Asked by: Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle (Green Party - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the potential of human-specific technologies, such as liver-on-a-chip, to improve the accuracy of tests to ascertain the safety of new drugs in humans.
Answered by Lord Markham - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) is aware of human-specific technologies, including organ-on-chip technologies, to better identify potential toxicity and safety of novel medicines and has engaged with other organisations active in this space such as the National Centre for the Replacement, Refinement & Reduction of Animals in Research which has hosted meetings on this theme. The MHRA has also provided scientific advice to at least one biotechnology company on the use of this technology to support proof of concept for a new medicine. The MHRA does not identify those with whom it may have had discussions who are active commercially in this space.
In relation to human specific methods, some medicines have been developed which only have activity in humans, such as eculizumab (Soliris), tebentafusp (Kimmtrak) or CAR T cell products (for instance, Kymriah, Yescarta and Tecartus). These medicines were developed using human specific methods; however, versions of these medicines that were active in animals were, in some cases, also used. The MHRA supports the developers of these products by its offer of scientific advice services, the Innovation Office and the Innovative Licensing and Access Pathway.
Asked by: Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle (Green Party - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what work is being done in prisons to identify victims of Foetal Alcohol Syndrome; and what steps they are taking to introduce appropriate management and treatment regimes for those prisoners identified.
Answered by Lord Markham - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
All people in prison receive an early health assessment through a reception screening process. Every person receives a first and second stage health assessment, which incorporates a mental health screening in line with National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guidelines. This screening includes questions and actions relating to their risk of self-harm and/or suicide, learning disabilities and neurodevelopmental disorders.
For women who are pregnant and in prison, a full health assessment is undertaken. Any risks, such as alcohol dependency which could lead to foetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD), should be monitored and managed by the healthcare team, including midwife support. Currently there is no specific treatment for FASD, but where a baby is at risk of FASD, this will form part of the birth plan with the hospital.
Asked by: Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle (Green Party - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the level of support available under the Pharmacy Access Scheme; and whether the criteria includes the (1) quality, (2) opening hours, and (3) range of provision, of existing pharmacies.
Answered by Lord Markham - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Pharmacy Access Scheme provides additional funding to pharmacies where the next nearest pharmacy is more than a 20-minute walk away. This is calculated as a 0.8-mile walking distance in areas of high deprivation and 1 mile in other areas. In 2021, we agreed updated eligibility criteria and an updated payment model with Community Pharmacy England. To be eligible for the payment, pharmacies must deliver the Community Pharmacist Consultation Service. Quality and opening hours are not included in the eligibility criteria.
Asked by: Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle (Green Party - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what discussions they have had with the government of Japan about bilateral collaboration into research into new antimicrobial agents and antimicrobial drugs.
Answered by Lord Markham - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
We are working closely with Japan to promote research into novel antimicrobial products and to address the global market failures in antibiotic research and development. Professor Dame Sally Davies, the United Kingdom Special Envoy on Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR), visited Japan earlier this year and met with parliamentarians, senior officials and industry leaders to highlight the threat posed by AMR and to share experiences from the world-leading NHS England and National Institute for Health and Care Excellence antimicrobial reimbursement project.
Officials at the Department of Health and Social Care and the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office continue to have bilateral consultations with their Japanese counterparts on national research into new antimicrobial agents and UK Ministers also highlighted the importance of this during G7 Ministerial meetings. Collaboration on AMR also continues between UK Research and Innovation and the Japan Agency for Medical Research and Development under the Memorandum of Cooperation.
Asked by: Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle (Green Party - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the finding of Min Cui, Bang Shen and others in their article ‘Animal diseases and human future’, published in Animal Diseases in April 2022, that 75 per cent of emerging human infectious diseases originate from animals.
Answered by Lord Markham - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) is aware of the paper Animal diseases and human future by Min Cui, Bang Shen et al published in Animal Diseases, April 2022. The paper asserts that “approximately 60% of human infectious diseases are zoonotic, and 75% of emerging human infectious diseases originate from animals”. While there is not one internationally agreed figure for the percentages of diseases, emerging or established, that are zoonotic, these figures are broadly in line with that of global public health partners such as World Organisation for Animal Health.
Asked by: Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle (Green Party - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they have plans for trials across England of antibiotic cessation for those receiving prophylactic antibiotics for recurrent urinary tracts infection, as pioneered in Wales.
Answered by Lord Markham - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
NHS England has supported two integrated care boards (ICBs) in the East of England to pilot local schemes to incentivise primary care networks to identify patients prescribed prophylactic antibiotics and invite those patients for a clinical review. Prescribing data will be used to monitor the impact of these pilot schemes and, if safe and effective, underpin a national roll out of this approach.
Asked by: Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle (Green Party - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they have taken to research and promote increased water consumption by care home patients to reduce (1) prophylactic antibiotic use, and (2) downstream effects on drug-resistant infections.
Answered by Lord Markham - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
NHS England is funding a series of hydration pilots, to test out which hydration related interventions are most likely to increase fluid intake and whether this in turn reduces the risk of developing a urinary tract infection (UTI) in the older adult population living in care homes. These pilots are intended to reduce the incidence of urinary tract and blood stream infections, antibiotic prescribing and use, and antimicrobial resistance.
Asked by: Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle (Green Party - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they are giving GPs different advice about the provision of treatments and services to asylum-seekers as compared to provision for the general population.
Answered by Lord Markham - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Anyone in England can register and consult with a general practitioner without charge, including people seeking asylum. Asylum seekers are particularly vulnerable to potential health needs because of their experiences either before, during or after migration. Additional services may be locally commissioned by the National Health Service, including from general practice, to identify and manage such health needs. Information for healthcare professionals on meeting the health needs of migrants is available in the Migrant Health Guide, which is produced by the Office for Health Improvement and Disparities.
Asked by: Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle (Green Party - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they plan to require GPs to provide, without charge, letters confirming the residential addresses of asylum-seekers and refugees seeking to open a bank account.
Answered by Lord Markham - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
There is currently no plan to require general practitioners to provide letters confirming the residential addresses of asylum-seekers and refugees seeking to open a bank account. Asylum seekers and refugees are entitled to register for and receive general practice services in the same way as any other member of the general population. This is confirmed in a range of advice and guidance published by NHS England and the NHS more widely.
Asked by: Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle (Green Party - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the trends in the past three years relating to the consumption levels of high fat, salt and sugar foods in the UK, particularly among (1) children and (2) vulnerable populations.
Answered by Lord Markham - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
This assessment has not yet been published. Data on consumption of foods and their contribution to fat, saturated fat, salt and free sugars intakes are collected and reported via the National Diet and Nutrition Survey (NDNS). Data for 2019 to 2023 combined will be published as part of the next NDNS report, expected in Spring 2024. Data will be published by age group, including for children aged 1.5 to 3 years, 4 to 10 years, and 11 to 18 years. Analysis of food consumption by equivalised household income and Index of Multiple Deprivation will also be published.
Monitoring data for the government’s voluntary sugar reduction programme showed that, between 2015 and 2020, retailers and manufacturers achieved a -3.5% reduction in sales weighted average SWA sugar content per 100g. Overall sales of sugar from the categories included in the programme increased by 7.1% overall, with the largest increases at a category level seen in chocolate confectionary (+26.9%) and sweet spreads and sauces (+24.5%). In contrast, the total sugar sales from drinks subject to the Soft Drinks Industry Levy (SDIL) decreased by 34.3% between 2015 and 2020.