Tag: Tom Brake

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tom Brake on 2016-06-15.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of the human rights situation in Eritrea.

James Duddridge

Following the publication of the UN Commission of Inquiry on Human Rights in Eritrea, we remain concerned about human rights issues in the country. The Foreign and Commonwealth Office’s latest Human Rights Report includes Eritrea in its list of 30 priority countries for the UK government and sets out the changes needed. We continue to press the government of Eritrea, including at ministerial level, to take concrete steps to improve its respect for human rights.

We welcome the recent increased engagement between Eritrea and the UN Office of High Commissioner for Human Rights, and Eritrea’s agreement to work with the United Nations Development Programme to implement the recommendations of the Universal Periodic Review on human rights. We urge further such cooperation to help bring about human rights reform in Eritrea.

We will give a full statement when the UN Human Rights Council discusses the COI’s report on 21 June.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tom Brake on 2016-09-14.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with his European counterparts on the peace process in Ukraine.

Sir Alan Duncan

The Foreign Secretary has discussed the Minsk Peace Process to resolve the on-going conflict in eastern Ukraine with a range of European partners and counterparts, including bilaterally with Foreign Ministers from France and Poland as well as multilaterally at recent EU and Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe summits. The Foreign Secretary has also discussed the conflict with President Poroshenko and Foreign Minister Klimkin of Ukraine during a recent visit to Kyiv, and stressed the need for progress on Minsk implementation during a phone call last month with Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tom Brake on 2016-09-14.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether the UK plans to provide any assistance or reconnaissance intelligence for airstrikes against Daesh conducted as part of the Syrian Counter Terror agreement made by the US and Russia on 9 September 2016.

Mike Penning

The UK supported US efforts to reach agreement with Russia to reinstate a cessation of hostilities in Syria and will continue to work for the restoration of a credible cessation of Hostilities. The UK was not, however, a party to the US-Russia arrangement which was a purely bilateral one. While the UK would have considered seriously any requests received, we were not asked for either assistance or reconnaissance intelligence for its implementation.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tom Brake on 2016-10-07.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what representations he has made to the Pakistani government on the death penalty imposed on Imdad Ali.

Alok Sharma

I am concerned about Mr Ali’s case and continue to follow developments. The UK remains firmly opposed to the death penalty in all circumstances. Abolitionist work is high on the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) agenda and is part of the day-to-day work of all diplomatic missions to countries that retain the death penalty. The FCO human rights and democracy report 2015 makes clear our views on the death penalty and the resumption of executions in Pakistan.

Whilst we have not raised the specific case of Imdad Ali with the Pakistani government, the former Foreign Secretary, my Rt Hon. Friend the Member for Runnymede and Weybridge (Mr Philip Hammond), raised the issue of the death penalty with Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif in 2015, and the Parliamentary Under-Secretary for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my Hon. Friend the Member for Bournemouth East (Mr Tobias Ellwood), since wrote to the Pakistani High Commissioner to the UK expressing deep concern about ongoing executions. Together with our EU partners, we continue to raise our concerns about the death penalty with the Government of Pakistan and urge compliance with international obligations.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tom Brake on 2016-10-07.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, when her Department plans to publish its Multilateral Aid Review.

Rory Stewart

The Government intends to publish the outcomes of the Multilateral Aid Review shortly.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tom Brake on 2016-10-18.

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment his Department has made on small businesses of the potential closure of independent pharmacies; and what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Health on that effect.

Margot James

My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy regularly discusses a range of issues with my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Health.

Funding for the contractors providing NHS pharmaceutical services is determined by the Department of Health.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tom Brake on 2015-11-03.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how much of the welfare budget was spent on the state pension in 2014-15.

Justin Tomlinson

Total State Pension expenditure in 2014/15 was £86,516m.

Detailed information on benefit expenditure is available in our Benefit Expenditure tables which can be found at:

https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/benefit-expenditure-and-caseload-tables-2015

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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tom Brake on 2016-01-05.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will bring forward legislative proposals to introduce a cap on the number of private hire vehicles operating in London.

Andrew Jones

This Government does not intend to amend primary legislation to allow the number of private hire vehicles licensed in London or elsewhere to be restricted.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tom Brake on 2016-02-05.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will make it his policy to increase spending on research into brain tumours to enable faster diagnosis.

George Freeman

Spend by the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) in the Health Research Classification System (HRCS) health category ‘cancer’ has increased by a third from £101 million in 2010/11 to £135 million in 2014/15. There are no HRCS health sub-categories such as for brain tumours or other specific cancer sites and information on total current NIHR spend on brain tumour research is not held.

The NIHR welcomes funding applications for research into any aspect of human health, including brain tumours. These applications are subject to peer review and judged in open competition, with awards being made on the basis of the importance of the topic to patients and health and care services, value for money and scientific quality. In all disease areas, the amount of NIHR funding depends on the volume and quality of scientific activity.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tom Brake on 2016-02-22.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will take steps to ensure that the Government meets its commitment that all patients throughout England with musculoskeletal conditions have the support they need to live healthily and independently, with better control over the care they receive, notwithstanding reductions in public health budgets.

Jane Ellison

Since 1 April 2013, the Government has set out high level strategic ambitions for the National Health Service through the Mandate. For patients with long term conditions (LTCs), including musculoskeletal (MSK) conditions, we have asked the NHS to improve the care and support of patients, helping them to live healthily and independently, with much better control over the care they receive.

In response, NHS England has set out a range of actions designed to deliver this, central to which was implementation of the House of Care model, which is designed to support the delivery of person-centred, coordinated care. The House of Care enables individuals to make informed decisions about their treatment and empowers them to self-manage their LTCs in partnership with health and care professionals. NHS England has provided data, tools and guidance to support local services in identifying those most likely to benefit from a care planning approach. Specifically on MSK conditions, the National Clinical Director for MSK, Peter Kay, has been working in partnership with the Arthritis and Musculoskeletal Alliance, to develop new MSK clinical networks across England to build consensus on the way forward for models of care.

In terms of assessment, the first annual report of the National Clinical Audit of Rheumatoid and Early Inflammatory Arthritis, commissioned on behalf of NHS England by the Healthcare Quality Improvement Partnership (HQIP), was published on 22 January 2016. This report, which includes data from 1 February 2014 to 30 April 2015, assesses the quality of care by specialist rheumatology services using criteria derived from sources such as the Rheumatoid Arthritis Quality Standard, published by the National Institute for Clinical Excellence in June 2013. The report identifies that although most services offer prompt educational support and agree targets for treatment with their patients, performance against criteria for referral and assessment could be improved. Since the audit, HQIP has reported that a number of trusts have successfully reconfigured their services in order to improve patient care. More information can be found at the following link:

www.hqip.org.uk/national-programmes/a-z-of-nca/arthritis-rheumatoid-and-early-inflammatory

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