Asked by: Baroness Finlay of Llandaff (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask His Majesty's Government when they intend to launch their new Road Investment Strategy; and whether lowering the drink-drive limit will be included as part of the strategy.
Answered by Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
DfT is committed to long term strategies for road investment. As announced in the October Budget, a decision was taken to postpone the start of the third Road Investment Strategy (RIS3), to allow Ministers time to make an assessment of priorities for roads. DfT will provide funding through an Interim Settlement to National Highways covering 2025-26, to allow for important maintenance and enhancement activities to continue. The planned start of RIS3 is April 2026 and the drink-drive limit will not form part of the RIS.
This Government takes road safety seriously, and we are committed to reducing the numbers of those killed and injured on our roads. Since the general election, the Department has begun work on a new Road Safety Strategy, the first in over a decade. The Department will share more details in due course.
Asked by: Baroness Finlay of Llandaff (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to ensure that NHS Trusts have the necessary funding and trained staff to deliver minimally invasive cancer therapies.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The adoption of new treatments, including increasing the number and availability of minimally invasive cancer treatments, into the National Health Service in England is generally the result of National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidance and commissioner decisions. Both NHS England and the integrated care boards (ICBs) are required to put in place access for any treatment that carries a positive recommendation from the Technology Appraisal programme, operated by the NICE.
Where treatments are approved by the NICE through the Technology Appraisals programme, the NHS is required to fund and make them available within agreed timescales, which vary by technology. Implementation of any NICE approvals will be supported by the service readiness assessment and the development of additional capacity where necessary.
During 2024/25, NHS England will continue to support all ICBs in integrating the planning and commissioning of suitable specialised services with their wider population-level commissioning responsibilities, in line with their individual timeline for delegation.
We are committed to training the staff we need to get patients seen on time. The Government will make sure the NHS has the staff it needs to be there for all of us when we need it, including cancer patients.
Asked by: Baroness Finlay of Llandaff (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to secure funding for and expand access to minimally invasive cancer therapies approved by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence across NHS Trusts.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Both NHS England and integrated care boards (ICBs) are required to put in place access for any treatment that carries a positive recommendation from the Technology Appraisal programme, operated by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE).
Where treatments are approved by NICE through the Technology Appraisals programme, the National Health Service is required to fund and make them available within agreed timescales, which vary by technology. Implementation of any NICE approvals will be supported by the service readiness assessment and the development of additional capacity where necessary.
During 2024/25, NHS England will continue to support all ICBs in integrating the planning and commissioning of suitable specialised services with their wider population-level commissioning responsibilities, in line with their individual timeline for delegation. Service Development Funding (SDF) is available to support Cancer Alliances to deliver the priorities set out in the 2024/25 NHS Operational Planning Guidance; £266 million in SDF is being provided to Cancer Alliances in 2024/25. Funding comprises two allocations: place-based, provided to all Alliances on a fair shares basis; and, targeted, provided to a selection of Alliances for agreed targeted projects. Cancer SDF is provided to Cancer Alliances via their lead ICBs to enable them to deliver on NHS-wide priorities for cancer, in line with their local delivery plans which are included in their funding agreement.
Asked by: Baroness Finlay of Llandaff (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what evidence they have of unrelieved symptom distress in patients when care assistants are prohibited from administering prescribed medication at home; and how many errors have been recorded when care assistants have administered prescribed breakthrough medication in the patient's home.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Good practice for homecare is set out in the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence’s (NICE) guidance, which can be found on the NICE’s website, in an online only format.
Services need to submit statutory notifications to the Care Quality Commission (CQC) when a medicines incident reaches a specific threshold. This includes an allegation of abuse, the death of a person, an incident reported to or investigated by the police, or a serious injury.
Data on anything that does not constitute the CQC threshold is not held by the CQC, but may be held by individual providers as a recorded incident.
Asked by: Baroness Finlay of Llandaff (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they plan to take to meet their 2020 commitment to a consultation on alcohol calorie labelling.
Answered by Lord Markham - Shadow Minister (Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Government has previously announced an intention to consult on whether to introduce mandatory calorie labelling on alcohol. We are currently considering the evidence base, and have commissioned a National Institute for Health and Care Research study on understanding the impact of alcohol calorie labelling on alcohol and calorie selection, purchasing, and consumption.
The Government is taking a wide-ranging approach to addressing alcohol-related harms. As part of the NHS Health Check, information on alcohol consumption is provided to support people to make healthier choices. The Department continues to promote the United Kingdom’s Chief Medical Officers’ Low Risk Drinking Guidelines in England through online platforms. This provides the public with the most up-to-date scientific information, to help people make informed decisions about their own drinking, including the health harms of alcohol consumption.
Asked by: Baroness Finlay of Llandaff (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of new data from the Office for National Statistics showing that alcohol-specific deaths are now 32.8 per cent higher than in 2019 and at an all-time high; and what steps they plan to take to tackle rising alcohol harm.
Answered by Lord Markham - Shadow Minister (Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Government keeps all official health data related to alcohol consumption and alcohol related harms under regular review. The 2021 Public Health England publication, Monitoring alcohol consumption and harm during the COVID-19 pandemic, found that increases in alcohol consumption since the beginning of the pandemic tended to be among people who were already heavy drinkers before this period, which may be a factor in the increase.
