Asked by: Baroness Kennedy of Cradley (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact of human exposure to high levels of ultrafine particulate matter from air pollution on the expression of Angiotensin I converting enzyme 2.
Answered by Lord Bethell
Public Health England (PHE) is aware of evidence linking exposure to particulates in the air to altered expression of Angiotensin I converting enzyme 2 (ACE2), and of emerging evidence that this is a potential mechanism by which air pollution exposure could theoretically increase the spread or severity of COVID-19.
PHE is continuously reviewing and considering the evidence on the health impacts of air pollution exposure, as well as potential associations between air pollution and the health impacts of COVID-19.
Asked by: Baroness Kennedy of Cradley (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the ability to treat other conditions, including (1) HIV and (2) tuberculosis.
Answered by Lord Bethell
Sexual and reproductive health services are open. They have reduced their face-to-face appointments to reduce the risk of COVID-19 infection but they will be able to see urgent, priority or vulnerable clients in person. Services are also maintaining access during this time through scaling up on online services. This can be achieved through a variety of routes, such as increasing eligibility through current provision or utilising a neighbours’ service for residents of another local authority. Public Health England is also seeking to establish a national framework for online sexual and reproductive health services that local areas can choose to commission for their residents.
NHS England has published a number of specialty guides to help hospital departments continue essential care for patients within their speciality, whilst supporting the wider hospital and community in providing care for patients with COVID-19. On 26 March 2020, NHS England published a letter about the importance of maintaining the provision of tuberculosis services during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Asked by: Baroness Kennedy of Cradley (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what security and privacy provisions are being used to protect the data of the users of the NHSX contact-tracing app, while making it effective for use by epidemiologists and public health officials.
Answered by Lord Bethell
NHSX recognises that users must have trust and confidence in the way personal data is collected by the app and subsequently used by epidemiologists to respond to the COVID-19 crisis. We have prioritised security and privacy in all stages of the app’s development and have drawn on expertise from across Government and industry to review our app designs. Any user data collected centrally by the National Health Service will be held to the highest security standards. In addition to the continual monitoring, review and oversight undertaken by the NHS we have consulted with the National Cyber Security Centre to review and supplement our processes. Companies working for the NHS will be bound by data processing agreements that specify how the data must be secured, used, and destroyed. For an explanation of how the risk scoring algorithm works we have published an explanation on the FAQ page of the NHS COVID-19 website.
Asked by: Baroness Kennedy of Cradley (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what lessons they have learnt from the experience of the authorities in South Korea in tackling COVID-19; and how that is informing their actions in the next phase of the lockdown.
Answered by Lord Bethell
The Department is regularly in discussions with other countries on a wide range of issues of issues relating to COVID-19, including lockdown measures.
COVID-19 presents a global challenge which requires a collaborative response. The Department will continue to work with other countries throughout the crisis and beyond.
Asked by: Baroness Kennedy of Cradley (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what safeguards to individual privacy they are putting in place in respect of the use of personal data, applications and other forms of technology to help stop the spread of COVID-19.
Answered by Lord Bethell
We have worked rigorously to make the app as privacy-conscious as possible, only collecting the data necessary to fulfil its epidemiological purpose and save lives. Existing law and National Health Service standards set out a framework of protective measures which ensure that user data remains secure and confidential and that the app is legally compliant. These standards include those set out within the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018 in cases where data is provided that might identify an individual. The details of how an individual’s data will be used and how the requirements of GDPR and the European Convention on Human Rights apply have been set out in the Privacy Notice and the Data Protection Impact Assessment but these include that data sharing will always be proportionate and the collected data will be minimised. The key security and privacy designs of the app have been published, along with the source code, and we have welcomed scrutiny from experts at the National Cyber Security Centre, our independent Ethics Advisory Board, the Information Commissioner’s Office, and security researchers and ethicists from industry.
Asked by: Baroness Kennedy of Cradley (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to (1) monitor and (2) treat the impact of the lockdown on children's mental health.
Answered by Lord Bethell
The Government and NHS England recognise that the mental health impacts of the COVID-19 outbreak are significant and are working closely with mental health trusts to ensure those who need them, including children, have access to National Health Service mental health services. NHS mental health services have remained open for business throughout this time, including delivering support digitally and over the phone where possible.
We have also issued guidance for parents and carers on supporting children and young people’s mental health and wellbeing during the COVID-19 outbreak, and we have provided £5 million of additional funding for mental health charities to support adults and children.
NHS England also asked mental health trusts to review advice lines to ensure 24 hours a day, seven days a week advice is available to everyone, including children and young people, through a single point of access.
Asked by: Baroness Kennedy of Cradley (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask Her Majesty's Government at what state of readiness Nightingale hospitals will be maintained if and when it is decided they will no longer accept new admissions.
Answered by Lord Bethell
The establishment of the Nightingale hospitals was an unprecedented response to an unprecedented challenge and they provided extra capacity to manage surges in demand due to COVID-19.
Now that we are coming through the peak of infection rates, it has been decided that the National Health Service currently has sufficient capacity to deal with anticipated demand.
As such, the Nightingale hospital in London has been placed on standby for now but will retain the capacity required to stand it back up should the need arise.
Work is underway to consider how the Nightingale’s role may further adapt as the NHS seeks to resume activity that had to be paused in the first phase of our response to the pandemic.
Asked by: Baroness Kennedy of Cradley (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask Her Majesty's Government how many critical care beds are currently in use, and how that compares to the total number available.
Answered by Lord Bethell
The number of critical care beds in use changes over time, particularly since the start of the COVID-19 outbreak. The National Health Service is currently flexing critical care beds numbers to meet demand - including the availability of additional facilities from the independent sector providers and the development and occupancy of Nightingale Hospitals.
The NHS will be provided with the resources it needs to keep the public safe at this time.
Asked by: Baroness Kennedy of Cradley (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the risk that COVID-19 poses to recipients of kidney transplants.
Answered by Lord Bethell
Public safety throughout this period has been the Government’s top priority. Patients who have had a kidney transplant, along with other patients who have had solid organ transplants and remain on long-term immune suppression therapy, have been classified as clinically extremely vulnerable. All transplant recipients have received information about what steps they should take to make sure they remain shielded and how they will continue to receive healthcare and support.
Work is underway with the transplant community to support clinicians’ understanding of the COVID-19 pandemic in transplant recipients. Research is looking at links to specific anti-rejection medication, comorbidity and other factors that predict hospitalisation and subsequent patient outcomes. International collaboration is well established to share experience and learning about the impact of COVID-19 on transplanted patients.
Asked by: Baroness Kennedy of Cradley (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask Her Majesty's Government how many operations for cases of cancer have been cancelled in England since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Answered by Lord Bethell
Information on operations for cases of cancer cancelled in England since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic is not held centrally.