Asked by: Ben Bradley (Conservative - Mansfield)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the Impact Assessment entitled Introducing a 2100-0530 watershed on TV advertising of food and drink that are high in fat, salt and sugar products and similar protection for children viewing adverts online, what assessment he has made of the compatibility of a ban on online advertising of products that are high in fat, salt and sugar with the finding by his Department that such a ban would reduce a child’s annual calorie intake by 700 calories a year.
Answered by Jo Churchill - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The impact assessment for further advertising restrictions for products high in fat, salt and sugar (HFSS) shows a positive net value, meaning the health benefits outweigh the costs to business and the Government. It also presents the number of calories removed from a child’s diet each day as a result of the restrictions. This is a population wide estimate and does not reflect that this policy could most benefit children from lower income households who are more exposed to HFSS advertising and those who are already overweight or obese.
Asked by: Ben Bradley (Conservative - Mansfield)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the Government’s Impact Assessment for Restricting checkout, end-of-aisle, and store entrance sales of food and drinks high in fat, salt, and sugar (HFSS), what assessment he has made of the reasons for the discrepancy between the (a) Government's impact assessment of a net cost to business of £1.1 billion per year and (b) food and drink industry's estimate of a £3 billion reduction in revenue as a result of a ban on the promotion of HFSS foods.
Answered by Jo Churchill - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
There has been no such direct assessment. We have engaged with industry throughout impact assessment’s consultation period and believe the values quoted in the impact assessment are robust.
Both the costs to business and health benefits gained from restricting placement of products high in fat, salt and sugar were modelled by Department analysts and publicly consulted on. The final impact assessment was revised in light of evidence and responses submitted through consultation. The impact assessment has gone through a rigorous review process including receiving a ‘fit for purpose’ rating from the Regulatory Policy Committee, an independent committee sponsored by the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, who ensure that costs to business have been considered appropriately.
Asked by: Ben Bradley (Conservative - Mansfield)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 28 April 2021 to Question 179491 on Food: Marketing, what his timeframe is for the laying before Parliament of secondary legislation on restrictions on the promotion and placement of foods that are high in fat, salt and sugar; whether his Department plans to introduce those restrictions in April 2022; and what discussions his Department has had with representatives of the food and drink industry on those timeframes.
Answered by Jo Churchill - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
We are awaiting confirmation of a date for laying this secondary legislation.
We have engaged closely with industry on the detail of the policy and to ensure the regulations are practical and fit for purpose. We have been careful to consider the views of stakeholders and experts as we develop our plans for implementing our obesity strategy and we will continue to listen. This includes feedback from stakeholders and a wide range of experts in response to our public consultations on specific policy proposals.
Asked by: Ben Bradley (Conservative - Mansfield)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will provide details of all roles performed for his Department by Axel Heitmuller.
Answered by Jo Churchill - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
Axel Heitmueller worked for NHS Test and Trace in the following roles: Director of Innovation and Partnerships; Director of Testing Strategy and Policy; and Director for overall Strategy and Innovation for NHS Test and Trace.
Asked by: Ben Bradley (Conservative - Mansfield)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 16 June 2021 to Question 12283 on Air Pollution: Coronavirus, whether his Department has plans to make an assessment of the ability of photohydroionization technology to prevent covid-19 transmission via aerosol and water droplets.
Answered by Jo Churchill - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
There are no plans to do so.
Asked by: Ben Bradley (Conservative - Mansfield)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how much funding has been awarded to the University of St Andrews for research into whether ultraviolet-C light is effective against covid-19; what the terms of reference for that research are; and what estimate he has made of when the findings will be reported to Government and published.
Answered by Jo Churchill - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
A total of £136,000 has been awarded to the University of St Andrews under the
provisions of NHS Act 2006 Para 13 Schedule.
The terms of reference are as follows:
- The trials and assessment will be carried out by the University of St. Andrew;
- The Funding Period started on 1 March 2021 and ends on 28 February 2022 unless terminated earlier in accordance with this Grant Funding Agreement; and
- The Grant Recipient shall provide the Authority with a quarterly report on the progress of the trials on evaluating the efficacy of viricidal Far-UVC light technology and its ability to inactivate virus in droplets, aerosols and on surfaces in simulated public locations.
Initial results are expected in Quarter 4 2021.
Asked by: Ben Bradley (Conservative - Mansfield)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what discussions officials in his Department have had with representatives of NHS East England on their purchase of photohydroionization (PHI) technology to prevent covid-19 transmission via aerosol and water droplets.
Answered by Edward Argar - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
We have had no specific discussions.
Asked by: Ben Bradley (Conservative - Mansfield)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will set out the (a) value and (b) purpose of each contract awarded by his Department to Imperial College Health Partners since March 2020.
Answered by Edward Argar - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
The Department has not awarded any contracts with Imperial College Health Partners since March 2020.
Asked by: Ben Bradley (Conservative - Mansfield)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the Hydrogen Peroxide Vapour (HPV) pilots announced by his Department in September 2020, which two UK suppliers have been selected; what application process was used to select those two suppliers; and what the results of those pilots were.
Answered by Jo Churchill - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Health and Safety Executive investigated whether hydrogen peroxide could be used to decontaminate single use FFP3 masks to extend their use. Inivos and Bioquelle were selected as the two suppliers for the trial as they could establish the pilots quickly and had the necessary equipment needed within trusts.
Swatches were used to monitor bacteria growth. There were a significant number with bacterial growth that had been incubated post-decontamination. Therefore, the approach of using hydrogen peroxide vapour was unsuccessful.
Asked by: Ben Bradley (Conservative - Mansfield)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the advice given to the Government by the SAGE Environmental and Modelling Group of 4 November 2020 to develop impartial guidance for consumers to allow them to identify appropriate air cleaning devices and technologies to combat SARS-CoV-2, what steps his Department has taken in response to the provision of that advice.
Answered by Jo Churchill - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The advice from the Scientific Advisory Group on Emergencies was discussed 5 November 2020. The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy and the Health and Safety Executive are responsible for determining future policy and regulatory action.