Asked by: Graham Brady (Conservative - Altrincham and Sale West)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if his Department will establish a dedicated channel for people arriving from Hong Kong with British national overseas status to obtain driving licences.
Answered by Trudy Harrison
Holders of a full Hong Kong car or motorcycle driving licence can exchange this for a GB equivalent without the need to apply for a provisional licence or take a driving test. Information on the average time taken to issue a driving licence to applicants from Hong Kong is not available.
The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) has been working with the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government about the potential number of applicants who may arrive from Hong Kong with British national overseas status over the next five years. The DVLA is confident that these applications can be absorbed within its existing processes and there are no plans to introduce a dedicated channel.
Asked by: Graham Brady (Conservative - Altrincham and Sale West)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what the average length of time taken by his Department was from an application being received to issuing driving licenses to applicants arriving from Hong Kong with British national overseas status.
Answered by Trudy Harrison
Holders of a full Hong Kong car or motorcycle driving licence can exchange this for a GB equivalent without the need to apply for a provisional licence or take a driving test. Information on the average time taken to issue a driving licence to applicants from Hong Kong is not available.
The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) has been working with the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government about the potential number of applicants who may arrive from Hong Kong with British national overseas status over the next five years. The DVLA is confident that these applications can be absorbed within its existing processes and there are no plans to introduce a dedicated channel.
Asked by: Graham Brady (Conservative - Altrincham and Sale West)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the average length of time taken by her Department was from an application being received to issuing National Insurance numbers to those people arriving from Hong Kong with British national overseas status.
Answered by Guy Opperman - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Demand for the National Insurance Number (NINo) service is currently high with the average time taken to process applications around 13 weeks. This is for all employment inspired applications including people arriving from Hong Kong with British National Overseas status.
The Department is currently recruiting and training additional staff to reduce these waiting times.
The Department expedites NINo applications for those who require one in order to receive Social Security Benefits.
Asked by: Graham Brady (Conservative - Altrincham and Sale West)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if his Department will make an assessment of the potential merits of taking steps to extend the validity of Driver Certificate of Professional Competence theory tests in response to the delays in obtaining access to the practical section of the Driver Certificate for Professional Competence.
Answered by Rachel Maclean
The requirement to undertake a driving theory test and the case studies test before a practical driving test and the practical demonstration test is set out in legislation. This specifies a two-year duration for the theory test and the case studies test. This duration is for road safety reasons to ensure the learners knowledge is current.
Ensuring new drivers have current relevant knowledge and skills is a vital part of the preparation for new drivers. It is important that lorry drivers understand, and can react appropriately, to the potential risks which are present when interacting with other road users, particularly vulnerable road users such as cyclists, pedestrians, and motorcyclists. It is also important they understand how a vehicle is loaded and unloaded safely, how to couple and un-couple a trailer and the consequences for road safety. This also tests their understanding of drivers hours rules which are in place to ensure drivers take regular breaks and rests and do not continue driving when tired.
Asked by: Graham Brady (Conservative - Altrincham and Sale West)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 2 March 2021 to Question 154773, if he will take steps to ensure the immediate publication of findings from any of the eight projects jointly awarded by the National Institute for Health Research and UK Research and Innovation looking into the routes of transmission of covid-19 in different environments or groups of people, in the event that they report during the Parliamentary summer recess.
Answered by Edward Argar - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
These studies will now be completing between August 2021 and January 2022. Additionally, the National Institute for Health Research funded researchers are expected to publish their main study findings in peer-reviewed open access journals.
Asked by: Graham Brady (Conservative - Altrincham and Sale West)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when her Department’s review into the Innovator Route is planned to conclude; and if she will publish its conclusions.
Answered by Kevin Foster
The conclusions of the review and next steps will be set out in the Government’s Innovation Strategy, led by the Department for Business Energy and Industrial Strategy, this summer.
Asked by: Graham Brady (Conservative - Altrincham and Sale West)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether any further Endorsing Body Status applications will be granted by her Department while the review into the Innovator Route is being conducted.
Answered by Kevin Foster
We are currently considering whether to continue accepting applications from prospective endorsing bodies whilst the review is ongoing and will publish details on Gov.uk shortly.
Asked by: Graham Brady (Conservative - Altrincham and Sale West)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many and what proportion of (a) hospital admissions with covid-19 and (b) intensive care admissions of patients with covid-19 had previously been diagnosed with asthma in the most recent period for which figures are available.
Answered by Jo Churchill - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
Many cases of asthma will be diagnosed and managed in a primary care setting. Primary care data is not currently linked to the data collected by the National Health Service for hospital admissions.
Asked by: Graham Brady (Conservative - Altrincham and Sale West)
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 efficacy of inhaled budesonide in reducing (a) admissions to hospital with covid-19 and (b) the progression of covid-19 from a mild to severe disease.
Answered by Jo Churchill - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
Inhaled budesonide was trialled as part of the PRINCIPLE trial platform in the United Kingdom as a treatment for COVID-19 in non-hospitalised patients who are 65 years old and over or 50 years old and over with an underlying health condition. On 12 April, interim analysis from the PRINCIPLE trial revealed that inhaled budesonide reduced the time to self-reported recovery by a median of three days. However, the full analysis is currently underway to understand the full benefit of this treatment. Clinical guidance has been issued for clinicians to consider prescribing inhaled budesonide on a case-by-case basis, but inhaled budesonide is not currently recommended as the standard of care in the UK. The Department will continue to monitor the results as more detailed data and analysis from the trial becomes available and stand ready to adjust guidance should this be appropriate.
Asked by: Graham Brady (Conservative - Altrincham and Sale West)
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 potential effect of removing the requirement to quarantine following international travel for people who have received both doses of a vaccination on the transmission of covid-19.
Answered by Jo Churchill - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The quarantine system is a risk based one, based on medical evidence. International travel, particularly to ‘red list’ countries, where there is a high risk of transmission of new variants of COVID-19, presents a danger to the public. This continues to be the case even when vaccinated. The Government is prioritising the prevention of new variants entering the country and the possibility of these being spread in the wider community. Individuals who have been vaccinated might nonetheless contract another variant, particularly while in ‘red list’ countries and spread it even if quarantining at home. This means it is vital to continue to follow the public health guidance and rules including the necessity of quarantining in hotels.