United Kingdom: Future Pandemics

Lord West of Spithead Excerpts

Monday 16th January 2023 Lords Chamber

[Noble Lords]

My Lords—

[Lord West of Spithead (Lab)]

It is this side.

[Baroness Williams of Trafford (Con)]

I was just about to confirm that it is the turn of the noble Lord, Lord Browne.

Personal Protective Equipment: Procurement

Lord West of Spithead Excerpts

Thursday 19th November 2020 Lords Chamber

[Lord Bethell (Con)]

My Lords, I acknowledge the extremely good work that the noble Lord does on this issue. Of course, no one wants to see Uighur slave labour used to produce PPE for the NHS. On his specific questions, I do not have the details to hand, but I am happy to revisit the Written Answer that I gave him to see whether I can provide any further details.

[Lord West of Spithead (Lab)]

My Lords, this issue and the report fill me with despair, I must say, as does the fact that it appears that the Government took action almost in a panic. Yes, horrible things happen but Governments should not panic, and there are rules, which should be followed. One could understand an individual who is ill informed and not well educated grabbing a supermarket trolley and filling it with loo rolls, but that is not how Governments should act. There are very clear ways of behaving. When I was in Whitehall and wanted to procure things, I had to go through several hoops. Civil Service rules and the law demanded it, and the fact that we had to do things quickly was not an excuse. Post all this, will we check that Civil Service rules were complied with and that the correct actions were taken that did not break any laws of the land?

[Lord Bethell (Con)]

I am always grateful for advice from the Ministry of Defence on procurement, which it always manages extremely well. With regard to the work of civil servants, the report speaks for itself. That is the exact purpose of the report.

Cannabis: Medicinal Use

Lord West of Spithead Excerpts

Monday 4th March 2019 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Blackwood of North Oxford]

The evidence base for the quality and effectiveness of these products is limited; it is developing. This is why the Government have asked the MHRA to call for a proposal to enhance our knowledge of these medications. However, we have not waited for this; we have introduced a route via unlicensed medications which allows for doctors who are on the specialist register to prescribe for patients. This is the right route; these are the doctors who will understand the conditions mostly likely to benefit from prescription and who are able to make a judgment about the safety and efficacy of medicinal cannabis. It is the route usually used for unlicensed medications and already set up by the MHRA. We want to see more licensed products in this route, however; we call upon industry to invest in more trials and publish the results and full underpinning data to build our knowledge so that more patients are able to benefit.

[Lord West of Spithead (Lab)]

The majority of those guilty of violent terrorist crimes in this country are found to be heavy users of cannabis. When one looks at violent crime outside of terrorism, it seems again—although I do not know the details—that very often the people involved are heavy users of skunk—not the kind of cannabis that we are talking about but the liquid stuff. Are the Government looking at the relationship between the use of these really strong types of cannabis and violent crime, to see whether anything should be done about it?

[Baroness Blackwood of North Oxford]

The medicines we are speaking about are not skunk. The noble Lord is right that all medicines carry risk, but they can also be beneficial. That is why we have introduced a route to allow medicinal cannabis to be used for those conditions where it will be beneficial. The change in the law allows strict access by specialist doctors who, in making the decisions to prescribe, can ensure that the benefit outweighs the harm to the patient and that the restrictions are line with advice from the ACMD. Any further concerns around the kinds of drugs that the noble Lord is talking about are still strictly controlled by the Home Office and by policing.

Medical Examiners and Death Certification

Lord West of Spithead Excerpts

Wednesday 18th October 2017 Lords Chamber

[Lord West of Spithead (Lab)]

In 2009, a certain amount of work was done on how we would handle mass deaths should they occur because of some crisis or emergency. Does any of the current work affect that? Does that work still stand, so that we can handle such events properly?

[Lord O'Shaughnessy]

I think that the difference here is between handling mass deaths, which would obviously be an emergency situation—so we are talking about contingency and resilience planning—and looking at all deaths. About half a million people die each year. At the moment, only those who go through coroners receive that additional level of investigation, except in those pilot sites and early adopter areas that I mentioned. The new arrangements are about making sure that there is a system of verifying deaths from normal causes.

Obesity

Lord West of Spithead Excerpts

Thursday 26th May 2016 Lords Chamber

[Lord Prior of Brampton]

My Lords, I was not saying that it was exclusively individual responsibility, but we have to recognise that individuals must take some degree of responsibility for their own actions. Of course the noble Baroness is absolutely right. That is why we and the last Government introduced free school meals in all infant schools. It is why the proceeds of the levy will be ploughed back into increased sport and PE facilities in schools and why we have the fruit and vegetable scheme for schools. Of course we take diet and food extremely seriously, and where we have direct control, as we do in schools, we take action.

