Asked by: Matthew Offord (Conservative - Hendon)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, if he will hold discussions with representatives of Thailand's government on its proposed fishing reforms.
Answered by Anne-Marie Trevelyan - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
We are monitoring developments regarding proposals to reform Thailand's Fisheries Act and are engaging with relevant organisations to understand the potential impact of these reforms. The UK complies with its international obligations to maintain labour, maritime and environmental standards, and we encourage other countries to do the same.
Asked by: Matthew Offord (Conservative - Hendon)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the North Central London Integrated Care Board's consultation entitled Start Well which closed on 17 March 2024, whether she has made an assessment of the effectiveness of the patient flow modelling methods used within that consultation.
Answered by Andrew Stephenson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The North Central London Integrated Care Board advise that the patient flow modelling approach was based on the combination of geographical proximity and service user choice.
The patient flow approach was tested with the Clinical Reference Group, Finance and Analytics Group, and Start Well Programme Board. The outputs were also tested with the Strategy Leads from each organisation, and the approach reviewed and assured by the London Clinical Senate and NHS England.
Asked by: Matthew Offord (Conservative - Hendon)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what estimate his Department has made of the cumulative days of fishing by vessels carrying (a) bottom trawls, (b) dredges and (c) other bottom-towed gear in the UK’s 63 offshore benthic MPAs in 2023.
Answered by Mark Spencer - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The designation and management of Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) is a devolved competency and the information provided therefore relates to England only.
Estimates of fishing effort in offshore MPAs are made as part of the Marine Management Organisation’s (MMO) work to assess and manage the impacts of fishing in all English offshore MPAs. These estimates have been published in economic and fisheries assessments on GOV.UK alongside byelaws for the first two stages of the MMO’s four stage programme to manage fishing activity in all English offshore MPAs. MMO is currently undertaking further analysis covering 43 offshore MPAs which will be published in due course, alongside consultations on any proposed byelaws.
Asked by: Matthew Offord (Conservative - Hendon)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, if he will make an assessment of the implications for his policies of fishing by China’s state-sponsored distant water fleet in the (a) Andaman Sea and (b) Gulf of Thailand.
Answered by Anne-Marie Trevelyan - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK is committed to engaging with other countries, including China, to sustainably manage fisheries, protect ecosystems and combat Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated (IUU) fishing. We support ocean protection through appropriate funding. For example, at the G7 Leaders Summit in Cornwall, the Government pledged £500 million to create our Blue Planet Fund to help developing countries protect the ocean from pollution, overfishing and habitat loss. We also push for multilateral action internationally, including through Regional Fisheries Management Organisations, the Convention of Biological Diversity and the UN's Food and Agriculture Organisation. The UK remains committed to international law and UNCLOS.
China is building a network of fishing bases in developing countries across four continents. Comprising ports, boats, and fish processing plants, the bases service China's distant-water fleet: an armada of over 4,600 vessels (potentially many more) that operates in the exclusive economic zones (EEZs) of 42 countries and accounts for 14 percent of worldwide marine catch by value.
Asked by: Matthew Offord (Conservative - Hendon)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many 24-hr interventional radiology services are available in the North Central London area; and at what locations are those services.
Answered by Andrew Stephenson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Twenty-four-hour interventional radiology services are available on site in two hospitals in the North Central London area, namely the Royal Free Hospital and University College London Hospital. There are agreed referral pathways in place between providers across North Central London to access these services.
Asked by: Matthew Offord (Conservative - Hendon)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will make it his policy to ban fishing using bottom trawling apparatus in marine protected areas.
Answered by Mark Spencer - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for North Devon, on 22 January 2024, PQ UIN 9706.
A byelaw restricting the use of bottom-towed fishing gear in 13 Marine Protected Areas mentioned in that answer came into force on 22 March 2024.
Asked by: Matthew Offord (Conservative - Hendon)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the NHS' planned timetable is for a decision on the Start Well public consultation on the future of maternity, neonatal and children’s surgical services in north central London.
Answered by Andrew Stephenson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Start Well public consultation on proposed changes to maternity, neonatal, and paediatric surgical services in North Central London closed on Sunday 17 March 2024. The responses received will now be analysed by an independent research agency, who will produce a report for the consulting bodies, North Central London Integrated Care Board, on behalf of the local integrated care system, and NHS London Specialised Commissioning. This report will be published and, along with a wide range of evidence and information, will be used to develop a decision-making business case for consideration by the integrated care board.
North Central London Integrated Care Board expect it will take some months to develop the decision-making business case. The meeting will be held in public, with further details published later this year.
Asked by: Matthew Offord (Conservative - Hendon)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if she will take steps to publish all responses made to the Start Well public consultation on proposed changes to maternity, neonatal and children's surgical services in North Central London.
Answered by Andrew Stephenson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Start Well public consultation on proposed changes to maternity, neonatal, and paediatric surgical services in North Central London closed on Sunday 17 March 2024. The responses received will now be analysed by an independent research agency, who will produce a report for the consulting bodies, North Central London Integrated Care Board, on behalf of the local integrated care system, and NHS London Specialised Commissioning. This report will be published and, along with a wide range of evidence and information, will be used to develop a decision-making business case for consideration by the integrated care board.
North Central London Integrated Care Board expect it will take some months to develop the decision-making business case. The meeting will be held in public, with further details published later this year.