Near-earth Satellites
Debate between Lord Evans of Rainow and Lord Lansley
Lord Evans of Rainow (Con)
The noble Lord never lets us down, does he? My understanding, in answer to the question, is that he resigned and was not sacked—but I was hoping that the noble Lord would ask about future investment in Scotland.
Lord Lansley (Con)
My Lords, my noble friend will be aware that from 1 January we are rejoining the Copernicus Programme. The Sentinel system for Copernicus of near-earth orbiting satellites provides us with absolutely vital data, not least in relation to climate change. How might the British space industry, as a world leader, benefit from our rejoining Copernicus in the next three years?
Lord Evans of Rainow (Con)
That is a very specific question about rejoining that organisation, and I do not have an answer to it for my noble friend, but I shall certainly write on that specific point.
Community Pharmacies
Debate between Lord Evans of Rainow and Lord Lansley
Lord Lansley (Con)
My Lords, we can anticipate that our Prime Minister understands something about pharmacy for obvious reasons. In my experience over some years, the opportunity lies in the hands of local NHS commissioners. The contract allows them to commission additional services such as minor illness services and, in the past, medicine use reviews, but they often did not do so. What steps might the Government now take with ICBs to encourage them to undertake more of the commissioning of additional services?
Lord Evans of Rainow (Con)
I thank my noble friend for that very good question. ICBs are encouraged to do exactly what he says. I refer to an answer I gave earlier: from summer 2023, NHS England will start piloting prescribing services in community pharmacies—exactly as he suggests.
Medical Devices and Equipment
Debate between Lord Evans of Rainow and Lord Lansley
Lord Evans of Rainow (Con)
The noble Lord raises a very important point. I will certainly ensure that the department hears it, and I will feed back to him.
Lord Lansley (Con)
My noble friend will recall that the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency in this country was the leading regulatory agency for the approval of new medical devices, including 40% of the most significant such medical devices. What benefits for the authorisation of medical devices might stem from the announcement in the Budget last week of additional resources for the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency?
Lord Evans of Rainow (Con)
I thank my noble friend for his question. The Government’s medtech strategy, published in February, will support medical device manufacturers by recognising the importance of domestic production to support resilience and identify practical support. The good news that was articulated in the Budget last week can only add to that.
Oral Answers to Questions
Debate between Lord Evans of Rainow and Lord Lansley(12 years, 6 months ago)
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Graham Evans (Weaver Vale) (Con)
2. What recent representations he has received on access by NHS patients to drugs invented and developed in UK laboratories; and if he will make a statement.
The Secretary of State for Health (Mr Andrew Lansley)
Representations received have strongly supported the Government’s “Strategy for UK Life Sciences”, which was published on 5 September. Speeding up clinical trials approval, enabling the unique NHS clinical databanks to support research, the early adoption of new medicines and other initiatives will bring NHS patients the fullest benefit from innovation and will promote growth in UK biosciences.
Graham Evans
What steps are being taken towards closer collaboration between the NHS, industry and our world-class universities to drive improvement and innovation in the NHS for the benefit of current and future NHS patients?
Mr Lansley
I am grateful to my hon. Friend. He rightly highlights an area where we are clear that innovation can be considerably supported, and not only by the academic health science centres, which were established under the last Government. As the life sciences strategy set out in early September made clear, we want to create academic health science networks across the NHS so that higher education, industry and the NHS can work together to bring about the greatest possible innovation to the benefit of patients.
Reform of Social Care
Debate between Lord Evans of Rainow and Lord Lansley(13 years ago)
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Mr Lansley
As my hon. Friend will know, Tom Hughes-Hallett, the chief executive of Marie Curie Cancer Care—who is leading the palliative care review—has engaged fully with Help the Hospices and the hospice movement. I understand from my conversations with hospice representatives over a number of years that they do not want their funding to be subject to the vagaries of public expenditure. Individual block grants that vary from year to year give them no confidence about the services that they provide. They do not want additional resources as much as clarity about what resources will be provided for the individuals who seek their care. They particularly hope that there will be a corresponding transfer of resources to hospices which provide services that replace the NHS and support people at home, as many are increasingly doing.
Graham Evans (Weaver Vale) (Con)
I have four Southern Cross homes in my constituency. Does my right hon. Friend agree that the Southern Cross situation highlights the need for a dedicated financial regulator for social care services?
Mr Lansley
As I said earlier, this is one of the issues on which I hope we will have further discussion as part of the debate on wider social care reform leading to the White Paper.
Oral Answers to Questions
Debate between Lord Evans of Rainow and Lord Lansley(13 years, 8 months ago)
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Mr Lansley
May I welcome the hon. Gentleman to his new responsibilities?
We are doing this because it is absolutely essential for the NHS to use resources better to deliver improving outcomes for patients. A combination of the ability for general practice-led consortiums to combine the management of care for patients with the management of resources is instrumental to achieving that. It will deliver substantial reductions in management costs. We will achieve a £1.9 billion-a-year reduction in management costs by 2015.
Graham Evans (Weaver Vale) (Con)
9. What progress he has made on increasing the provision of specialist neuromuscular care in (a) the north-west and (b) England.