Asked by: Jonathan Edwards (Independent - Carmarthen East and Dinefwr)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether she has had recent discussions with her counterpart in the Welsh government on the regulation of (a) physician associates and (b) anaesthesia associates.
Answered by Andrew Stephenson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Ministers have corresponded with their counterparts in the Welsh Government, alongside those in Scotland and Northern Ireland, in taking forward the work to bring physician associates (PAs) and anaesthesia associates (AAs) into regulation.
The regulation of PAs and AAs has been subject to extensive public consultation over several years. Throughout the project, officials have engaged thoroughly with stakeholders including the regulators, the devolved administrations, the Professional Standards Authority for Health and Social Care, representative bodies, and service users in developing the policy behind this legislation.
This engagement has been crucial in shaping both our policy intention and the resultant legislation, to ensure that it remains a practical piece of legislation for the benefit of patient safety and registrants.
Asked by: Jonathan Edwards (Independent - Carmarthen East and Dinefwr)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if she will make it her policy to (a) produce and (b) publish a strategy to reduce the cost of dentistry.
Answered by Andrea Leadsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The National Health Service in England invests £3 billion on dentistry every year. We want to protect dental resources for dental care, ensuring that the full dental budget made available each year is spent on delivering dental care, and prioritise access for patients. We are working on our Dentistry Recovery Plan which will address how we continue to improve access, particularly for new patients; and how we make NHS work more attractive to ensure NHS dentists are incentivised to deliver more NHS care.
We have also frozen dental patient charges between December 2020 and April 2023 and we continue to provide financial support to those who need it most by offering exemptions from charges. Support is also available through the NHS Low Income Scheme for those patients who are not eligible for exemption or full remission.
Asked by: Jonathan Edwards (Independent - Carmarthen East and Dinefwr)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent assessment she has made of the potential impact of the cost of (a) public and (b) private dentistry on people's ability to access those services.
Answered by Andrea Leadsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Our latest Dental Statistics Annual Report for England shows signs of improvements in people’s access to National Health Service dentistry. NHS dental activity, as measured by Courses of Treatments delivered, has increased by 23% between 2021/22 and 2022/23. Dental Statistics is available at the following link:
https://digital.nhs.uk/data-and-information/publications/statistical/nhs-dental-statistics
The Department has produced an Impact Assessment in respect of the uplift of National Health Service dental charges for patients in England from 24 April, which is available at the following link:
https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2023/367/impacts/2023/41(opens in a new tab)
Alongside this, and in line with our Public Sector Equality duty, the Department has also considered the impact of the change on equality and on those from disadvantaged groups.
Dental patient charges remain an important contribution to the overall NHS budget. 47.3% of courses of treatment were delivered to non-paying adults and children in 2021/22
We continue to provide financial support to those who need it most by offering exemptions to NHS dental patient charges, and support through the low-income scheme for patients who meet the eligibility criteria. Further information is available at the following NHS website:
https://www.nhs.uk/nhs-services/dentists/dental-costs/get-help-with-dental-costs/
No assessment has been undertaken on the impact on families who opt to access care from a private dentist.
Asked by: Jonathan Edwards (Independent - Carmarthen East and Dinefwr)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment impact of ultra processed foods on people's health.
Answered by Neil O'Brien
The Government encourages everyone to have a healthy balanced diet in line with the United Kingdom’s healthy eating model, the Eatwell Guide, which shows that foods high in fat, salt or sugar should be eaten less often or in small amounts.
UK Government dietary guidelines are based on recommendations from the Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition (SACN). SACN is currently carrying out a scoping review of the evidence on processed foods and health and aims to publish its position statement in the summer of 2023.
There is currently no universally agreed definition of ultra-processed foods. However, a diet high in foods classified as processed is often high in calories, salt, saturated fat and sugar and low in fibre, fruit and vegetables, which is associated with an increased risk of obesity and developing chronic diseases including cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes and some cancers.
Asked by: Jonathan Edwards (Independent - Carmarthen East and Dinefwr)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has had discussions with the Welsh Government on devolving powers in relation to assisted dying.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
There have been no discussions with the Welsh Government on devolving powers in relation to assisted dying.
Asked by: Jonathan Edwards (Independent - Carmarthen East and Dinefwr)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether the Government is taking steps to help prevent transplant tourism by UK nationals.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
The Government is taking a number of steps to help prevent commercial transplant tourism by United Kingdom nationals. Last year, we amended the Health and Care Act to make it an offence for residents of Great Britain and most UK nationals to pay for the supply of an organ, pay for an offer to supply an organ, or seek somebody willing to supply an organ for payment anywhere in the world.
The Government is now working closely with NHS Blood and Transplant, the Human Tissue Authority, National Crime Agency, Crown Prosecution Service and others to build the UK’s capacity to identify, investigate and prosecute transplant tourists and anyone else involved in organ trafficking or in the trafficking in persons for their organs. This work, combined with long-term efforts to improve the supply of ethically retrieved organs for transplantation, will help to remove any incentives for UK patients to purchase an organ overseas.
Asked by: Jonathan Edwards (Independent - Carmarthen East and Dinefwr)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what plans he has to ratify the Council of Europe Convention on Trafficking in Human Organs.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
The United Kingdom strongly supports the core aims of the Council of Europe Convention Against Trafficking in Human Organs and meets these through existing legislation which sets out that in the UK valid consent must always be received before an organ transplant proceeds and that no organ transplant may take place for financial gain. The convention has not yet been ratified and further detailed work would be required before this could take place. This would be to ensure that our domestic law and practice, including in the devolved administrations, meets the procedural and other requirements of the convention.
Asked by: Jonathan Edwards (Independent - Carmarthen East and Dinefwr)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has had discussions with the Welsh Government on the availability of antibiotics for treating Scarlet Fever.
Answered by Will Quince
Officials are working with the devolved administrations to ensure the availability of antibiotics.
Asked by: Jonathan Edwards (Independent - Carmarthen East and Dinefwr)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent assessment he has made of the adequacy of supply of medical drugs to pharmacies.
Answered by Edward Argar - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.
Asked by: Jonathan Edwards (Independent - Carmarthen East and Dinefwr)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent representations he has received from the Welsh Government on the supply of medical drugs to pharmacies.
Answered by Edward Argar - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.