To match an exact phrase, use quotation marks around the search term. eg. "Parliamentary Estate". Use "OR" or "AND" as link words to form more complex queries.


Keep yourself up-to-date with the latest developments by exploring our subscription options to receive notifications direct to your inbox

Written Question
Roads: Repairs and Maintenance
Thursday 28th March 2024

Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Conservative - Romford)

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps he has taken with relevant authorities to improve the condition of roads in (a) England and (b) Romford constituency.

Answered by Guy Opperman - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

The Department is providing an unprecedented £8.3 billion of additional funding over this year and the next decade to local highways authorities in England to enable them to transform the condition of their local roads. £150 million of this has already been allocated in 2023/24 with a further £150 million to follow in 2024/25. All of this has been made possible by reallocating funds that would have otherwise been spent on the HS2 programme.

The Romford constituency is in the London Borough of Havering, which will receive a minimum of £10.4 million of additional funding over the 11-year period. £333,000 of that has been allocated in 2023/24 with a further £333,000 to follow in 2024/25. All funding allocations can be found on gov.uk.


Written Question
Prisons: Drugs and Mobile Phones
Thursday 28th March 2024

Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Conservative - Romford)

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps his Department is taking to help tackle the smuggling of (a) drugs and (b) communication devices into prisons.

Answered by Edward Argar - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)

We are committed to tackling the smuggling of all illicit items into prisons, including drugs and communication devices such as mobile phones.

We completed the £100 million Security Investment Programme in March 2022, which included funding to bolster physical security measures. This investment delivered 75 additional X-ray body scanners, resulting in full coverage across the closed adult male estate. As of October 2023, we had recorded 46,925 positive indications, helping to tackle the supply of drugs and mobile phones into prisons. We also deployed Enhanced Gate Security to 42 high-risk prisons under this investment, implementing routine searching of staff and visitors. This included 659 dedicated staff, 154 drug sniffing dogs and over 200 pieces of equipment.

We have 165 drug trace detection machines across the prison estate to prevent the smuggling of drugs, such as psychoactive substances, through the mail. The rollout of an additional 20 next-generation devices was completed in March 2024, meaning every public section prison now has this next-generation equipment.

X-ray baggage scanners have been installed at 49 sites (45 prisons and 4 learning centres) building on the rollout of our X-ray body scanners, gate security and drug trace detection machines.

New airspace restrictions took effect on 25 January 2024 to create 400 metre flight restriction zones around all closed prisons and young offender institutions in England and Wales. These will ensure swift action is taken against criminal drone activity, including the smuggling of illicit items.


Written Question
Sickle Cell Diseases: Research
Thursday 28th March 2024

Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Conservative - Romford)

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps she has taken to support (a) research into and (b) treatment of sickle cell disease in (i) England and (ii) Romford constituency.

Answered by Andrew Stephenson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

We’re working hard to support research, and provide the best possible care to those living with sickle cell disease (SCD) across the country. The Department funds health and care research through the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR). Over the past five financial years, the NIHR has invested more than £8 million in funding and support for SCD research.

NHS Blood and Transplant (NHSBT) is the largest provider of apheresis services, a blood transfusion used to treat SCD. NHSBT will be delivering projects over the next 12 months that will increase both nursing capacity and the physical space in which apheresis occurs. We are also working to increase Ro subtype blood donation numbers, the blood type used to treat SCD, identify opportunities to improve clinical pathways, and deliver world-leading treatments, such as the new blood matching genetic test announced by NHS England earlier this year, which will reduce the risk of side effects and offer more personalised care.

NHS England’s Chief Executive Officer has committed to improving the treatment and outcomes of patients with SCD, and has commissioned a Sickle Cell Pathway Quality Improvement work package. A quality improvement review of existing processes has led to a range of improvements including awareness, education, and training of both patients and professionals.

The National Healthcare Inequalities Improvement Programme (HiQiP) has recently introduced a number of initiatives as part of the wider aim of tackling inequalities for people living with SCD. This includes: piloting of urgent and emergency department bypass units in London and Manchester, which will ensure people with SCD with an uncomplicated vaso-occlusive crisis are assessed and given pain relief in a timely manner; the provision of a credit card sized Sickle Cell Alert Card to all people with SCD, to alert medical and clinical staff that the carrier is a registered SCD patient and that they should be managed as a medical emergency; a London wide commissioning for the design and upload of a patient care record onto an interoperable digital platform which, when fully operational, will give clinicians and medical personnel in different regions access to a patient’s personalised care and analgesia record, removing ambiguity on effective treatment; and several products to support the above, including a communications campaign to raise awareness of existing NHS England arrangements to support people with SCD to save money on the costs of regular prescriptions, as well as the Can you tell it's Sickle Cell campaign and an e-learning module, both from NHS England. Further information on the Can you tell it's Sickle Cell campaign and the e-learning module is available respectively, at the following links:

https://www.england.nhs.uk/2022/06/nhs-launches-lifesaving-sickle-cell-campaign/

https://www.e-lfh.org.uk/programmes/health-inequalities/


Written Question
Heart Diseases: Research
Thursday 28th March 2024

Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Conservative - Romford)

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps she has taken to support (a) research into and (b) treatment of heart disease in (i) England and (ii) Romford constituency.

