Asked by: Olivia Blake (Labour - Sheffield, Hallam)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what funding he plans to allocate to refugee integration in 2024.
Answered by Tom Pursglove - Minister of State (Minister for Legal Migration and Delivery)
As pledged at the Global Refugee Forum 2023, the Government remains committed to enabling resettled refugees in rebuilding their lives in the UK. That is why refugees, as well as individuals arriving via our resettlement schemes with Indefinite Leave to Remain in the UK, have access to mainstream benefits and services to support their integration.
The Home Office also provides local authorities with a core tariff of £20,520 per person to cover resettlement and integration costs for those who arrive through the UK Resettlement Scheme, the Afghan Citizens Resettlement Scheme or the Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy. In the first year, local authorities also receive up to £4,500 per child for education and £850 to cover additional English language provision for adults, and health partners receive £2,600 per individual to cover healthcare.
Those granted protection through the asylum system are offered support from Migrant Help or their partner organisation. This support includes providing advice on accessing the labour market, on applying for Universal Credit, and signposting to local authorities for assistance with housing.
Refugees who arrived through safe and legal routes or were granted Refugee Permission to Stay on or after 28 June 2022 have access to the Refugee Employability Programme (REP). This launched in England in September 2023 and delivers a range of activities to support refugees, including employment, English language and integration support.
Asked by: Chris Grayling (Conservative - Epsom and Ewell)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, for what reason there is a shortage of the drug Trulicity in the NHS.
Answered by Andrew Stephenson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department has been working with Eli Lilly to address issues with access to glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists (GLP-1 RA) for type 2 diabetics. Issues with the supply of Trulicity (dulaglutide) have been driven by an increase in global demand. We have worked closely with Eli Lilly during this time to try to minimise risks to patients in the United Kingdom. As a result, patients stabilised on Trulicity (dulaglutide) should be able to continue to obtain their medicine. The supply of Trulicity will be intermittent throughout 2024 and patients are advised to speak to their prescriber if they have any concerns.
We issued updated guidance to healthcare professionals, in the form of a National Patient Safety Alert, on 3 January 2024, on how to manage patients requiring these medicines.
Our guidance is clear that GLP-1RAs that are solely licensed to treat type 2 diabetes should only be used for that purpose and should not be routinely prescribed for weight loss. The General Pharmaceutical Council, General Medical Council, Health and Care Professions Council, Nursing and Midwifery Council and Pharmaceutical Society of Northern Ireland have also issued a joint statement stressing the importance of health and care professionals meeting regulatory standards in relation to these medicines.
Asked by: Chris Stephens (Scottish National Party - Glasgow South West)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what steps his Department is taking to comply with principle (d) of schedule 1 of the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The FCDO designs work and workplaces to adapt to the needs of individuals where practicable, noting our UK and international presence. Work is underway to review the accessibility of all our global estate, to ensure it is fit for purpose, accessible and safe. The majority of our estate has flexible, ergonomic workplaces which should accommodate most individuals' requirements. Where individuals require workplace adjustments, specialist equipment or a review of their working arrangements, we have a dedicated function responsible for assessing and assisting these colleagues. FCDO sites provide colleagues with a range of supportive working environments, including desks, collaborative working spaces and meeting rooms.
Asked by: Tonia Antoniazzi (Labour - Gower)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what comparative assessment she has made of trends in the total number of medicine shortages recorded by her Department in January (a) 2021, (b) 2022, (c) 2023 and (d) 2024.
Answered by Andrew Stephenson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
There are around 14,000 licensed medicines, and the overwhelming majority are in good supply. However, the medicine supply chain is highly regulated, complex and global, and supply disruption is a common issue which affects countries all around the world.
The Department’s medicine Discontinuations and Shortages portal has been collecting notifications from suppliers of potential supply issues since October 2020, and shows that there were approximately:
- 90 supply issue notifications in January 2021;
- 110 supply issue notifications in January 2022;
- 170 supply issue notifications in January 2023; and
- 160 supply issue notifications in January 2024.
Although reporting does vary each month, annual notifications have remained fairly stable at approximately 1,600 supply issue notifications in 2022 and 2023. It is important to note that not all supply issue notifications will lead to a medicine shortage.
Asked by: Munira Wilson (Liberal Democrat - Twickenham)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what data she used to help inform her guidance entitled Mobile phones in schools, published on 19 February 2024.
Answered by Damian Hinds - Minister of State (Education)
The ‘Mobile phones in schools’ guidance is informed by data from various sources. These include the department’s ‘National Behaviour Survey: Findings from Academic Year 2021/22’ and the ‘School Snapshot Survey: Winter 2019’, Ofcom’s ‘Children’s Media Use and Attitudes’ and the Office for National Statistics’ report ‘Online bullying in England and Wales: year ending March 2020’.