[Lord West of Spithead (Lab)]

My Lords, next week, when the House is up, is the centenary of the Battle of Jutland, where some 9,000 men from our two countries died. None of them was obese, I hasten to add, but the standard porthole was smaller than the size of the average man, so sadly many died able to see their way to freedom but unable to make it. Will the noble Lord pass the wishes of this House to all those commemorating the event and the 9,000 men who died bravely for their countries in a divided Europe?

[Lord Prior of Brampton]

My Lords, I certainly echo those sentiments. My history is not as good as the noble Lord’s. I had not realised that 9,000 men died in that action, which is a huge number of people. I certainly join with him and, I am sure, everyone in this House in commemorating those very brave men.

Alcohol

Lord West of Spithead Excerpts

Wednesday 9th December 2015 Lords Chamber

[Lord Prior of Brampton]

My Lords, I think that we would be setting an excellent example if we did that.

[Lord West of Spithead (Lab)]

My Lords, does the Minister not agree that alcohol has been a fundamental part of western civilisation for millennia, and that in moderation it is actually quite pleasant?

[Lord Prior of Brampton]

My Lords, I agree entirely with that. Pubs, clubs and restaurants are a vital part of a happy and cohesive society, so I am very happy to agree with those sentiments.

Drug Companies: Medical Trials

Lord West of Spithead Excerpts

Monday 24th February 2014 Lords Chamber

[Earl Howe]

I absolutely agree with my noble friend. The Government are committed to transparency in the area of clinical trials. Transparency is important for patients, the public, researchers and the NHS, and it can be achieved through ensuring trial registration and outcome publication, as well as making data available through the appropriate channels. I think that the new EU regulation will be extremely helpful in promoting transparency, and the availability of summaries of all trials and clinical study reports will be a part of that regulation. However, I take my noble friend’s point about a simple guide for the public and I will gladly consider it.

[Lord West of Spithead (Lab)]

My Lords, will the Minister confirm that the work put in hand by the previous Government to ensure that we had the capacity to produce sufficient quantities of drugs to counteract various types of bird flu, once it had been identified, has now been completed and that we are in a position to be able to do that?

[Earl Howe]

My Lords, I readily acknowledge the work done by the previous Government, which makes this country probably the best prepared in the world for a flu pandemic.

Mesothelioma

Lord West of Spithead Excerpts

Thursday 5th December 2013 Lords Chamber

[Earl Howe]

My Lords, I said earlier that the discussions between the British Lung Foundation and the insurance industry have not so far resulted in a pledge for further funding, but as my noble friend Lord Avebury has indicated, that door may be open. However, we should bear in mind that asking insurance companies to fund research is an unusual mechanism in itself. I suggest that we should not push the envelope too far because in the end the cost will fall on the industry.

[Lord West of Spithead (Lab)]

My Lords—

[Noble Lords]

Next Question!

Female Genital Mutilation

Lord West of Spithead Excerpts

Thursday 7th November 2013 Lords Chamber

[Earl Howe]

My Lords, I agree with my noble friend. Female genital mutilation is child abuse and violence against girls and women. It is also a criminal offence, and cutters and perpetrators need to be brought to justice. I pay tribute to the work currently in train in the Department for International Development, which has begun an ambitious programme to address FGM in Africa and beyond.

[Lord West of Spithead (Lab)]

My Lords—

[Baroness Butler-Sloss (CB)]

My Lords—

--- Later in debate ---

[Earl Howe]

My Lords, the Government are as frustrated as I am sure the noble and learned Baroness is by the lack of prosecutions. We welcome the Crown Prosecution Service action plan, published last year with a view to bringing successful prosecutions. The CPS guidance on FGM prosecutions provides a useful framework for prosecutors to understand how to build stronger cases with the police to bring to court. It explains how they need to be aware of the fact that where there is a victim of FGM, the local authority or social services may well have material or information to support that.

[Lord West of Spithead]

My Lords, we have failed thousands of young women. This issue first came above my radar horizon as a Minister in the Home Office when one of my sisters, who was training as a midwife, explained the full horror and scale of FGM. I was completely horrified. I failed in my time in the Home Office to ensure that people were being correctly prosecuted. Since then, we have not done any better. I am glad to hear what is being said, but does the Minister really believe that now we will ensure we have a series of prosecutions? If we do not, we will not stop this vile thing happening.

[Earl Howe]

I completely agree with the noble Lord. It is clear that we need to make a step change in the landscape here. We have continued to prioritise FGM, both at home and overseas. The intercollegiate report, however, published this week, adds a very welcome dimension to the work we are doing. It was written by health professionals and FGM experts for health professionals, and the Government will naturally study the report very carefully and consider the recommendations as part of the cross-government programme of work to tackle and eradicate this awful practice.