Asked by: Lisa Cameron (Conservative - East Kilbride, Strathaven and Lesmahagow)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what her Department's planned timetable is for its evaluation of the merits of using (a) 3D mammography and (b) other new cancer screening technologies.
Answered by Andrew Stephenson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The UK National Screening Committee (UK NSC) is aware of research into the use of three-dimensional (3D) mammography and the growing interest to use artificial intelligence (AI) in the National Health Service breast screening programme. Guidance has been published on GOV.UK on the use of Tomosynthesis 3D imaging in a clinical trial setting as part of the NHS breast screening programme.
The UK NSC had also worked with Health Technology Assessments to design an evaluation of existing AI in a prospective study to look at whether it could be used to read breast screening mammograms.
There are currently no plans to adopt these technologies, but evidence to inform a UK NSC decision on the use of 3D mammography and AI in the NHS breast screening programme will be reviewed by the Committee when available.
Asked by: Lisa Cameron (Conservative - East Kilbride, Strathaven and Lesmahagow)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps her Department is taking to increase the number and proportion of (a) counsellors and (b) adult psychotherapists in the mental health workforce.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
According to the NHS Electronic Staff Record, there was a 51% growth in the psychological professional workforce from April 2019 to March 2023. This compares to a 16% growth in the National Health Service’s workforce as a whole, over the same period. Counsellors and adult Psychotherapists are two specific occupations within the overall psychological professional workforce of approximately 27,800 full time equivalent staff.
In order to grow the workforce with specific qualifications in counselling and adult psychotherapy, NHS England has commissioned a pilot training programme for Psychotherapeutic Counsellors. This provides a three-year salaried and funded postgraduate education pathway for trainee Psychotherapeutic Counsellors to work in the NHS Talking Therapies services for anxiety and depression, to deliver specified NHS Talking Therapies services for adults with depression. This NHS training route adds to other existing routes for Counsellors to enter and work in the NHS Talking Therapies workforce.
Asked by: Lisa Cameron (Conservative - East Kilbride, Strathaven and Lesmahagow)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether she has made an assessment of the potential impact of evidence-based digital mental health innovations on reducing waiting lists for child and adolescent services.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
To date, there has been no assessment made to determine the potential impact of evidence-based digital mental health innovations on reducing waiting lists for child and adolescent services. The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence has made recommendations on four products for self-help digital cogitative behavioural therapy technologies for children and young people with low mood or anxiety, through their Early Value Assessment process. Whilst there was no definitive determination on the impact to waiting lists, early evidence suggests that these types of interventions can improve access for patients and can supplement existing treatments whilst patients are waiting for further treatment.
Asked by: Lisa Cameron (Conservative - East Kilbride, Strathaven and Lesmahagow)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether her Department has commissioned independent research to make a comparative assessment of the effectiveness of using (a) dogs as a second species and (b) new non-animal scientific approaches in toxicological testing.
Answered by Andrew Stephenson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The use of dogs as a second species in toxicological testing remains an important step in the development of safe new medicines, treatments, technologies, and other chemicals. The use of animals in science is highly regulated, and includes a three-tier system of licensing which licenses each establishment, project, and individual involved in performing regulated procedures involving animals.
Currently, there is no independent research commissioned by the Government, that makes a comparative assessment of the effectiveness of using dogs as a second species and new non-animal scientific approaches in toxicological testing. Instead, the Government’s current approach is to actively support and accelerate advances in biomedical science and technologies to reduce reliance on the use of animals in research and importantly, to avoid some of the scientific limitations of animal models of human diseases. This includes stem cell research, the development of cell culture systems that mimic the function of human organs, imaging, and new computer modelling techniques.
UK Research and Innovation remains strongly committed to supporting the development of techniques that replace, reduce, and refine the use of animals in research (the 3Rs), and provides core funding for the National Centre for Replacement, Refinement and Reduction of Animals in Research (NC3Rs). The NC3Rs works nationally and internationally to drive the uptake of 3Rs technologies and ensure that advances in the 3Rs are reflected in policy, practice, and regulations on animal research.
Asked by: Lisa Cameron (Conservative - East Kilbride, Strathaven and Lesmahagow)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that mental health training programs equip future clinicians with the necessary digital literacy skills to support the integration of technology into mental health care.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
The NHS Digital Academy has a responsibility to support the National Health Service workforce to develop the necessary digital skills for work. The NHS Digital Academy is responsible for a strategy that will help NHS employers to support and upskill these staff through self-assessment, and both online and more traditional face-to-face learning opportunities. 16,000 people in the NHS workforce have undertaken self-assessment tools, as part of its testing stage.
Some clinical education programmes already include digital skills development, and NHS England is exploring how digital capabilities can be more comprehensively developed through existing clinical education programmes, including in mental health.
