Asked by: Lord McColl of Dulwich (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the particular circumstances which make people vulnerable to exploitation through 'cuckooing', and of the needs of those victims for protection and support.
Answered by Lord Sharpe of Epsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
This Government is aware of the abhorrent practice of cuckooing which often occurs in the context of the county lines drugs supply model.
We are determined to crack down on county lines gangs and that is why, through the ten-year Drugs Strategy, we are investing up to £145m over three years in our successful County Lines Programme.
Since November 2019 the County Lines Programme has closed over 2,400 lines, made over 8,000 arrests, and engaged over 9,500 individuals through safeguarding interventions.
Whilst data on cuckooing is not held centrally, the latest week of intensification against county lines (conducted by the Home Office-funded National County Lines Co-ordination Centre (NCLCC) in March 2022), saw 799 cuckooed properties visited.
The Home Office is working with NCLCC to raise awareness of cuckooing through training and peer reviews as well as promoting best practice of how to tackle it through the use of civil orders and multi-agency partnership working and intelligence sharing.
Asked by: Lord McColl of Dulwich (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many victims of 'cuckooing' were prosecuted for criminal offences related to the criminal activity resulting from this exploitation (1) in 2021, and (2) from January to June 2022.
Answered by Lord Sharpe of Epsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
This Government is aware of the abhorrent practice of cuckooing which often occurs in the context of the county lines drugs supply model.
We are determined to crack down on county lines gangs and that is why, through the ten-year Drugs Strategy, we are investing up to £145m over three years in our successful County Lines Programme.
Since November 2019 the County Lines Programme has closed over 2,400 lines, made over 8,000 arrests, and engaged over 9,500 individuals through safeguarding interventions.
Whilst data on cuckooing is not held centrally, the latest week of intensification against county lines (conducted by the Home Office-funded National County Lines Co-ordination Centre (NCLCC) in March 2022), saw 799 cuckooed properties visited.
The Home Office is working with NCLCC to raise awareness of cuckooing through training and peer reviews as well as promoting best practice of how to tackle it through the use of civil orders and multi-agency partnership working and intelligence sharing.
Asked by: Lord McColl of Dulwich (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the laws available to prosecute those who exploit their victims through occupation, use and control of the victim’s home, known as 'cuckooing'; and how many (1) prosecutions, and (2) convictions, there were for cuckooing behaviour in 2021.
Answered by Lord Sharpe of Epsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
This Government is aware of the abhorrent practice of cuckooing which often occurs in the context of the county lines drugs supply model.
We are determined to crack down on county lines gangs and that is why, through the ten-year Drugs Strategy, we are investing up to £145m over three years in our successful County Lines Programme.
Since November 2019 the County Lines Programme has closed over 2,400 lines, made over 8,000 arrests, and engaged over 9,500 individuals through safeguarding interventions.
Whilst data on cuckooing is not held centrally, the latest week of intensification against county lines (conducted by the Home Office-funded National County Lines Co-ordination Centre (NCLCC) in March 2022), saw 799 cuckooed properties visited.
The Home Office is working with NCLCC to raise awareness of cuckooing through training and peer reviews as well as promoting best practice of how to tackle it through the use of civil orders and multi-agency partnership working and intelligence sharing.
Asked by: Lord McColl of Dulwich (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many people in England and Wales were recorded as victims of 'cuckooing', the exploitation through the occupation and control of their home by others (1) in 2021, and (2) from January to June 2022.
Answered by Lord Sharpe of Epsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
This Government is aware of the abhorrent practice of cuckooing which often occurs in the context of the county lines drugs supply model.
We are determined to crack down on county lines gangs and that is why, through the ten-year Drugs Strategy, we are investing up to £145m over three years in our successful County Lines Programme.
Since November 2019 the County Lines Programme has closed over 2,400 lines, made over 8,000 arrests, and engaged over 9,500 individuals through safeguarding interventions.
