Asked by: Patricia Gibson (Scottish National Party - North Ayrshire and Arran)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what plans DVSA has in place to deal with the backlog of driving tests due to covid-19 restrictions.
Answered by Rachel Maclean
During the current lockdown, the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) is offering a limited theory test and practical test service in England and Wales to NHS health and social care workers, emergency services and local council workers who need to both drive as part of their job and respond to 'threats to life' as part of their job. Mobile emergency workers who have a valid compulsory basic training (CBT) certificate and wish to apply for a motorcycle licence would also be eligible.
Mobile emergency worker tests cannot be currently offered in Scotland due to Covid restrictions set by the Scottish Government.
The DVSA will continue to offer mobile emergency worker tests once the current lockdown restrictions have been lifted, and will keep that service under review.
The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) has measures in place to increase practical driving tests when it is safe for testing to resume. These include offering overtime and annual leave buy back to examiners, asking all those qualified to conduct tests, but who do not do so as part of their current day job, to return to conducting tests, and conducting out of hours testing (such as on public holidays).
In addition, the DVSA has started a recruitment campaign to increase the number of examiners to increase testing capacity and reduce the backlog as quickly as possible, whilst maintaining a COVID-secure service for customers and examiners.
Asked by: Patricia Gibson (Scottish National Party - North Ayrshire and Arran)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether the DVSA has plans to prioritise driving tests for critical workers in (a) Scotland and (b) the rest of the UK as covid-19 restrictions are lifted.
Answered by Rachel Maclean
During the current lockdown, the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) is offering a limited theory test and practical test service in England and Wales to NHS health and social care workers, emergency services and local council workers who need to both drive as part of their job and respond to 'threats to life' as part of their job. Mobile emergency workers who have a valid compulsory basic training (CBT) certificate and wish to apply for a motorcycle licence would also be eligible.
Mobile emergency worker tests cannot be currently offered in Scotland due to Covid restrictions set by the Scottish Government.
The DVSA will continue to offer mobile emergency worker tests once the current lockdown restrictions have been lifted, and will keep that service under review.
The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) has measures in place to increase practical driving tests when it is safe for testing to resume. These include offering overtime and annual leave buy back to examiners, asking all those qualified to conduct tests, but who do not do so as part of their current day job, to return to conducting tests, and conducting out of hours testing (such as on public holidays).
In addition, the DVSA has started a recruitment campaign to increase the number of examiners to increase testing capacity and reduce the backlog as quickly as possible, whilst maintaining a COVID-secure service for customers and examiners.
Asked by: Liz Twist (Labour - Blaydon)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what information his Department holds on the (a) amount of overtime worked by NHS staff during the covid-19 outbreak to date and (b) expenditure on overtime worked by NHS staff during that timescale.
Answered by Helen Whately - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The amount of overtime worked is not held centrally. The total value of overtime worked by National Health Service staff working in the hospital and community health sector between March 2020 and September 2020 is £926.4 million.
Asked by: Charlotte Nichols (Labour - Warrington North)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will make it his policy to lift the public sector pay freeze.
Answered by Steve Barclay - Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
In order to protect jobs and ensure fairness, we confirmed at the Spending Review (2020) that there will be a temporary pause to headline pay rises for the majority of public sector workforces in 2021-22.
It is right to temporarily pause pay awards for public sector workers earning £24,000 and above on a full-time equivalent basis, while we assess the impact Coronavirus has on the wider economy and labour market.
For all workforces where such arrangements exist, performance pay, overtime, pay progression and pay rises from promotion will continue. This means that the majority of public sector workers will see an increase in their pay in 2021/22.
Given the unique impact of Covid-19 on the health service, and despite the challenging economic context, the government will continue to provide for pay rises for over 1 million NHS workers.
The Government will also prioritise the lowest paid, with 2.1 million public sector workers earning less than £24,000 receiving a minimum £250 increase.
The Government will reassess public sector pay policy ahead of the 2022/23 Annual Pay Round when the impact of Covid-19 on the wider labour market will be clearer.
Asked by: Lord Wigley (Plaid Cymru - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what estimate they have made of the average rate of pay of a qualified nurse with ten years experience in (1) 2010, and (2) 2020; and if adjusted for the purchasing value of the pound, what would be the percentage change in remuneration since 2010.
Answered by Lord Bethell
In June 2010, basic pay, not including any additional earnings, for a newly qualified nurse at the bottom of Band 5, on a full-time equivalent basis (FTE), was £21,176.
We can estimate that, for nurses still working in the Hospital and Community Health Sector (HCHS) in June 2020, average basic pay per FTE was £34,216. This is a nominal increase of 61.6% and reflects pay awards; progression up pay scales within pay bands, promotion to more senior roles in higher pay bands and the effects of the Agenda for Change multi-year pay and contract reform deal (2018/19-2020/21). After accounting for consumer price index inflation this is a real terms increase of 33.2%.
Nurses can also earn premium rates of pay for working during unsocial hours or through agreed overtime. The NHS reward package also includes a generous annual leave allowance and access to a much-valued pension scheme.
These estimates are derived from unvalidated data from the Electronic Staff Record (ESR) Data Warehouse. This is a monthly snapshot of the live ESR system, which is the HR and payroll system for the HCHS sector in England. It does not cover those working in general practice, social care or the independent sector and one NHS foundation trust that has chosen to not use the system.
Asked by: Preet Kaur Gill (Labour (Co-op) - Birmingham, Edgbaston)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the effect of increased hours and overtime worked by (a) carers and (b) NHS staff during the covid-19 outbreak on tax credit calculations.
