Asked by: Brendan O'Hara (Scottish National Party - Argyll and Bute)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent discussions he has had with Ministers in each of the devolved administrations on his Department's assessment of the effect on the health and social care sector in each nation of the UK of the UK leaving the EU.
Answered by Steve Barclay - Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
Department for Exiting the European Union and Department of Health and Social Care Ministers speak regularly with Ministers from the Scottish and Welsh governments to update them on the negotiations, including through the Joint Ministerial Committee on EU Negotiations. Close cooperation between the United Kingdom Government and the devolved administrations remains essential to delivering an exit that works for all parts of the UK.
Asked by: Brendan O'Hara (Scottish National Party - Argyll and Bute)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many nationals from other EU countries are employed in the NHS.
Answered by Steve Barclay - Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
NHS Digital publishes Hospital and Community Health Services (HCHS) workforce statistics for England. These include staff working in hospital trusts and clinical commissioning groups, but not staff working in primary care or in general practitioner surgeries, local authorities or other providers.
The following table shows the number of non-United Kingdom European Union nationals that are employed in the NHS in England as at 30 September in the past two years and latest month available.
The number of non-UK EU nationals increased by 4,367 (5.5%) between Sept 2016 and June 2018.
| September 2016 | September 2017 | 30 June 2018 |
Number of other EU nationals employed by the NHS (headcount) | 59,796 | 61,974 | 63,065 |
Source: NHS Digital Quarterly HCHS workforce statistics.
The NHS in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland is a matter for the devolved governments.
Asked by: Brendan O'Hara (Scottish National Party - Argyll and Bute)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what change there has been in the number of nationals from other EU countries working in the NHS in the last two years.
Answered by Steve Barclay - Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
NHS Digital publishes Hospital and Community Health Services (HCHS) workforce statistics for England. These include staff working in hospital trusts and clinical commissioning groups, but not staff working in primary care or in general practitioner surgeries, local authorities or other providers.
The following table shows the number of non-United Kingdom European Union nationals that are employed in the NHS in England as at 30 September in the past two years and latest month available.
The number of non-UK EU nationals increased by 4,367 (5.5%) between Sept 2016 and June 2018.
| September 2016 | September 2017 | 30 June 2018 |
Number of other EU nationals employed by the NHS (headcount) | 59,796 | 61,974 | 63,065 |
Source: NHS Digital Quarterly HCHS workforce statistics.
The NHS in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland is a matter for the devolved governments.
Asked by: Brendan O'Hara (Scottish National Party - Argyll and Bute)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking with Ministers in each of the devolved administrations to ensure the adequacy of supply of medicines throughout the UK after the UK has left the EU.
Answered by Steve Barclay - Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
The Government’s no-deal European Union exit contingency planning covers the entire United Kingdom and has been developed in partnership with the devolved administrations and local National Health Service colleagues. The Department will continue to work closely with colleagues in the devolved administrations towards achieving our objective of ensuring a seamless supply to patients throughout the UK should we leave the EU without a deal next March, to ensure a UK-wide, cross-Government approach to our planning.
Earlier this year, the Department undertook an analysis using Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency and European Medicines Agency data on the supply chain for all medicines. This identified those products coming to the UK from or via the EU or wider EEA countries. We wrote to pharmaceutical companies on 23 August setting out our contingency planning and our aim of ensuring continuity of medicines supple for patients across the UK. We have received very good engagement from the industry in response to our letters. The Department continues to work closely with these companies to ensure that their UK stockpiles of medicines are sufficient to cope with any potential delays at the border that may arise in event of a no-deal EU exit.
Asked by: Brendan O'Hara (Scottish National Party - Argyll and Bute)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has undertaken a risk assessment of the effect of the UK leaving the EU on the population’s health and wellbeing in the event that there are shortages or disruptions to the supply of medicines after the UK has left the EU.
Answered by Steve Barclay - Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
The Government’s no-deal European Union exit contingency planning covers the entire United Kingdom and has been developed in partnership with the devolved administrations and local National Health Service colleagues. The Department will continue to work closely with colleagues in the devolved administrations towards achieving our objective of ensuring a seamless supply to patients throughout the UK should we leave the EU without a deal next March, to ensure a UK-wide, cross-Government approach to our planning.
Earlier this year, the Department undertook an analysis using Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency and European Medicines Agency data on the supply chain for all medicines. This identified those products coming to the UK from or via the EU or wider EEA countries. We wrote to pharmaceutical companies on 23 August setting out our contingency planning and our aim of ensuring continuity of medicines supple for patients across the UK. We have received very good engagement from the industry in response to our letters. The Department continues to work closely with these companies to ensure that their UK stockpiles of medicines are sufficient to cope with any potential delays at the border that may arise in event of a no-deal EU exit.
Asked by: Brendan O'Hara (Scottish National Party - Argyll and Bute)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate he has made of the number of vacancies in the health and social care sectors across the UK; and how many such vacancies there are in each of the four nations.
Answered by Steve Barclay - Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
Information is not held centrally on the number of vacancies in the health and social care sectors across the United Kingdom, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
Asked by: Brendan O'Hara (Scottish National Party - Argyll and Bute)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department consulted health and social care service providers on the effect on those sectors (a) throughout the UK and (b) in each of the four nations of the UK of leaving the EU.
Answered by Steve Barclay - Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
The Department has regular conversations with health and social care providers as well as with the devolved administrations to ensure an exit is delivered which works for the health and social care sector throughout the entire United Kingdom.
Asked by: Brendan O'Hara (Scottish National Party - Argyll and Bute)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has consulted people who require health and social care services on the impact on those sectors (a) throughout the UK and (b) in each of the four nations of the UK of leaving the EU.
Answered by Steve Barclay - Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
The Department has regular conversations with health and social care providers and users as well as with the devolved administrations to ensure an exit is delivered which works for the health and social care sector throughout the entire United Kingdom.
Asked by: Brendan O'Hara (Scottish National Party - Argyll and Bute)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department consulted organisations working for and on behalf of individuals who require health and social care services on the effect on those sectors (a) throughout the UK and (b) in each of the four nations of the UK of leaving the EU.
Answered by Steve Barclay - Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
The Department has regular conversations with health and social care organisations such as charities and patient advocacy groups as well as with the devolved administrations to ensure an exit is delivered which works for the health and social care sector throughout the entire United Kingdom.
Asked by: Brendan O'Hara (Scottish National Party - Argyll and Bute)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent assessment his Department has made of the effect on the health and social care sectors in each nation of the UK of the UK leaving the EU.
Answered by Steve Barclay - Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
We are committed to securing a deal that works for the entire United Kingdom - for Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland and England. The Department for Exiting the European Union and the Department of Health and Social Care regularly engage with the devolved administrations to update them on the negotiations.