Asked by: Johanna Baxter (Labour - Paisley and Renfrewshire South)
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 immunocompromised people.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
NHS England Specialised Commissioning has recently updated the specialist immunology service specification for adults with deficient immune systems, named the Specialist immunology services for adults with deficient immune systems. This sets out the standards of care that providers of specialist immunology services are expected to meet, including with regards to treatment and monitoring. Further information on the service specification is available at the following link:
The clinical commissioning policy for the use of therapeutic immunoglobulin in England has also recently been updated. The updated document describes all conditions for which therapeutic immunoglobulin is commissioned, including autoimmune conditions, and provides details on the role, dose, and place of therapeutic immunoglobulin in the treatment pathway for individual indications, alongside possible alternative treatment options for use of therapeutic immunoglobulin in both adults and children. Further information on the policy is available at the following link:
Sub Regional Immunoglobulin Assessment Panels (SRIAPs) are in place to provide immunoglobulin stewardship and oversight in line with this policy. In April 2025, a new framework for the supply of immunoglobulin will begin. In March 2025, NHS England Specialised Commissioning provided advice to the SRIAPs regarding patient access to immunoglobulin products, with the introduction of the new framework.
Neither the Department nor NHS England hold data centrally on the exact numbers of those who are clinically defined as immunocompromised. However, a recently published paper in the Journal of Infection identified 477,335 immunocompromised individuals aged 12 years old and over in England. This research paper is available at the following link:
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S016344532500026X
NHS England Specialised Commissioning is developing a patient information sheet to outline the changes to the range of immunoglobulin products available on the National Health Service. It is intended to support patients who rely on immunoglobulin treatment and may be required to switch to a different immunoglobulin product. This will be shared with patient organisations and clinical teams in April 2025.
The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) is committed to working with partners, including NHS England and the Department, to protect the health of immunocompromised patients in the context of infectious disease hazards. Engaging with the Immunocompromised Coalition and other charities supporting vulnerable individuals, in partnership with the Department and the NHS as part of pandemic preparedness, is an important activity for the UKHSA. It enables the prompt implementation of appropriate protective measures with relevant, scalable additional support in the event of a pandemic or another emergency.
The UKHSA has also published COVID-19 guidance, last updated in May 2024, for those individuals whose immune system means they are at higher risk. The guidance is available at the following link:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/covid-19-guidance-for-people-whose-immune-system-means-they-are-at-higher-risk/covid-19-guidance-for-people-whose-immune-system-means-they-are-at-higher-risk
No assessment has been made of the potential merits of establishing a cross-departmental taskforce for immunocompromised patients.
Asked by: Johanna Baxter (Labour - Paisley and Renfrewshire South)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department has made an assessment of the potential merits of establishing a cross-departmental taskforce for for immunocompromised patients.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
NHS England Specialised Commissioning has recently updated the specialist immunology service specification for adults with deficient immune systems, named the Specialist immunology services for adults with deficient immune systems. This sets out the standards of care that providers of specialist immunology services are expected to meet, including with regards to treatment and monitoring. Further information on the service specification is available at the following link:
The clinical commissioning policy for the use of therapeutic immunoglobulin in England has also recently been updated. The updated document describes all conditions for which therapeutic immunoglobulin is commissioned, including autoimmune conditions, and provides details on the role, dose, and place of therapeutic immunoglobulin in the treatment pathway for individual indications, alongside possible alternative treatment options for use of therapeutic immunoglobulin in both adults and children. Further information on the policy is available at the following link:
Sub Regional Immunoglobulin Assessment Panels (SRIAPs) are in place to provide immunoglobulin stewardship and oversight in line with this policy. In April 2025, a new framework for the supply of immunoglobulin will begin. In March 2025, NHS England Specialised Commissioning provided advice to the SRIAPs regarding patient access to immunoglobulin products, with the introduction of the new framework.
Neither the Department nor NHS England hold data centrally on the exact numbers of those who are clinically defined as immunocompromised. However, a recently published paper in the Journal of Infection identified 477,335 immunocompromised individuals aged 12 years old and over in England. This research paper is available at the following link:
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S016344532500026X
NHS England Specialised Commissioning is developing a patient information sheet to outline the changes to the range of immunoglobulin products available on the National Health Service. It is intended to support patients who rely on immunoglobulin treatment and may be required to switch to a different immunoglobulin product. This will be shared with patient organisations and clinical teams in April 2025.
