Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick

The Government is committed to supporting the Northern Ireland Executive as appropriate in consulting with businesses, civil society groups, and representative organisations. There is regular contact between the Government and the Northern Ireland Executive on a range of issues and further detail will be provided in due course.

The BTOM sets outs out a risk-based, proportionate regime of controls which assesses the inherent biosecurity or public health risk presented by an import, together with the prevalence of relevant pests and diseases and our confidence in the exporting country’s production standards and health controls.

This assessment allows us to set controls at the most appropriate level and focus on the areas of highest risk to the UK. The goods posing the highest biosecurity risk are being prioritised as we build up to full check rates and high levels of compliance.

Defra in conjunction with the Department for Business and Trade will work to reset the relationship with our European friends to strengthen ties and tackle barriers to trade, while recognising that there will be no return to the single market or customs union.

We will tackle trade barriers through seeking to negotiate a veterinary / Sanitary and Phytosanitary agreement with the European Union to prevent unnecessary border checks and help tackle the cost of food.

I will update this House in due course on the next steps.

£500 million is being provided to enable the current Household Support Fund, including funding for Devolved Administrations through the Barnett formula to be spent at their discretion. This means Local Authorities in England are receiving £421 million to support those in need locally.

The current Household Support Fund will be in place until 30 September 2024.

As a new government, we are reviewing all policies, including the Household Support Fund.

There have been five separate iterations of the Household Support Fund (HSF). Since the first iteration was introduced over £2.5 billion has been allocated to Local Authorities in England to distribute to those in need (October 2021- September 2024).

DWP requires that Local Authorities provide Management Information (MI) returns to the Department, which demonstrate that they are delivering the scheme in accordance with the guidance and grant determination that the Department have set out for the scheme. This includes information on the type of household supported, category of spending, types of support and how support has been accessed.

MI has been published for the first three iterations of HSF following their completion. The latest MI covering HSF3 was published in August 2023 and can be found here: Household Support Fund 3 management information for 1 October 2022 to 31 March 2023 - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).

The MI shows that just under £1.3 billion was spent in England during HSF1-3, corresponding to 26 million individual awards. Approximately 66% of funding of HSF1-3 (around £800 million) was spent on households with children.

Additionally, DWP is conducting a process and impact evaluation of the fourth iteration of the Household Support Fund. This includes research with a selection of representative Local Authority case study areas, consisting of interviews with Local Authority officials and their delivery partners, and surveys and interviews with recipients of the HSF. This evaluation will provide key evidence on how Local Authorities are delivering the scheme and the impacts of the funding for recipients.

The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) routinely monitors and reviews the vaccination coverage of all the routine immunisation programmes in England. Flu vaccine uptake for pregnant women for the 2023/24 flu season was 31.2%. Pertussis vaccine uptake for pregnant women for 2024, from January to April, was 59.1%.

To improve coverage rates for all maternal immunisations, the UKHSA provides public facing information, including information leaflets in multiple languages and accessible formats. The UKHSA also provides training slides and information resources for healthcare professionals.

Ahead of delivering a new vaccination programme for the respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), the UKHSA hosted two RSV webinars for healthcare professionals: the older person RSV vaccine programme; and the maternal RSV programme. Resources are also available for the RSV programme on the Health Publications Website.

The Government is committed to raising the healthiest generation of children in our history. This will include giving children a healthy, happy start to life, and protecting them from the growth of infectious diseases.

To achieve this, the Department works with NHS England and the UK Health Security Agency to make accurate and up to date information on the benefits of vaccines and their eligibility, available to parents, carers, and patients. We are also learning lessons from the COVID-19 vaccine programme about the power of real-time, specific data to improve uptake, as well as looking at system changes for delivery, to make getting vaccinated easier for all. The Department, alongside partners, is also exploring how to enable vaccinations for babies and children as part of health visits.

The Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation considered uptake when developing their advice on a maternal respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) vaccination programme. Uptake for the RSV vaccination programme is expected to be like that of other year-round maternal respiratory immunisation programmes.

Medicine supply chains are complex, global, and highly regulated, and there are a number of reasons why supply can be disrupted, many of which are outside of the Government’s control. These include manufacturing difficulties, access to raw materials, sudden demand spikes or distribution issues, and regulatory issues. There are approximately 14,000 licensed medicines, and the overwhelming majority are in good supply.

The Department has been working hard with industry to help resolve the supply issues with some attention deficit hyperactivity disorder medicines, which are affecting the United Kingdom and other countries around the world, due to increased demand and manufacturing site capacity constraints. As a result of this intensive work, some issues have been resolved. All strengths of atomoxetine capsules and guanfacine prolonged-release tablets are now available. However, medicine supply issues remain for some strengths of lisdexamfetamine and methylphenidate.

