Tag: Roger Godsiff

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Roger Godsiff on 2016-02-22.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, when he expects NICE to begin assessing (a) drugs for rare cancer and (b) cancer drugs under the proposed new Cancer Drugs Fund.

George Freeman

NHS England and the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) have jointly consulted on draft proposals on the future direction of the Cancer Drugs Fund (CDF). The consultation closed on 11 February 2016 and the responses received are being analysed and will inform the new way of working for the Fund. A consultation report will be published on NHS England’s website in due course.

NICE is working closely with NHS England to support the new way of working for the CDF. NICE’s Board is expected to consider the proposed process and methods for the Fund at its next meeting in March.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Roger Godsiff on 2016-02-26.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, with reference to the illustrative rotas for junior doctors, published by NHS Employers on 18 February 2016, what assessment his Department has made of the potential effect of doctors switching to night shifts for a single shift only on the effectiveness of those rotas.

Ben Gummer

It is a matter for employers to design rotas that meet the service needs of the National Health Service organisation and the training needs of the doctor. This would include the pattern of working night shifts subject to the limitations in the new contract. NHS Employers is committed to supporting employers to adhere to good rostering practices as the new contract is introduced and will feed this into the contract review process agreed with the British Medical Association as part of the contract negotiations.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Roger Godsiff on 2016-03-10.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps he is taking to increase the availability of respite care and support for family carers.

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, whether EU member states from which the UK recoups the costs of treatment provided to EU nationals by the NHS pay the full amount requested of them by the UK.

Alistair Burt

All European Economic Area countries, including the United Kingdom, have a legal obligation to pay agreed claims relating to healthcare treatment provided. Once both sides are satisfied that such claims are accurate, they are paid in full.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Roger Godsiff on 2016-05-04.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 28 April 2016 to Question 35490, if he will raise the issue of the demolition of the villages of Susiya and Umm al-Hiran with the Israeli government.

Mr Tobias Ellwood

Our Embassy in Tel Aviv raised our concerns about Susiya with the Israeli authorities on 21 January. More broadly, we regularly voice our opposition to the increase in demolitions in the Occupied Palestinian Territories with the Israeli Government, most recently on 21 April. In regards to demolitions of Bedouin villages in green-line Israel such as Umm al-Hiran, we believe a solution must respect the equality of all Israel’s citizens.

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 improve the transparency of the negotiation process for UK tax treaties.

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, for what reason the decision was taken that NHS England will in future fund only one stem cell transplant for blood cancer patients; what estimate he has made of the number of patients who will be affected by that decision; and what assessment he has made of the potential effect of that policy change on blood cancer survival rates.

David Mowat

The provision of second stem cell transplants was considered as part of NHS England’s annual prioritisation process by the Specialised Commissioning Oversight Group (SCOG). Decisions by SCOG are based on recommendations made by Clinical Priorities Advisory Group (CPAG) which uses a defined process to prioritise treatments based on a combination of cost and patient benefit.

NHS England announced on 2 August that CPAG will re-run the prioritisation process to include proposals previously prioritised in levels 3, 4 and 5. The re-run of the prioritisation process is expected to take place later in the year. Until the process is completed clinicians, on behalf of their patients can continue to apply for funding for second transplant for relapsed disease where there is clinically exceptional or clinically critical need.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Roger Godsiff on 2016-09-05.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the average time taken is for family reunification of unaccompanied refugee children in Europe.

Mr Robert Goodwill

For unaccompanied refugee children accepted for transfer to the UK, transfer requests are generally processed within 10 days and children transferred within weeks.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Roger Godsiff on 2016-10-07.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, whether the Government has made plans to assist with additional funding or aid subsequent to the changes in refugee numbers entering into Mosul.

Rory Stewart

On 21 September, the UK announced an extra £40 million of humanitarian funding to Iraq, on top of £50 million committed earlier this year. This brings our total commitment in Iraq to £169.5 million since June 2014. This support will provide emergency life-saving assistance – such as food, shelter, medical and protection services – to support the Government of Iraq-led Mosul humanitarian response as well as continuing to provide assistance for displaced and vulnerable people across the country.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Roger Godsiff on 2016-10-10.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many times officials in his Department responsible for procurement checked whether a contractor employed by his Department was under investigation for corruption with law enforcement agencies in the last two years.

Harriett Baldwin

The Ministry of Defence (MOD) routinely carries out checks on potential contractors prior to contract award, including on criminal activity, such as convictions for tax evasion, bribery or fraud, and a review of a company’s audited accounts. These enquiries are conducted in accordance with the Public Contracts Regulations 2015 and the Defence and Security Public Contracts Regulations 2011.

This process is reiterated in all competitive and single source tender documentation issued to tenderers prior to any contract award.

Any suspicion of corruption is reported to the appropriate authority. Where justified, the MOD can exclude potential suppliers who pose an unacceptable risk to public money.