Asked by: Adrian Ramsay (Green Party - Waveney Valley)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what information her Department holds on average waiting times for decisions on (a) offline and (b) digital Pension Credit applications.
Answered by Emma Reynolds - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
We are unable to provide Pension Credit average waiting times for decisions separately for offline and digital claims. Average Actual Clearance Times are measured weekly. The table below shows Average Actual Clearance Times (AACT) from the end of week commencing 2nd September to the end of week commencing 21st October, in working days.
DWP currently works to a planned timescale of 50 working days to clear Pension Credit claims.
Source | 02/09/24 | 09/09/24 | 16/09/24 | 23/09/24 | 30/09/24 | 07/10/24 | 14/10/24 | 21/10/24 | |
Winter Fuel Payment Dashboard | Pension Credit Claims AACT | 26 | 26 | 26 | 25 | 33 | 37 | 44 | 52 |
Please note.
Asked by: Adrian Ramsay (Green Party - Waveney Valley)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, whether the Government has issued guidance to local authorities on providing offline options for people to access public services.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
We have not done so as yet, but digital inclusion is a priority for the Government and we understand that some people will remain offline by choice, so alternative, accessible pathways need to be readily available and advertised. We are developing our approach on digital inclusion and will be working closely with the third sector, industry and local authorities.
Asked by: Adrian Ramsay (Green Party - Waveney Valley)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, pursuant to the Answer of 14 October 2024 to Question 7064 on Digital Technology: Disadvantaged, whether he plans to update the digital inclusion strategy.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
Yes, because digital inclusion is a priority for the Government and we have already set up the Digital Inclusion and Skills Unit (DISU) to address it.
Asked by: Adrian Ramsay (Green Party - Waveney Valley)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care on ensuring that people who (a) cannot and (b) choose not to be online are not excluded by the NHS’s planned transition from analogue to digital.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
Digital inclusion is a priority for Government. It means ensuring everyone has the access, skills, support and confidence to engage in our modern digital society, whatever their circumstances. We understand, however, that some people will remain offline by choice, and that alternative, accessible pathways to access public services need to be readily available and advertised. We are working across government departments to develop our approach on tackling digital exclusion, including colleagues at DHSC and NHS England.
Asked by: Adrian Ramsay (Green Party - Waveney Valley)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies of the causes of community pharmacy closures since 2016; and what steps he is taking to support community pharmacies in (a) Waveney Valley constituency and (b) England
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Pharmacies play a vital role in our healthcare system. Previous plans did not go far enough and we are looking at what changes we can introduce. The Government has set out its ambition to expand the role of pharmacies and to better utilise the skills of pharmacists and pharmacy technicians. That includes making prescribing part of the services delivered by community pharmacists.
Departmental officials are working at pace to conclude the consultation on the community pharmacy contractual framework arrangements for 2024/25 as quickly as possible. We are unable to provide further details until the consultation with the Community Pharmacy England is concluded. The outcome will be published and communicated to all contractors at that time.
Pharmacies are private business and decisions to close are made for a range of reasons, as in any other provider market. The Department continues to monitor patient access to all pharmaceutical services closely. Despite pharmacy closures in recent years, access remains good and four in five people in England live within in a 20-minute walk from a pharmacy, and this proportion is higher in the most deprived areas. Patients can also choose to access medicines and services through any of the nearly 400 National Health Service online pharmacies that are contractually required to deliver medicines free of charge to patients.
Asked by: Adrian Ramsay (Green Party - Waveney Valley)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the Answer of 16 September 2024 to Question HL786 on Pharmacy: Closures, what he plans to conclude the consultation with Community Pharmacy England on the national funding and contractual framework arrangements for 2024/25.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Pharmacies play a vital role in our healthcare system. Previous plans did not go far enough and we are looking at what changes we can introduce. The Government has set out its ambition to expand the role of pharmacies and to better utilise the skills of pharmacists and pharmacy technicians. That includes making prescribing part of the services delivered by community pharmacists.
