Asked by: Graeme Morrice (Labour - Livingston)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many patients waited longer than four hours in A&E departments in 2014.
Answered by Norman Lamb
Of almost 22.4 million attendances at all accident and emergency departments in England in 2014, 94.5% of patients were seen within the four hour standard. Of these, just over 1.2 million patients spent over four hours in accident and emergency from arrival to admission, transfer or discharge.
Asked by: Graeme Morrice (Labour - Livingston)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many clinicians he consulted when developing his policy in relation to the Off-patent Drugs Bill.
Answered by George Freeman
We have not consulted on this Bill. In developing our response to the Bill, we have taken advice from clinicians and officials at NHS England, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence and the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency, and taken account of views expressed by other stakeholder organisations.
Asked by: Graeme Morrice (Labour - Livingston)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment she has made of the effect of recent changes to the nursery milk scheme on the ability of schools to fulfil the requirements of the School Food Standards in relation to milk.
Answered by Dan Poulter
A modernised Nursery Milk Scheme is currently under development and expected to be tendered in due course.
The assessment of any effects of the changes to the Nursery Milk Scheme are part of ongoing discussions between officials via a cross Government Nursery Milk Scheme Task and Finish Group.
The changes have no impact on either the current School Food Standards Regulations or the new School Food Standards Regulations which come into force on 1 January 2015.
The Nursery Milk Scheme is available to all children under five who attend an eligible childcare setting for two hours per day or more. Eligible settings include child-minders, day care providers, private and local authority run nurseries. The School Food Standards apply to schools rather than nursery and private childcare and child minder settings.
Asked by: Graeme Morrice (Labour - Livingston)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of the effects of changes to the nursery milk scheme on the supply of milk.
Answered by Dan Poulter
A modernised Nursery Milk Scheme is currently under development and expected to be tendered in due course. The aim of the scheme remains to supply nursery milk to all eligible settings.
The Government’s response to the consultation document Next Steps for Nursery Milk was published on 27 March earlier this year setting out the preferred option for modernising the scheme. The Impact Assessment, also published on 27 March sets out the impact of the preferred option, including any impact on the supply of milk. These documents are attached and also available at the following web links:
https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/making-the-nursery-milk-scheme-more-cost-effective
http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukia/2014/110
It is the Department’s intention to ensure that a modernised Nursery Milk Scheme includes opportunities for small and medium-sized enterprises, and farmers, to be fully involved with the scheme.
Asked by: Graeme Morrice (Labour - Livingston)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many children were naturally stillborn before 24 weeks' gestation in each of the last five years.
Answered by Dan Poulter
Information on the number of pregnancy losses before 24 weeks’ gestation is not collected centrally.
Asked by: Graeme Morrice (Labour - Livingston)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what representations he has received on changing the law relating to designation of babies born before 24 weeks' gestation as stillborn.
Answered by Dan Poulter
A search of the Department’s Ministerial correspondence database has identified eight items of correspondence received since 1 July 2013 about the law relating to the designation and registration of pregnancy losses before 24 weeks gestation. This is a minimum figure which represents correspondence received by the Department’s Ministerial correspondence unit only.
Since 1 July 2013, two written parliamentary questions have been received about the law relating to the designation and registration of pregnancy losses before 24 weeks gestation.
I met the hon. Member for East Worthing and Shoreham (Tim Loughton) in April 2014 to discuss the Registration of Stillbirths 2013-14 private members (ten minute rule) Bill. The Bill was also raised by several hon. Members in a Westminster Hall debate about stillbirth and infant mortality on 26 March 2014.
Asked by: Graeme Morrice (Labour - Livingston)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what representations he has received about the establishment of a register of babies stillborn before 24 weeks' gestation.
Answered by Dan Poulter
A search of the Department’s Ministerial correspondence database has identified eight items of correspondence received since 1 July 2013 about the law relating to the designation and registration of pregnancy losses before 24 weeks gestation. This is a minimum figure which represents correspondence received by the Department’s Ministerial correspondence unit only.
Since 1 July 2013, two written parliamentary questions have been received about the law relating to the designation and registration of pregnancy losses before 24 weeks gestation.
I met the hon. Member for East Worthing and Shoreham (Tim Loughton) in April 2014 to discuss the Registration of Stillbirths 2013-14 private members (ten minute rule) Bill. The Bill was also raised by several hon. Members in a Westminster Hall debate about stillbirth and infant mortality on 26 March 2014.
Asked by: Graeme Morrice (Labour - Livingston)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will establish a register of babies naturally born before 24 weeks gestation.
Answered by Dan Poulter
All live births in England and Wales must be registered, regardless of gestational age. Data on live births by gestation are collected by the Office for National Statistics and published annually (as part of the statistical bulletin on gestation-specific infant mortality in England and Wales).
There are no current plans to establish a separate register of babies born before 24 weeks gestation.
Asked by: Graeme Morrice (Labour - Livingston)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what estimate he has made of the number of healthcare professionals who (a) are aware of and (b) use the databases of the British Society of Urogynaecology and the British Association of Urological Surgeons to record adverse effects in transvaginal mesh implants.
Answered by Norman Lamb
The Department, NHS England and the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) have been working collaboratively to address the serious concerns that have been raised about transvaginal mesh implants. A working group has been set up to discuss these and will cover a range of issues including better collection and coordination of information on patients outcomes including complications, incident reporting and the need for a register. It will also consider how the British Society of Urogynaecology/ the British Association of Urological Surgeons databases can assist in providing information on the use of transvaginal mesh implants, patient outcomes and complications and the use of these databases by professionals. The working group will also look at ways of working with devolved administrations to improve incident reporting to the MHRA and the development of patient consent forms.
Asked by: Graeme Morrice (Labour - Livingston)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what representations he has received from (a) patients, (b) professional bodies, (c) the MHRA and (d) mesh manufacturers on the use of the databases of the British Society of Urogynaecology and British Association of Urological Surgeons to record adverse effects in transvaginal mesh implants.
Answered by Norman Lamb
The Department, NHS England and the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) have been working collaboratively to address the serious concerns that have been raised about transvaginal mesh implants. A working group has been set up to discuss these and will cover a range of issues including better collection and coordination of information on patients outcomes including complications, incident reporting and the need for a register. It will also consider how the British Society of Urogynaecology/ the British Association of Urological Surgeons databases can assist in providing information on the use of transvaginal mesh implants, patient outcomes and complications and the use of these databases by professionals. The working group will also look at ways of working with devolved administrations to improve incident reporting to the MHRA and the development of patient consent forms.