Lord Turnberg

DFID is providing £0.5million to the Materials Monitoring Unit (MMU) which oversees and monitors the import, storage, supply and use of construction materials into Gaza under the auspices of the Gaza Reconstruction Mechanism (GRM). This Mechanism is designed to ensure reconstruction material reaches those who need it most.

We continue to engage with the Palestinian Authority, the UN and the Government of Israel to ensure the mechanism continues to work as intended and that any possible infractions are reported.

The UK is leading the international response to the Ebola crisis in Sierra Leone. We have built 6 Emergency Treatment Centres staffed by British and international healthcare workers, are supporting more than half of all the treatment and isolation beds available for Ebola patients, trained 4000 frontline health care staff, and provided three new laboratories to test one third of all samples collected nationally.

Israel has donated $8.75 million to the UN’s Ebola Response Multi Partner Trust Fund. The UK is also represented here and coordinates closely with other donors on priorities for the Fund.

UK policy on Hamas is clear: we do not talk to Hamas and we have no plan to do so at present. At the Gaza Reconstruction Conference, the UK pledged £20 million for early recovery assistance. DFID has already disbursed £5 million and will provide the remainder in 2015/16. The UK was also the first donor to support the temporary tri-partite Gaza Reconstruction Mechanism (GRM) which is facilitating the import of construction materials into Gaza.

Reconstruction in Gaza will require political commitment by all parties, technical capacities for crossings and equipment, the smooth functioning of the Gaza Reconstruction Mechanism and adequate financial resources. The UK is providing £0.5 million to the Mechanism as part of our pledge for Gaza early recovery and reconstruction. By 10 December, more than 6,000 people had been able to buy building materials. Ultimately, we need to see a sustainable solution for Gaza that addresses the underlying issues, and we continue to urge the parties to resume negotiations to that end.

The National Health Service is expanding access to NHS Talking Therapies for adults with common mental health conditions, such as anxiety and depression, with a commitment to increase the number of people completing courses of treatment by 384,000 and increase the number of sessions, between 2024/25 and 2028/29.

Decisions about recruitment are matters for individual NHS trusts. NHS trusts manage their recruitment at a local level, ensuring they have the right number of staff in place, with the right skill mix, to deliver safe and effective care.

However, we know that the NHS has been facing workforce shortages for a number of years and, while there has been growth in the mental health workforce over recent years, more is needed. That is why, as part of our mission to build an NHS that is fit for the future and is there when people need it, we will recruit an additional 8,500 mental health workers to reduce waiting times and provide faster treatment. We recognise that bringing in the staff needed will take time. We are working with NHS England on options to deliver this expansion of the mental health workforce.

A public consultation on the proposal to expand community water fluoridation in the North East of England finished on 31 July 2024. We are currently considering the responses to this consultation, and a decision on whether to expand the scheme will be announced in due course.

We hugely value the critical role that general practitioners (GPs) play, and we are determined to address the issues they face by shifting the focus of the National Health Service beyond hospitals and into the community.

We have committed to training thousands more GPs across the country, as well as taking pressure off those currently working in the system. The inclusion of newly qualified GPs into the Additional Roles Reimbursement Scheme (ARRS) will also support the recruitment of GPs.

The ARRS provides funding for a number of additional roles to help create bespoke, multi-disciplinary teams. All these roles are in place to assist GPs in reducing their workload and assisting patients directly with their needs, allowing doctors to focus on more complex patients and other priorities, including continuity of care.

The data requested is not held centrally.

We recognise that the NHS Practitioner Health service is valued by many doctors. NHS England is reviewing the service as part of a wider review of its mental health and wellbeing offer to National Health Service staff. It was confirmed on 15 April 2024 that the service will continue to accept new patients from primary and secondary care whilst this review is undertaken over the next 12 months. NHS England will confirm future arrangements once the review has been completed.

We are deeply concerned about the rise in antisemitic incidents since 7 October 2023. That is why on 22 November 2023, the Chancellor announced in his Autumn Statement an additional £7 million over three years to tackle antisemitism in education.

​The Secretary of State for Education and the Minister for Skills wrote to all schools, colleges, and universities on 11 October 2023, urging them to respond swiftly to hate-related incidents and actively reassure Jewish students that they can study without fear of harassment or intimidation. The Minister for Skills wrote again to Vice Chancellors on 16 November 2023, further emphasising the use of disciplinary measures and the importance of police engagement, as well as the suspension of student visas where the student is a foreign national. This was one of the key actions in the five-point plan for tackling antisemitism in higher education, How we’re protecting Jewish students on university campuses, which was published on GOV.UK on 5 November 2023 in an online-only format.

On 3 November 2023, the former Secretary of State for Health and Social Care wrote to healthcare regulators, including the General Medical Council (GMC), which is the independent regulator of all medical professionals practising in the United Kingdom, to emphasise that there can be no place in our healthcare professions for those espousing racism or extremism. The letter asked the regulators what action they are taking, in the context of a rise in incidents of an antisemitic nature and of individuals expressing support for proscribed terrorist organisations.