Answered by Andrew Stephenson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

The Department supports research through the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR). The NIHR welcomes funding applications for research into any aspect of human health, including those relating to heart disease. Over the past five financial years, the NIHR has spent over £64 million on heart-disease related research projects. In addition, the NIHR infrastructure provides clinical expertise, specialist facilities, workforce, and support services to support research across a range of clinical areas, including heart disease.

The Be Part of Research campaign makes it easier for people to find out about, and take part in, health and care research. Currently, there are seven high quality studies related to heart and circulation, which are being supported by the NIHR and are within five miles of Romford.

The NHS Long Term Plan sets out that by 2028 the proportion of patients accessing cardiac rehabilitation will be amongst the best in Europe, with up to 85% of those eligible accessing care. This will prevent up to 23,000 premature deaths and 50,000 acute admissions over 10 years. The NHS Health Check programme is a core component of England's cardiovascular diseases prevention pathway. Over 15 million people are eligible for an NHS Health Check every five years, and it delivers 1.3 million checks a year, preventing an estimated 500 heart attacks and strokes.


Written Question
Clothing: Cultural Heritage
Thursday 28th March 2024

Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Conservative - Romford)

Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps she has taken to support traditional English sartorial culture and the related industry.

Answered by Julia Lopez - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

As part of the Creative Industries Sector Vision, the government announced £2 million funding to support five London Fashion Weeks over the next two years. This will go specifically towards supporting emerging designer talent and increasing access to the sector, delivered through the British Fashion Council’s NEWGEN programme.

DCMS also supports the UK Research and Investment (UKRI) £15 million Circular Fashion programme, launched in 2022 to bring the sector, academia and government together to understand and drive the fashion and textiles industry towards sustainable and responsible practices. This programme will be critical in developing this area of research and meeting the goal of transforming the fashion and textiles sector to adopt economically viable and scalable circular models by 2032.

The textiles, fashion and craft industries play an important role in the UK’s social and cultural heritage, and are a major driver of economic growth. The UK is famous for its unrivalled creativity and innovation and it has a track record for producing some of the world’s most influential designers. Recognising this contribution, we are committed to supporting future growth in the sector. DCMS continues to engage with the British Fashion Council, the Crafts Council and the wider industries to understand the challenges the sectors are facing and how the government can best provide support.


Written Question
Tourism: VAT
Wednesday 27th March 2024

Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Conservative - Romford)

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what recent discussions has he had with businesses on tax-free shopping for international visitors.

Answered by Nigel Huddleston - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)

As the UK’s economic and finance ministry, HM Treasury has regular discussions with representatives from a wide range of industries including travel and retail as well as business representative organisations covering many sectors.


Written Question
Uganda: Christianity
Thursday 21st March 2024

Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Conservative - Romford)

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what steps his Department is taking to help support persecuted Christians in Uganda.

Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)

We have no evidence of state persecution of Christians based on religious belief in Uganda. However, Uganda faces a terrorist threat, including from the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF), or Islamic State DRC, which does target Christians, and has carried out attacks against civilians in Uganda in recent years, notably an attack on a school in Mpondwe on 16 June 2023, killing more than 40 people. I condemned this abhorrent attack in the strongest possible terms at the time. The British High Commission remains in close contact with Ugandan security services, who continue to conduct operations against the ADF.


Written Question
British Indian Ocean Territory: Crime
Wednesday 20th March 2024

Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Conservative - Romford)

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, how many crimes have been reported on the British Indian Ocean Territory in each of the last five years.

Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

The British Indian Ocean Territory (BIOT) is constitutionally distinct and separate from the UK and is administered by the BIOT Administration. The FCDO does not hold a record of how many crimes have been reported on the BIOT in each of the last five years.


Written Question
Telecommunications: Regulation
Tuesday 19th March 2024

Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Conservative - Romford)

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of (a) reviewing regulatory oversight of and (b) promoting good practice by the telecoms industry.

Answered by Julia Lopez - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

As the independent regulator for the telecoms industry, Ofcom plays an essential role in maintaining regulatory oversight, promoting best practice and liaising with government to provide the best outcomes possible for the consumer. The regulator undertakes regular reviews of regulation, and it concluded its Wholesale Fixed Telecoms Market Review in 2021, setting out broadband regulation for the 2021-2026 period. It also assessed its approach to mobile markets in its Mobile Strategy Review in 2022.

The Government published its Statement of Strategic Priorities in 2019 to ensure Ofcom’s regulation is aligned with our objectives, including our commitments to world-class digital infrastructure, promoting competition, and to safeguarding the interests of telecoms consumers.

A consultation on ‘Strengthening economic regulation in the water, energy and telecoms sectors’ concluded in January this year and we are currently considering responses related to the telecoms sector.


Written Question
Carers: Romford
Tuesday 19th March 2024

Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Conservative - Romford)

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to support kinship carers in Romford constituency.

Answered by David Johnston - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)

In December 2023, the department published Championing Kinship Care, the first ever national kinship care strategy. The department is investing £20 million of funding in financial year 2024/25 for Championing Kinship Care, to help move towards a children’s social care system with kinship at its heart.

It may be helpful to look at Kinship’s website to see whether there are local peer to peer support groups being delivered for kinship carers in Romford. The website can be found here: https://compass.kinship.org.uk/groups/.