The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) is committed to working with partners, including NHS England and the Department, to protect the health of immunocompromised patients in the context of infectious disease hazards. Engaging with the Immunocompromised Coalition and other charities supporting vulnerable individuals, in partnership with the Department and the NHS as part of pandemic preparedness, is an important activity for the UKHSA. It enables the prompt implementation of appropriate protective measures with relevant, scalable additional support in the event of a pandemic or another emergency.
The UKHSA has also published COVID-19 guidance, last updated in May 2024, for those individuals whose immune system means they are at higher risk. The guidance is available at the following link:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/covid-19-guidance-for-people-whose-immune-system-means-they-are-at-higher-risk/covid-19-guidance-for-people-whose-immune-system-means-they-are-at-higher-risk
No assessment has been made of the potential merits of establishing a cross-departmental taskforce for immunocompromised patients.
Asked by: Johanna Baxter (Labour - Paisley and Renfrewshire South)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when his Department last issued guidance for clinicians on treating immunocompromised patients in health settings.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
NHS England Specialised Commissioning has recently updated the specialist immunology service specification for adults with deficient immune systems, named the Specialist immunology services for adults with deficient immune systems. This sets out the standards of care that providers of specialist immunology services are expected to meet, including with regards to treatment and monitoring. Further information on the service specification is available at the following link:
The clinical commissioning policy for the use of therapeutic immunoglobulin in England has also recently been updated. The updated document describes all conditions for which therapeutic immunoglobulin is commissioned, including autoimmune conditions, and provides details on the role, dose, and place of therapeutic immunoglobulin in the treatment pathway for individual indications, alongside possible alternative treatment options for use of therapeutic immunoglobulin in both adults and children. Further information on the policy is available at the following link:
Sub Regional Immunoglobulin Assessment Panels (SRIAPs) are in place to provide immunoglobulin stewardship and oversight in line with this policy. In April 2025, a new framework for the supply of immunoglobulin will begin. In March 2025, NHS England Specialised Commissioning provided advice to the SRIAPs regarding patient access to immunoglobulin products, with the introduction of the new framework.
Neither the Department nor NHS England hold data centrally on the exact numbers of those who are clinically defined as immunocompromised. However, a recently published paper in the Journal of Infection identified 477,335 immunocompromised individuals aged 12 years old and over in England. This research paper is available at the following link:
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S016344532500026X
NHS England Specialised Commissioning is developing a patient information sheet to outline the changes to the range of immunoglobulin products available on the National Health Service. It is intended to support patients who rely on immunoglobulin treatment and may be required to switch to a different immunoglobulin product. This will be shared with patient organisations and clinical teams in April 2025.
The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) is committed to working with partners, including NHS England and the Department, to protect the health of immunocompromised patients in the context of infectious disease hazards. Engaging with the Immunocompromised Coalition and other charities supporting vulnerable individuals, in partnership with the Department and the NHS as part of pandemic preparedness, is an important activity for the UKHSA. It enables the prompt implementation of appropriate protective measures with relevant, scalable additional support in the event of a pandemic or another emergency.
The UKHSA has also published COVID-19 guidance, last updated in May 2024, for those individuals whose immune system means they are at higher risk. The guidance is available at the following link:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/covid-19-guidance-for-people-whose-immune-system-means-they-are-at-higher-risk/covid-19-guidance-for-people-whose-immune-system-means-they-are-at-higher-risk
No assessment has been made of the potential merits of establishing a cross-departmental taskforce for immunocompromised patients.