The most effective way to prevent alcohol specific deaths, is drinking within the United Kingdom Chief Medical Officers’ low-risk drinking guidelines, namely under 14 units per week. The Government is supporting people who drink above low-risk levels to reduce their alcohol consumption. As part of the NHS Health Check, questions are asked about alcohol consumption, and appropriate advice given to support people to make healthier choices. Those identified to be drinking at higher-risk levels are referred for liver investigation. The Department is also supporting people with alcohol dependency through the Drug Strategy and NHS Long Term Plan, by facilitating more people in need of treatment into local authority commissioned alcohol treatment services.
Asked by: Baroness Finlay of Llandaff (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what progress they have made with the proposed amendments to the Part IX of the Drug Tariff, including any impact assessments on the future provision of medical technologies in the UK; how these proposals meet the ambitions of the Life Sciences Vision; and what steps they are taking to ensure that there is sufficient patient choice following the outcome of the consultation.
Answered by Lord Markham - Shadow Minister (Science, Innovation and Technology)
The consultation response on the proposed amendments to Part IX and the final impact assessment is expected to be released in May 2024, and will outline the Government’s response.
The Department believes that it is currently difficult to identify which devices are broadly comparable, and whether more expensive devices provide added value. The proposed amendments that were consulted on intend to increase meaningful choice, not to decrease choice for clinicians and patients. Comparison between products can increase awareness of different brands amongst prescribers.
These proposals support the Life Sciences Vision, and are designed to increase innovation and alignment between partners in the health and care system. The enhanced assessment process will allow comparison between products based on their merits, increasing transparency and competition, and encouraging new products and small and medium sized businesses to enter the market. The proposed introduction of environmental attributes in social value scoring increases the vision to help the National Health Service meet Net Zero.
The Department is aware that there are some very good devices in use, relied upon by clinicians and patients. Part IX will remain a list of devices available to be prescribed in the community via the FP10 prescription route. Any amendments that are taken forward will happen gradually, with review points and engagement with stakeholders, including industry, patient representatives, clinicians, and NHS organisations. The Department will share a timeline of proposed changes taken forward, in due course.
Asked by: Baroness Finlay of Llandaff (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government how they plan to formally engage with the wider health sector and industry partners on the next stages in the development of proposed changes to Part IX of the Drug Tariff, following the conclusion of the consultation on these proposals.
Answered by Lord Markham - Shadow Minister (Science, Innovation and Technology)
The consultation response on the proposed amendments to Part IX and the final impact assessment is expected to be released in May 2024, and will outline the Government’s response.
The Department believes that it is currently difficult to identify which devices are broadly comparable, and whether more expensive devices provide added value. The proposed amendments that were consulted on intend to increase meaningful choice, not to decrease choice for clinicians and patients. Comparison between products can increase awareness of different brands amongst prescribers.
These proposals support the Life Sciences Vision, and are designed to increase innovation and alignment between partners in the health and care system. The enhanced assessment process will allow comparison between products based on their merits, increasing transparency and competition, and encouraging new products and small and medium sized businesses to enter the market. The proposed introduction of environmental attributes in social value scoring increases the vision to help the National Health Service meet Net Zero.
The Department is aware that there are some very good devices in use, relied upon by clinicians and patients. Part IX will remain a list of devices available to be prescribed in the community via the FP10 prescription route. Any amendments that are taken forward will happen gradually, with review points and engagement with stakeholders, including industry, patient representatives, clinicians, and NHS organisations. The Department will share a timeline of proposed changes taken forward, in due course.
Asked by: Baroness Finlay of Llandaff (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what consideration was given to the costs of complicated grief in families of patients dying from SOD-1 MND during the evaluation process that led to the decision to decline access to tofersen for NHS patients.
Answered by Lord Markham - Shadow Minister (Science, Innovation and Technology)
The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) has not yet started its evaluation of tofersen for treating amyotrophic lateral sclerosis caused by SOD1 gene mutations, and has therefore not published any guidance or recommendations on whether tofersen should be available for National Health Service patients. In developing its recommendations, the NICE will follow its published methods for health technology evaluation, which will include a thorough assessment of the available evidence. This takes into account all health-related costs and benefits, including health benefits not only to patients but, where relevant, to other people such as carers. The NICE’s aim is to publish its guidance on tofersen as close as possible to the date it receives its marketing authorisation.
Asked by: Baroness Finlay of Llandaff (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the negative impact on pharmaceutical research investment in the UK of the refusal by National Institute for Health and Care Excellence to approve tofersen for SOD-1 MND patients in the UK.
Answered by Lord Markham - Shadow Minister (Science, Innovation and Technology)
The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) has not yet started its evaluation of tofersen for treating amyotrophic lateral sclerosis caused by SOD1 gene mutations, and has therefore not published any guidance or recommendations on whether tofersen should be available for National Health Service patients. In developing its recommendations, the NICE will follow its published methods for health technology evaluation, which will include a thorough assessment of the available evidence. This takes into account all health-related costs and benefits, including health benefits not only to patients but, where relevant, to other people such as carers. The NICE’s aim is to publish its guidance on tofersen as close as possible to the date it receives its marketing authorisation.