Asked by: Lord Pickles (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will make an estimate of the annual (a) volume and (b) value of medicines supplied by Israeli-owned or Israeli-based companies to the NHS.
Answered by Baroness Blackwood of North Oxford
This information is not collected centrally.
Asked by: Lord Pickles (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with representatives of the Iranian government on the effect on regional relations of the international competition for cartoons and caricatures on the Holocaust organised by the House of Cartoons, under the auspices of the municipality of Tehran.
Answered by Tobias Ellwood
Our officials in Tehran have raised our opposition to the proposed Holocaust cartoon competition with their counterparts at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Asked by: Lord Pickles (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with representatives of the Iranian government on respecting UN resolutions on Holocaust denial.
Answered by Tobias Ellwood
We take very seriously any activities aimed at casting doubt on the occurence of the Holocaust, wherever they occur in the world. We have made clear our concerns about Iran’s policies towards Israel and the Holocaust on many occasions, and most recently we raised our concerns over an alleged proposal to hold a competition in Iran for Holocaust-related cartoons.
Asked by: Lord Pickles (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, if he will support the inclusion of a specific exemption for Holocaust research in the forthcoming European General Data Protection Regulation.
Answered by Lord Vaizey of Didcot
I agree that it is vital that the General Data Protection Regulation, currently being negotiated, provides safeguards to enable historical researchers and archivists to continue with important work.
Asked by: Lord Pickles (Conservative - Life peer)
Question
To ask the hon. Member for South West Devon, representing the Speaker's Committee on the Electoral Commission, with reference to the Answer of 27 February 2012, Official Report, column 28W, on electoral register: Tower Hamlets, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the Electoral Commission's steps to tackle electoral fraud in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets since concerns were raised in Parliament in 2012.
Answered by Gary Streeter
The Electoral Commission works closely with the police and returning officers in areas where there have been allegations of electoral fraud, and it has paid particular attention to Tower Hamlets since 2012. The Commission tells me it has focussed on election planning and electoral registration activities in Tower Hamlets, and has attended regular election planning meetings with the Returning Officer and the Metropolitan Police Service since 2013 to scrutinise and monitor the delivery of those activities in advance of the European Parliament and local government elections in 2014 and the UK Parliamentary elections in 2015.
The Commission has also published several detailed reports on electoral fraud and electoral administration in Tower Hamlets, including a report following allegations of electoral fraud at elections in May 2102 and following problems at the count for the May 2014 elections. These reports have included specific recommendations for the Returning Officer, the Metropolitan Police Service, political parties and candidates at future elections, and the Commission has continued to monitor progress towards those recommendations and provide additional support where it is required.
Asked by: Lord Pickles (Conservative - Life peer)
Question
To ask the hon. Member for South West Devon, representing the Speaker's Committee on the Electoral Commission, what performance grade the Electoral Commission gave to the London Borough of Tower Hamlets on (a) electoral integrity and (b) electoral registration on each occasion since the Electoral Commission began its performance management regime; and whether the Commission judged that that Borough had exceeded the required standards in those categories on those occasions.
Answered by Gary Streeter
The Electoral Commission’s performance standards framework is for Returning Officers (RO) and Electoral Registration Officers (ERO), not local authorities. There are separate standards for each role and each has elements relating to the RO and ERO’s responsibilities for supporting electoral integrity.
Between 2008 and 2013, the ERO for Tower Hamlets was assessed as ‘meeting’ or ‘above’ all the ERO standards (including the integrity standards) each year. From 2014, the Commission’s standards for EROs changed to reflect the transition to Individual Electoral Registration. The ERO was assessed as meeting the first standard (which related to public engagement activities) in 2014. The Commission will report on the second standard (implementation of their plans) following the canvass taking place in late 2015.
Between 2009 and 2013, in the years in which elections were held, the RO for Tower Hamlets assessed their performance as meeting or above the standard. In 2014, a new performance standards framework for ROs removed self-assessment. The Commission was unable to confirm a performance standards assessment for Tower Hamlets following the May 2014 elections due to a petition that concluded in April 2015 but will be making its performance assessment shortly.
Performance standards are not the only measure of addressing integrity issues and the Commission expects more from EROs and ROs in areas where there is a history of electoral fraud allegations.
