2015 to provide carers with breaks from their caring responsibilities to sustain them in their caring role. The equivalent annual allocation of £130 million for carers breaks is now included in the Better Care Fund.
The Department is also leading the development of a new cross-Government National Carers Strategy that will look at what more we can do to support existing carers and future carers.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Roger Godsiff on 2016-04-11.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if the Government will implement the recommendations made in the Time to Move report published by Blind Children UK in February 2016 to improve the number of children with sight loss who receive rehabilitation training.
Jane Ellison
The Children and Families Act 2014 requires local authorities to work with children and young people with Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND), and their parents, to develop a Local Offer of the services they have or expect to be available to children and young people with SEND, including those with visual impairment. As such, it is for local authorities, in consultation with children and young people with SEND and their families, to decide which services they offer in their area, which can include habilitation training.
At a national level, the Department for Education has funded a partnership of charities through the National Sensory Impairment Partnership to help local authorities to compare their services, learn from the best in the country and make sure that services for blind children and their families (as well as those with other sensory impairments) are effective and meet local needs.
In 2013/14 the Department of Health provided funding to Blind Children UK for their three year project training eight students for the Diploma in Habilitation Studies at the UCL Institute of Education. Officials have met with Blind Children UK recently as part of their engagement with key organisations which represent the interests of children and young people with complex needs.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Roger Godsiff on 2016-05-04.
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent discussions the Government has had with the government of Israel on political prisoners.
Mr Tobias Ellwood
The UK has not specifically raised the issue of political prisoners. Our Embassy in Tel Aviv have raised concerns around detention, including Israel’s extensive use of administrative detention. Administrative detention should, according to international law, be used only when security makes it absolutely necessary rather than as routine practice, and as a preventative rather than a punitive measure. On 24 February, our Embassy in Tel Aviv raised the issue of administrative detention with the Israeli authorities.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Roger Godsiff on 2016-06-07.
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will take steps to ensure that the renegotiation of the UK-Malawi tax treaty supports development and helps tackle poverty in that country.
Mr David Gauke
The UK regularly reviews its treaty network and actively engages with developing countries. Discussions with Malawi over a new tax treaty began some years ago, and substantive agreement has been reached at official level. It is hoped that the treaty will be signed shortly. Although the UK’s starting point in negotiations is based closely on the OECD model double taxation convention, the Government recognises that developing countries will sometimes have different preferences, and treaties the UK has recently signed demonstrate that we are willing to accommodate at least some of those preferences as part of a balanced agreement. But the nature of the negotiating process is that it remains confidential to the two sides until the treaty is signed.
By governing the taxation of cross-border income flows in a predictable manner and eliminating double taxation and excessive taxation, tax treaties promote international trade and investment, leading to sustainable tax revenues, which are vital in financing for development.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Roger Godsiff on 2016-09-02.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what proportion of GDP has been spent on healthcare in each of the last five years.
Mr Philip Dunne
The table below shows United Kingdom public spend on health as a proportion of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) from 2011-12 to 2015-16.
|
Year |
UK public health spend £ billion |
UK public spend on health as % of GDP |
|
2011-12 |
121.3 |
7.4% |
|
2012-13 |
124.3 |
7.4% |
|
2013-14 |
129.4 |
7.4% |
|
2014-15 |
134.1 |
7.3% |
|
2015-16 |
138.7 |
7.4% |
Source: Table 4.2/Table 4.4 HMT Public Expenditure Statistical Analyses 2016
Latest available data from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) shows that the estimated 2015 UK spend on health, both public and private, is 9.8% of GDP which is higher that the OECD average of 9.0%.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Roger Godsiff on 2016-09-05.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, whether Sustainability and Transformation plans will be (a) made public and (b) fully consulted on before being implemented.
David Mowat
As set out in the NHS Shared Planning Guidance, published in December 2015, the success of Sustainability and Transformation Plans (STPs) will depend on having an open, engaging, and iterative process that harnesses the energies of clinicians, patients, carers, citizens, and local community partners including the independent and voluntary sectors and local government. The national bodies responsible for the development of the programme have continued to ask for robust local plans for genuine engagement as part of the STP process.
STP proposals are currently at a draft stage, but it is expected that all local leaders will be talking to the public and stakeholders regularly as it is vital that people are able to shape the future of their local services. All local STP areas should therefore now be having conversations with local people and stakeholders – understanding what matters to them, and explaining how services might be improved. No changes to the services people currently receive will be made without local engagement, and if plans propose service changes that are agreed, then formal consultation will be followed in due course in line with good practice and legislative requirements. All footprints will submit an updated plan in October, with further formal public engagement and consultation taking place from this point, as appropriate. Many footprints are already publishing patient-facing summaries as part of their engagement programme.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Roger Godsiff on 2016-10-07.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what representations his Department has made to the Government on the potential effect on health of restricting television advertising for unhealthy food on programming likely to be watched by children.
Nicola Blackwood
Evidence shows that current restrictions on the advertising of less healthy food and drink in the United Kingdom are amongst the toughest in the world.
The Department worked with other Government Departments in developing the recently launched Childhood Obesity: A Plan for Action. The policies in the plan are informed by the latest research and evidence, including from the Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition report Carbohydrates and Health, Public Health England’s evidence package Sugar reduction: the evidence for action, debates in this House and various reports from key stakeholders including the Health Select Committee.
Copies of Childhood Obesity: A Plan for Action, Carbohydrates and Health and Sugar reduction: the evidence for action are available at:
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