Asked by: Philip Davies (Conservative - Shipley)
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 level of capacity in the independent health sector which can be used to help reduce waiting times in the NHS; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Will Quince
The Elective Recovery Taskforce heard that service planning in the independent sector, including to help reduce waiting times, is best informed by close working relationships with local systems and confidence in patient flows. To better inform planning and capacity utilisation in the independent sector, we are working with NHS England to enhance the patient choice offer. At the point of referral, patients will be actively offered a list of providers, including local independent sector providers, which are clinically appropriate for their condition.
From October 2023, all patients waiting over 40 weeks who have not had a first outpatient appointment booked, or where a decision to treat a patient has been made but the patient does not have a date for their treatment, will be able to initiate a request to transfer to another provider via the Patient Initiated Digital Mutual Aid System. This will include independent sector providers where appropriate.
To reduce waiting times for diagnostic tests, NHS England recently announced 13 Community Diagnostic Centres run by the independent sector, creating capacity, and enabling treatments to be started sooner.
Asked by: Philip Davies (Conservative - Shipley)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 11 September to Question 197441 on Surgery: Shipley, in what format the is data held.
Answered by Neil O'Brien
Data for elective referrals is collected and published in official statistics by NHS England, but none match the format of the data requested. Referrals particularly are not counted or recorded for “surgery” specifically but to see a consultant which may result in treatment including surgery.
Published referral to treatment statistics show, amongst other things, the number of referrals for National Health Service-funded care that resulted in elective inpatient treatment and can be disaggregated at NHS provider, independent provider, commissioner & integrated care board level geographies, but not at a constituency or general practitioner (GP) level. The monthly outpatient referrals data shows the number of referrals for an NHS funded outpatient appointment and can also be disaggregated at the provider level, including both NHS and independent. The annual hospital episode statistics (HES) publications include the total number of admissions by provider.
Furthermore, NHS England can provide from HES data a count of Finished Admission Episodes by GP practice with an elective admission where the patient was resident in the Shipley parliamentary constituency and the placement was NHS funded for the period 2018/19 to 2022/23. However, this is a count of activity rather than of referrals, namely a demand metric.
Asked by: Philip Davies (Conservative - Shipley)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many paid severances have been made by (a) all schools and (b) academy trusts in each of the last five years; and what the total cost to the public purse for those severances was in each of the last five years.
Answered by Nick Gibb
The Government requires a high level of accountability and transparency of academy trusts. Academy trusts’ status as companies, charities, and public sector bodies means they have a rigorous tri-partite framework and are held up to greater scrutiny.
Academy trusts’ responsibilities on severance payments are set out in the Academy Trust Handbook available at: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/academy-trust-handbook. Additional information is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/academies-severance-payments-form. Data on severance payments is provided in academy trusts’ accounts and at sector level in the Academies Consolidated Annual Report and Accounts, available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/academies-sector-annual-reports-and-accounts. In each report, severance payments are covered under the ‘Staff Costs’ section. Special severance payment (payments paid to employees outside statutory or contractual requirements) are listed under ‘Losses and Special Payments’. The latest sector data for the Consolidated Annual Report and Accounts year ending 31 August 2022 will be published in autumn 2023.
As the responsibility for maintained schools’ severance payments sits with the school and the local authority, the department does not collect the number of severances or amounts paid by Local Authority maintained schools.
Asked by: Philip Davies (Conservative - Shipley)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, how many and what proportion of (a) board members and (b) employees of Ofcom have previous experience in the industry that they regulate.
Answered by John Whittingdale
Ofcom’s board has ten members, bringing together executive and non-executive members who have the expertise relevant for providing strategic direction to Ofcom. Of its ten members, five (50%) have experience working in the industries for which Ofcom is the regulator. Ofcom hires people from a range of professional backgrounds, including its regulated sectors, but does not hold data relating to employees’ previous work experience.
Asked by: Philip Davies (Conservative - Shipley)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how many and what proportion of (a) board members and (b) employees of the Gambling Commission have previous experience in the industries that they regulate.
Answered by Stuart Andrew - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The Commission does not collect data on previous employers of its current staff but ensures that staff are able to access specialist knowledge to make informed and evidence-based decisions. The Commission also has a Managing Conflicts of Interest Policy that explains how it identifies and manages conflicts.
Job specifications for Commissioners reflect the range of skills and experience required by the Board including customer protection and insight, law enforcement and data science and digital innovation. Biographies of the current board members are available on Gov.uk.
As part of the fair and open process to recruit board members, candidates are assessed on their experience in different sectors, their understanding of the Gambling Commission’s work and the importance of effective, independent, proportionate, and impartial regulation.
Asked by: Philip Davies (Conservative - Shipley)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if he will make a formal apology to Matthew Hedges on the level of support offered by his Department while Mr Hedges was in prison in United Arab Emirates.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) issued a formal apology to Mr Hedges on 31 August 2023 in accordance with the recommendations set out following an investigation by the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman, which upheld aspects of his complaint. Supporting British nationals when they need help abroad remains an enduring priority of the FCDO.
Asked by: Philip Davies (Conservative - Shipley)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, when the (a) application process will begin and (b) criteria will be announced for the Levelling-Up Fund Round 3.
Answered by Dehenna Davison
As the Secretary of State announced during his speech at the LGA conference, the department is moving to a new approach for the third round of the Levelling Up Fund. Further details of our approach will be set out in due course.
Asked by: Philip Davies (Conservative - Shipley)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the average hourly pay for NHS consultants is (a) on a typical day and (b) when covering strike action.
Answered by Will Quince
Within the NHS Staff Earnings Estimates collection, NHS England publishes annual earnings estimates for staff working in Hospital and Community Health Services. This shows the estimated average annual full-time basic pay for National Health Service consultants is £105,484 for the 12 months to March 2023, giving an average hourly basic pay for NHS consultants of £50.57 per hour.
The Department does not hold data on the average hourly pay for NHS consultants when covering strike action.
Asked by: Philip Davies (Conservative - Shipley)
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 adequacy of the number of healthcare professional regulators; and if he will take steps to consolidate them.
Answered by Will Quince
In 2021 the Government commissioned a review of the number of healthcare regulators, considering whether opportunities exist for simplifying the landscape. There are no current plans to reduce the number of healthcare professional regulators, but the Government is committed to reforming the system of regulation for healthcare professionals in the UK, making it faster, fairer, more flexible, and less adversarial.
A modernised regulatory framework will be introduced first for anaesthesia associates and physician associates, who will be brought into regulation under the General Medical Council by the end of 2024, before the reformed legislation is rolled out to doctors, and to the professions regulated by the Nursing and Midwifery Council and the Health and Care Professions Council over the following couple of years.
Asked by: Philip Davies (Conservative - Shipley)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make it his policy to introudce a cap on the cost of agency workers in the NHS.
Answered by Will Quince
The Agency Rules include price caps on the total amount a trust can pay per hour for an agency worker. Trusts should not pay more than this amount except in exceptional patient safety circumstances.
Additionally, the 2023/24 NHS Priorities and Operational Planning Guidance states that NHS England must reduce agency spending across the National Health Service to 3.7% of the total pay bill in 2023/24