Asked by: Andrew Western (Labour - Stretford and Urmston)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what guidance his Department issues to social housing providers on reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC).
Answered by Lee Rowley - Minister of State (Minister for Housing)
I refer the Hon Member to my answer to Question UIN 197493 on 11 September 2023.
Asked by: Andrew Western (Labour - Stretford and Urmston)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what estimate he has made of the proportion of social housing stock that contains reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC).
Answered by Lee Rowley - Minister of State (Minister for Housing)
I refer the Hon Member to my answer to Question UIN 197493 on 11 September 2023.
Asked by: Andrew Western (Labour - Stretford and Urmston)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether social enterprises which have been commissioned by the NHS to deliver work on its behalf and which employ staff on agenda for change contracts will receive Government funding to enable them to fulfil the 2022/23 NHS non-consolidated pay awards.
Answered by Will Quince
The 2022-23 non-consolidated pay uplift for Agenda for Change staff applies to staff directly employed by an National Health Service organisation as set out in Annex 1 of the NHS Employers handbook. The eligibility criteria was agreed by all parties during negotiations, including Trade Unions and NHS Employers.
Independent providers remain free to develop and adapt their own terms and conditions of employment. This includes the pay scales that they use and any non-consolidated pay awards they choose to make. Staff employed by independent providers who utilise the Agenda for Change terms and conditions may be entitled to the non-consolidated pay award that staff working for eligible NHS organisations will receive, and organisations should consider their contractual obligations.
Asked by: Andrew Western (Labour - Stretford and Urmston)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what guidance his Department has made available for social enterprises which deliver work on behalf of the NHS on whether they are contractually obliged to pay staff on agenda for change contracts the 2022/23 NHS non-consolidated pay awards.
Answered by Will Quince
As National Health Service social enterprises are independent providers, and contracts will vary from organisation to organisation, they remain free to develop and adopt the terms and conditions of employment that best help them attract and keep the staff they need. This includes the pay scales that they use.
Asked by: Andrew Western (Labour - Stretford and Urmston)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of the provision of a free gym pass to veterans medically discharged from the Armed Forces.
Answered by Johnny Mercer - Minister of State (Cabinet Office) (Minister for Veterans' Affairs)
This Government understands the significant benefits of exercise in promoting physical and mental wellbeing.
A number of local authorities offer a range of benefits to the veteran community, including access to free gym membership.
The Department currently has no plans to offer free gym access to veterans across the UK.
Asked by: Andrew Western (Labour - Stretford and Urmston)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department has made a recent assessment of the potential impact of value based procurement decisions for incontinence products on (a) system costs for the (i) NHS and (ii) social care sector and (b) patient outcomes.
Answered by Will Quince
We are working to improve spend data systems through implementation of the Government’s Medical Technology Strategy. There are different supply routes available in the NHS, including through NHS Supply Chain, NHS Shared Business Services, direct from supplier to Trust and via prescription on Part IX of the Drug Tariff. NHS Supply Chain are currently in the process of working on two separate value-based procurement projects for continence, both of which aim to concentrate on patient outcomes.
Regulation 68 of the Public Contract Regulations (PCR) 2015 allows contracting authorities to determine the most economically advantageous tender and the lowest cost by using a life-cycle costing approach which includes all costs over the life cycle of works, supplies or services.
Integrated care boards (ICBs) are responsible for the commissioning of health services, including urinary incontinence for their local health economy and taking into account guidance from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence. NHS England’s Excellence in Continence Care guidance published in July 2018, indicates that personalised care including personal health budgets can be arranged locally by ICBs to help people manage and pay for their continence care needs.
Asked by: Andrew Western (Labour - Stretford and Urmston)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department has provided guidance to (a) NHS Supply Chain and (b) other purchasing managers in (i) the NHS and (ii) social care services on assessing the whole system cost of incontinence products prior to making value-based procurement decisions.
Answered by Will Quince
We are working to improve spend data systems through implementation of the Government’s Medical Technology Strategy. There are different supply routes available in the NHS, including through NHS Supply Chain, NHS Shared Business Services, direct from supplier to Trust and via prescription on Part IX of the Drug Tariff. NHS Supply Chain are currently in the process of working on two separate value-based procurement projects for continence, both of which aim to concentrate on patient outcomes.
Regulation 68 of the Public Contract Regulations (PCR) 2015 allows contracting authorities to determine the most economically advantageous tender and the lowest cost by using a life-cycle costing approach which includes all costs over the life cycle of works, supplies or services.
Integrated care boards (ICBs) are responsible for the commissioning of health services, including urinary incontinence for their local health economy and taking into account guidance from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence. NHS England’s Excellence in Continence Care guidance published in July 2018, indicates that personalised care including personal health budgets can be arranged locally by ICBs to help people manage and pay for their continence care needs.
Asked by: Andrew Western (Labour - Stretford and Urmston)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what steps her Department is taking to ensure meaningful engagement with parliamentary committees on trade negotiations.
Answered by Nigel Huddleston - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Government has put in place a suite of transparency and scrutiny arrangements that go well beyond statutory requirements. These were outlined in an exchange of letters with the Lords International Agreements Committee in May 2022.
The Government’s commitments include engaging with the relevant Select Committees during the pre-negotiations phase, providing regular written updates during talks and offers of private briefings with negotiating teams; and sharing key documents with Committees prior to publication where possible. We have also committed to ensuring there is extended time for Select Committees to scrutinise final agreements prior to ratification.
Asked by: Andrew Western (Labour - Stretford and Urmston)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what assessment he has made of the impact of food inflation on women with low incomes and children under the age of four years old.
Answered by Jeremy Quin
The information requested falls under the remit of the UK Statistics Authority.
A response to the Hon gentleman Parliamentary Question of 2 June is attached.
Asked by: Andrew Western (Labour - Stretford and Urmston)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department has a target for the proportion of eligible people that should receive Healthy Start payments.
Answered by Neil O'Brien
The NHS Business Services Authority (NHSBSA) operates the Healthy Start scheme on behalf of the Department. The NHSBSA is committed to increasing uptake of the scheme to ensure as many children as possible have a healthy start in life.