We are engaging with all suppliers of methylphenidate prolonged-release tablets and lisdexamfetamine capsules to assess the challenges faced, and their actions to address them. We have asked suppliers to secure additional stocks, expedite deliveries where possible, and review plans to further build capacity to support continued growth in demand for the short and long-term.

Supply of salbutamol nebules, used to treat asthma, has now improved, although there may still be some short intermittent interruptions in supply experienced. We are also aware of issues with ipratropium nebules due to constrained supply from a manufacturing plant. We are working with NHS England to manage the supply issues and mitigate risks to patients. Communications advise all pharmacy teams to work with prescribers to use unlicensed imports, where licensed supplies are unavailable, or alternative treatments that are available.

Supply issues affecting some strengths of quetiapine tablets, used in the treatment of schizophrenia and bipolar disorders, have been caused by increased demand on some companies as other companies exited the market, and by active pharmaceutical ingredient constraints. Supplies of other strengths of quetiapine are being closely monitored. Serious Shortage Protocols have been issued to enable pharmacists to supply patients alternative strength tablets if those prescribed are not available. We are also aware of intermittent disruptions in the supply of olanzapine (Zypadhera) prolonged-release suspension for injections due to a global manufacturing capacity constraint. NHS England is actively working with the supplier to address these manufacturing issues as quickly as possible, to ensure that UK patients have access to this medication. Comprehensive guidance will be issued to healthcare professionals in the coming days.

The United Kingdom has one of the most extensive immunisation programmes in the world, with high vaccine confidence and uptake rates. The UK’s immunisation programme is acknowledged to be world leading in its ability to innovate and achieve value for money, and plays an important role in the Government’s focus on preventing people from getting ill.

The independent Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) advises the Department on the approach to vaccination and immunisation. The Department does not currently ask the JCVI to complete an assessment of the wider productivity and economic benefits of an immunisation programme, but rather focuses on the range of health benefits that arise from vaccination, including the prevention of hospitalisation and death.

The JCVI has a horizon scanning subcommittee, which reviews evidence from industry to understand new products under development, and to identify evidence gaps early, ensuring that they have the right information to assess those products in a timely manner once they reach the right phase of the approvals process. The Department is working with NHS England and the UK Health Security Agency to increase vaccine uptake, reduce inequalities, and ensure maximum population protection from preventable diseases. The NHS Vaccination Strategy sets out how the National Health Service and partners are aiming to maximise uptake and coverage of vaccinations across all communities.

The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) plays a critical role in Gaza and the wider region. The Foreign Secretary announced on 19 July that the UK will resume funding to UNRWA, releasing £21 million. Some of the UK's funding will be directed at supporting the implementation of UNRWA's management reforms, that will implement the recommendations made by Catherine Colonna's independent report. The reforms include delivering stronger independent oversight, better detection systems, improved screening procedures and other areas.

The UK continues to play a leadership role in trying to alleviate the suffering - on 14 July, the Foreign Secretary also announced £5.5 million new funding to UK-Med to fund their life-saving medical work in Gaza.

The Foreign Secretary announced on 19 July that the UK will resume funding to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), providing £21 million. We are committed to continuing our support to UNRWA, which plays a critical role in delivering humanitarian aid in Gaza and contributing to regional stability. Some of the UK's funding will be directed at supporting the implementation of management reforms recommended by Catherine Colonna's independent review. We are deeply concerned that draft legislation is being considered by the Israeli Knesset which would designate UNRWA as a terrorist organisation and will continue to monitor developments closely.

We cannot address the urgency of the climate and nature crisis without co-ordinated global action. Failure to act would cause environmental devastation, fuelling displacement, conflict and famine. We are committed to reinvigorating the UK's international leadership on climate and nature, working with our international partners. We will set out further details of our approach in due course.

The Government is committed to delivering the Windsor Framework. It has carried out extensive engagement with businesses (including parcel carriers) to implement the changes agreed under the Windsor Framework for moving goods from Great Britain to Northern Ireland, and will continue to do so.

The Government is committed to delivering the Windsor Framework. It has carried out extensive engagement with businesses (including parcel carriers) to implement the changes agreed under the Windsor Framework for moving goods from Great Britain to Northern Ireland, and will continue to do so.

The UK government continues to monitor internal trade between Northern Ireland and Great Britain. The Windsor Framework represents a massive improvement on the arrangements under the old Northern Ireland Protocol, removing unnecessary checks and paperwork, lifting the bans on a range of plants and products, and giving the Northern Ireland Assembly greater democratic powers over new EU legislation through the Stormont Brake.

This Government is committed to implementing the Framework in good faith and taking all steps necessary to protect the UK internal market.