Asked by: Jason McCartney (Conservative - Colne Valley)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to then Answer of 30 January 2024 to Question 11063 on Cancer and Public Health, whether the Minister of State for Health and Secondary Care participates in NHS Public Health Functions Agreement accountability meetings.
Answered by Andrew Stephenson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
NHS England is currently held to account for the delivery of National Health Service public health functions through Director General-led accountability meetings, supplemented with an annual ministerial accountability meeting.
The annual ministerial NHS public health functions accountability meeting with NHS England is chaired by the minister with responsibility for public health. Other Department ministers with responsibility for relevant programmes are invited to attend, or to feed views into the discussion via the lead minister.
As the Minister of State for Health and Secondary Care, I now have responsibility for screening, and engage with the national screening programme performance outside these meetings.
Asked by: Chris Bryant (Labour - Rhondda)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, if she will publish a list of meetings held by her Department with stakeholders on the Telecare National Action Plan.
Answered by Julia Lopez - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Department has now agreed a first version of the Telecare National Action Plan (TNAP) with the Department for Health and Social Care (DHSC) and the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC). The Plan is now being tested with key stakeholders including the telecoms sector, the telecare sector, and Ofcom, and we plan to publish it as soon as we are able.
I do not propose to publish a list of meetings held by my department on the TNAP as this engagement is ongoing, but I can confirm that extensive discussions with stakeholders from the sectors outlined above is taking place.
Asked by: Claire Hanna (Social Democratic & Labour Party - Belfast South)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether her Department plans to undertake a (a) review of and (b) public consultation on the Vaccine Damage Payment Scheme.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
All routine policy, including the Vaccine Damage Payment Scheme (VDPS), is reviewed on a regular basis. My Rt hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care is currently looking into aspects of the scheme, following recent meetings with interested stakeholders.
Separately, work is underway with the scheme’s administrator, the NHS Business Service Authority, to review processes and make administrative changes, to improve the scheme within the current legislative framework. Formal consideration of whether any reforms to the VDPS are necessary will form part of Module 4 of the COVID-19 Inquiry, chaired by the Rt Hon Baroness Heather Carol Hallett DBE.
Asked by: Charlotte Nichols (Labour - Warrington North)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what recent discussions he has had with the Northern Ireland administration on pay for (a) health and social care and (b) NHS workers.
Answered by Steve Baker - Minister of State (Northern Ireland Office)
In the months leading up to the restoration of the Northern Ireland Executive, the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland engaged with the Secretary of State for the Department of Health and Social Care and the Chief Secretary to the Treasury on the issue of pay awards for healthcare workers in Northern Ireland. In addition to these meetings, he met with trade union representatives on this important matter.
Healthcare is a devolved matter and pay awards are ultimately a matter for the Department of Health. The UK Government has provided the Executive with a £3.3 billion financial package to stabilise Northern Ireland’s finances. This package includes £584m to provide public sector pay awards for 2023-24. It will be up to the Executive to decide on the level of pay awards and to balance these costs against other priorities.
Apr. 11 2008
Source Page: Public bodies 2007Found: , and of health care equipment.
Jul. 07 2008
Source Page: Public bodies 2007. 71 p.Found: , and of health care equipment.
Asked by: Taiwo Owatemi (Labour - Coventry North West)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care on the potential impact of increases in the cost of living on the health of people with (a) Parkinson’s and (b) other long-term conditions.
Answered by Laura Trott - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
HM Treasury ministers have regular discussions with Department for Health and Social Care ministers on a range of issues, including meetings between the Chancellor and the Secretary of State
The Government delivers a wide range of support to help those with disabilities and long-term health conditions, such as Parkinson’s. If individuals incur extra costs whilst performing tasks associated with daily living, then they may qualify for disability benefits such as Personal Independence Payment (PIP) and Attendance Allowance (AA). This extra support can be worth over £8,900 per year and is due to increase from April by 6.7%. Depending on their needs, additional support for those with Parkinson’s may be available via local authorities who deliver adult social care services.
Asked by: Wes Streeting (Labour - Ilford North)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, on what dates has (a) she, (b) her Ministers and (c) her officials had discussions with representatives of the BMA since 23 December 2023.
Answered by Andrew Stephenson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
I met representatives of the British Medical Association’s (BMA) junior doctors committee on 1 and 5 February 2024. My Rt hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care met representatives of the junior doctors committee and the consultants committee at separate meetings on 8 February 2024. The Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Mental Health and Women’s Health Strategy met representatives of the general practice committee on 31 January and 27 February 2024. Department officials are in regular contact with BMA representatives, with informal discussions held on most working days in 2024.
Mar. 01 2010
Source Page: Department of Health’s public bodies 2008. 76 p.Found: Department of Health’s public bodies 2008. 76 p.
Asked by: Lord Lebedev (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the use of psychedelics in the treatment of mental health; and what steps they are taking to support advanced research in this sector.
Answered by Lord Markham - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) has conducted scientific advice meetings with research organisations developing drugs with psychedelic properties for the treatment of mental health conditions. The MHRA does not conduct research, however they enable clinical trials research to take place and have procedures in place to review marketing authorisation applications submitted to them, with regard to the drug’s quality, safety and effectiveness.
The Department of Health and Social Care commissions research through the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR), which has invested £1.1 million in a randomised controlled trial to examine the feasibility, safety and efficacy of the use of psilocybin in people with treatment-resistant depression.
The NIHR also invests in psychedelic-assisted psychotherapies through its infrastructure. For example, the Imperial Biomedical Research Centre aims to investigate the potential of treating psychiatric disorders with psychedelics. The NIHR welcomes funding applications for research into any aspect of human health, including psychedelic-assisted psychotherapies.