Asked by: Lisa Cameron (Conservative - East Kilbride, Strathaven and Lesmahagow)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether his Department has made an assessment of the potential merits of using a potential digital pound for its own disbursements and cash management.
Answered by Bim Afolami
No decision has yet been made to issue a digital pound. HM Treasury and the Bank of England continue to explore the feasibility and potential design choices of a digital pound as part of the current design phase. The exploration of a digital pound considers the future of central bank money, meaning that this project supports the Bank of England’s primary objectives on monetary and financial stability.
Asked by: Lisa Cameron (Conservative - East Kilbride, Strathaven and Lesmahagow)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether his Department has made an assessment of the fiscal impact of a potential digital pound by way of increased seigniorage revenue.
Answered by Bim Afolami
No decision has yet been made to issue a digital pound. HM Treasury and the Bank of England continue to explore the feasibility and potential design choices of a digital pound as part of the current design phase. The exploration of a digital pound considers the future of central bank money, meaning that this project supports the Bank of England’s primary objectives on monetary and financial stability.
Asked by: Lisa Cameron (Conservative - East Kilbride, Strathaven and Lesmahagow)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, if he will take steps to help tackle discrimination and persecution faced by Christians in the Gambia; and if he will make an assessment of the potential impact of the level of discrimination and persecution face by Christians on religious freedom in the country.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
The UK Government is committed to defending freedom of religion or belief (FoRB) for all and promoting respect between different religious and non-religious communities. We do not judge there to be an infringement on the ability for Christians to live and practice in The Gambia at this time. In 2023, the British High Commission in Banjul supported a project funded by the Church of England which promoted religious tolerance by strengthening the linkages between the Gambian Parliamentary Caucus on Freedom of Religion or Belief and key civic organisations including the Christian community.
More broadly, the UK remains deeply concerned about the severity and scale of violations and abuses of FoRB in many parts of the world. Where FoRB is under attack, other human rights are often threatened too. The UK continues to recognise the issue of persecution of Christians globally on account of their faith, alongside recognising the persecution of other groups.
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
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
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
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, 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
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 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
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 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
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
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.