Asked by: Daisy Cooper (Liberal Democrat - St Albans)
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 26 March 2024 to Question 19419 on Infant Mortality: Certification, what her planned timetable is for extending the scheme to pregnancy losses before 1 September 2018.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
On 22 February 2024, we launched the Baby Loss Certificate service, fulfilling our commitment in the Women’s Health Strategy. We recognise that some people will wish to obtain a certificate for a baby loss that happened in the past. It is currently open to pregnancy losses since 1 September 2018, and we will extend this to earlier losses as soon as we can.
Asked by: Carla Lockhart (Democratic Unionist Party - Upper Bann)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether she has had recent discussions with the Department of Health in Northern Ireland on the implementation of baby loss certificates similar to those in England.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
Eligibility for the Baby Loss Certificate service is being continually assessed. Although health is a devolved matter, my officials have been in regular contact with their counterparts in the Department of Health in Northern Ireland, to discuss implementation of Baby Loss Certificates in Northern Ireland.
Asked by: Catherine West (Labour - Hornsey and Wood Green)
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 26 March 2024 to Question 19417 on Mental Health Services: Parents, what steps her Department is taking to provide community mental health services to bereaved (a) fathers and (b) partners following pregnancy or baby loss.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
Through the NHS Long Term Plan, we are committed to expanding and transforming mental health services in England so that more people, including bereaved fathers and partners following pregnancy or baby loss, can get the help and support that they need.
As part of this, we are expanding access to psychological and talking therapies within specialist perinatal mental health services. Specialist community perinatal mental health services have now been rolled out in every part of England, and should work closely with maternal mental health services, which are also being rolled out, with 39 maternal mental health services currently available across England. Fathers and other partners of women accessing specialist community care should be able to access an evidence-based assessment for their mental health and signposting to support as required. Individuals can also access psychological support by referring themselves to NHS Talking Therapies. Details of local services are available at the following link:
Asked by: Marquess of Lothian (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification report Famine Review Committee: Gaza Strip, March 2024, published on 18 March, what steps they are taking to prevent famine in Gaza.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Palestinians are facing a devastating and growing humanitarian crisis.
On 20 March, the Foreign Secretary announced the UK has funded WFP to provide 2000 tons of food aid, enough to feed 275,000 people in Gaza.
On 25 March, the Royal Air Force airdropped 10 tonnes of food aid - including water, rice and baby food - directly to civilians in Gaza.
We have trebled our aid commitment this financial year and we are doing everything we can to get more aid in as quickly as possible by land, sea and air.
We continue to call for an immediate pause to get aid in and hostages out, then progress towards a sustainable, permanent ceasefire, without a return to destruction, fighting and loss of life.
Asked by: Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what (1) funding, and (2) other assistance, they will provide along with international partners to prevent famine and starvation in (a) Gaza, and (b) Sudan.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Palestinians are facing a devastating and growing humanitarian crisis. On 20 March, the Foreign Secretary announced the UK has funded WFP to provide 2000 tons of food aid, enough to feed 275,000 people in Gaza. On 25 March, the Royal Air Force airdropped 10 tonnes of food aid - including water, rice and baby food - directly to civilians in Gaza.
We continue to call for an immediate pause to get aid in and hostages out, then progress towards a sustainable, permanent ceasefire, without a return to destruction, fighting and loss of life.
We have trebled our aid commitment this financial year and we are doing everything we can to get more aid in as quickly as possible by land, sea and air.
With regard to Sudan, the UK has provided £42.6 million in humanitarian aid, including food security and nutrition assistance, to support people in Sudan in 2023-2024. UK Official Development Assistance (ODA) to the country will increase to £89 million for the year ahead.
Asked by: Lord Bishop of Southwark (Bishops - Bishops)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the report of the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification, IPC Global Initiative - Special Brief, published 19 March, that famine in Gaza is imminent; and what steps they are taking in response.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Palestinians are facing a devastating and growing humanitarian crisis.
On 20 March, the Foreign Secretary announced the UK has funded WFP to provide 2000 tons of food aid, enough to feed 275,000 people in Gaza.
On 25 March, the Royal Air Force airdropped 10 tonnes of food aid - including water, rice and baby food - directly to civilians in Gaza.
We have trebled our aid commitment this financial year and we are doing everything we can to get more aid in as quickly as possible by land, sea and air.
We continue to call for an immediate stop in fighting to get aid in and hostages out, then progress towards a sustainable, permanent ceasefire, without a return to destruction, fighting and loss of life.
Asked by: Catherine West (Labour - Hornsey and Wood Green)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when baby loss certificates will become available for people who lost their child before September 2018.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
On 22 February 2024, we launched the Baby Loss Certificate service, fulfilling our commitment in the Women’s Health Strategy. The certificate is an important acknowledgement of a life lost, and we hope it will provide some comfort and support by validating the loss.
We recognise that some people will wish to obtain a certificate for a baby loss that has happened in the past. It is currently open to pregnancy losses since 1 September 2018, and we will extend this to earlier losses as soon as we can.
Asked by: Catherine West (Labour - Hornsey and Wood Green)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of bereavement support provided to fathers following a baby loss.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
The Government recognises that partners can also be impacted when their loved ones are suffering from the consequences of the loss of a baby. We previously funded the Stillbirth and Neonatal Death charity to produce and support the roll-out of a National Bereavement Care Pathway, to reduce the variation in the quality of bereavement care provided by the National Health Service, for parents and their families. On 22 February 2024, we launched Baby Loss Certificates, so either parent can obtain a certificate to recognise the loss of a baby before 24 weeks.
Asked by: Catherine West (Labour - Hornsey and Wood Green)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether her Department has plans to increase support for bereaved parents who experience a (a) miscarriage or (b) baby loss.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
The Government funded the Stillbirth and Neonatal Death charity in order to produce and support the roll-out of a National Bereavement Care Pathway, to reduce the variation in the quality of bereavement care provided by the National Health Service. As of 30 January 2024, 126 NHS England trusts, or 98%, have signed up to the pathway.
The Government is also continuing to implement recommendations from the Pregnancy Loss Review published in July 2023. These focus on improving the care and support that women and families receive when experiencing a pre-24-week gestation baby loss.
On 22 February 2024, we launched Baby Loss Certificates so that parents can obtain a certificate to recognise the loss of a baby before 24 weeks. As of 4 March 2024, over 37,000 certificates have been issued. This delivers on priorities set out in the Women’s Health Strategy for England, and on recommendations from the Pregnancy Loss Review.
Asked by: Will Quince (Conservative - Colchester)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that a commitment to reducing inequalities in (a) pregnancy loss and (b) baby deaths is included in the next Three year delivery plan for maternity and neonatal services.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
The Government is committed to tackling and reducing disparities in health outcomes, and works closely with NHS England to improve equity for mothers and babies, and race equality for staff. A central ambition of the National Health Services’ three-year delivery plan for maternity and neonatal services is to reduce inequalities in access, experience, and outcomes for women and babies. This plan is available at the following link:
https://www.england.nhs.uk/publication/three-year-delivery-plan-for-maternity-and-neonatal-services/
There are no current plans to revise the three-year plan, and NHS England are focused on delivering the existing commitments, including those relating to inequalities in still birth and neonatal death.