Asked by: Ben Howlett (Conservative - Bath)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what provisions for increased asthma care are being taken in the implementation of the Five Year Forward View.
Answered by Jane Ellison
The Five Year Forward View makes clear that supporting people living with long term conditions, such as asthma, is core business for the National Health Service and that this requires a partnership with patients over the long term, rather than providing single, unconnected episodes of care.
In order to achieve this, the NHS is focusing on empowering patients and communities. The 2016/17 NHS Shared Planning Guidance requires local areas to produce five year sustainability and transformation plans (STPs). In developing their STP, local areas are asked to consider how they will:
― achieve a step-change in patient activation and self-care;
― embed the six principles of engagement and involvement of patients, carers, and communities developed to help deliver the Five Year Forward View; and
― make real the aspiration to design person-centred coordinated care, including plans to ensure patients have access to named, responsible consultants.
Vanguard sites for the new care models programme, one of the first steps towards delivering the Five Year Forward View, are focusing on developing new ways of working to improve the care provided to patients and local people. The vanguards will consider the provision of asthma care at a local level as they develop and implement their plans.
More generally, NHS England continues to work with Asthma UK and professional groups in both primary and secondary care to improve outcomes for all those with asthma by, for example, underlining the importance of the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence’s asthma quality standard in commissioning and delivering good quality asthma care.
Asked by: Ben Howlett (Conservative - Bath)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps his Department is taking to expand access to treatments for severe asthma in the South West of England.
Answered by Jane Ellison
Services for people with severe asthma are commissioned by NHS England in line with national specifications to ensure patient numbers are sufficient to support safe services.
We are advised by NHS England that in the South West there are currently treatment hubs in Bristol and Taunton that provide services for children; and services for adult in hubs at Bristol, Taunton, Exeter, Plymouth, Swindon and Gloucestershire.
NHS England advises that other asthma services are commissioned locally, via community providers and primary care (general practice and pharmacy).
In the constituency of Bath, we are informed by NHS England that asthma is largely managed by primary care providers, while more complex patients with severe or difficult asthma are seen by the acute respiratory teams. We are assured by NHS England that secondary care services in the area are both appropriate and accessible for patients with acute asthma and that NHS Bath and North East Somerset Clinical Commissioning Group has no plans to change or expand its existing asthma provision at this time.
Asked by: Ben Howlett (Conservative - Bath)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to secure the appropriate data to monitor the progress of programmes which encourage the uptake of STEM subjects by girls.
Answered by Nick Gibb
The Government funds a number of programmes which encourage the uptake of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) subjects by girls. We monitor the progress of these programmes against their key performance indicators through regular reports and by evaluating their impact.
In 2014 the Government published for the first time data showing the proportion of girls and boys studying A levels in science and maths at each post-16 institution, and in 2016 time series data of students entered for mathematics and science A level subjects by number of subjects and gender. Both sets of data will continue to be published on an annual basis.
Asked by: Ben Howlett (Conservative - Bath)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, whether the 100,000 Genomes project will be able to diagnose patients with a ring chromosome.
Answered by George Freeman
The 100,000 Genomes Project could potentially diagnose participants with a ring chromosome through whole genome sequencing. The close working between NHS Genomic Medicine Centres and Genomics England means that ring chromosomes will continue to be detected primarily through routine diagnostic care. The 100,000 Genomes Project will give important information on the effective use of genomic technologies to bring benefit to National Health Service patients.
Asked by: Ben Howlett (Conservative - Bath)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what plans he has to improve waiting times at driving test centres in (a) Bristol, (b) Chippenham, (c) Trowbridge and (d) Westbury.
Answered by Andrew Jones
The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) is committed to reducing waiting times at Bristol, Chippenham, Trowbridge and Westbury and all other testing sites, and maintaining them at a lower level than currently seen across the UK, this is a priority for DVSA.
DVSA has run several recruitment campaigns during 2015, and continues to do so in 2016. However, due to the critical roles a driving examiner has to play in road safety, the process to recruit the right people
does take time. As a result of the campaigns, 139 new examiners have started work with DVSA and it has made offers of employment to another 115 people, who are currently undertaking training or waiting to attend it.
Asked by: Ben Howlett (Conservative - Bath)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if he will take steps to ensure that young intersex people are included in the Government's review of youth justice.
Answered by Andrew Selous - Second Church Estates Commissioner
A review of how transgender people – both adults and under-18s – are dealt with by prison and probation services is currently being conducted by the Ministry of Justice. This review includes those who identify as intersex. The findings and recommendations of this review will inform the review of the youth justice system which will report in July.
Asked by: Ben Howlett (Conservative - Bath)
Question
To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, what proportion of girls in (a) state and (b) private schools took physics A-level in 2015.
Answered by Nick Gibb
Information on the proportion of girls who took A level physics in state-funded schools in 2014/15 is published as part of the “A level and other level 3 results: 2014 to 2015 (revised)” statistical first release.[1] In independent schools[2] 9.3% of girls took A level physics in 2014/15.
[1] https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/a-level-and-other-level-3-results-2014-to-2015-revised (Document titled: Maths and science tables; Tab titled: Table 18)
[2] Excludes independent special schools and non-maintained special schools.
Asked by: Ben Howlett (Conservative - Bath)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps he is taking to protect customers from the practice of telephone slamming.
Answered by Lord Vaizey of Didcot
Ofcom, as the independent telecommunications regulator, introduced rules in May 2005 to protect consumers against slamming. Its most recent rules, updated in June 2015, prohibits all telephone companies from engaging in dishonest, misleading or deceptive conduct, and oblige providers to ensure consumers fully understand and consent to a contract before it is agreed.
Ofcom’s most recent complaints data shows that slamming complaints have reduced significantly to an average of 140 complaints per month, compared with an average of over 700 in 2010. Ofcom can take action if companies repeatedly breach these rules and has the power to fine companies up to 10% of their annual turnover and to require them to remedy any issues that have arisen, including repaying affected customers who have lost money. In addition, safeguards have been built into the landline/broadband switching process on the Openreach network that are designed to protect consumers from being slammed. Consumers are required to receive a letter informing them that a switch is scheduled and that there is a 10-day switchover period, during which the order can be stopped if a customer has been inadvertently signed up.
Asked by: Ben Howlett (Conservative - Bath)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what estimate he has made of the proportion of young people from disadvantaged backgrounds who applied to university in each of the last six years.
Answered by Lord Johnson of Marylebone
The Universities and Colleges Admissions Service (UCAS) publishes data on application and entry rates for full-time undergraduate courses.
The tables show the proportion of 18 year olds from disadvantaged backgrounds who applied to university by the main January deadline (application rate) and the proportion of 18 year olds that accepted a place during a UCAS application cycle (entry rate).
Table 1: Application rates for English 18 year olds from POLAR3 quintile 1 areas (for entry in year) | |||||||
2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 |
15.2% | 18.0% | 18.6% | 17.9% | 18.9% | 20.4% | 21.0% | 22.0% |
Table 2: Entry rates for English 18 year olds from POLAR3 quintile 1 areas (for entry in year) | ||||||
2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 |
13.6% | 14.2% | 15.1% | 15.1% | 16.4% | 17.8% | 18.5% |
Notes:
Asked by: Ben Howlett (Conservative - Bath)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what research his Department has conducted or commissioned on the effectiveness of pre-exposure prophylaxis in preventing HIV infection in men who have sex with men.
Answered by Jane Ellison
Public Health England part funded the PROUD study that examined the effectiveness of pre-exposure prophylaxis in preventing HIV infection in men who have sex with men. The results of the study were published in September 2015.