Asked by: Claire Hanna (Social Democratic & Labour Party - Belfast South)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether her Department plans to undertake a (a) review of and (b) public consultation on the Vaccine Damage Payment Scheme.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
All routine policy, including the Vaccine Damage Payment Scheme (VDPS), is reviewed on a regular basis. My Rt hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care is currently looking into aspects of the scheme, following recent meetings with interested stakeholders.
Separately, work is underway with the scheme’s administrator, the NHS Business Service Authority, to review processes and make administrative changes, to improve the scheme within the current legislative framework. Formal consideration of whether any reforms to the VDPS are necessary will form part of Module 4 of the COVID-19 Inquiry, chaired by the Rt Hon Baroness Heather Carol Hallett DBE.
Asked by: Claire Hanna (Social Democratic & Labour Party - Belfast South)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether he is taking steps to help tackle issues with using (a) Irish passports and (b) Northern Ireland driving licences for online verification for Universal Credit.
Answered by Paul Maynard - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
The new National Digital Identity GOV.UK One Login will enable citizens to use Northern Ireland Driving Licenses and Republic of Ireland Passport when proving their identity online, where this is appropriate. DWP are working towards a convergence plan for GOV.UK One Login. However there are no confirmed dates yet for when this will be implemented for Universal Credit.
Asked by: Claire Hanna (Social Democratic & Labour Party - Belfast South)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment she has given to the potential merits of increasing the level of funding for research into (a) pancreatic cancer and (b) other cancers with lower survival rates.
Answered by Andrew Stephenson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government is proud to invest £1.3 billion per year on health research through the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR). NIHR research expenditure for all cancers was over £121.8 million for 2022/23, and more is spent on cancer than any other disease group. Our investments in cancer, including rare and less survivable cancers such as pancreatic cancer, are pivotal to informing efforts to improve cancer prevention, treatment, and care.
As part of our commitment to driving more and better research into less survivable cancers, the Government awarded £2 million to new interdisciplinary research teams tackling hard to treat cancers via the Medical Research Council’s two-day cancer sandpit strategic funding opportunity in 2023, which focused on technological innovation for understanding cancers, including pancreatic cancer, with the poorest survival rates.
The NIHR continues to encourage and welcome applications for research into any aspect of human health, including pancreatic cancer and other cancers with lower survival rates. Applications are subject to peer review and judged in open competition, with awards made on the basis of the importance of the topic to patients and health and care services, value for money, and scientific quality, rather than against specific disease funding allocations. We would welcome more applications from researchers working on pancreatic cancer prevention, treatment, and care.
Asked by: Claire Hanna (Social Democratic & Labour Party - Belfast South)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what routes are available for Syrians in Lebanon seeking asylum in the UK.
Answered by Tom Pursglove - Minister of State (Minister for Legal Migration and Delivery)
The UK has a proud history of providing protection for those who need it through a number of safe and legal routes. However, there is no provision within our Immigration Rules for someone to be allowed to travel to the UK to seek asylum or temporary refuge. Whilst we sympathise with people in many difficult situations around the world, including people from Syria, we are not bound to consider asylum claims from the very large numbers of people overseas who might like to come here. Those who need international protection should claim asylum in the first safe country they reach – that is the fastest route to safety.
The UK continues to welcome refugees and people in need through our existing global resettlement schemes which include the UK Resettlement Scheme (UKRS), Community Sponsorship and the Mandate Resettlement Scheme.
Asked by: Claire Hanna (Social Democratic & Labour Party - Belfast South)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if he will make an assessment of the implications for his asylum policies of the treatment of Syrians in Lebanon by the Lebanese government.
Answered by Tom Pursglove - Minister of State (Minister for Legal Migration and Delivery)
Our assessment of the situation for Syrian nationals is set out in the relevant country policy and information notes which focus on conditions within Syria and are available on the Gov.uk website.
There are no plans to produce a country policy and information note on Syrian nationals in Lebanon at this time.
Asked by: Claire Hanna (Social Democratic & Labour Party - Belfast South)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, how many (a) clean water and (b) sanitation projects his Department has funded through official development assistance since 2021.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
The UK is committed to improving access to clean water and sanitation. In 2021, UK Official Development Assistance (ODA) funding for Water Supply and Sanitation was £78 million. In 2022, UK ODA funding for Water Supply and Sanitation was £48 million. Official 2023 figures will be published in Autumn 2024. FCDO data shows 46 active ODA-funded development programmes with water or sanitation components.
Asked by: Claire Hanna (Social Democratic & Labour Party - Belfast South)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, if he will make an assessment of the adequacy of progress made towards achieving the UN Sustainable Development Goals by 2030.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
The UK recommitted to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) at the 2023 UN General Assembly and the International Development White Paper places the SDGs at the forefront of UK development efforts. To get the SDGs back on track, we are working in partnership to deliver: more money, better spent. The UK is taking action to deliver the quantum leap in financing needed, but finance alone is not enough. In March 2024, the UK convened an SDG Wilton Park event with partners from around the world to discuss what actions will accelerate SDG progress, with a focus on delivering across multiple Goals at once.
Asked by: Claire Hanna (Social Democratic & Labour Party - Belfast South)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether her Department is taking steps to help (a) mitigate the risks associated with loot boxes in video games and (b) increase awareness of the potential dangers associated with gambling for younger users.
Answered by Julia Lopez - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
Following the Government response to the call for evidence on loot boxes in video games, the Government has welcomed new industry-led guidance to improve protections for players.
We are now working closely with the industry and academics to ensure robust evaluation of implementation and the efficacy of new measures in meeting the Government’s objectives that:
purchases of loot boxes should be unavailable to all children and young people unless and until they are enabled by a parent or guardian; and,
all players should have access to and be aware of spending controls and transparent information to support safe and responsible gaming.
We will provide an update following the 12-month implementation period and independent academic scrutiny of the guidance's implementation and efficacy.
Asked by: Claire Hanna (Social Democratic & Labour Party - Belfast South)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will make an assessment of the implications for his policies of the number of commercial long haul (a) routes and (b) flights operating from airports in Northern Ireland.
Answered by Anthony Browne - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Through their work to negotiate, update and enforce the UK’s extensive portfolio of bilateral and multilateral “Air Services Agreements” my officials seek to: maximise business opportunities and ensure a level playing field for our airlines and airports; minimise administrative and cost burdens for industry; and remove barriers to operational and commercial flexibility.
This approach helps to deliver international connectivity, choice and value for money, benefitting businesses and consumers. The rights secured by my officials enable services to and from airports throughout the UK, but whether to exercise those rights is, of course, a commercial decision for airlines.
Asked by: Claire Hanna (Social Democratic & Labour Party - Belfast South)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answers of 17 April 2024 to Question 21426 and 24 April 2024 to Question 22418 on Childcare: Taxation, if he will make a (a) comparative assessment of the average cost of childcare (i) when the tax-free childcare cap was set and (ii) at 24 April 2024 and (b) impact of that change on the effectiveness of tax-free childcare in supporting parents with costs.
Answered by Laura Trott - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
For Tax-Free Childcare, the £2 Government top-up for every £8 parents pay in, and the £2,000 cap on Government support which can be claimed per year and per child, were set at these levels because the Government believes they strike the right balance between helping parents with their childcare costs, and managing the public finances in a responsible way.
The Government keeps all aspects of childcare policy under review.