Asked by: Johanna Baxter (Labour - Paisley and Renfrewshire South)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many people in the United Kingdom are clinically defined as immunocompromised.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
NHS England Specialised Commissioning has recently updated the specialist immunology service specification for adults with deficient immune systems, named the Specialist immunology services for adults with deficient immune systems. This sets out the standards of care that providers of specialist immunology services are expected to meet, including with regards to treatment and monitoring. Further information on the service specification is available at the following link:
The clinical commissioning policy for the use of therapeutic immunoglobulin in England has also recently been updated. The updated document describes all conditions for which therapeutic immunoglobulin is commissioned, including autoimmune conditions, and provides details on the role, dose, and place of therapeutic immunoglobulin in the treatment pathway for individual indications, alongside possible alternative treatment options for use of therapeutic immunoglobulin in both adults and children. Further information on the policy is available at the following link:
Sub Regional Immunoglobulin Assessment Panels (SRIAPs) are in place to provide immunoglobulin stewardship and oversight in line with this policy. In April 2025, a new framework for the supply of immunoglobulin will begin. In March 2025, NHS England Specialised Commissioning provided advice to the SRIAPs regarding patient access to immunoglobulin products, with the introduction of the new framework.
Neither the Department nor NHS England hold data centrally on the exact numbers of those who are clinically defined as immunocompromised. However, a recently published paper in the Journal of Infection identified 477,335 immunocompromised individuals aged 12 years old and over in England. This research paper is available at the following link:
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S016344532500026X
NHS England Specialised Commissioning is developing a patient information sheet to outline the changes to the range of immunoglobulin products available on the National Health Service. It is intended to support patients who rely on immunoglobulin treatment and may be required to switch to a different immunoglobulin product. This will be shared with patient organisations and clinical teams in April 2025.
The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) is committed to working with partners, including NHS England and the Department, to protect the health of immunocompromised patients in the context of infectious disease hazards. Engaging with the Immunocompromised Coalition and other charities supporting vulnerable individuals, in partnership with the Department and the NHS as part of pandemic preparedness, is an important activity for the UKHSA. It enables the prompt implementation of appropriate protective measures with relevant, scalable additional support in the event of a pandemic or another emergency.
The UKHSA has also published COVID-19 guidance, last updated in May 2024, for those individuals whose immune system means they are at higher risk. The guidance is available at the following link:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/covid-19-guidance-for-people-whose-immune-system-means-they-are-at-higher-risk/covid-19-guidance-for-people-whose-immune-system-means-they-are-at-higher-risk
No assessment has been made of the potential merits of establishing a cross-departmental taskforce for immunocompromised patients.
Asked by: Johanna Baxter (Labour - Paisley and Renfrewshire South)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when did his Department last issue guidance to patients that are immunocompromised.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
NHS England Specialised Commissioning has recently updated the specialist immunology service specification for adults with deficient immune systems, named the Specialist immunology services for adults with deficient immune systems. This sets out the standards of care that providers of specialist immunology services are expected to meet, including with regards to treatment and monitoring. Further information on the service specification is available at the following link:
The clinical commissioning policy for the use of therapeutic immunoglobulin in England has also recently been updated. The updated document describes all conditions for which therapeutic immunoglobulin is commissioned, including autoimmune conditions, and provides details on the role, dose, and place of therapeutic immunoglobulin in the treatment pathway for individual indications, alongside possible alternative treatment options for use of therapeutic immunoglobulin in both adults and children. Further information on the policy is available at the following link:
Sub Regional Immunoglobulin Assessment Panels (SRIAPs) are in place to provide immunoglobulin stewardship and oversight in line with this policy. In April 2025, a new framework for the supply of immunoglobulin will begin. In March 2025, NHS England Specialised Commissioning provided advice to the SRIAPs regarding patient access to immunoglobulin products, with the introduction of the new framework.
Neither the Department nor NHS England hold data centrally on the exact numbers of those who are clinically defined as immunocompromised. However, a recently published paper in the Journal of Infection identified 477,335 immunocompromised individuals aged 12 years old and over in England. This research paper is available at the following link:
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S016344532500026X
NHS England Specialised Commissioning is developing a patient information sheet to outline the changes to the range of immunoglobulin products available on the National Health Service. It is intended to support patients who rely on immunoglobulin treatment and may be required to switch to a different immunoglobulin product. This will be shared with patient organisations and clinical teams in April 2025.
The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) is committed to working with partners, including NHS England and the Department, to protect the health of immunocompromised patients in the context of infectious disease hazards. Engaging with the Immunocompromised Coalition and other charities supporting vulnerable individuals, in partnership with the Department and the NHS as part of pandemic preparedness, is an important activity for the UKHSA. It enables the prompt implementation of appropriate protective measures with relevant, scalable additional support in the event of a pandemic or another emergency.