In March 2013 the Commission undertook a review of complaints and allegations made at elections in Tower Hamlets in 2012, and made recommendations to all those involved in upholding the integrity of elections in the borough in order to rebuild confidence and trust. The Commission published further updates on progress in Tower Hamlets in July 2013 and April 2014.
Tower Hamlets was identified by the Commission, prior to the May 2014 elections, as one of 16 areas nationally which were at higher risk of allegations of electoral fraud. In the months leading up to the May 2014 elections, the Commission closely monitored progress towards implementing those recommendations, meeting the RO for Tower Hamlets and the Metropolitan Police regularly to review their plans, and attending briefing meetings for prospective candidates. This work continued ahead of the May 2015 polls.
Asked by: Lord Pickles (Conservative - Life peer)
Question
To ask the hon. Member for South West Devon, representing the Speaker's Committee on the Electoral Commission, with reference to the Electoral Commission's Corporate Plan 2015-16 to 2019-20, HC106, published in June 2015, if his Committee will make an assessment of the criticism of the Electoral Commission made by Commissioner Richard Mawrey QC in his election court judgment of Erlam & Ors v Rahman & Anor [2015] EWHC 1215 (QB) in relation to the registration and finances of Tower Hamlets First.
Answered by Gary Streeter
The Electoral Commission informs me that it is satisfied that the documentation submitted to it in 2013 by ‘Tower Hamlets First’ met the statutory threshold requirements for registration of a political party. The Election Court judgement does not find otherwise. The barriers to registering as a political party are limited with the law requiring only certain specific criteria to be met before the Commission must add parties to the register.
Following the findings of the Court in April this year, the Commission promptly reviewed and removed the party's registration. In light of the comments made by Commissioner Richard Mawrey QC, the Commission has also indicated that it has reviewed its guidance and advice to applicants from new parties on a proposed party’s ‘Financial Scheme’ to further emphasise the responsibility of a registered party to have processes in place to meet their legal obligations. When the Committee considers the Electoral Commission’s Five Year Plain, it may consider whether any further steps are necessary.
Asked by: Lord Pickles (Conservative - Life peer)
Question
To ask the hon. Member for South West Devon, representing the Speaker's Committee on the Electoral Commission, with reference to the Electoral Commission's Corporate Plan 2015-16 to 2019-20, HC106, published in June 2015, what the evidential basis is for the assertion in that Plan that electoral fraud is not widespread.
Answered by Gary Streeter
The Electoral Commission’s Corporate Plan 2015-16 to 2019-20 states that “Although there is no evidence that electoral fraud is widespread in the United Kingdom, and the number of cases of alleged electoral fraud reported to the police is relatively low compared with the number of contests and the number of people who vote in elections each year, there is a consistent level of public concern about electoral fraud.”
The evidence underpinning the approach taken by the Commission in its corporate plan was set out in the final report of its 18-month review of electoral fraud vulnerabilities, which involved research with the public and wide consultation, including with elected representatives, political parties, electoral professionals, the police and prosecuting authorities, academics, voluntary organisations, think tanks and the UK Government. It was also based on data about allegations of electoral fraud reported to police forces across the UK that has been collated and published by the Commission since 2008.
Both reports are available on the Commission’s website and were sent to all honourable members.
Asked by: Lord Pickles (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps he is taking to ensure that every pregnant women prescribed the anti-epilepsy drug sodium valproate is warned of the risk to her unborn child.
Answered by George Freeman
After completion of a United Kingdom-led European review in 2014, the Department worked with the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency, healthcare professionals and patient groups to raise awareness and encourage discussion about the risks and benefits of sodium valproate between healthcare professionals and their patients.
Several measures were put in place to minimise the prescribing of sodium valproate to women of childbearing potential (except where other drugs are ineffective or not tolerated) and to communicate the warnings around the drug sodium valproate to healthcare professionals and patients (particularly women of child bearing potential).
There is now a mandatory requirement for all manufacturers to include the very latest information about the known risks of sodium valproate to the unborn child. The product information for healthcare professionals and patients has been updated to contain strengthened warnings about use in pregnancy and in women of child bearing age. New educational materials have been produced for use by healthcare professionals and patients that further highlight warnings of the risk of sodium valproate to the unborn child. Other actions include:
- working with the Health and Social Care Information Centre on introducing red-flag warnings on general practitioner and community pharmacy IT systems;
- updating the British National Formulary (BNF) and BNF for children; and
- using existing Departmental and National Health Service communication channels to raise awareness and provide information to patients.