Asked by: Lord Maginnis of Drumglass (Independent Ulster Unionist - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what are the populations for (1) England, (2) Scotland, (3) Wales, and (4) Northern Ireland; what has been the number of deaths from COVID-19 per country; what is the effective reproduction number of the virus in each country; and what plans they have to publish statistics on COVID-19 on this basis.
Answered by Lord Bethell
To provide a more comprehensive response to a number of outstanding Written Questions, this has been answered by an information factsheet Science of Covid-19 note for House of Lords, which is attached due to the size of the data. A copy has also been placed in the Library.
Asked by: Lord Maginnis of Drumglass (Independent Ulster Unionist - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Bethell on 10 June (HL3794), why they will not provide figures for the percentage of the population who have died from COVID-19 in (1) England, (2) Scotland, (3) Wales and (4) Northern Ireland in order to facilitate a strategic assessment of comparative regional efficiencies.
Answered by Lord Bethell
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) publishes the weekly numbers of deaths registered in England and Wales, and National Records Scotland and the Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency are responsible for publishing the number of deaths registered in Scotland and Northern Ireland respectively. The number of deaths involving COVID-19 are published rather than the percentage of the population who have died from COVID-19, as this is a more useful and accurate way of keeping a consistent record of death data.
The ONS also routinely publishes population estimates. The current data, for mid-2018, for the four nations of the United Kingdom allow the required percentages to be calculated as shown in the following table.
| Registered deaths involving COVID-19 | Mid-2018 population estimates | Percentage |
England | 45,016 | 56,286,961 | 0.080 |
Wales | 2,300 | 3,152,879 | 0.073 |
Scotland | 4,070 | 5,463,300 | 0.074 |
Northern Ireland | 774 | 1,893,667 | 0.041 |
Source: ONS weekly figures on death registrations week ending 5 June 2020.
Asked by: Lord Maginnis of Drumglass (Independent Ulster Unionist - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what are the most recent figures for the percentage of the population who have died from COVID-19 in (1) England, (2) Scotland, (3) Wales and (4) Northern Ireland; and in which of those regions is the rate of infections decreasing the fastest.
Answered by Lord Bethell
The Office for National Statistics publishes the weekly numbers of deaths registered in England and Wales, and National Records Scotland and the Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency are responsible for publishing the number of deaths registered in Scotland and Northern Ireland respectively. The number of deaths from COVID-19 are published rather than the percentage of the population who have died from COVID-19, as this is a more useful an accurate way of keeping a consistent record of death data.
Public Health England are currently undertaking work on changes to the regional rate of infection.
Asked by: Lord Maginnis of Drumglass (Independent Ulster Unionist - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what is their assessment of any positive impact in the overall health of under 35 year old smokers arising from tax and packaging measures that they have imposed.
Answered by Lord O'Shaughnessy
Tobacco taxation is a proven and effective means to reduce smoking and a disincentive for young people to take up smoking in the first place. The Government consulted on the introduction of standardised packaging and published an impact assessment, which included benefits to public health. For the purposes of this impact assessment, the conservative assumption was made that no harm is incurred by smoking under the age of 35, due to the lack of precise data to quantify benefits from not smoking under this age. That said, the impact assessment notes that for every young person who no longer starts smoking for example, life expectancy improves by 2.1 years. The Standardised Packaging of Tobacco Products Regulations 2015 came into force on 20 May 2016; the Government has a commitment to review these regulations by 2020.
Asked by: Lord Maginnis of Drumglass (Independent Ulster Unionist - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether there has been any assessment made of the health hazards from illicit tobacco products compared with those that are legally produced; and if so, what future impact such hazards are likely to have on the health of smokers under 25 years old.
Answered by Lord O'Shaughnessy
There are no separate assessments made by the Government on the health hazards of illicit tobacco as all tobacco products are harmful. Considerable progress has been made in addressing tobacco smuggling and the reductions we have seen have been achieved through regulatory changes, new sanctions, detection technology and partnership working across government and internationally. The Tobacco Control Plan for England, published in July 2017, set out the continued government commitment to tackle illicit tobacco, including the United Kingdom international obligation to ratify the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control Protocol on Illicit Tobacco as soon as the required legislation has been approved by Parliament.
Asked by: Lord Maginnis of Drumglass (Independent Ulster Unionist - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what has been the average number of hip and knee replacement operations per one million population performed weekly (1) by the NHS, and (2) privately, during each quarter since October 2015 in the English regions of (a) London, (b) the South, (c) the Midlands and East, and (d) the North.
Answered by Lord Prior of Brampton
The information requested is in the table attached.
The data is activity in National Health Service Hospitals in England and NHS funded activity in the independent sector. Information on privately funded activity in the independent sector is not available.
Asked by: Lord Maginnis of Drumglass (Independent Ulster Unionist - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is the average waiting time (1) from GP referral to initial specialist surgeon appointment, and (2) from initial specialist surgeon appointment to operation, for a hip replacement in the English regions of (a) London, (b) the South, (c) the Midlands and East, and (d) the North.
Answered by Lord Prior of Brampton
The information is not available in the format requested. The information which is available is from hospital episode statistics (HES), which give a detailed breakdown of individual episodes of care by procedure, including hip replacements. Within HES, it is not possible to link the outpatient and admitted patient datasets to determine if an outpatient appointment is linked to a subsequent hip replacement. It is therefore only possible to show time waited between decision to admit and admission to hospital. A table of this data is attached.