All doctors must meet the expected standards set out in Good medical practice, the GMC’s framework of professional standards. These standards make clear that all doctors must treat patients and colleagues fairly and without discrimination. The GMC has a zero-tolerance approach to racism. Failure to uphold and adhere to the principles within these standards and related guidance may put a doctor’s registration with the GMC at risk. A copy of these standards is attached.

Due to the fragmented nature of the adult social care sector and no centralised operational recruitment data tracking, it is not possible to assess the number of new adult social care workers expected to be recruited as a result of campaign activity.

However, to mitigate this, proxy measures have been developed to assess campaign impact, which include visits to the campaign website and searches for a job in adult social care during the campaign period.

There are no current plans to introduce a national register of care workers. As part of our reforms for the adult social care workforce we plan to introduce a verified record of qualifications and training for the care workforce. This will establish a foundation for registration of care workers in future.

Our call for evidence to inform the development of a new Care Workforce Pathway for adult social care closed on 31 May 2023. We are currently analysing the responses and intend to publish the first part of the Pathway, focused on staff in direct care roles, in autumn 2023. We will work with the sector to implement the Pathway over the following months.

The Government has now received initial reports from all local authorities in England, as part of the £1.4 billion Market Sustainability and Improvement Fund (MSIF) grant conditions.

In accordance with the guidance published in March 2023, local authorities can use MSIF flexibly to drive tangible improvements across a range of target areas, to best address local sustainability and improvement needs. These target areas are reducing adult social care waiting times, increasing adult social care workforce capacity and retention, and increasing fee rates paid to adult social care providers. Local authorities must evidence improvement in at least one of the target areas, using Departmental performance metrics provided in the guidance. Improvements will be assessed in local authorities’ final reports, which will be submitted to the Department in May 2024.

The Care Act 2014 sets out the framework within which local authorities carry out their responsibilities for undertaking appropriate care and needs assessments. Furthermore, the Act sets out how local authorities should work with other experts, such as health services, to ensure the packages of support meet the needs of people drawing on care.

Local authorities are responsible for assessing individuals’ care and support needs and, where eligible, for meeting those needs. Where individuals do not meet the eligibility threshold, they can get support from their local authorities in making their own arrangements for care services, as set out in the Care Act 2014.

Eligible needs are those which relate to, for example, maintaining personal hygiene and nutrition, and maintaining and developing relationships, and which significantly impact on the adult’s wellbeing. Full details of the eligibility requirements can be found in The Care and Support (Eligibility Criteria) Regulations 2014.

We do not currently hold data on how many applications for social care have been assessed for need. Through a new data collection, Client Level Data, we are beginning to collect event-level information from local authorities on adult social care activity. This will include records of assessment of eligible needs and the funding status of local authority-commissioned services.

To assess means, local authorities must follow The Care and Support (Charging and Assessment of Resources) Regulations 2014 and have regard to the Care and Support Statutory (CASS) guidance. The responsibility for interpreting and applying the Regulations and the CASS guidance rests with local authorities.

Whether or not a person qualifies for any financial support towards their care costs depends on their capital assets as follows: anyone who has above the upper capital limit of £23,250 is expected to meet the full cost of their care; anyone who has below the lower capital limit of £14,250 pays what they can afford from income only; and anyone between the above two limits pays what they can afford from income plus a contribution from their assets.

A means-tested contribution from assets is determined by tariff income, which assumes that a person can afford to pay £1 per week for every £250 of assets between the limits. In 2021/22 there were almost 1,978,550 requests for support from new clients received by local authorities. Data on the funding of means testing done in the past 10 years is not held centrally.

Local authorities are responsible for assessing individuals’ care and support needs and, where eligible, for meeting those needs. Where individuals do not meet the eligibility threshold, they can get support from their local authorities in making their own arrangements for care services, as set out in the Care Act 2014.

Eligible needs are those which relate to, for example, maintaining personal hygiene and nutrition, and maintaining and developing relationships, and which significantly impact on the adult’s wellbeing. Full details of the eligibility requirements can be found in The Care and Support (Eligibility Criteria) Regulations 2014.

We do not currently hold data on how many applications for social care have been assessed for need. Through a new data collection, Client Level Data, we are beginning to collect event-level information from local authorities on adult social care activity. This will include records of assessment of eligible needs and the funding status of local authority-commissioned services.

To assess means, local authorities must follow The Care and Support (Charging and Assessment of Resources) Regulations 2014 and have regard to the Care and Support Statutory (CASS) guidance. The responsibility for interpreting and applying the Regulations and the CASS guidance rests with local authorities.

Whether or not a person qualifies for any financial support towards their care costs depends on their capital assets as follows: anyone who has above the upper capital limit of £23,250 is expected to meet the full cost of their care; anyone who has below the lower capital limit of £14,250 pays what they can afford from income only; and anyone between the above two limits pays what they can afford from income plus a contribution from their assets.

A means-tested contribution from assets is determined by tariff income, which assumes that a person can afford to pay £1 per week for every £250 of assets between the limits. In 2021/22 there were almost 1,978,550 requests for support from new clients received by local authorities. Data on the funding of means testing done in the past 10 years is not held centrally.

