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Written Question
Home Office: Disclosure of Information
Wednesday 28th February 2024

Asked by: Feryal Clark (Labour - Enfield North)

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps he has taken to support his Department's staff who act as whistleblowers.

Answered by Chris Philp - Minister of State (Home Office)

The Home Office has clear, well established Whistleblowing policy and process arrangements. Responsibility is shared between HR, which owns the policy, and HO Security & Investigations, who run the Nominated Officer network.

As the link between the individual raising the concern and the organisation, the Nominated Officers oversee the management of Whistleblowing cases and help the employees with raising their concern by providing advice independent from individual’s management chain.

In addition to Nominated Officers and the whistleblowing team, other internal channels of support available to individuals throughout the process include:

  • the confidential whistleblowing helpline;
  • Line mangers
  • the Employee Assistance Programme (EAP)
  • Home Office employee networks

The department operates several routes for employees to raise concerns, including a hotline, an inbox for emails and online form which ensures that individuals can remain anonymous if required. To ensure anonymity, all concerns are recorded centrally with the identity of the individual raising the concern not recorded alongside their concern.

The Home Office Raising a Concern including Whistleblowing policy is regularly promoted and referenced on the staff intranet and internal communication channels reminding staff of the routes available to raise concerns and signposting the support available to those individuals who raise a concern.


Written Question
NHS: Disclosure of Information
Wednesday 28th February 2024

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, if she will make an assessment of the adequacy of whistleblowing procedures for health workers with concerns about patient safety.

Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)

I feel strongly that the National Health Service must support and welcome all staff to speak up. It is the duty of a health practitioner to speak up whenever they are concerned. Over the last decade, the Government and our system partners have delivered major initiatives in response to recommendations made to the Department. Our focus has been on making progress and this approach has improved governance, delivered more robust regulation, enabled staff to speak up more freely, protected whistleblowers, and changed the way patient safety is approached in the NHS.

The data submitted by the Freedom to Speak Up Guardians provides invaluable insight into the implementation of the Freedom to Speak Up policy, which is reported quarterly to the National Guardian’s Office. Over 100,000 cases have been raised with Freedom to Speak Up Guardians since 2017.

Whilst there is more to do to remove detriments, there are signs that the improvements to speaking up are valued, for example, over 25,000 cases were brought to Freedom to Speak Up Guardians throughout 2022/23, a 25% increase on the previous year. 19% of cases reported in 2022/23 involved an element of patient safety or quality, up from 18.8% in 2021/22.


Written Question
Defence Equipment & Support: Disclosure of Information
Wednesday 24th January 2024

Asked by: Maria Eagle (Labour - Garston and Halewood)

Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to page 18 of the Defence Equipment and Support (DE&S) Annual Report and Accounts 2022-23, how many staff members have utilised the DE&S Whistleblowing and Raising a Concern Policy in each year since 2019.

Answered by James Cartlidge - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)

The DE&S Whistleblowing and Raising a Concern Policy sets out two principal routes available to employees who wish to raise a whistleblowing concern; the central MOD Confidential Hotline and discussion with line management. Instances of whistleblowing issues raised directly with line management are not recorded centrally. Regarding the MOD Confidential hotline, between 1 January 2019 and 31 December 2023, there were 13 cases raised for DE&S. It is not possible to state how many individuals raised these cases. A breakdown of cases by year is given in the table below:

Year

No of Cases

2019

0

2020

2

2021

0

2022

2

2023

9


Written Question
High Speed 2 Line: Costs
Thursday 26th October 2023

Asked by: Lord Berkeley (Labour - Life peer)

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask His Majesty's Government who were the accounting officers for HS2 and the Department for Transport in (1) March 2014, (2) January 2016, (3) April 2016, and (4) July 2019; when they were made aware of allegations of deceptions and fraud as reported in the Sunday Times on 22 October; and on which dates and to whom in Government they reported any concerns about cost overrun.

Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)

The Accounting Officers at HS2 Ltd and the Department for Transport were as follows:

HS2 Ltd

  • Alison Munro (January 2009 – September 2014)
  • Simon Kirby (September 2014 – December 2016)
  • Roy Hill (December 2016 – March 2017)
  • Mark Thurston (March 2017 – September 2023)
  • Sir Jonathan Thompson (September 2023 - Present)

DfT

  • Sir Robert Devereux (2007 - December 2011)
  • Dame Linda Margaret Homer (December 2011 – March 2012)
  • Sir Philip McDougall Rutnam (March 2012 – April 2017)
  • Dame Bernadette Kelly (April 2017 – Present)

The Government and its public bodies take any allegations raised seriously and will ensure they are thoroughly investigated.

The National Audit Office (NAO) examined historic allegations in 2018 and determined that these were unfounded. There is one new allegation which relates to a live whistleblowing investigation by HS2 Ltd.

It would be inappropriate to comment while the investigation is ongoing.


Written Question
NHS: Disclosure of Information
Friday 20th October 2023

Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent steps he has taken to review whistleblowing processes in the NHS.

Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)

As part of its role to lead culture change so that speaking up becomes business as usual in the National Health Service, the National Guardian’s Office carries out Speak Up reviews, which seek to identify learning and changes that will improve the experience of workers, patients and the public. The most recent Speak Up review looked at NHS ambulance trusts to understand their speaking up culture and identify areas for improvement. The Care Quality Commission also looks at Freedom to Speak Up within NHS organisations under the ‘well led’ part of its assessment framework.

More generally, workers who blow the whistle are entitled to protections, which were introduced through the Public Interest Disclosure Act 1998. On 27 March 2023, the Government announced a review of the wider whistleblowing framework. The review will examine the effectiveness of the framework in meeting its intended objectives – namely to enable workers to come forward to speak up about wrongdoing and to protect those who do so against detriment and dismissal.


Written Question
NHS: Complaints
Tuesday 17th October 2023

Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what processes his Department has put in place to respond to concerns raised by NHS staff and patients.

Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)

  • When NHS staff and patients raise concerns, they must be taken seriously.
  • The government has enhanced legal protections for whistle-blowers; announced a review of the whistleblowing framework and introduced over 1,000 Freedom to Speak Up Guardians, now covering every Trust.
  • Patients can also raise concerns through an NHS-wide complaints system underpinned by legislation. NHS organisations must acknowledge complaints within three days and complete investigations quickly, keeping the patient informed of progress.


Written Question
Patients: Safety
Monday 25th September 2023

Asked by: Julian Knight (Independent - Solihull)

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 ensure that the NHS responds to concerns raised by staff about potential harm to patients (a) appropriately and (b) swiftly.

Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)

Last year, NHS England rolled out a strengthened Freedom to Speak Up policy, which covers the importance of listening to concerns and responding to concerns that are raised. All organisations providing services within the National Health Service are expected to adopt the updated national policy by 31 January 2024 at the latest. The National Guardian’s Office has also produced a training package aimed at all workers, including managers and senior leaders, which underlines the importance of responding to and acting on staff concerns.

There is also a network of Freedom to Speak Up Guardians, covering every trust, whose role includes ensuring the person who raises a concern is responded to and receives feedback on the actions taken.

Following the outcome of the trial of Lucy Letby, NHS England wrote to all NHS trusts to further emphasise the importance of NHS leaders listening to the concerns of patients, families and staff and following whistleblowing procedures.


Written Question
Care Quality Commission: Standards
Monday 25th September 2023

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, what proportion of service level agreements relating to processing (a) safeguarding (i) alerts and (ii) concerns and (b) whistleblowing have been reached at the Care Quality Commission in the last two months.

Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)

The Care Quality Commission (CQC) receives feedback on care through its dedicated digital service, 'Give feedback on care', and its National Customer Service Centre (NCSC). As well as online through the digital service, healthcare staff or members of the public can contact CQC via phone, email or letter.

When CQC receives a safeguarding and/or whistleblowing concern, this is received by the NCSC team who will triage and prioritise the concern for further action.

Highest priority alerts are sent to the relevant local authority for further action, as they have the powers to intervene if necessary.

