Asked by: Naz Shah (Labour - Bradford West)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he plans to take in response to retail spaces that are not enforcing the wearing of face masks.
Answered by Maggie Throup
There is a legal requirement for in-scope businesses including shops, to display signage to inform the public that face coverings are mandated in their premises, unless they are exempt from wearing them or have a reasonable excuse.
The Regulations already provide for local authority enforcement officers to be able to use their enforcement powers against businesses for contravening the requirement relating to signage and information through issuing fixed penalty notices.
Staff in retail spaces and other places can remind people of the requirement to wear a face covering, but this should not result in anyone having to prove that they have an exemption or reasonable excuse.
If necessary, the police and community support officers can issue a fixed penalty notice to anyone who does not comply with this law without a valid exemption or reasonable excuse.
The Government will keep this policy under review.
Asked by: Naz Shah (Labour - Bradford West)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he plans to take to encourage supermarkets to ask customers to wear face masks in their stores during the covid-19 outbreak.
Answered by Maggie Throup
There is a legal requirement for in-scope businesses, including shops, to display signage to inform the public that face coverings are mandated in their premises, unless they are exempt from wearing them or have a reasonable excuse. Staff should remind people of the requirement to wear a face covering, but this should not result in anyone having to prove that they have an exemption or reasonable excuse. If necessary, police and police community support officers can issue a fixed penalty notice to anyone who does not comply without a valid exemption or reasonable excuse.
Asked by: Naz Shah (Labour - Bradford West)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what comparative assessment he has made of the level of covid-19 infection arriving in the UK from (a) Pakistan and (b) other countries from people who have travelled abroad; and whether there are any reports of new variants of that infection from Pakistan.
Answered by Jo Churchill - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before prorogation.
Asked by: Naz Shah (Labour - Bradford West)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if his Department will take steps to (a) prevent the hotel quarantine booking system from crashing, (b) ensure people receive a booking reference number pre-flight and (c) improve the accessibility of the call back service.
Answered by Jo Churchill - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before prorogation.
Asked by: Naz Shah (Labour - Bradford West)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether there are exemptions from hotel quarantine requirements for people with a (a) medical family emergency or (b) bereavement.
Answered by Jo Churchill - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
There are very limited exemptions to the requirement to book, enter or leave managed quarantine if an individual has been in a ‘red list’ country at any point in the 10 days prior to their arrival into England. These exemptions are available at the following link:
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/exemptions-from-managed-quarantine-for-medical-and-compassionate-reasons
Asked by: Naz Shah (Labour - Bradford West)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what provisions his Department has put in place for Muslims who are required to stay in a covid-19 quarantine hotel during Ramadan.
Answered by Jo Churchill - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before prorogation.
Asked by: Naz Shah (Labour - Bradford West)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what criteria is used to place countries on the UK travel ban red list.
Answered by Jo Churchill - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Joint Biosecurity Centre (JBC) produces risk assessments of the spread of variants of concern internationally. These risk assessments cover a range of factors for each country including assessment of surveillance and sequencing capability, available surveillance and genome sequencing data, evidence of in-country community transmission of COVID-19 variants, evidence of exportation of new variants to the United Kingdom or other countries and travel connectivity with the UK.
Decisions on the risk assessment are taken by Ministers and are informed by evidence including JBC’s analysis as well as other relevant information about the risk of the spread of variants.
Asked by: Naz Shah (Labour - Bradford West)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether doctors can refuse to register individuals, whose immigration status is yet to be decided, for a covid-19 vaccine.
Answered by Nadhim Zahawi
Doctors cannot refuse to register individuals whose immigration status is yet to be decided, for a COVID-19 vaccine. Vaccination against COVID-19 is offered to every adult living in the United Kingdom free of charge, regardless of immigration status. Entitlement to free National Health Service treatment is generally based on ordinary residence in the UK. A person who can show they have taken up ordinary residence in the UK can access all NHS services immediately, including COVID-19 vaccinations, based on clinical need. No immigration checks are needed to receive these services and the NHS is not required to report undocumented migrants to the Home Office.
Asked by: Naz Shah (Labour - Bradford West)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when he plans to respond to Questions 169877 and 169876 tabled by the hon. Member for Bradford West on 16 March 2021.
Answered by Edward Argar - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
We take parliamentary scrutiny incredibly seriously and it is fundamentally important that hon. Members are provided with accurate and timely information to enable them to hold the Government to account. We are working rapidly to provide all Members with accurate answers to their questions, as well as supporting the Government’s response to the unprecedented challenge of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The hon. Member’s questions will be answered as soon as possible.
Asked by: Naz Shah (Labour - Bradford West)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many of the 50 hospitals which are hubs for the initial covid-19 vaccine roll out are in areas of high deprivation according to the Index of Multiple Deprivation.
Answered by Nadhim Zahawi
This information is not held in the format requested.