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Written Question
Haemochromatosis: Research
Thursday 28th March 2024

Asked by: Lord Hay of Ballyore (Democratic Unionist Party - Life peer)

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to support research and development of treatments for patients with haemochromatosis.

Answered by Lord Markham - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

The National Institute for Health and Care Research is currently directly funding one ongoing study on haemochromatosis, and over the last five years, has funded infrastructure to support seven others.


Written Question
Polio
Thursday 28th March 2024

Asked by: Anum Qaisar (Scottish National Party - Airdrie and Shotts)

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what information her Department holds on the number of patients who (a) have had polio and (b) have post-polio syndrome in the latest period for which data is available.

Answered by Andrew Stephenson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

The Department does not hold data on the number of patients who have had polio or post-polio syndrome. However, the Department does hold data on the number of admissions to hospital, where polio or post-polio syndrome was recorded as a diagnosis, from 2018 to 2023:

- in 2018/19, there were 176 admissions to National Health Service hospitals in England where polio was recorded as the diagnosis, and 797 admissions where post-polio syndrome was recorded as the diagnosis;

- in 2019/20, there were 187 admissions to NHS hospitals in England where polio was recorded as the diagnosis, and 813 admissions where post-polio syndrome was recorded as the diagnosis;

- in 2020/21, there were 107 admissions to NHS hospitals in England where polio was recorded as the diagnosis, and 522 admissions where post-polio syndrome was recorded as the diagnosis;

- in 2021/22, there were 115 admissions to NHS hospitals in England where polio was recorded as the diagnosis, and 630 admissions where post-polio syndrome was recorded as the diagnosis; and

- in 2022/23, there were 104 admissions to NHS hospitals in England where polio was recorded as the diagnosis, and 632 admissions where post-polio syndrome was recorded as the diagnosis.

It is important to note that the number of admissions does not represent the number of patients, as a person may have more than one admission within the period. It is estimated that there are approximately 120,000 people living in the United Kingdom who survived polio when they were younger. Some of these have, or will develop, post-polio syndrome.


Written Question
Ovarian Cancer: Diagnosis
Thursday 28th March 2024

Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps she is taking to reduce regional variations in early diagnosis of ovarian cancer.

Answered by Andrew Stephenson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

Reducing inequalities and variation in cancer treatment is a priority for the Government, as is increasing early cancer diagnosis, as both are key contributors to reducing cancer health inequalities. The National Health Service is improving cancer pathways to get people diagnosed faster once referred, and is looking into alternative routes into the system, including non-specific symptom (NSS) pathways for patients who do not fit clearly into a single urgent cancer referral pathway, but who are at risk of being diagnosed with cancer. This will help support faster ovarian cancer diagnosis. 113 NSS pathways are currently operational, with more in development.


Written Question
Treasury: Visits Abroad
Thursday 28th March 2024

Asked by: Sharon Hodgson (Labour - Washington and Sunderland West)

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to his Department's publication entitled HMT ministers’ overseas travel, published on 21 March 2024, how much of the £15,991 spent on his visit to the USA from 20 to 22 October 2023 was spent on air travel.

Answered by Gareth Davies - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)

The Government publishes details of Ministerial travel on GOV.UK. As has been the case under successive administrations, the Government does not publish granular detail on Ministers' travel either at home or abroad.


Written Question
Medicine: Training
Thursday 28th March 2024

Asked by: Daisy Cooper (Liberal Democrat - St Albans)

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what information her Department holds on the average distance that medical students allocated a placement under the UK Foundation Programme travel from their medical school to their allocated placement; and what the (a) shortest and (b) longest distance is for those students allocated a placement in 2024.

Answered by Andrew Stephenson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

The information requested is not held by the Department.


Written Question
Avanti West Coast: Contracts
Thursday 28th March 2024

Asked by: Fabian Hamilton (Labour - Leeds North East)

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies of the decision of the Transport for the North Board to write to him requesting the end of the Avanti West Coast contract.