For the last two months CQC processed 6,219 safeguarding enquiries, including both alerts and concerns and it received and processed 1,888 whistleblowing enquiries.

In July 2023, CQC launched their new digital platform, which has already shown substantial increase in the number of safeguarding enquiries in August.


Written Question
NHS: Disclosure of Information
Thursday 14th September 2023

Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)

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 Care Quality Commission in examining cases reported by whistle-blowers concerning claims of misconduct, bullying, harassment and discrimination.

Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)

The Care Quality Commission (CQC) takes very seriously issues that are raised with them in relation to patient and worker safety. They also use such information to help shape their regulatory action. The CQC normally receives reports on whistle-blowers concerns through its National Customer Service Centre, as well as via their online digital service, healthcare staff or members of the public. When the CQC receives a whistleblowing concern, it is triaged and prioritised for further action.


Written Question
Baby Care Units
Thursday 14th September 2023

Asked by: Julian Knight (Independent - Solihull)

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he plans to review guidance on the (a) use and (b) access to medicines and equipment in neonatal wards.

Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)

On 4 September 2023, my Rt. hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, announced an independent inquiry, to be led by Lady Justice Thirlwall, into the events at the Countess of Chester Hospital and the actions of Lucy Letby. In line with the wishes of the families, this will be a full statutory inquiry established under the Inquiries Act 2005, giving it legal powers to compel witnesses to give evidence under oath.

The Secretary of State ordered the Inquiry on the day of Lucy Letby’s conviction and has made clear that the wishes of the families will remain central to how the inquiry is taken forward to provide the answers they need. The Secretary of State will make a statement on the Inquiry’s terms of reference at the earliest opportunity.

We have asked NHS Resolution to look at compensation and it will work with the families and their representatives to agree an approach which is sympathetic and fair and minimises any further distress. At this time, the police have arrangements in place to appropriately support families impacted, including psychological support and family liaison officers.

We have taken action to improve patient safety and identify warning signs more quickly and will continue to make improvements. In 2019, we introduced medical examiners across England and Wales to independently scrutinise deaths not investigated by a coroner and will now make this a statutory role.

Additionally, the Secretary of State has asked for the Department and NHS England to revisit recommendation 5 of the Kark review, on disbarring senior managers for serious misconduct.

In 2020, NHS England’s Getting It Right First Time programme was expanded to cover neonatal services. It reviewed England’s neonatal services using detailed data and gave trusts individual improvement plans, which they are working towards.

On 27 March 2023, the Government announced a review of the whistleblowing legal framework. The Government supports the right of staff working in the National Health Service to speak up and raise concerns. There is a range of support and protection in place, including legal protections to prohibit detriment and discrimination against workers and job applicants who have spoken up. The review will examine the effectiveness of the framework in meeting its intended objectives of enabling workers to come forward to speak up about wrongdoing and to protect those who do so against detriment and dismissal.

The Secretary of State has asked the Department and NHS England to explore if introducing ‘Martha’s rule’ would enhance patient safety in England. This could follow Ryan’s rule, established in Queensland, Australia, which allows patients or their families to request a clinical review of their case from a doctor or nurse if their condition is deteriorating or not improving as expected

A formal assessment has not been made of the level of public trust in the safety of neonatal care. NHS England’s Three-Year Plan for Maternity and Neonatal Services, published in March 2023, sets out how NHS England will make maternity and neonatal care safer, more personalised, and more equitable for women, babies, and families. The Delivery Plan has provided a clear and co-ordinated direction which will guide maternity services to provide women and families with the care and support they need. There are no plans to do a formal review of the use and access to medicines and equipment in neonatal wards.

On neonatal mortality rates and unexplained deaths, although there are no current plans to launch a nationwide review, the ‘Child Death Review: Statutory and Operational Guidance’ outlines the duties of Child Death Review partners in relation to the processes to be followed when responding to, investigating, and reviewing the death of any child, from any cause. The Child Death Review is a statutory process, which involves a multi-disciplinary child death overview panel to ensure that lessons are learnt from child deaths, that learning is widely shared and actions are taken to reduce preventable child deaths in the future.