Whilst data on cuckooing is not held centrally, the latest week of intensification against county lines (conducted by the Home Office-funded National County Lines Co-ordination Centre (NCLCC) in March 2022), saw 799 cuckooed properties visited.
The Home Office is working with NCLCC to raise awareness of cuckooing through training and peer reviews as well as promoting best practice of how to tackle it through the use of civil orders and multi-agency partnership working and intelligence sharing.
Asked by: Lord McColl of Dulwich (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to safeguard access to psychosocial professionals for (1) paediatric, and (2) adult, cystic fibrosis patients in the UK.
Answered by Lord Kamall
NHS England’s adult and paediatric cystic fibrosis service specifications set out national standards, including the importance of access to multidisciplinary teams involving appropriately trained clinical psychologists and social workers. There are regular review meetings between the regional commissioning teams and providers to ensure compliance with service standards across the range of services commissioned.
Health Education England has supported a 60% expansion in the clinical psychology training intake over the past two years. Trainees can undertake specialist placements and upon qualification take up posts across a wide range of settings, including working with adults and children with cystic fibrosis.
The Government committed at least £500 million to develop and support the adult social care workforce over the next three years. We are ensuring a sufficient supply of social workers through measures such as support and development for a post-graduate mental health social work programme, the Education Support Grant and Social Work Bursaries.
Asked by: Lord McColl of Dulwich (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are considering when revisiting the NHS Long Term Plan to address obesity in order (1) to improve cardiovascular health, and (2) to reduce dementia risk.
Answered by Lord Kamall
It has not proved possible to respond to this question in the time available before Prorogation. Ministers will correspond directly with the Member.
Asked by: Lord McColl of Dulwich (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what recent discussions they have had with (1) the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency, and (2) the National Institute for Health and Care Research, about which lessons from the success of COVID-19 trials could be applied to improve the (a) approval, and (b) set-up process, for dementia trials.
Answered by Lord Kamall
It has not proved possible to respond to this question in the time available before Prorogation. Ministers will correspond directly with the Member.Asked by: Lord McColl of Dulwich (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the benefits of a Dementia Medicines Taskforce to advance towards a disease-modifying treatment for dementia.
Answered by Lord Kamall
It has not proved possible to respond to this question in the time available before Prorogation. Ministers will correspond directly with the Member.
Asked by: Lord McColl of Dulwich (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the increases in childhood obesity during the COVID-19 lockdown, as shown by the National Child Measurement Programmes data for 2020 to 2021, published on 20 January, what plans they have to revise the Department of Health and Social Care’s advice on combating childhood obesity.
Answered by Lord Kamall
We continue to monitor progress and emerging evidence and will keep the advice under review.
Asked by: Lord McColl of Dulwich (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask Her Majesty's Government how many patients do not have access to a vaccination centre within 20 miles; and what assessment they have made of the impact of proximity to a vaccination centre on vaccine uptake.
Answered by Lord Kamall
99% of the population in England live within 10 miles of at least one COVID-19 vaccination site. UK-wide data is not held centrally.
The Department is continuously monitoring COVID-19 vaccine uptake and assessing ways to increase it further – with accessibility being a key driver. To support vaccine deployment and minimise inequalities in uptake, NHS England and NHS Improvement have developed practical guidance for communities to implement a range of interventions to ensure equitable access to COVID-19 vaccinations.
To ensure that uptake of the COVID-19 vaccine is maximised, there are now more sites in England delivering COVID-19 vaccines than at any other point in the programme, with around 3000 in total. This includes delivery though hospital hubs, vaccination centres, mobile/pop-up facilities, Primary Care Network-led sites, and community pharmacy-led sites. The network of vaccination sites has been designed to deliver the expected vaccine supply as quickly as possible and ensure safe and easy access for the whole population. For those in highly rural areas, where a vaccination site may be more difficult to reach there is a standard operating procedure for roving and other mobile delivery models to go directly to these communities.