Asked by: Alan Campbell (Labour - Tynemouth)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps her Department is taking with NHS England to reduce backlogs in Memory Assessment Services.
Answered by Helen Whately - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
In 2021/22, the Government made £17 million available to clinical commissioning groups to address dementia waiting lists and increase the number of diagnoses. This included identifying areas of good practice in dementia diagnosis, and provision of pre and post diagnostic support, which will be shared with dementia clinical networks and stakeholders.
Asked by: Alan Campbell (Labour - Tynemouth)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what plans the Government has to support businesses that want to implement a 32 hour, four-day working week.
Answered by Kevin Hollinrake - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
There is no ‘one size fits all’ approach to work arrangements. The government supports flexible working in all its forms, where it has benefits for, and is agreed between, both individuals and employers.
The existing legal framework provides a statutory right to request flexible working, where employees can request a change to their hours, pattern or place of work. Between September and December 2021, the government consulted on changes to this framework to better support the uptake of flexible working arrangements. We will respond in due course.
Asked by: Alan Campbell (Labour - Tynemouth)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, whether the Government plans to ban the sale of fireworks to the public.
Answered by Kevin Hollinrake - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The Government has no plans to ban the sale of fireworks to the public.
Asked by: Alan Campbell (Labour - Tynemouth)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of providing additional support to women affected by the raise in state pension age who are ineligible for the (a) winter fuel allowance and (b) cost of living payments in the context of the cost of living crisis.
Answered by Alex Burghart - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
This Government is committed to providing a financial safety net for those who need it, including when they near or reach retirement. Support is already available to those who are unable to work or are on a low income but are not eligible to pensioner benefits because of their age.
The government understands the pressures people are facing with the cost of living and has taken further decisive action to support people with their energy bills. The Energy Price Guarantee is supporting millions of households with rising energy costs, and the Chancellor made clear it will continue to do so from now until April next year. This is in addition to the over £37bn of Cost of Living support announced earlier this year which includes the £400 non-repayable discount to eligible households provided through the Energy Bills Support Scheme.
To support people who need additional help, the Government is providing an extra £500 million of local support. In England this will be via the Household Support Fund, which will be extended from this October to March 2023 backed by £421m. The Household Support Fund helps those in most need with payments towards the rising cost of food, energy and water bills. The Government has issued guidance to Local Authorities to ensure support is targeted towards those most in need of support, including those not eligible for the Cost of Living Payments set out on 26 May 2022. This brings the total amount provided for this type of support to £1.5 billion since October 2021.
Asked by: Alan Campbell (Labour - Tynemouth)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when she plans to publish details on her Department's 10-year plan for dementia.
Answered by Neil O'Brien
We are reviewing plans for dementia in England and further information will be available in due course.
Asked by: Alan Campbell (Labour - Tynemouth)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, if she will provide immediate emergency funding to public swimming pools in order to protect those public leisure facilities in the context of rising energy prices.
Answered by Nigel Huddleston - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
We recognise the importance of ensuring public access to indoor and outdoor pools and that swimming is a great way for people of all ages to stay fit and healthy. The responsibility of providing this access lies at Local Authority level, and the government continues to encourage Local Authorities to invest in swimming facilities.
We also recognise the impact rising energy prices will have on businesses of all sizes. Ofgem and the government are in regular contact with business groups and the leisure sector to understand the challenges they face and explore ways to protect consumers and businesses.
Sport England has invested £25,027,478 in swimming and diving projects since January 2017, which includes £15,724,500 to Swim England. This is in addition to the £100 million National Leisure Recovery Fund which supported the reopening of local authority swimming pools throughout the country after the pandemic.
Asked by: Alan Campbell (Labour - Tynemouth)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of further support for (a) care staff and (b) other people who rely on their car for work in the form of a mileage uplift.
Answered by Helen Whately - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Approved Mileage Allowance Payments (AMAPs) are used by employers to reimburse an employee’s expenses for business mileage in their private vehicle.
AMAPs are intended to create administrative simplicity and certainty by using an average rate, which reflects vehicle running costs including fuel, servicing and depreciation. Fuel is therefore only one component, constituting around a third of total costs included within the rate.
Ultimately it is for employers to determine the rate at which they reimburse their employees. Therefore, the AMAP rate is advisory and employers can choose to pay more or less than the advisory rate. Employees who receive less than the AMAP rate can claim tax relief on the difference. Employees who receive more will not be taxed on the difference if they can provide evidence of the expenditure.
Most domiciliary care staff are employed by private providers who decide their mileage reimbursement rate.
Like all taxes and allowances, the Government keeps the AMAP rate under review.
Asked by: Alan Campbell (Labour - Tynemouth)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what plans his Department has to order Evusheld for use in the NHS.
Answered by Maggie Throup
The Department continues to examine the potential introduction of prophylaxis, which includes deployment and administration processes. On 17 March 2022, Evusheld was granted conditional marketing approval by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency. However, the approval highlighted uncertainty over the dose required for protection against the Omicron variants.
We have asked clinicians to advise on the most appropriate option for the National Health Service in line with all available data, the public health situation and other treatments available.
Asked by: Alan Campbell (Labour - Tynemouth)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the extent of the shortage of HRT.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
There are more than 70 hormone replacement therapy (HRT) products currently available in the United Kingdom. While most remain in good supply, a range of factors such as an increase in demand has led to supply issues with a limited number of products. However, alternatives to those experiencing supply issues remain available.
Asked by: Alan Campbell (Labour - Tynemouth)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what plans he has to continue funding for the Office of National Statistics’ weekly infection survey after April 2022.
Answered by Maggie Throup
The UK Health Security Agency will maintain surveillance capabilities, including the Office of National Statistics’ COVID-19 Infection Survey, genomic sequencing and additional data.