Asked by: Steve Yemm (Labour - Mansfield)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps his Department is taking to increase procurement from UK businesses.
Answered by Maria Eagle - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
Through the Defence Industrial Strategy, this Government will be prioritising spend with UK businesses.
Over recent months I have chaired 12 roundtables with 112 UK SMEs and mid-tiers, across all nations and regions of the UK, hearing about how the Government can make it simpler for UK businesses to access more Ministry of Defence work. We are committed to reforming the Ministry of Defence procurement system to reduce waste, speed up decision making and opening access to a wider range of British businesses.
Asked by: Steve Yemm (Labour - Mansfield)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what steps his Department is taking to support people who use a pre-payment energy meter.
Answered by Miatta Fahnbulleh - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
We are delivering the £150 Warm Home Discount to eligible customers – including those with Pre Payment Meters – to support them with their bills.
Ofgem has introduced stringent rules for the involuntary installation of Pre Payment Meters, helping to ensure vulnerable households are protected. Through our review of Ofgem, we will make sure that the regulator is a proper consumer champion that stands up for the interests of billpayers across the country.
Asked by: Steve Yemm (Labour - Mansfield)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make an estimate of the number of NHS (a) operations, (b) appointments and (c) tests that took place in Sherwood Forest Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust between July and November in (i) 2023 and (ii) 2024.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The following table shows the number of additional elective appointments at Sherwood Forest Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust in the period July to November 2023, and the corresponding period in 2024:
Time period | Elective operations | Outpatient appointments | Diagnostic tests | Total |
July to November 2023 | 18,383 | 84,742 | 47,987 | 151,112 |
July to November 2023, adjusted for working days | 18,553 | 85,527 | 48,431 | 152,511 |
July to November 2024 | 21,444 | 105,003 | 55,379 | 181,826 |
Additional appointments | 2,891 | 19,476 | 6,948 | 29,315 |
Source: NHS England
Note: These data are consistent with the publication of additional elective appointments on 16 February which includes those scope of the Value Weighted Activity metric with the key diagnostic times from diagnostic waiting times statistics. It excludes outpatient appointments without procedure and elective admissions for endoscopies to avoid double-counting of diagnostics. The scope of this data is limited to elective services consistent with consultant-led referral to treatment waiting times. It excludes emergency care, maternity and mental health services.
Asked by: Steve Yemm (Labour - Mansfield)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what data his Department holds on the length of appraisals conducted by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) under its cost-comparison appraisal process; and whether he has plans for NICE to align the timing of the outcomes of such appraisals with that of granting of marketing authorisations by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) aims, wherever possible, to issue recommendations for the National Health Service on whether new medicines should be routinely funded around the time of licensing, to support rapid patient access to clinically and cost-effective new medicines.
The NICE has introduced the cost-comparison process for the appraisal of lower risk treatments where a lighter-touch approach is considered appropriate. The cost-comparison process enables the NICE to make recommendations on medicines within 100 working days compared with 195 days for a standard appraisal, freeing up resources for more complex appraisals. In 2024, the NICE carried out appraisals through its cost-comparison process on average 83 days faster than its standard process.
Asked by: Steve Yemm (Labour - Mansfield)
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 effectiveness of the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence for reducing waiting times for medicines assessed though the cost-comparison approach.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) aims, wherever possible, to issue recommendations for the National Health Service on whether new medicines should be routinely funded around the time of licensing, to support rapid patient access to clinically and cost-effective new medicines.
The NICE has introduced the cost-comparison process for the appraisal of lower risk treatments where a lighter-touch approach is considered appropriate. The cost-comparison process enables the NICE to make recommendations on medicines within 100 working days compared with 195 days for a standard appraisal, freeing up resources for more complex appraisals. In 2024, the NICE carried out appraisals through its cost-comparison process on average 83 days faster than its standard process.
Asked by: Steve Yemm (Labour - Mansfield)
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 bring forward legislative proposals to outlaw the consumption of dog meat.
Answered by Daniel Zeichner - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Government has seen no evidence that dog meat is being sold or consumed in this country. There are strict rules for food businesses on the slaughter and production of meat for human consumption in the United Kingdom and dog or cat meat would not be permitted under these requirements. We also have specific laws on the sale of food in England which are enforced under the Novel Foods Regulation 2018. These regulations make it an offence to sell dog or cat meat in England.
Asked by: Steve Yemm (Labour - Mansfield)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what plans he has to show climate leadership for children at COP29.
Answered by Anneliese Dodds - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Children are disproportionately at risk from the effects of climate change, and children and young people will be at the forefront of shaping a resilient, sustainable future. The UK-led Glasgow Climate Pact urges Parties and stakeholders to ensure meaningful youth participation and representation in multilateral, national and local decision-making processes. We have championed this approach at COP29, with the Minister of State for Development meeting with youth climate activists from developing countries, and UK Special Representative for Climate Rachel Kyte attending events alongside universities and the UN Youth Office to highlight the critical role of youth in climate action.
Asked by: Steve Yemm (Labour - Mansfield)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of incorporating the agent of change principle in future legislative proposals on planning issues relating to grassroots music venues.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The government understand the importance of safeguarding grassroots music venues that may be at risk due to development which affects them. The agent of change policy in the National Planning Policy Framework makes clear that in such circumstances the developer is expected to put suitable mitigation measures in place, and that in no circumstances should an existing business or community facility face unreasonable restrictions on its operation as a result of new development.
Asked by: Steve Yemm (Labour - Mansfield)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what steps he is taking with Cabinet colleagues to help lower the cost of electric vehicle charging.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
Electric vehicle owners who have access to private charging facilities can fuel their vehicles for much less than it costs to fuel a combustion engine car. Further savings can be made if owners use smart charging, so that their electric vehicle batteries are charged outside of peak demand periods.
Government is however aware of the cost discrepancies between private and public charging and is working with Ofgem and others to explore measures to bring down the costs of public charging, including in the areas detailed within the Electric Vehicle Smart Charging Action Plan 2023.