Answered by Huw Merriman - Minister of State (Department for Transport)

The challenges faced on the West Coast will remain regardless of the operator, including longstanding restrictive working practices which require the agreement of unions to amend. To place West Coast Partnership under the Operator of Last Resort would remove the opportunity to retain private sector expertise in both the West Coast as an operator and in the HS2 Shadow Operator function. A full response will be provided to the Transport for the North Board in due course.


Written Question
Public Transport: Tickets
Thursday 28th March 2024

Asked by: Anna Firth (Conservative - Southend West)

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what his planned timetable is for introducing contactless ticketing in Southend West constituency.

Answered by Huw Merriman - Minister of State (Department for Transport)

We have announced that Contactless Pay as you go (PAYG) ticketing will be rolled out to Chalkwell and Leigh-on-Sea in during 2024. This is part of our commitment to rollout contactless PAYG to more stations across the south east. Further details on the exact date for launch will be announced in due course.


Written Question
Libya and Tunisia: Borders
Thursday 28th March 2024

Asked by: Fabian Hamilton (Labour - Leeds North East)

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies of the closure of the Ras Jedir border crossing.

Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

The Ras Jedir border crossing was closed in both Libya and Tunisia because of recent security disturbances. The UK is monitoring the situation to ensure that we are able to respond appropriately. To foster long-term stability and address the drivers of conflict in Libya, the UK is working alongside our regional and international partners in support of the UN process.


Written Question
Khalifa Haftar
Thursday 28th March 2024

Asked by: Fabian Hamilton (Labour - Leeds North East)

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what report he has received of HM Ambassador to Libya’s meeting with Field Marshal Khalifa Haftar.

Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

The British Ambassador to Libya met Khalifa Haftar on 18 March, the discussion focused on the need for engagement with the UN's political process. The UK is committed to supporting progress on the political process as an essential step to ensuring Libya's long-term stability, security and prosperity.


Written Question
Shoplifting
Thursday 28th March 2024

Asked by: Lord Swire (Conservative - Life peer)

Question to the Home Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government what discussions they have had with police forces in England and Wales about their response to shoplifting, in the light of the Retail Crime Action Plan.

Answered by Lord Sharpe of Epsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)

The Government recognises the significant impact shoplifting and violence towards shopworkers has on businesses, communities, and consumers, as well as the loss to the economy. The Government has been clear we expect a zero-tolerance approach to retail crime and shoplifting.

It’s difficult to produce reliable estimates of the cost of shoplifting. Many incidents do not come to the attention of the police, so data on the number of shoplifting crimes recorded by them only provide a partial picture. While official statistics from the Commercial Victimisation Survey (CVS) provide reliable estimates of the prevalence and frequency of shoplifting, the CVS no longer collects data the number of shoplifting offences or the overall cost of these crimes. When the CVS has collected this information in the past, retailers found it difficult to recall precise numbers of crimes they experienced, and the associated costs. As a result, these estimates we judged to be insufficiently reliable.

Home Office ministers have not met Retail Against Crime. The National Retail Crime Steering Group (NRCSG), which the Minister for Crime, Policing and Fire, the Rt Hon Chris Philp, co-chairs alongside the British Retail Consortium, ensures the response to retail crime is as robust as it can be. The NRCSG meets quarterly and comprises senior representatives from policing, the retail sector, retail trade associations, security providers and Government departments.

At this forum, the Retail Crime Action Plan is a standing agenda item. At the last NRCSG, policing colleagues updated me on the implementation of the plan. Statistics published by the National Police Chiefs’ Council show early signs of progress. A dip-sample of data from 31 police forces of over 1,500 crimes show police attended 60% of incidents reported by retailers where violence had been used, with 16% of forces sampled reporting 100% attendance to this type of incident.

The Government is supporting Pegasus, a unique private-public partnership, which involves retailers providing data, intelligence and evidence to Opal, the national police intelligence unit on organised acquisitive crime, to develop a better strategic picture and help forces crack down on serious offenders.

The Home Office will continue to work with members of the NRCSG, including policing and retailers to tackle shoplifting, including organised, as well as other crime experienced within retail settings through our wider work.