Asked by: Nigel Evans (Conservative - Ribble Valley)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many British National Overseas passports are held by citizens of Hong Kong.
Answered by Seema Kennedy
As at 18 October 2019 the number of valid British National (Overseas) Passports in circulation was 255,377. The data provided is for all British National (Overseas) passports as this information cannot be broken down by where a passport holder is currently residing.
Asked by: Nigel Evans (Conservative - Ribble Valley)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate her Department has made of the cost of uprating pensions for people who retired in EU27 states in 2018.
Answered by Guy Opperman
The information requested is not readily available and to provide it would incur disproportionate cost. Whilst we do not have this information readily available, the Department does publish figures on State Pension expenditure. The Department’s Benefit Expenditure and Caseload Tables can be found here:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/benefit-expenditure-and-caseload-tables-2019
Asked by: Nigel Evans (Conservative - Ribble Valley)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many British National (Overseas) passports issued to people from Hong Kong remain valid.
Answered by Seema Kennedy
It has not proved possible to respond to the Hon Member in the time available before Prorogation.
Asked by: Nigel Evans (Conservative - Ribble Valley)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to reduce waiting times for eye care appointments.
Answered by Jo Churchill
Clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) are responsible for commissioning all secondary care ophthalmology services and are also able to commission primary care services (i.e. minor eye services, glaucoma monitoring, referral, refinement and post cataract assessment) in the community to reduce secondary care demand for services and better meet identified needs.
We would expect services to be commissioned in line with National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guidance where it is available or best available evidence and for patients to receive treatment, in line with their clinical priority, without any undue delay at any stage of their referral, diagnosis or treatment. Where urgent referral pathways do not exist all patients in England have a right to start consultant-led treatment within a maximum of 18 weeks from referral for non-urgent conditions. National guidance is also clear that all follow-up appointments should take place when clinically appropriate.
Getting It Right First Time (GIRFT) is a national clinical improvement programme, working with frontline clinicians to identify and reduce unwarranted variations in service delivery and clinical practice. The GIRFT programme looked at what can be done to ensure ophthalmology patients do not suffer unnecessary delays in follow-up care. NHS England advise the GIRFT report into ophthalmology, which will contain recommendations for service improvement, is due for publication shortly.
Asked by: Nigel Evans (Conservative - Ribble Valley)
Question to the Department for Transport:
What progress he has made on helping to ensure that flights between the UK and Europe continue after the UK leaves the EU.
Answered by Lord Grayling
The UK and EU have both put in place measures to ensure that flights can continue in any EU Exit scenario. In a no deal scenario, the EU’s adopted Regulation on connectivity gives UK airlines the right to fly to and from the EU from the day of exit until March 2020, allowing time to progress longer-term arrangements. The UK has stated we will reciprocate these rights for EU airlines. Both sides are committed to maintaining connectivity.
Asked by: Nigel Evans (Conservative - Ribble Valley)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many local authority checks have been undertaken on non multi-boarding dog boarding hosts since the Animal Welfare (Licensing of Activities Involving Animals) (England) Regulations 2018 were published.
Answered by David Rutley
The 2018 Regulations updated the regulatory regimes for a number of licensed animal related activities, including different styles of dog boarding, by introducing strict statutory minimum welfare standards. Local authorities are responsible for enforcing the 2018 Regulations and have powers to issue or revoke licences, and powers of entry and inspection. Each local authority would hold the information requested and the Government does not require it to be submitted centrally.
Asked by: Nigel Evans (Conservative - Ribble Valley)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what the average cost is of a premise check for a non multi-boarding dog boarding host since the implementation of the Animal Welfare (Licensing of Activities Involving Animals) (England) Regulations 2018.
Answered by David Rutley
The 2018 Regulations updated the regulatory regimes for a number of licensed animal related activities, including different styles of dog boarding, by introducing strict statutory minimum welfare standards. Local authorities are responsible for enforcing the 2018 Regulations and have powers to issue or revoke licences, and powers of entry and inspection. Each local authority would hold the information requested and the Government does not require it to be submitted centrally.
Asked by: Nigel Evans (Conservative - Ribble Valley)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has made an estimate of the annual cost to the public purse of abolishing parking fees for staff at NHS hospitals.
Answered by Stephen Hammond
The level and appropriateness of car parking charges at National Health Service sites for staff is the responsibility of the local NHS trust. We have published the NHS Car Parking Principles which clearly state that concessions should be offered to groups who most need help, such as staff who cannot travel by public transport due to their shift pattern.
However, given it is the responsibility of the local NHS trust, the Department has no jurisdiction to reduce or eliminate hospital car parking charges for nurses, doctors and essential healthcare workers.
Asked by: Nigel Evans (Conservative - Ribble Valley)
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 include the vaping industry in the annual Stoptober campaign; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Seema Kennedy
Public Health England (PHE) is directed under the Tobacco Control Plan for England to include within quit smoking campaigns messages about the relative safety of e-cigarettes and to continue to provide smokers and the public with clear, evidence based and accurate information on the relative harm of nicotine, e-cigarettes, other nicotine delivery systems and smoked tobacco, to enable informed decision-making.
PHE has worked with the Independent British Vape Trade Association and its members to reassure smokers about the relative safety of e-cigarettes and to encourage smokers to switch.
Asked by: Nigel Evans (Conservative - Ribble Valley)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the merits of working with representatives of the vaping industry to help spread the Public Health England findings that e-cigarettes are 95 per cent less harmful than traditional cigarettes; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Seema Kennedy
Public Health England (PHE) is directed under the Tobacco Control Plan for England to include within quit smoking campaigns messages about the relative safety of e-cigarettes and to continue to provide smokers and the public with clear, evidence based and accurate information on the relative harm of nicotine, e-cigarettes, other nicotine delivery systems and smoked tobacco, to enable informed decision-making.
PHE has worked with the Independent British Vape Trade Association and its members to reassure smokers about the relative safety of e-cigarettes and to encourage smokers to switch. This has broadened PHE’s reach to the audience of smokers.