Asked by: Lord Maginnis of Drumglass (Independent Ulster Unionist - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many patients per 1 million population were on the waiting list for (1) hip replacement, and (2) knee replacement, in (a) October 2012, (b) October 2014 and (c) October 2016 in the English regions of (i) London, (ii) the South, (iii) the Midlands and East, and (iv) the North.
Answered by Lord Prior of Brampton
The information is not available in the format requested. Referral to treatment data are collected by 18 treatment functions and are not condition or procedure specific. Hip and knee replacements are included in the trauma and orthopaedics treatment function. The following table sets out how many patients per one million of the population were on a waiting list in the trauma and orthopaedics treatment function at the end of October 2012 and 2014.
Table: Number of trauma and orthopaedics1 patients per one million of the population that were waiting on an incomplete pathway at the end of October 2012 and October 2014.2
Region | October 2012 | October 2014 |
London | 5,701 | 5,486 |
South | 7,506 | 8,493 |
Midlands and East | 6,969 | 7,323 |
North | 7,372 | 8,182 |
England | 7,025 | 7,578 |
Source: Consultant-led referral to treatment waiting times, NHS England
Notes:
Asked by: Lord Maginnis of Drumglass (Independent Ulster Unionist - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answers by Lord Prior of Brampton on 11 and 12 February (HL5764 and HL5766) and by Baroness Neville-Rolfe on 11 February (HL5765), and in the light of current information about the increased extent of dangers from the Zika virus affecting up to 20 per cent of all births, whether they intend to issue further advice about, or to reconsider, in consultation with other European governments, the long-term implications of participating in or attending the 2016 Olympic Games in Brazil.
Answered by Lord Prior of Brampton
The British Olympic Association (BOA) and British Paralympic Association (BPA) have prepared guidance to consider the health risks, including those posed by Zika, for British athletes and staff travelling to Brazil for the Olympics.
The Department of Health has convened an Olympics health advisory group on behalf of the Department for Culture, Media and Sport to focus on Zika and to support the BOA and BPA to ensure that they can continue to provide the best possible information and advice.
The group will be chaired by the Department’s Chief Scientific Advisor, Professor Chris Whitty, and will bring together experts from the BOA and BPA as well as the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, University of Liverpool, University of Nottingham, the Royal Free London, Public Health England and across Government.
Revisions of existing guidance or specific further advice will be published if it is deemed necessary.
In the meantime, Public Health England and the National Travel Health Network and Centre (NaTHNaC) have developed and issued more general travel advice online to health professionals that is suitable for people travelling to Zika-affected countries, including pregnant women. A copy of the online advice is attached.
This includes a list of countries where Zika virus transmission is occurring, advice around bite avoidance measures and what and who to speak to if those travelling have concerns. PHE and NaTHNaC continue to monitor the situation very closely and update advice as needed.
Asked by: Lord Maginnis of Drumglass (Independent Ulster Unionist - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether health managers and practitioners in England have had access to the 2008 Department of Health, Social Services and Public Safety Independent Review of Autism Services or to any similar independent guidance regarding appropriate timescale targets for moving from initial autism referrals to diagnosis and appropriate care.
Answered by Lord Prior of Brampton
No formal statistics are collected of autism referrals, initial assessments or diagnoses. The Department does however commission Public Health England each year to carry out a self-assessment exercise with local authority areas on progress they are making in implementing the Autism Strategy for Adults in England. Local authorities work with their local partners including clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) to informally answer a range of questions.
In the exercise based on 2013 data, all 152 local authority areas replied but some did not answer all the questions. Areas were asked how many adults have completed the diagnostic pathway in the preceding year and 111 reported a total of 4,677. They were also asked the length of the average wait for referral to diagnostic services and 117 answered this question. The average of these figures, weighted for the population in the responding areas, was 27.9 weeks.
The exercise based on 2014 data saw 149 areas respond. They were asked how many adults had received a diagnosis of an autistic spectrum condition in the preceding year and 128 reported a total of 5,109. Areas were also asked the length of the average wait between referral and assessment for all adults and 135 answered this question. The average of these figures, similarly weighted, was 19.6 weeks. Information on the waiting time between autism referrals and initial assessments, and between initial assessments and diagnosis, was not collected during these exercises. The next exercise will be launched later in the spring.
The number of children and young people diagnosed with autism by the National Health Service is not collected centrally. Latest figures from the School Census (2015) state that there were 90,775 pupils with an autistic spectrum condition at state funded schools and non-maintained special schools in England. This has increased from a total of 56,250 in 2010 who were recorded as having a primary need of autism, but it is not directly comparable to the 2015 figures because of a change in collection methodology.
New statutory guidance was issued in England in March 2015 to support implementation of the Adult Autism Strategy. This set out what people seeking an autism diagnosis can expect from local authorities and NHS bodies. The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence has published three clinical guidelines on autism and a quality standard to assist health managers and practitioners in developing services. This includes a recommendation that an assessment is started within three months of the referral. NHS England has commenced a programme to visit CCGs to identify and share good practice in accessing autism diagnosis, and look at possible barriers. NHS England will complete a report on this by the end of April 2016.