The UKHSA has also published COVID-19 guidance, last updated in May 2024, for those individuals whose immune system means they are at higher risk. The guidance is available at the following link:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/covid-19-guidance-for-people-whose-immune-system-means-they-are-at-higher-risk/covid-19-guidance-for-people-whose-immune-system-means-they-are-at-higher-risk
No assessment has been made of the potential merits of establishing a cross-departmental taskforce for immunocompromised patients.
Asked by: Johanna Baxter (Labour - Paisley and Renfrewshire South)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department has plans to take steps to streamline approvals processes for the (a) Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency and (ii) National Institute for Health and Care Research.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) continues to optimise its performance in delivering efficient and predictable services which meet stakeholders’ expectations, for the benefit of patients and public health and the Life Sciences. The Agency has been working in close collaboration with health system partners and industry to ensure that robust, appropriate and prompt decisions are made. In March 2024, the MHRA published new guidance in how medicines will be assessed to improve the robustness and rapid decisions, which it can be seen, has a significantly positive effect.
The Agency has an ongoing system for review of licencing pathways and has recently launch the consultation for Personalised Immunotherapies for Cancer which can be used to drive discussion forward as to how to enable fast patient benefit of new and novel technologies.
The National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) continues to work collaboratively across Government and with key stakeholders to ensure it has optimal systems and processes to support the delivery of impactful and timely research for patient and public benefit. For example, the NIHR has recently launched a new single awards management system for the NIHR underpinned by optimised processes which will streamline operations, enable data sharing and reduce duplicate information requests.
Asked by: Johanna Baxter (Labour - Paisley and Renfrewshire South)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to the UK-Ukraine 100-year Partnership Declaration, what steps his Department has taken to ensure the (a) safety of navigation and (b) protection of trade in the Black and Azov Seas.
Answered by Luke Pollard - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)
We are working with Ukraine and international partners to secure commercial shipping and shipping routes in the Black Sea, including Ukraine's maritime corridor. The 100 Year Partnership will help with this endeavour through the provision of training and equipment to Ukraine, to prevent and deter Russian attacks.
The 100 Partnership Declaration has made clear that freedom of navigation for commercial shipping in the Black Sea and beyond must be upheld and the UK will continue to do all it can to help Ukraine through the strengthening of its maritime forces.
The UK co-leads the maritime capability coalition with Norway and this work supports Ukraine’s maritime capabilities now and in the future.
Asked by: Johanna Baxter (Labour - Paisley and Renfrewshire South)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of NATO membership for Ukraine; and what his planned timeframe is for accession for proposed membership of NATO.
Answered by Luke Pollard - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)
NATO made a long-term commitment to Ukraine and has been clear that Ukraine’s rightful place is in NATO. The Prime Minister has reaffirmed the UK’s commitment to Ukraine’s irreversible path to NATO membership, as agreed by all Allies at the Washington Summit.
That is a process that will take time, and for now our priority is to make sure Ukraine is in the strongest possible position on the battlefield and in any potential negotiations to come.
Asked by: Johanna Baxter (Labour - Paisley and Renfrewshire South)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what steps his Department has taken to reform Companies House to tackle illicit finance.
Answered by Justin Madders - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act 2023 (ECCTA) will fundamentally reform Companies House, enabling it to play a greater role in tackling economic crime.
The first of these reforms came into force in March 2024 and included new powers to query, challenge and remove inaccurate information, stronger checks on company names, stricter address requirements and greater information sharing powers. These reforms were backed by £63 million of investment and increased fees to fund greater investigation and enforcement capabilities.
Further reforms under the ECCTA, including the introduction of Identity Verification later this year, are in the process of being implemented.
Asked by: Johanna Baxter (Labour - Paisley and Renfrewshire South)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking to tackle Serious and Organised Crime linked to Russia.
Answered by Dan Jarvis - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Home Office works across Government to tackle the Serious Organised Crime threat linked to Russia including Russia-linked illicit finance in the UK.
This was recently demonstrated through the NCA’s Operation DESTABILISE which exposed and disrupted Russian money laundering networks supporting serious and organised crime.
In addition to our domestic efforts, we work with like-minded international partners to build capacity in key law enforcement institutions and the judiciary to help tackle, and enhance resilience against, Russia-linked organised crime groups.