Departmental officials are working at pace to conclude the consultation on the community pharmacy contractual framework arrangements for 2024/25 as quickly as possible. We are unable to provide further details until the consultation with the Community Pharmacy England is concluded. The outcome will be published and communicated to all contractors at that time.
Pharmacies are private business and decisions to close are made for a range of reasons, as in any other provider market. The Department continues to monitor patient access to all pharmaceutical services closely. Despite pharmacy closures in recent years, access remains good and four in five people in England live within in a 20-minute walk from a pharmacy, and this proportion is higher in the most deprived areas. Patients can also choose to access medicines and services through any of the nearly 400 National Health Service online pharmacies that are contractually required to deliver medicines free of charge to patients.
Asked by: Adrian Ramsay (Green Party - Waveney Valley)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent discussions his Department has had with (a) British Sugar and (b) the National Farmers Union on emergency authorisation of the thiamethoxam containing neonicotinoid Cruiser SB on sugar beet.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Defra regularly meets with both British Sugar and the National Farmers Union to discuss a range of topics such as crop development, harvest, trade and pest and disease pressures and progress in research and stewardship programmes.
All applications for emergency authorisation are assessed according to the legal requirements and on the basis of the evidence.
Asked by: Adrian Ramsay (Green Party - Waveney Valley)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will make an assessment of the potential implications for his Department's policies of the report by Wildlife and Countryside Link entitled Global Biodiversity Framework Tracker Report, published on 15 October 2024.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
We recognise the findings of the Global Biodiversity Framework Tracker Report and that more needs to be done on nature recovery.
Our submission to the CBD commits the UK to achieving each of the 23 global targets at home. They are underpinned by a set of specific commitments and policies to halt and reverse the loss of biodiversity. By submitting our national targets on time, we have ensured the UK’s commitments can be included in the global analysis to be carried out at COP16. We will publish the full UK National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan (NBSAP) in due course, detailing further delivery plans and future ambitions.
We set out our approach to implementing the Framework domestically in our Environmental Improvement Plan (EIP). On 30 July, we announced a rapid review of the EIP to develop a new, statutory plan to protect and restore our natural environment, helping us meet each of our ambitious Environment Act targets. It will focus on cleaning up our waterways, reducing waste across the economy, planting millions more trees, improving air quality, and halting the decline in species by 2030.
Asked by: Adrian Ramsay (Green Party - Waveney Valley)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will bring forward legislative proposals to ban the use of (a) cages and (b) close confinement systems for farmed animals.
Answered by Daniel Zeichner - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
We are firmly committed to maintaining and improving animal welfare and want to work closely with the farming sector to deliver high standards.
The use of cages and other close confinement systems for farmed animals is an issue we will want to fully consider in due course.
Asked by: Adrian Ramsay (Green Party - Waveney Valley)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what estimate his Department has made of the number of UK aid trucks reaching Gaza in (a) September and (b) October 2024; what steps he is taking with international counterparts to tackle constraints reportedly imposed by the Israeli Government on the number of aid trucks entering Gaza; and if he will make an estimate of the average daily number of (i) aid trucks and (ii) tonnes of aid that were needed to meet the demand for aid in Gaza in the last month.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
As set out in the Foreign Secretary's statement to the House on 2 September, this Government assesses that Israel must and should do more to ensure that life-saving food and medical supplies reach civilians in Gaza. The Foreign Secretary has raised repeatedly with Israeli leaders the need for a rapid increase of aid into Gaza, including during his joint visit with French Foreign Minister Stéphane Séjourné in August. I also raised this concern directly with the Israeli Ambassador to the United Kingdom during our meeting on 24 July. The UK does not operate independent trucking routes into Gaza, as this is more effectively managed by the UN and our other delivery partners. Truck numbers are a poor metric of humanitarian delivery, but UN figures show a daily average of 97 trucks (both humanitarian and commercial) entered Gaza in September, far below the 500 daily before 7 October 2023.