Answered by Jesse Norman
The Tax Credit system has a degree of flexibility, in order to help claimants manage changes in income. The Tax Credit disregard means that the first £2,500 of an increase or decrease in household income, compared with the previous tax year, is disregarded. Therefore carers, NHS staff and other key workers working additional hours and experiencing an increase in income of up to £2,500 per year will see no change in their overall Tax Credit award.
The Government recognises that Tax Credits were introduced in the early 2000s and no longer fully reflect the world of work for many people, and that is why the Government is introducing Universal Credit.
Universal Credit replaces Tax Credits and other legacy benefits, to provide a single system of means-tested support for working age people. Universal Credit is assessed and paid monthly and is based on claimants’ actual earnings in the month, rather than their annual income.
Asked by: Stephen Morgan (Labour - Portsmouth South)
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 effect of pension legislation on the personal finances of high-earning doctors, that work unpredictable overtime shifts.
Answered by Edward Argar - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
It is difficult to predict the impact of the tapered annual allowance for individual high earning doctors. Tapering applies to individuals whose taxable income exceeds £110,000 and whose adjusted income exceeds £150,000. Adjusted income is taxable income plus the value of annual pension growth. The standard annual allowance is reduced by £1 for every £2 of adjusted income over £150,000, tapering down to a minimum allowance of £10,000.
The taper calculation takes into account all taxable income, including non-pensionable income such overtime sessions worked for the National Health Service, or private work. The Department cannot therefore make an assessment of the impact of the tapered annual allowance on the personal finances of high-earning doctors.
The Department recognises that the annual allowance may contribute to decisions from NHS consultants to retire early or limit their NHS commitments. We are also listening carefully to concerns raised by senior doctors and NHS employers about the tapered annual allowance, and the particular difficulties caused by the impact of non-pensionable income from providing additional much needed clinical sessions on the taper.
The Department has consulted on introducing flexibility within the NHS Pension Scheme from 2019/20 to allow clinicians affected by annual allowance tax charges to reduce their pension accrual in deciles in order to manage any potential annual allowance tax charges.
In September 2019 guidance was issued by NHS Employers informing employers of the short-term approaches that they could take to mitigate the effect of pension tax on their workforce this tax year. The NHS has also implemented an immediate measure to preserve clinical capacity amid the increased pressure on services during the winter period. This will compensate NHS clinicians for the effect on their pensions of annual allowance charges incurred in 2019-20.
Asked by: Jonathan Lord (Conservative - Woking)
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 cervical screening test results.
Answered by Jo Churchill - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Government recognises that it is important that women are informed about their cervical screening results as soon as possible and that they are aware when they receive their results that they are independent of any onward referral for further investigative tests if needed.
The NHS Cervical Screening Programme is introducing testing for human papillomavirus (HPV) as the primary test carried out on cervical screening samples and this is due to be implemented across England by 2020. As a result of the move to HPV primary screening, cervical screening providers have experienced difficulties in meeting the 14-day TAT target. This is due to the HPV primary screening requiring less cytologists to carry out testing and staff anticipating this reduction before the full roll-out has been implemented and reduced workload seen.
A number of initiatives have been introduced across the country to reduce waiting times for cervical screening test results. These include: laboratories offering overtime for staff; utilising existing HPV pilot sites to create additional cytology capacity for other laboratories; and allowing the conversion of existing service providers to HPV primary screening ahead of full roll-out nationally.
In addition to this, Professor Richards’ review of national adult screening programmes recommended that NHS England should ensure that all screening results are given to patients in the standard timeframes. Professor Richards also acknowledged that the difficulties experienced in cervical screening has been due to the change in testing and should revert once the transition has been completed given close monitoring.
Asked by: Andrea Jenkyns (Conservative - Morley and Outwood)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of change the level of tax for NHS consultants working overtime.
Answered by Elizabeth Truss
The Government keeps public sector pay and pensions policy under constant review in the context of the wider public finances. The same tax rules must apply identically to everyone in the same situation, regardless of their employer.
Pensions tax relief is one of the most expensive reliefs in the personal tax system. In 2017/18 income tax and employer National Insurance Contributions relief cost over £50 billion, with around two-thirds going to higher and additional rate taxpayers.
The Government has listened carefully to specific concerns raised by some high-earning NHS consultants impacted by annual allowance tax charges.
In response, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care has announced his intention to consult on proposals for a new 50:50 option providing pension flexibility for senior clinicians in the NHS. This flexibility will give senior clinicians in England and Wales more choice in respect of their pension accrual, and therefore the ability to control better any pensions tax charges.
Asked by: Jonathan Ashworth (Labour (Co-op) - Leicester South)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care what estimate he has made of the average cost to the NHS of employing one (a) nurse, (b) midwife, (c) doctor and (d) GP.
Answered by Stephen Hammond
The Department’s estimates of the average cost to the National Health Service employing a midwife, a nurse and a doctor at a full-time equivalent (FTE) are set out in the following table. These costs include total earnings, national insurance and pension contributions.
| Estimated Average Pay Bill per FTE (2017-18) |
Doctors | £102,542 |
Nurses and Health Visitors | £43,780 |
Midwives | £47,381 |
Source: Departmental Headline Hospital and Community Health Services Pay Bill Metrics, which are based primarily on earnings statistics published by NHS Digital, supplemented by employer pension and national insurance contributions estimates informed by unpublished and unvalidated data from the Electronic Staff Record Data Warehouse.
Pay bill per FTE levels reflect average experience and pay levels as well as non-basic earnings such as overtime which can fluctuate. These figures do not include any other costs associated with employing or training that member of staff such as recruitment costs.
General practitioner contractors are not employed by the NHS but hold one of three contracts (General Medical Services, Personal Medical Services or Alternative Provider Medical Services) with NHS England to undertake work for the NHS.