Asked by: Rosena Allin-Khan (Labour - Tooting)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will publish the guidance his Department has issued to the London Ambulance Service in relation to people suspected of having covid-19; and what assessment he has made of the effect of that guidance on trends in the level of (a) morbidity and (b) mortality of people with covid-19.
Answered by Edward Argar - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
National guidance has been made available for ambulance trusts at the following link:
No national assessment has been made of the effect of that guidance on trends in the level of morbidity and mortality of people with COVID-19.
Asked by: Thangam Debbonaire (Labour - Bristol West)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he will make an assessment of the potential merits of allocating funding to Rett UK to enable it to maintain the provision of providing support to people with Rett syndrome.
Answered by Helen Whately - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
On 8 April 2020 the Chancellor announced £750 million to support the charity sector in response to COVID-19. This fund comprises three elements:
- £360 million will be allocated by central government to charities in England based on evidence of service need. This will include up to £200 million support for hospices, with the rest going to organisations like St John Ambulance and the Citizens Advice Bureau as well as charities supporting vulnerable children, victims of domestic abuse, or disabled people. The Department of Health and Social Care is working with the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport and HM Treasury to work through which voluntary sector organisations are making an essential contribution to the COVID-19 response and may be eligible for funding;
- £370 million will support charities working with vulnerable people. In England, this support will be provided through the National Lottery Community Fund. The Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport is working with the National Lottery Community Fund to develop eligibility, application and assessment criteria for this part of the fund, which will be launched imminently. Applicants will be assessed on the extent to which they meet the objectives of the fund, which are to reduce temporary closures of essential charities and to reduce the burden on the public services, including the National Health Service; and
- The Government will match the public donations to the BBC Big Night In fundraising event, which took place on 23 April, starting with a contribution of at least £20 million to the National Emergencies Trust appeal.
Charities can also access the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme; the Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme; and, they are able to benefit from the three-month VAT deferral scheme. Charity shop premises will benefit from the new enhanced retail rate relief at 100%.
Asked by: Charlotte Nichols (Labour - Warrington North)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many and what proportion of employees of NHS Ambulance Trusts in England (a) were on sick leave, (b) were self-isolating due to covid-19 and (c) had tested positive for covid-19 in each of the last six weeks.
Answered by Helen Whately - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department does not hold the data requested.
Asked by: Barry Sheerman (Labour (Co-op) - Huddersfield)
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 ensure that charities operating in the medical sector are equipped with adequate personal protective equipment during the covid-19 outbreak.
Answered by Jo Churchill - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Department is taking steps to ensure that all staff operating in the medical sector can access adequate personal protective equipment (PPE), and as such has delivered millions of items of personal protective equipment for staff at care homes, home care providers and hospices as well as to hospitals, ambulance trusts, general practitioner practices and pharmacists.
The needs of staff in frontline health services are covered in the United Kingdom-wide PPE Plan published on 10 April 2020. This provides clear guidance on who needs PPE and in what circumstances they need to use it, and how sufficient supplies will be secured to manage the response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The plan can be accessed on the following link:
www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-personal-protective-equipment-ppe-plan
Asked by: Barry Sheerman (Labour (Co-op) - Huddersfield)
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 extent of the need for personal protective equipment for people who work in the charity sector who are also working in frontline health services.
Answered by Jo Churchill - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Department is taking steps to ensure that all staff operating in the medical sector can access adequate personal protective equipment (PPE), and as such has delivered millions of items of personal protective equipment for staff at care homes, home care providers and hospices as well as to hospitals, ambulance trusts, general practitioner practices and pharmacists.
The needs of staff in frontline health services are covered in the United Kingdom-wide PPE Plan published on 10 April 2020. This provides clear guidance on who needs PPE and in what circumstances they need to use it, and how sufficient supplies will be secured to manage the response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The plan can be accessed on the following link:
www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-personal-protective-equipment-ppe-plan
Asked by: Robert Halfon (Conservative - Harlow)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to his Department's news story, Chancellor sets out extra £750 million coronavirus funding for frontline charities, published on 8 April 2020, when his Department plans to publish guidance on who is eligible to apply for that funding.