The Department does not hold the data requested.

Everyone working in the National Health Service had a fundamental right to be safe at work. NHS England’s NHS Violence Reduction Programme aims to prevent and reduce violence and aggression from patients, their families and the public, and mitigate the effects of violence and abuse on NHS staff.

A key part of this has been the creation of Violence Prevention and Reduction Standards, which help NHS organisations assess their arrangements for managing the risk of violence towards staff. Work is underway with integrated care systems to improve system working and skill mix training in tackling violence, embedding a longer term, preventative approach in line with the World Health Organization and Home Office guidance.

NHS England has invested £8.4 million into the ambulance service sector to explore the efficacy of body worn cameras in reducing violence and abuse. All ambulance trusts are now trialling the cameras and an independent evaluation is underway with a final report expected at the end of the 2024. In addition, NHS England have been working with the Association of Ambulance Chief Executives, to produce a national communications campaign in response to the rising levels of aggression, verbal and physical assaults against NHS ambulance staff.

The Government legislated last year through the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act to double the sentence for assaults on emergency workers to a maximum of two years.

We do not currently have a national mechanism to capture and report incidents of violence and aggression in the National Health Service. Data is held at a local level.

At a national level, data on self-reported violent incidents is gathered through the NHS Staff Survey. Results from the 2022 NHS Staff Survey indicated that 14.7% of NHS staff have self-reported that they have experienced at least one incident of physical violence from patients, service users, relatives or other members of the public in the last 12 months.

27.8% of NHS staff who completed the NHS Staff Survey experienced at least one incident of harassment, bullying or abuse in the last 12 months from patients or service users, their relatives or members of the public. This figure is similar to previous years’ NHS Staff Survey data.

NHS England has commissioned a number of data insight workstreams to better understand the current landscape of statistics, data reporting and associated challenges. This includes a national review of all available data and intelligence sources, an analysis of the costs of violence to the health care system in England and a review of the impact on the safety and wellbeing of NHS staff.

The Ministry of Justice collects data on prosecution, conviction and sentences for the offence of assault on an emergency worker, although it does not identify the type of emergency worker. This data is available in the Criminal Justice Statistics Quarterly and the Outcomes of Offence Tool and Offence Group Classification: Criminal Justice System Statistics Quarterly: December 2022, a copy of which is attached.

We do not currently have a national mechanism to capture and report incidents of violence and aggression in the National Health Service. Data is held at a local level.

At a national level, data on self-reported violent incidents is gathered through the NHS Staff Survey. Results from the 2022 NHS Staff Survey indicated that 14.7% of NHS staff have self-reported that they have experienced at least one incident of physical violence from patients, service users, relatives or other members of the public in the last 12 months.

27.8% of NHS staff who completed the NHS Staff Survey experienced at least one incident of harassment, bullying or abuse in the last 12 months from patients or service users, their relatives or members of the public. This figure is similar to previous years’ NHS Staff Survey data.

NHS England has commissioned a number of data insight workstreams to better understand the current landscape of statistics, data reporting and associated challenges. This includes a national review of all available data and intelligence sources, an analysis of the costs of violence to the health care system in England and a review of the impact on the safety and wellbeing of NHS staff.

The Ministry of Justice collects data on prosecution, conviction and sentences for the offence of assault on an emergency worker, although it does not identify the type of emergency worker. This data is available in the Criminal Justice Statistics Quarterly and the Outcomes of Offence Tool and Offence Group Classification: Criminal Justice System Statistics Quarterly: December 2022, a copy of which is attached.

In 2017 the National Audit confirmed that developments in the legal market are amongst the biggest factors influencing costs, rather than any detectable decline in patient safety.

The Department is working with the Ministry of Justice, other Government departments and NHS Resolution, to address this issue. The Government will publish a consultation on the next steps in 2021.

Everyone with symptoms of COVID-19 is eligible for a test, but we know that certain groups or individuals may find access more difficult or be less likely to want to access a test or feel unable to self-isolate. This could be for a combination of reasons, from capability through to personal circumstance.

We are working on a number of policies to address these barriers, such as:

- the NHS 119 call centre uses the Language Line interpreter service and staff are trained to manage language barriers, including through use of this service;

- we have opened new ‘walk in’ local testing centres to make it easier for people without cars to get a test; and

- we are also conducting a targeted evaluation of asymptomatic workers in several high contact professions. In a number of these occupations such as taxi drivers, cleaners and retail assistants, there is high representation of black, Asian and minority ethnic groups. This evaluation is intended to help us learn more about who may be at higher risk from COVID-19 and how to help keep people in professions that come into greater contact with others safe.

We have also created a home testing programme that provides access to testing to anyone, anywhere in the United Kingdom. We are continuously improving the service so that testing is accessible to all. This includes working with a diverse range of organisations to help us making home as easy to access and as user friendly as possible. For example, we are currently working with the Royal National Institute of Blind People to make home testing services more accessible for the visually impaired.