Asked by: Lady Hermon (Independent - North Down)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to the Answer of 25 November 2014 to Questions 214952 and 214953, whether his letter to the German Federal Minister of Family Affairs, Senior Citizens, Women and Youth made representations urging the German government to make appropriate financial contributions to British victims of Thalidomide.
Answered by Norman Lamb
I wrote to Manuela Schwesig, Federal Minister of Family Affairs, Senior Citizens, Women and Youth, asking if she would meet with the Trust but did not address the issue of financial contributions.
Asked by: Lady Hermon (Independent - North Down)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps he is taking to discuss with the National Advisory Council of the Thalidomide Trust a contribution by his Department towards the health costs of British Thalidomide survivors; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Norman Lamb
On 20 December 2012, I announced a new 10-year grant to the Thalidomide Trust worth in the region of £80 million. The grant was made in recognition of the complex and highly specialised needs that thalidomiders have, particularly as they approach older age, and will enable the Thalidomide Trust and its members to explore more innovative ways of preventing further deterioration in the health of Thalidomide survivors in England and to help them to preserve their independence.
I met with the Thalidomide Trust on 23 June 2014 and subsequently wrote to Manuela Schwesig, Federal Minister of Family Affairs, Senior Citizens, Women and Youth, on behalf of all four UK Governments asking if she would meet with the Trust.
Asked by: Lady Hermon (Independent - North Down)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps he is taking to ensure that the government of Germany makes appropriate financial contributions to British victims of Thalidomide; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Norman Lamb
On 20 December 2012, I announced a new 10-year grant to the Thalidomide Trust worth in the region of £80 million. The grant was made in recognition of the complex and highly specialised needs that thalidomiders have, particularly as they approach older age, and will enable the Thalidomide Trust and its members to explore more innovative ways of preventing further deterioration in the health of Thalidomide survivors in England and to help them to preserve their independence.
I met with the Thalidomide Trust on 23 June 2014 and subsequently wrote to Manuela Schwesig, Federal Minister of Family Affairs, Senior Citizens, Women and Youth, on behalf of all four UK Governments asking if she would meet with the Trust.
Asked by: Lady Hermon (Independent - North Down)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what estimate he has made of the number of tests on animals conducted in the UK using mitochondrial replacement techniques in each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by George Freeman
Experiments on animals have been performed over a number of years with the first successful pronuclear transfer (PNT) technique performed in mice in 1983 by McGrath and Solter. Maternal spindle transfer (MST) is a technique developed in the United States of America in 2009 and has been performed successfully in mice, non-human primates, as well as in sheep and cows. Research on both MST and PNT has been carried out successfully on human embryos. On-going studies of PNT and MST continue to be carried out on mice in the United Kingdom.
An extensive review of the safety and efficacy of MST and PNT to prevent mitochondrial disease was completed by the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority’s Expert Scientific Panel, which includes detailed consideration of animal model studies and can be found on their website:
www.hfea.gov.uk/docs/Third_Mitochondrial_replacement_scientific_review.pdf