Answered by Kemi Badenoch - President of the Board of Trade
The Government knows that some charities are providing critical services and wider support to vulnerable people and communities during the pandemic. The new package of support will enable such organisations to continue providing essential services to those most in need.
This funding package will help charities providing essential services to continue their operations and to weather the storm until we return to more normal times. Funding for charities will be made available in the coming weeks and further information will be announced on Gov.uk. The Government’s aim is to get funding to those in greatest need as soon as possible.
Many charities and social enterprises will also benefit from the existing measures announced to support employers and businesses. Under these measures, like other businesses, charities can defer their VAT bills and pay no business rates for their shops next year. All charities are eligible for the job retention scheme and the right answer for many charities will be to furlough their employees with the government paying 80% of wages.
Asked by: Robert Halfon (Conservative - Harlow)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to his Department's news story, Chancellor sets out extra £750 million coronavirus funding for frontline charities, published on 8 April 2020, how his Department plans to decide which charities will be eligible for that funding; and who will make that decision.
Answered by Kemi Badenoch - President of the Board of Trade
The Government knows that some charities are providing critical services and wider support to vulnerable people and communities during the pandemic. The new package of support will enable such organisations to continue providing essential services to those most in need.
This funding package will help charities providing essential services to continue their operations and to weather the storm until we return to more normal times. Funding for charities will be made available in the coming weeks and further information will be announced on Gov.uk. The Government’s aim is to get funding to those in greatest need as soon as possible.
Many charities and social enterprises will also benefit from the existing measures announced to support employers and businesses. Under these measures, like other businesses, charities can defer their VAT bills and pay no business rates for their shops next year. All charities are eligible for the job retention scheme and the right answer for many charities will be to furlough their employees with the government paying 80% of wages.
Asked by: Robert Halfon (Conservative - Harlow)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to his Department's news story, Chancellor sets out extra £750 million coronavirus funding for frontline charities, published on 8 April 2020, how children's cancer charities such as CLIC Sargent will be able to access that funding.
Answered by Kemi Badenoch - President of the Board of Trade
The package of support announced by the Chancellor on 8 April will enable charitable organisations to continue providing essential services to those most in need.
Funding for charities will be made available in the coming weeks and further information will be announced on Gov.uk. The Government’s aim is to get funding to those in greatest need as soon as possible.
Many charities and social enterprises will also benefit from the existing measures announced to support employers and businesses. Under these measures, like other businesses, charities can defer their VAT bills and pay no business rates for their shops next year. All charities are eligible for the job retention scheme and the right answer for many charities will be to furlough their employees with the government paying 80% of wages.
Asked by: Robert Halfon (Conservative - Harlow)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to his Department's news story, Chancellor sets out extra £750 million coronavirus funding for frontline charities, published on 8 April 2020, whether charities that operate UK-wide will be able to access funding earmarked for devolved nations as well as the fund for frontline services and vulnerable people.
Answered by Kemi Badenoch - President of the Board of Trade
The package of support announced by the Chancellor on 8 April will enable charitable organisations to continue providing essential services to those most in need.
Funding for charities will be made available in the coming weeks and further information will be announced on Gov.uk. The Government’s aim is to get funding to those in greatest need as soon as possible.
Many charities and social enterprises will also benefit from the existing measures announced to support employers and businesses. Under these measures, like other businesses, charities can defer their VAT bills and pay no business rates for their shops next year. All charities are eligible for the job retention scheme and the right answer for many charities will be to furlough their employees with the government paying 80% of wages.
Asked by: Rosie Duffield (Labour - Canterbury)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what plans his Department has to ensure the continued operation of air ambulances during the covid-19 outbreak.
Answered by Edward Argar - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
The Department continues to engage with the air ambulance sector via Air Ambulances UK, the national organisation for the United Kingdom’s air ambulance charities. The charities have been asked to provide an assessment of the operations and fundraising impact of COVID-19 to give a clear national picture of their needs. Further to this, any support required by air ambulance charities is being considered by the National Ambulance Coordination Centre as part of their role in supporting voluntary sector deployment as appropriate during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Air ambulances are self-funded, but the Government has previously provided one-off grants to support capital projects, such as building or extending airbases and helipads, and purchasing equipment, cars and aircraft.