Show Search Form

Search Results

registered interest	true false
date	exactly: or between: and
answering body
answering dept id
answering dept short name
answering dept sort name
hansard heading
house id
legislature	pref label
question text
tabling member constituency
tabling member printed
uin
answer	is ministerial correction true false date of answer exactly: or between: and answer text answering member constituency answering member printed question first answered answering member label
tabling member	label

Search

1564327

	registered interest
	date	06/01/2023
	answering body	Department of Health and Social Care
	answering dept id	17
	answering dept short name	Health and Social Care
	answering dept sort name	Health and Social Care
	hansard heading	Medicine: Education
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many medical students are studying in the UK.
	tabling member constituency	Warley
	tabling member printed	John Spellar
	uin	117444
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 12/01/2023 answer text <p>The information requested is not held centrally.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 12/01/2023 11:12:26 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	318 label Biography information for John Spellar

1564437

	registered interest
	date	06/01/2023
	answering body	Department of Health and Social Care
	answering dept id	17
	answering dept short name	Health and Social Care
	answering dept sort name	Health and Social Care
	hansard heading	Antibiotics
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to help reduce the cost of the charge to the NHS for antibiotics.
	tabling member constituency	Warley
	tabling member printed	John Spellar
	uin	117449
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 13/01/2023 answer text <p>The Government relies on competition to drive down prices of generic medicines such as antibiotics. This has led to some of the lowest prices in Europe. Freedom of pricing enables supplies to put prices up quickly to ensure we maintain continuity of supply despite increasing prices within the global market. In secondary care, tendering for antibiotics on a frequent basis ensures best value and supply resilience is optimised.</p><p>No supplier should use the current situation as an opportunity to exploit the National Health Service. Where companies are found to be abusing their dominant position by charging excessive and unfair prices, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) can take action against businesses and individuals engaged in anti-competitive conduct. The CMA is working to establish the facts of what is currently happening in the antibiotic market. They stand ready to take action if there is evidence of anti-competitive behaviour that breaks the law.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 13/01/2023 13:26:35 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	318 label Biography information for John Spellar

1564469

	registered interest
	date	06/01/2023
	answering body	Department of Health and Social Care
	answering dept id	17
	answering dept short name	Health and Social Care
	answering dept sort name	Health and Social Care
	hansard heading	Cannabis: Medical Treatments
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many prescriptions for cannabis-based medicines have been issued since those prescriptions became legal.
	tabling member constituency	Warley
	tabling member printed	John Spellar
	uin	117459
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 13/01/2023 answer text <p>The NHS Business Services Authority (NHSBSA) is unable to provide the number of National Health Service prescription items for unlicensed cannabis-based medicines dispensed in the community in England. This information is being withheld in accordance with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), due to the number of items attributed to fewer than five patients and the elevated risk of potential patient identifiable information.</p><p>However, the following table shows NHS and private prescribing data for the number of items prescribed for licensed and unlicensed cannabis based medicines dispensed in the community in England.</p><p> </p><table><tbody><tr><td><p>Type of prescribing</p></td><td><p>Time period</p></td><td><p>Number of items</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>NHS prescribing licensed medicines</p></td><td><p>November 2018 to October 2022</p></td><td><p>11,976</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Private prescribing licensed medicines</p></td><td><p>November 2018 to October 2022</p></td><td><p>140</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Private prescribing unlicensed medicines</p></td><td><p>November 2018 to July 2022</p></td><td><p>89,239</p></td></tr></tbody></table><p> </p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 13/01/2023 12:42:25 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	318 label Biography information for John Spellar

1564761

	registered interest
	date	09/01/2023
	answering body	Department of Health and Social Care
	answering dept id	17
	answering dept short name	Health and Social Care
	answering dept sort name	Health and Social Care
	hansard heading	NHS: Agency Workers
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make an assessment of the potential impact of firms providing agency labour to the NHS on (a) the amount of profit generated by those agencies, (b) trends in the level of health staff leaving NHS employment and joining those agencies and (c) dependence of the NHS on agency labour.
	tabling member constituency	Warley
	tabling member printed	John Spellar
	uin	118812
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 16/01/2023 answer text <p>The Department does not collect data on the amount of profit generated by agencies supplying staff to the National Health Service nor the number of health staff leaving NHS employment to work for agencies. Data on agency staff is held by the employing agency and is not shared with NHS England. NHS England holds data for agency shifts in the NHS, including hours worked and cost.</p><p>The deployment of a temporary workforce is an important element of efficiently running the NHS, allowing the NHS to meet demand fluctuations without the need to increase capacity above that which would be required on a sustained basis. Staff can be drawn from internal staff banks or external agencies.</p><p>Our policy is to reduce the use of agency staff and to prioritise the use of in-house staff banks over agency use.  The introduction of the Agency Rules in 2016 helped to reduce agency spend by around £1.2 billion, from a peak of £3.6 billion in 2015/16 to £2.4 billion at the end of 2020/21. Total agency spend as a percentage of total wage bill decreased from 7.9% in 2015/16 to 3.7% in 2020/21. Reducing the use of agency staff must be balanced with providing safe care to patients. Trusts are able to use temporary staffing to respond to situations where they do not have sufficient staff numbers. NHS England has re-established measures in September 2022 to control agency expenditure, including a system agency expenditure limit.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 16/01/2023 16:42:13 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	318 label Biography information for John Spellar

