Asked by: Hugh Gaffney (Labour - Coatbridge, Chryston and Bellshill)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has made an assessment of the effect of the introduction of minimum unit pricing of alcohol in Scotland on the level of alcohol consumption in Scotland.
Answered by Seema Kennedy
No assessment has been made. NHS Scotland publishes annual reports on the impact of the Scottish Government’s alcohol strategy, a core element of which is minimum unit pricing. However, the Scottish Government will not publish its statutory report on the impact of minimum unit pricing (MUP) until five years post-implementation of the legislation, in 2023. The Government shall monitor the impact of MUP as robust evidence emerges.
Asked by: Hugh Gaffney (Labour - Coatbridge, Chryston and Bellshill)
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 availablity of (a) critical and (b) short shelf-life medicines in the event of the UK leaving the EU without a deal.
Answered by Stephen Hammond
The Government fully understands that maintaining access to all medicines and medical products, including critical medicines and short shelf-life products, is vitally important to millions of people in this country. Ensuring unhindered supply of these products remains the Government’s top priority.
As in preparation for 29 March and 12 April, our ‘no deal’ EU Exit contingency plans for 31 October will cover the NHS, social care and the independent sector and covers all medicines, medical devices and clinical consumables, supplies for clinical trials, vaccines and countermeasures, and organs and tissues for transplants.
The Department has continued to work closely with the Devolved Administrations, industry trade bodies and suppliers, the NHS and other key stakeholders. Prior to 29 March, the Department analysed the supply chains of 12,300 medicines, close to half a million product lines of medical devices and clinical consumables, vaccines used in national and local programmes, and essential non-clinical goods on which the health and care system relies. These analyses and assessments have been updated where necessary and will continue to be refined while a ‘no deal’ EU Exit remains a possibility. This work has informed our plans.
We are asking suppliers to analyse their supply chains and to make alternative plans if they anticipate disruption, including rerouting to alternative ports or using airfreight where necessary. Our contingency measures aim to support industry-led measures and, where required, act as a ‘last resort’ to be used only when a supplier’s alternative arrangements encounter difficulties, to ensure uninterrupted supply.
In the case of medicines that cannot be stockpiled because, for example, they have short shelf-lives, such as medical radioisotopes, we are working closely with suppliers to make alternative arrangements using airfreight.
Further details can be found at the following link:
While we never give guarantees, we are confident that, if everyone – including suppliers, freight companies, international partners and the health and care system – does what they need to do, the supply of medicines and medical products should be uninterrupted in the event of a no-deal EU Exit.
Asked by: Hugh Gaffney (Labour - Coatbridge, Chryston and Bellshill)
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 adequacy of access to free wheelchairs for people with short-term mobility conditions or injuries.
Answered by Caroline Dinenage
No recent assessment has been made of the provision of wheelchairs for short-term use.