Asked by: Sarah Bool (Conservative - South Northamptonshire)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what guidance her Department has issued on the use of Shared Parental Leave by teachers in maintained schools to extend their paid leave entitlement by returning to work during school holidays; and if she will make an estimate of the average cost of this practice on the budgets of affected schools.
Answered by Catherine McKinnell - Minister of State (Education)
The Department for Business and Trade is responsible for the overall policy on shared parental leave, but how it applies in schools specifically is covered by the Burgundy Book, a national agreement negotiated with employers by the six teachers’ organisations. Further information can be found on the Local Government Association website.
The department has no authority or responsibility for the Burgundy Book and, therefore, we are unable to provide any further information on this matter.
Asked by: Sarah Bool (Conservative - South Northamptonshire)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what comparative assessment his Department has made of blood cancer outcomes in (a) the UK and (b) international comparator countries for the four most common cancers.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department has not undertaken a formal assessment of blood cancer outcomes in the United Kingdom and international comparators for the four most common cancers. As noted by Lord Darzi’s independent investigation into the National Health Service, the rate of improvement for cancer survival slowed substantially during the 2010s. While survival rates have improved more quickly than many peer countries, they have done so from a low base. This means that the UK is still behind the Nordic countries for all major cancers.
Cancer death rates in the UK have fallen by more than a fifth between 1990 and 2011 and are predicted to drop by a further 17% between 2010 and 2030.
It is a priority for the Government to support the NHS in catching cancer, including blood cancers, as early as possible, to treat these diseases faster and more effectively, and thereby improve outcomes.
The National Cancer Plan will include further details on how we will improve outcomes for cancer patients, including those with blood cancer. We are now in discussions about what form that plan should take, and what its relationship to the 10-Year Health Plan and the Government’s wider Health Mission should be and will provide updates in due course.
Asked by: Sarah Bool (Conservative - South Northamptonshire)
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 an assessment of the potential merits of implementing a permanent personal imports policy for travellers entering the UK from the EU in the context of African swine fever.
Answered by Daniel Zeichner - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Preventing an outbreak of African swine fever in the UK is one of Defra’s key biosecurity priorities. The department keeps policy on personal imports under constant review and works closely with the devolved Governments on contingency planning and preventing an incursion from possibly infected goods.
We have already strengthened controls on personal imports of pork and pork products from the EU through the measures we introduced in September last year. We are working to develop a long-term policy on personal imports of products of animal origin and animal by-products, taking account of international examples.
Asked by: Sarah Bool (Conservative - South Northamptonshire)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if his Department will review the medicines and treatment appraisal system to assess its readiness for evaluating cell and gene-based blood cancer treatments.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The National Institute of Health and Care Excellence (NICE) is the independent body responsible for developing authoritative, evidence-based recommendations for the National Health Service on whether new medicines represent a clinically and cost-effective use of resources.
The NICE has evaluated and been able to recommend a number of CAR-T therapies, a type of cell therapy for the treatment of blood cancers, that are now available to NHS patients.
The NICE is responsible for the methods and processes it uses to develop its recommendations and concluded a comprehensive review of the methods and processes it uses for health technology evaluation in January 2022. The NICE carried out the review through extensive engagement with stakeholders, including Department officials. The NICE introduced a number of changes that make its methods fairer, faster, and more consistent, and appropriate to the evaluation of emerging new technologies, such as cell and gene therapies.
The NICE is monitoring the impact of the changes following the methods review and has committed to considering modular updates to its methods and processes in the future.
Asked by: Sarah Bool (Conservative - South Northamptonshire)
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 ensure that the NHS has the (a) ability and (b) resource to roll out (i) CAR-T therapies and (ii) other Advanced Therapy Medicinal Products for blood cancer.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The National Health Service in England is required to fund medicines and treatments recommended by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) as a clinically and cost-effective use of NHS resources. NHS England has undertaken considerable activity to support NICE-recommended CAR-T therapies which are currently commissioned and those that may be available in the future.
There are 3 CAR-T products currently available for four types of blood cancer which have treated over 1,500 people to date: these products were made available via the Cancer Drugs Fund which provides early access to promising new cancer medicines. Two additional CAR-T products are currently being evaluated by NICE.
NHS England uses horizon scanning to see what is coming and has a dedicated team to support the adoption of advanced therapy medicinal products (ATMPs) that are recommended by NICE into the NHS. The team works with a variety of internal and external stakeholders to ensure timely patient access to ATMPs that are on the NICE technology appraisal and highly specialised technology workplan. NHS England regularly engages with clinicians who provide CAR-T therapy in order to ensure that there is sufficient capacity within the service to deliver this.
Asked by: Sarah Bool (Conservative - South Northamptonshire)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of allowing water reed to be used as an alternative to thatching straw for protected thatched roofs.
Answered by Alex Norris - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
My Department has no plans to make an assessment of the potential merits of allowing water reed as an alternative thatching material for historic buildings.
Any works to demolish any part of a listed building or to alter or extend it in a way that affects its character as a building of special architectural or historic interest require listed building consent. It is for local planning authorities to decide whether to grant listed building consent depending on the particular circumstances of each case.
Asked by: Sarah Bool (Conservative - South Northamptonshire)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of excluding military compensation from income calculation when determining eligibility for (a) Universal Credit and (b) sickness benefits.
Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
War Pensions and Armed Forces Compensation Payments are not taken into account in Universal Credit. Guaranteed Income Payments, Service Attributable Pensions and service-attributable, non-taxable Service Invalidity Pensions are also not taken into account. New Style Employment Support Allowance (ESA) disregards any guaranteed income scheme payable under the Armed Forces Compensation Scheme.
In the legacy income-related benefits, e.g. income-related ESA, there is a statutory £10 weekly disregard. However, Local Authorities have discretionary powers fully to disregard ‘war pension’ income in the assessment of Housing Benefit.
Asked by: Sarah Bool (Conservative - South Northamptonshire)
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 hold discussions with the Environment Agency on the potential merits of providing financial support to businesses with the cost of the removal of unusable stock, in the context of the withdrawal of the regulatory guidance statement entitled Using shredded waste carpet in equestrian surfacing, RPS248.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
We currently have no plans to discuss the potential merits of paying compensation to businesses affected by the withdrawal of the regulatory position statement entitled Using shredded waste carpet in equestrian surfacing.
Withdrawing the RPS means that using shredded waste carpets for equestrian surfacing is not prohibited, but a waste management permit is needed instead. There is no mechanism to compensate businesses affected by the withdrawal of a regulatory position.
Asked by: Sarah Bool (Conservative - South Northamptonshire)
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 hold discussions with the Environment Agency on the potential merits of paying compensation to businesses affected by the withdrawal of the regulatory position statement entitled Using shredded waste carpet in equestrian surfacing RPS248.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
We currently have no plans to discuss the potential merits of paying compensation to businesses affected by the withdrawal of the regulatory position statement entitled Using shredded waste carpet in equestrian surfacing.
Withdrawing the RPS means that using shredded waste carpets for equestrian surfacing is not prohibited, but a waste management permit is needed instead. There is no mechanism to compensate businesses affected by the withdrawal of a regulatory position.
Asked by: Sarah Bool (Conservative - South Northamptonshire)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what discussions he has had with the Environment Agency on the adequacy of the length of the notice period for the withdrawal of the regulatory position statement entitled Using shredded waste carpet in equestrian surfacing, RPS248.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
There have been no discussions with the Environment Agency about the adequacy of the length of the notice period for the withdrawal of the regulatory position statement entitled Using shredded waste carpet in equestrian surfacing RPS248.