Asked by: Lisa Cameron (Conservative - East Kilbride, Strathaven and Lesmahagow)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what discussions he has had with his Belarussian counterpart on freedom of religion or belief in that country.
Answered by Leo Docherty - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for the Armed Forces)
The UK continues to monitor closely Freedom of Religion or Belief (FoRB) in Belarus, and we are aware of recent concerning legislative amendments regarding religious organisations. The Lukashenko regime's repression and support for Russia's illegal invasion of Ukraine have limited our bilateral contact. Following Belarus' fraudulent 2020 presidential election, the former Minister for Europe (Wendy Morton MP) spoke with Belarusian Foreign Minister Vladimir Makei in a phone call to express our grave concern over the conduct of the election and subsequent repression targeting protestors. There has been no contact between UK Ministers and their Belarusian counterparts since then.
The British Embassy in Minsk continues to support and engage with religious groups in Belarus. Belarus remains a human rights priority country for the UK; we are determined to hold the regime accountable for its actions.
Asked by: Lisa Cameron (Conservative - East Kilbride, Strathaven and Lesmahagow)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, whether his Department is taking steps to support freedom of religion and belief in Nicaragua.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK is committed to defending Freedom of Religion or Belief (FoRB) for all. We share widespread international concern about the suppression of human rights in Nicaragua, including the right to freedom of religion or belief. In June 2023, the Prime Minister's Special Envoy, Fiona Bruce MP, in her capacity as Chair of the International Religious Freedom or Belief Alliance, issued an international statement condemning the continued persecution of the Catholic Church by the Nicaraguan Government. In my [Minister Rutley] tweet on 16 January, I welcomed the release of Bishop Álvarez and 18 other clergy from their unjust detention but condemned their expulsion from Nicaragua. The UK calls on President Ortega to fully respect the human rights of all citizens and to unconditionally release all political prisoners.
Asked by: Lisa Cameron (Conservative - East Kilbride, Strathaven and Lesmahagow)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps her Department is taking to engage with accredited (a) counsellors and (b) psychotherapists to reduce waiting times for mental health services.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
To deliver the mental health commitments in the NHS Long Term Plan and help reduce waiting times, our aim is to grow the mental health workforce nationally by an additional 27,000 professionals by March 2024.
Accredited counsellors and psychotherapists constitute a significant proportion of the NHS Talking Therapies workforce. A collaborative campaign to encourage accredited counsellors and psychotherapists to apply to work in NHS Talking Therapies services has been developed by NHS England with several of the counselling and psychotherapy professional bodies. These professionals are a vital part of our mental health workforce and are fully integrated within it, delivering National Institute for Health and Care Excellence recommended psychological therapies for depression.
Asked by: Lisa Cameron (Conservative - East Kilbride, Strathaven and Lesmahagow)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether she has made an assessment of the implications for her policies of the recent outbreak of avian influenza on fur farms in Finland; and whether she has held discussions with her counterparts in (a) Finland and (b) other EU countries on collective action to mitigate the risks of zoonotic disease on fur farms.
Answered by Mark Spencer - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Government shares the British public’s high regard for animal welfare. Fur farming has been banned in England and Wales since 2000 (2002 in Scotland and Northern Ireland). While fur farming is legal in some EU countries, there are strict rules in place to ensure that animals kept for fur production are farmed, trapped and killed humanely. The risk to the UK population from these outbreaks is negligible and the Finnish government is taking action to cull the affected farms.
Nevertheless, together with the UK Health Security Agency we are keeping a close eye on the findings in mink, foxes and other animals farmed for fur and the possible risk to human health. We have published a risk assessment on the transmission from animals to humans of influenza of avian origin.
International collaboration and knowledge exchange on avian influenza is facilitated through discussions between the UK Chief Veterinary Officer and representatives from the Animal and Plant Health Agency avian influenza national and international reference laboratories, and their counterparts in the EU and globally through the World Organisation for Animal Health and allied projects, including through the joint WOAH-FOA Scientific Network on animal influenza OFFLU.
Asked by: Lisa Cameron (Conservative - East Kilbride, Strathaven and Lesmahagow)
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 ensure equality of access to mental health services for blind and partially-sighted people.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
The Accessible Information Standard published by NHS England in 2016 sets out a specific, consistent approach to identifying, recording, flagging, sharing and meeting the information and communication support needs of patients, service users, carers and parents with a disability, impairment or sensory loss, including blind and partially-sighted people. NHS England is currently reviewing the Accessible Information Standard and will publish the updated standard in Summer 2023.
The advancing mental health equalities strategy was published by NHS England in 2020 to identify and drive opportunities for improving that way that NHS mental health services meet the needs of groups at risk of, or already experiencing, inequalities.