Asked by: Gerald Howarth (Conservative - Aldershot)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what the (a) process and (b) timetable is for reviewing the implementation of the EU Tobacco Products Directive in light of the UK's decision to leave the EU.
Answered by Baroness Blackwood of North Oxford
The Department is committed to a full statutory review of the functioning of the Tobacco and Related Products Regulations, which implement the European Union Tobacco Products Directive, within five years of entering into force. The statutory review must be accompanied by an Impact Assessment.
This is one of the many areas that the Government is considering carefully as part of the process of leaving the EU. Until exit negotiations are concluded, the United Kingdom remains a full member of the EU and all the rights and obligations of EU membership remain in force.
Asked by: Gerald Howarth (Conservative - Aldershot)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what recent assessment he has made of the potential effects of the introduction of the EU Tobacco Products Directive; and whether he has made an assessment of the removal of small and flavoured packs that was not part of the original impact assessment for that Directive.
Answered by Baroness Blackwood of North Oxford
The Impact Assessment published alongside the Tobacco and Related Products Regulations 2016 at:
sets out the Government’s view on the likely impact of the Directive, including an assessment of the removal of small and flavoured packs.
The Department is committed to a full statutory review of the functioning of the Tobacco and Related Products Regulations, which implement the European Union Tobacco Products Directive, within five years of entering into force. The statutory review must be accompanied by an Impact Assessment.
Asked by: Gerald Howarth (Conservative - Aldershot)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of the effect on small retailers of the introduction of those bans on small and flavoured tobacco packs prescribed in the EU Tobacco Products Directive that was not part of the original impact assessment for that Directive.
Answered by Baroness Blackwood of North Oxford
The Impact Assessment published alongside the Tobacco and Related Products Regulations 2016 at:
sets out the Government’s view on the likely impact of the Directive, including an assessment of the removal of small and flavoured packs.
The Department is committed to a full statutory review of the functioning of the Tobacco and Related Products Regulations, which implement the European Union Tobacco Products Directive, within five years of entering into force. The statutory review must be accompanied by an Impact Assessment.
Asked by: Gerald Howarth (Conservative - Aldershot)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what plans NHS Improvement has to identify the cost of delivering good care in a multiple pregnancy; and whether that body intends to update the maternity tariff to reflect that cost.
Answered by Philip Dunne
In the maternity pathway payment system, a multiple pregnancy would automatically lead to a higher tariff at all points of the pathway.
NHS Improvement are currently working with the sector with a view to developing the policies to be included in the statutory consultation for the 2017/18 national tariff, including the maternity pathway system. NHS Improvement plans to publish the statutory consultation in the autumn.
Asked by: Gerald Howarth (Conservative - Aldershot)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, whether there are plans for NICE guidance on multiple pregnancies to be updated and extended to include provisions on the level of care to be provided during labour and birth.
Answered by Philip Dunne
The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) has advised that it is currently reviewing its clinical guideline on multiple pregnancy: antenatal care for twin and triplet pregnancies (CG129) to check whether an update is warranted. As part of this review, NICE will consider whether any extension of the existing scope is required. NICE expects the review decision to be published later this year.
Asked by: Gerald Howarth (Conservative - Aldershot)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, whether there has been any evidence of fraud relating to the Right to Buy scheme; and what steps the Government has taken to prevent such fraud.
Answered by Brandon Lewis
This Government takes fraud extremely seriously. The Prevention of Social Housing Fraud Act 2013 increased the deterrent to tenants considering cheating the system, ensuring those who do cheat are detected more easily and punished more severely, and encourages social landlords to take a more proactive approach to tackling tenancy fraud.
We also provided £19 million funding to help councils tackle tenancy fraud as part of over £35 million government funding to tackle fraud across local government.
We have recently set up a Right to Buy Working Group with representative of housing associations, local authorities and lenders to identify additional safeguards to curb fraud when the Voluntary Right to Buy scheme is rolled out to 1.3 million housing association tenants. Work is underway developing the detailed design of the scheme in collaboration with the housing association sector, specifically looking at how fraud and opportunistic practice prevention measures can, as far as possible, be designed into the sales process.
Asked by: Gerald Howarth (Conservative - Aldershot)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what resources the Government has allocated to anti-fraud measures relating to the Right to Buy scheme; and how that allocation compares to measures aimed at preventing or detecting benefit fraud.
Answered by Brandon Lewis
This Government takes fraud extremely seriously. The Prevention of Social Housing Fraud Act 2013 increased the deterrent to tenants considering cheating the system, ensuring those who do cheat are detected more easily and punished more severely, and encourages social landlords to take a more proactive approach to tackling tenancy fraud.
We also provided £19 million funding to help councils tackle tenancy fraud as part of over £35 million government funding to tackle fraud across local government.
We have recently set up a Right to Buy Working Group with representative of housing associations, local authorities and lenders to identify additional safeguards to curb fraud when the Voluntary Right to Buy scheme is rolled out to 1.3 million housing association tenants. Work is underway developing the detailed design of the scheme in collaboration with the housing association sector, specifically looking at how fraud and opportunistic practice prevention measures can, as far as possible, be designed into the sales process.
Asked by: Gerald Howarth (Conservative - Aldershot)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what steps (a) local authorities, (b) housing associations, (c) his Department and (d) the National Audit Office have taken to investigate the extent of fraud relating to the Right to Buy scheme.
Answered by Brandon Lewis
This Government takes fraud extremely seriously. The Prevention of Social Housing Fraud Act 2013 increased the deterrent to tenants considering cheating the system, ensuring those who do cheat are detected more easily and punished more severely, and encourages social landlords to take a more proactive approach to tackling tenancy fraud.
We also provided £19 million funding to help councils tackle tenancy fraud as part of over £35 million government funding to tackle fraud across local government.
We have recently set up a Right to Buy Working Group with representative of housing associations, local authorities and lenders to identify additional safeguards to curb fraud when the Voluntary Right to Buy scheme is rolled out to 1.3 million housing association tenants. Work is underway developing the detailed design of the scheme in collaboration with the housing association sector, specifically looking at how fraud and opportunistic practice prevention measures can, as far as possible, be designed into the sales process.
Asked by: Gerald Howarth (Conservative - Aldershot)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how many tenants who receive social security benefits have been granted the Right to Buy.
Answered by Brandon Lewis
The information requested is not held centrally.
Asked by: Gerald Howarth (Conservative - Aldershot)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how many tenants who receive social security benefits have paid cash for properties sold under the Right to Buy scheme to date.
Answered by Brandon Lewis
The information requested is not held centrally.