Asked by: Laura Trott (Conservative - Sevenoaks)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he plans to respond to the consultation entitled The licensing of non-surgical cosmetic procedures in England which closed on 2 September 2023.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government is currently considering what steps may need to be taken in relation to the safety of the non-surgical cosmetics sector. The Government will set out its position at the earliest opportunity.
Asked by: Laura Trott (Conservative - Sevenoaks)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department will take to reduce the level of kidney cancer in the UK.
Answered by Maria Caulfield
Approximately a quarter of kidney cancers are caused by obesity. To help people achieve and maintain a healthier weight, we have introduced regulations on out-of-home calorie labelling for out of home food sold in large businesses including restaurants, cafes and takeaways, which came into force on 6 April 2022. Further legislation on restrictions on the promotion and advertising of products high in fat, salt or sugar will come into effect in due course. Reformulation programmes also aim to make the food and drink available to consumers healthier.
A further 15 types of cancer, including kidney cancer, could be preventable by supporting smokers to quit tobacco use. Recent data shows one in four deaths from all cancers were estimated to be from smoking. An independent review of the Government’s aim for England to be smoke free by was published on the 9 June, which set out recommendations to support this ambition. We will consider the recommendations to inform the forthcoming health disparities white paper and a new Tobacco Control Plan.
Asked by: Laura Trott (Conservative - Sevenoaks)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department plans to take steps to support the development of NICE guidelines and a quality standard for kidney cancer.
Answered by Edward Argar - Shadow Secretary of State for Health and Social Care
There are no current plans for the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) to develop a guideline or quality standard on kidney cancer. However, NICE has recommended a number of medicines for the treatment of renal cell carcinoma through its technology appraisal programme, which are now routinely available to National Health Service patients. NICE has also has made recommendations on the referral of people patients with possible symptoms of renal cancer for further investigation in its guideline on suspected cancer. Where a NICE guideline or quality standard does not exist, clinicians should take into account other sources of clinical guidance.
Asked by: Laura Trott (Conservative - Sevenoaks)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what additional support he will provide to mental health support teams in response to increased pressures on CAMHS.
Answered by Gillian Keegan
In March 2021, we announced an additional £79 million to expand children’s mental health services in 2021/22. A portion of this funding will be used to accelerate the delivery of mental health support teams in schools and colleges to provide coverage of approximately 20 to 25% of pupils in England by 2022 and an estimated three million pupils or 35% by 2023. The funding will also accelerate the expansion of child and adolescent mental health services in the community, allowing an additional 22,500 children and young people to receive more specialist support.
Asked by: Laura Trott (Conservative - Sevenoaks)
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 update Infection, prevention and control guidance for hospitals in response to the easing of covid-19 lockdown restrictions on 19 July 2021; and if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of including in that guidance an exemption from requirements to wear a face covering for parents providing cot-side care to their babies on neonatal units.
Answered by Nadine Dorries
Health and care settings will continue to maintain appropriate infection prevention and control measures as necessary and this will be reviewed during the summer.
Guidance in National Health Service settings, including hospitals and primary and community care are undergoing further review to ensure that it is in line with service needs and as evidence becomes available, including in neonatal settings.
Asked by: Laura Trott (Conservative - Sevenoaks)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether people who have received a negative covid-19 test in a context other than the care home visitor testing programme will be able to use that test result to prove their covid-19 negative status and visit someone who is resident in a care home.
Answered by Helen Whately - Shadow Secretary of State for Work and Pensions
In most circumstances, visitors in tiers 1 to 3 wishing to undertake indoor visiting must have returned a negative test prior to the visit. This test must be taken at the care home and processed by a trained care worker.
Lateral flow devices are being provided for this purpose, where the results are available quickly so that and the visitor will take the test on arrival. Meaningful visits can only take place provided there is a negative test result.
We are providing training to all care homes as part of the rollout of lateral flow tests to process swabs, interpret results and support visitors through the testing process. This is important to reduce the risk of false negatives where a visitor’s test comes back negative when they are actually positive.
Asked by: Laura Trott (Conservative - Sevenoaks)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether care home visitors will be required to wear personal protective equipment including masks, gloves and aprons when visiting family members after receiving a negative covid-19 test under the care home visitor testing programme.
Answered by Helen Whately - Shadow Secretary of State for Work and Pensions
When visiting a care home, all visitors should wear appropriate personal protective equipment (PPE) for the duration of their visit, regardless of whether they have been tested or not. The appropriate PPE for visitors can be determined using the guidance at the following link:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/covid-19-how-to-work-safely-in-domiciliary-care
Asked by: Laura Trott (Conservative - Sevenoaks)
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 of the progress being made by the Twins Trust’s Quality Improvement Programme in reducing the number of (a) perinatal deaths and (b) neonatal admissions by 2025; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Nadine Dorries
The Department provided grant funding for the Twins Trust Maternity Engagement Project which provided evidence that implementing National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidance on managing twin and multiple pregnancies can significantly reduce twin stillbirths, neonatal deaths and neonatal admissions. The two year evaluation demonstrated an 18% reduction in neonatal deaths, a 7% reduction in stillbirths, a 23% reduction in neonatal admissions, and a 6% reduction in emergency caesarean sections.
Based on the evidence generated through the Engagement Project, the Saving Babies’ Lives care bundle (version two) strongly encourages providers and commissioners to implement NICE guidance and stipulates best practice for multiple pregnancies.
Asked by: Laura Trott (Conservative - Sevenoaks)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
What steps he is taking to improve the NHS capital estate.
Answered by Edward Argar - Shadow Secretary of State for Health and Social Care
In September 2019, my Rt. Hon Friend the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care unveiled the Health Infrastructure Plan: a long-term startegic investment programme in the future of our National Health Service.
This included the biggest hospital building programme in a generation: £2.8 billion funding for 40 new hospitals over the next ten years, with six in the first wave (HIP 1), on top of the 20 hospital upgrades announced by the Prime Minister in August 2019.