Asked by: David Jones (Conservative - Clwyd West)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether general practitioners are entitled to conduct covid-19 antibody tests on their own authority.
Answered by Nadine Dorries
Antibody tests are available to National Health Service and care staff, eligible patients and care residents in England to see if they have had COVID-19 as part of the new national antibody testing programme. The antibody test will be available for clinicians to use in their routine management of NHS patients as appropriate, and also for any patient who is already having blood taken as part of other tests. A positive test result for antibodies does not mean that the person being tested is immune to COVID-19. There is currently no firm evidence that the presence of antibodies means someone cannot be re-infected with the virus or will not pass it on to someone else. If someone tests positive, they still need to follow social distancing measures and appropriate use of personal protective equipment.
Asked by: David Jones (Conservative - Clwyd West)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what discussions he has had with his counterpart in the Welsh Government on co-operation between England and Wales for the NHS Test and Trace service.
Answered by Nadine Dorries
The importance of developing a consistent and joined-up approach to contact tracing and testing across the whole of the United Kingdom is regularly discussed between the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care and his counterparts in each of the devolved administrations, most recently on 28 May 2020 at the weekly Four Nations ministerial call.
To support this, officials within the Department, NHSX and Public Health England are working closely with counterparts in the Welsh Government – as in each of the devolved administrations – to explore opportunities for aligning and integrating contact tracing and testing systems.
Asked by: David Jones (Conservative - Clwyd West)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether the Government plans to revise its advice to diabetics in respect of the covid-19 outbreak.
Answered by Jo Churchill - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
Those with diabetes are already on the wider clinically vulnerable list and should be strictly following social distancing measures. The guidance on shielding and protecting people who are clinically extremely vulnerable from COVID-19 has been developed by expert doctors identifying specific medical conditions based on what we know about the virus so far. We will continue to keep this evidence under review.
In addition, general practitioners and hospital specialists have been asked to recommend other patients follow shielding guidance, based on clinical judgement and an assessment of each individual’s needs.
Asked by: David Jones (Conservative - Clwyd West)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent assessment he has made of the efficacy of Vitamin D in the (a) treatment and (b) prevention of covid-19.
Answered by Jo Churchill - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
Public Health England (PHE) is monitoring any new, high quality evidence on nutrition and COVID-19 and seeking the advice of the Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition (SACN) as appropriate. PHE is carrying out a rapid review of recent evidence relating to vitamin D and the prevention of acute respiratory tract infections for SACN to consider at its meeting in June 2020.
PHE is aware of reviews and trials underway further exploring the vitamin D and the prevention and treatment of COVID-19. Examples of clinical trials underway on vitamin D and COVID-19 can be found at the following link:
https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/results?cond=COVID&term=vitamin+d&cntry=&state=&city=&dist
Asked by: David Jones (Conservative - Clwyd West)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what permissions the Government has (a) sought and (b) obtained from Apple for the use of the NHS test, trace and track app on iPhones.
Answered by Nadine Dorries
We have sought and obtained permission from Apple to include the National Health Service COVID-19 app on the App Store.
Asked by: David Jones (Conservative - Clwyd West)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether there is sufficient interoperability between NHS England and NHS Wales IT systems for the effective operation of a test, trace and track app.
Answered by Nadine Dorries
The Department and NHSX have been working closely with our partners in the devolved administrations throughout this outbreak. The National Health Service COVID-19 app will be available throughout the United Kingdom and the devolved administrations may choose to use the app as part of their response to COVID-19. A representative from each devolved administration has been sitting on the NHS COVID-19 app oversight board since mid-March. There is also a working group that is ensuring the NHS COVID-19 app can be integrated with devolved administrations’ test and trace plans.
Asked by: David Jones (Conservative - Clwyd West)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he held discussions with his counterparts in the (a) Welsh Government, (b) Scottish Government and (c) Northern Ireland Executive on trialling the NHS contact tracing app in those parts of the UK.
Answered by Nadine Dorries
The National Health Service COVID-19 app will be part of a wider approach that will involve contact tracing and testing. The Department and NHSX have been working closely with our partners in the devolved administrations throughout this outbreak, including on our contact tracing work, and will continue to do so going forward.
The Secretary of State for Health and Social Care has weekly calls with his devolved administration counterparts and a representative from each devolved administration sits on the app oversight board.
Asked by: David Jones (Conservative - Clwyd West)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies of the position taken by the World Health Organisation on electronic nicotine delivery systems.
Answered by Jo Churchill - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The World Health Organization recommends regulating e-cigarettes in order to protect non-smokers and youth from accessing these products. The United Kingdom regulatory framework recognises this.
Although not risk free, in the UK, e-cigarettes have helped some smokers to quit tobacco use who would not have quit through other means. We continue to keep the evidence base on e-cigarettes under review.
Asked by: David Jones (Conservative - Clwyd West)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the Government's policy on electronic nicotine delivery systems will be at the ninth session of the Conference of the Parties to the World Health Organisation Framework Convention on Tobacco Control; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Jo Churchill - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
At the 9th World Health Organization Framework Convention on Tobacco Control Conference of the Parties, officials will continue to communicate the United Kingdom Government’s position on e-cigarettes. That is, although not risk free, e-cigarettes have helped some smokers to quit tobacco use who would not have quit through other means. We have introduced a proportionate regulatory framework and continue to keep the evidence base on e-cigarettes under review.
Asked by: David Jones (Conservative - Clwyd West)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether at the ninth Conference of Parties of the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control the UK will be required procedurally to vote in alignment with EU member states as a result of the conference taking place during the implementation period following the UK's departure from the EU.
Answered by Jo Churchill - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The United Kingdom intends to attend the 9th Conference of the Parties to the World Health Organization Framework Convention on Tobacco Control in accordance with the terms set out within the withdrawal agreement with the European Union.