Asked by: Alison Thewliss (Scottish National Party - Glasgow Central)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when his Department plans to respond to the correspondence of 28 May 2019 from the hon. Member for Glasgow Central to the Under-Secretary of State for Mental Health, Inequalities and Suicide Prevention on food for special medical purposes.
Answered by Seema Kennedy
We are sorry for the delay in responding to the hon. Member’s letter of 28 May. A response will be issued shortly.
Asked by: Alison Thewliss (Scottish National Party - Glasgow Central)
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 mark National Breastfeeding Week 2019.
Answered by Jackie Doyle-Price
Breastfeeding Celebration Week 2019 is planned for week commencing 17 June. Along with partner organisations and breastfeeding charities. Public Health England (PHE) will engage in a social media centred celebration of breastfeeding. The theme for the week in 2019 is promoting the benefits of skin to skin contact, both immediately after birth and throughout the early weeks of life. PHE has commissioned a short film focussed on empowering young women who wish to breastfeed to support them achieving their intended breastfeeding duration and celebrating with women with black, Asian or minority ethnic ancestry who choose to breastfeed.
Asked by: Alison Thewliss (Scottish National Party - Glasgow Central)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to ensure the continuation of supply of methadone in the event of the UK leaving the EU without a deal.
Answered by Stephen Hammond
Leaving the European Union with a deal remains the Government’s top priority. However, as a responsible Government we must plan for every possible outcome including ‘no deal’. The Department has published guidance to industry and the health and care system to allow them to make informed plans and preparations. This is available on GOV.UK.
The Government has been working closely with industry to ensure the supply of medicines, including methadone, can continue uninterrupted in the event of a ‘no deal’ EU exit. Plans include building stockpiles, providing additional warehousing space and buying freight capacity on alternative ferry routes.
The Department, together with industry and the National Health Service, has analysed the supply chains of 12,300 medicines and we are grateful for excellent engagement from all parties, which means our plans are well advanced.
In August 2018, the Department wrote to all pharmaceutical companies that supply prescription-only and pharmacy medicines, to the United Kingdom that come from or via, the EU/European Economic Area, asking them to ensure a minimum of six weeks’ additional supply in the UK, over and above existing business-as-usual buffer stocks, by 29 March 2019 in the event of a ‘no deal’ EU exit.
The Department has put in place a multi-layered approach to minimise any supply disruption. We are confident that, if everyone does what they need to do, the supply of medicines and medical products will be uninterrupted.
Asked by: Alison Thewliss (Scottish National Party - Glasgow Central)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, which infant formulas have been approved for sale in the UK in the last month; and whether these have been notified to infant feeding leads.
Answered by Jackie Doyle-Price
The Department does not approve products for sale in the United Kingdom. However, under The Infant Formula and Follow-on Formula (England) Regulations 2007, businesses intending to place an infant formula on the market are required to give prior notice to the Secretary of State, and forward a model of the product label. Similar Regulations apply in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
The Department has not received any notifications of infant formula in the past month. However, products that may have recently come on the market may have been notified at an earlier date.
Asked by: Alison Thewliss (Scottish National Party - Glasgow Central)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when he plans to publish the green paper on prevention.
Answered by Steve Brine
The Green Paper on prevention will be published later this year. It will follow on from the NHS Long Term Plan in setting out our plans to put prevention at the heart of our health and social care system for the long term.
Asked by: Alison Thewliss (Scottish National Party - Glasgow Central)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to ensure the supply of Nutricia Nutrini Energy Multi Fibre for people requiring percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy feeding after the UK leaves the EU.
Answered by Steve Barclay - Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
The Government is working to ensure that the United Kingdom is able to cope with any potential delays at borders that may arise in the short term from the unlikely event of a no-deal outcome to our negotiations on exiting the European Union. Our planning will ensure that from the day the UK leaves the EU, we will have the necessary resources to continue to protect UK consumers from food safety risks and to ensure uninterrupted supplies of the foods they need, including foods for special medical purposes.
Asked by: Alison Thewliss (Scottish National Party - Glasgow Central)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to ensure the supply of Nutricia Nutrini Energy Multi Fibre and similar products for those requiring percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy feeding in the event the the UK leaves the EU without a deal.
Answered by Steve Barclay - Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
The Government is working to ensure that the United Kingdom is able to cope with any potential delays at borders that may arise in the short term from the unlikely event of a no-deal outcome to our negotiations on exiting the European Union. Our planning will ensure that from the day the UK leaves the EU, we will have the necessary resources to continue to protect UK consumers from food safety risks and to ensure uninterrupted supplies of the foods they need, including foods for special medical purposes.
Asked by: Alison Thewliss (Scottish National Party - Glasgow Central)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he plans to take to ensure that the full range of functions currently carried out by the European Food Safety Authority in relation to infant formula are continued after the UK leaves the EU.
Answered by Matt Hancock
The United Kingdom has a long tradition of close scientific collaboration with the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) which we greatly value and hope to continue in the future. Contingency plans are being developed to ensure that if continued access to the EFSA is not possible, the UK continues to receive robust scientific advice, that barriers to trade are not created, and that consumer protection and confidence are maintained.
Asked by: Alison Thewliss (Scottish National Party - Glasgow Central)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to support biomedical research on myalgic encephalomyelitis.
Answered by Caroline Dinenage
The Department’s National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) recognises that myalgic encephalomyelitis (ME) is a debilitating condition. The NIHR is speaking with the Chronic Fatigue Syndrome/ME Research Collaborative and patient representatives about how best we can support a joined up approach to high quality research into this complex disorder.
The NIHR welcomes funding applications for research into any aspect of human health, including ME; it is not usual practice to ring-fence funds for particular topics or conditions. Applications are subject to peer review and judged in open competition, with awards being made on the basis of the importance of the topic to patients and health and care services, value for money and scientific quality.
Asked by: Alison Thewliss (Scottish National Party - Glasgow Central)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to ensure the safety of infant formula.
Answered by Steve Brine
The manufacture of powdered infant formula and formula foods in the United Kingdom is comprehensively regulated by European Union legislation. Manufacturers must comply with requirements covering product safety as well as composition and nutritional appropriateness.
Manufacturers of these products in the UK are inspected on a routine basis by local authorities to monitor compliance. Manufacturers must inform the relevant authorities if unsafe products are placed on the market. Risk management processes exist within manufacturers and relevant authorities to remove products and investigate incidents.