The guidance was also informed by the ‘UNESCO Global education monitoring report, 2023: technology in education: a tool on whose terms?’ and the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health’s ‘The health impacts of screen time – a guide for clinicians and parents’. A review of academic research relating to the use of mobile phones in education settings and amongst children and young people was also conducted to inform the development of the guidance.
Asked by: Stephen Morgan (Labour - Portsmouth South)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, whether he has held discussions with his counterparts in the Middle East on the potential merits of developing a plan to support orphaned children in Gaza.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
From our £60 million of committed aid, we have provided targeted support for children through our £5.75 million contribution to UNICEF. Our funding is supporting their work to amongst other things, assist over 5,800 children with severe malnourishment and 853,000 children, adolescents and caregivers affected by the conflict, to receive emergency and child protection services, including mental health and psychosocial support.
The UK is a founding member and key donor to Education Cannot Wait (ECW), the global fund for education in emergencies and protracted crises. ECW is supporting education preparedness work in Gaza. We continue to support the wider delivery of education in Gaza, including through NGOs, UN partners, the World Bank, and the Global Partnership for Education.
Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what steps he is taking to help ensure that people in Gaza can be vaccinated.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
The UK Public Health Rapid Support Team (PHRST) has deployed experts through the Global Outbreak Alert and Response Network (GOARN). These experts are supporting the UN to strengthen disease surveillance and coordination of public health services in Gaza.
The UK is providing £60 million in humanitarian assistance to support partners including the British Red Cross, UNICEF, the UN World Food Programme (WFP) and Egyptian Red Crescent Society (ERCS) to respond to health and other critical needs in Gaza.
Asked by: Paula Barker (Labour - Liverpool, Wavertree)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment his Department has made of the economic benefits of allowing asylum seekers to work if they have been waiting six months or more for an initial decision.
Answered by Tom Pursglove - Minister of State (Minister for Legal Migration and Delivery)
Asylum seekers who have had their claim outstanding for 12 months or more, through no fault of their own, are allowed to work. Those permitted to work are restricted to jobs on the Shortage Occupation List. This is based on expert advice from the independent Migration Advisory Committee. It is the Home Office’s assessment that any analysis in this area is dependent on making assumptions from limited evidence and will therefore produce uncertain results.
Whilst we keep all policies under review, there are no immediate plans to change the existing policy, other than aligning it with the upcoming Immigration Salary List, which replaces the SOL. It is important that we distinguish between individuals who need protection and those seeking to work here who can apply for a work visa under the Immigration Rules. The Government has always been clear that asylum seekers do not need to make perilous journeys in order to seek employment in the UK. Those in need of protection should claim asylum in the first safe country they reach – that is the fastest route to safety.
Whilst there is mixed evidence that access to work in itself is a pull factor, it is reasonable to assume that this is one element in a range of factors that may drive illegal migration rather than use of legal routes to work in the UK. These routes include Skilled Worker, Global Talent, and Health and Care routes, which are supporting UK businesses to recruit workers with the skills and talent they need from around the world.
Asked by: Lord Woolley of Woodford (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of Black Child Clean Air Report published by Global Black Maternal Health in June 2023, which indicated that almost half of all Black mothers do not feel educated on the foetal impact of air pollution exposure during pregnancy.
Answered by Lord Markham - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
While no specific assessment has been made, the Office for Health Improvement and Disparities and the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) are working with the Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs to review the Air Quality Information System to ensure members of the public, and vulnerable groups, have the information they need to protect themselves and understand their impact on air quality. UKHSA’s Cleaner Air Programme also aims to reduce people’s exposure to air pollution and achieve better outcomes for all, particularly for the most vulnerable populations including pregnant women and ethnic minority groups.
Asked by: Lloyd Russell-Moyle (Labour (Co-op) - Brighton, Kemptown)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether she has made an assessment of the potential impact of off-label prescriptions of Victoza, Luraglutide, for the purpose of weight loss from private healthcare providers on the level of supply of that drug for type 2 diabetes.
Answered by Andrew Stephenson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
While the position has improved, there continues to be a global supply issue with glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists (GLP-1 RA), including Victoza (liraglutide). We have issued updated guidance to healthcare professionals in the form of a National Patient Safety Alert on 3 January 2024, on how to manage patients requiring these medicines.
Our guidance is clear that GLP-1 RAs that are solely licensed to treat type 2 diabetes should only be used for that purpose and should not be routinely prescribed for weight loss. The General Pharmaceutical Council, General Medical Council, Health and Care Professions Council, Nursing and Midwifery Council and Pharmaceutical Society of Northern Ireland have also issued a joint statement stressing the importance of health and care professionals meeting regulatory standards in relation to these medicines.
We know how distressing and frustrating medicine supply issues can be, and the Department will continue to help ensure that these critical medicines reach diabetes patients. If any patient is concerned about their treatment, they should discuss this with their clinician at the earliest opportunity.