1566381

	registered interest
	date	12/01/2023
	answering body	Department of Health and Social Care
	answering dept id	17
	answering dept short name	Health and Social Care
	answering dept sort name	Health and Social Care
	hansard heading	Medicine: Education
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 12 January 2023 to Question 117444 on Medicine: Education, for what reason his Department does not monitor the number of medical students currently training in the UK.
	tabling member constituency	Warley
	tabling member printed	John Spellar
	uin	122036
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 18/01/2023 answer text <p>The Department monitors a number of points across the medical training pipeline for England. This includes, the numbers of applicants, acceptances and entrants. The Department also monitors those entering foundation training in the National Health Service following completion of medical degrees through statistics drawn from the Electronic Staff Record and published by NHS Digital.</p><p>However, there is not a single indicator that shows how many medical students are studying in the United Kingdom across all years and all medical schools at a given point in time. To obtain such information it would require each medical school across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland to take on a significant and more detailed reporting burden. Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland have their own arrangements for managing their education and training pipelines.</p><p>However, the following table shows medical courses applicants, acceptances in England and entrants in the UK from 2011 to 2022.</p><table><tbody><tr><td><p>Academic year</p></td><td><p>Unique applicants to undergraduate medical courses in England</p></td><td><p>Acceptances to undergraduate medical courses in England</p></td><td><p>Entrants to undergraduate medical courses in the United Kingdom</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2011</p></td><td><p>21,825</p></td><td><p>6,090</p></td><td><p>N/A</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2012</p></td><td><p>21,060</p></td><td><p>6,225</p></td><td><p>7,810</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2013</p></td><td><p>21,430</p></td><td><p>5,915</p></td><td><p>7,560</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2014</p></td><td><p>21,965</p></td><td><p>6,085</p></td><td><p>7,640</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2015</p></td><td><p>19,820</p></td><td><p>6,095</p></td><td><p>7,515</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2016</p></td><td><p>19,545</p></td><td><p>6,185</p></td><td><p>7,560</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2017</p></td><td><p>18,520</p></td><td><p>6,175</p></td><td><p>7,765</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2018</p></td><td><p>19,870</p></td><td><p>6,720</p></td><td><p>8,615</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2019</p></td><td><p>21,585</p></td><td><p>7,660</p></td><td><p>9,450</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2020</p></td><td><p>22,665</p></td><td><p>8,385</p></td><td><p>10,460</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2021</p></td><td><p>27,460</p></td><td><p>8,610</p></td><td><p>10,540</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2022</p></td><td><p>N/A</p></td><td><p>N/A</p></td><td><p>10,655</p></td></tr></tbody></table><p> </p><p>Source:</p><p>University and Colleges Admissions Service (UCAS) end of cycle 2021 and Office for Students Medical Dental Students Survey (2012-2022), Office for Students</p><p> </p><p>Note:</p><ol><li>The Office for Students (OfS), who report to Parliament through the Department of Education, publishes the number of entrants to undergraduate medical courses for the UK on an annual basis.</li><li>2022 entrants are based on initial figures and are likely to change.</li></ol> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 18/01/2023 16:35:12 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	318 label Biography information for John Spellar

1581878

	registered interest
	date	30/01/2023
	answering body	Department of Health and Social Care
	answering dept id	17
	answering dept short name	Health and Social Care
	answering dept sort name	Health and Social Care
	hansard heading	Ambulance Services: Motor Vehicles
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to help ensure that new ambulances are manufactured in the UK.
	tabling member constituency	Warley
	tabling member printed	John Spellar
	uin	135134
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 02/02/2023 answer text <p>No such steps are being taken by the Department. The procurement of ambulances is an operational matter for the National Health Service.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 02/02/2023 15:21:20 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	318 label Biography information for John Spellar

1612780

	registered interest
	date	20/04/2023
	answering body	Department of Health and Social Care
	answering dept id	17
	answering dept short name	Health and Social Care
	answering dept sort name	Health and Social Care
	hansard heading	Clinical Trials
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of trends in the numbers of patients participating in clinical trials; and what steps his Department plans to take to increase participation amongst diverse patient groups.
	tabling member constituency	Warley
	tabling member printed	John Spellar
	uin	181874
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 03/05/2023 answer text <p>Recruitment of new participants into studies is an important measure of research activity taking place in the United Kingdom. This financial year, on average over 70,000 people are recruited per month.</p><p>The National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) has published a strategy to promote diversity and inclusion in research and clinical trials. The NIHR also published its first randomised controlled trials data report, showing that trial participant diversity is consistent with the 2011 census population.</p><p>The Government has appointed Lord James O’Shaughnessy to conduct an independent review into the UK commercial clinical trials landscape. His review will help us to find new ways to conduct commercial clinical trials that will speed up diagnosis, enhance treatment and enable the National Health Service to deliver world-class care.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 03/05/2023 10:43:58 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	318 label Biography information for John Spellar

1612781

	registered interest
	date	20/04/2023
	answering body	Department of Health and Social Care
	answering dept id	17
	answering dept short name	Health and Social Care
	answering dept sort name	Health and Social Care
	hansard heading	Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency: Finance
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent assessment his Department has made of the adequacy of (a) staffing and (b) funding for the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency in the context of the agency’s new responsibilities under the Windsor Framework.
	tabling member constituency	Warley
	tabling member printed	John Spellar
	uin	181875
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 27/04/2023 answer text <p>As part of the Spring Budget, the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) will receive £10 million of additional funding for the next two years. This is to support it to accelerate routes for bringing innovative medical products developed in the United Kingdom onto the market, as well as to support the establishment of an international recognition framework, allowing the MHRA to capitalise on the expertise and decision making of trusted regulatory partners. The Government is committed to supporting the MHRA to meet its statutory obligations.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 27/04/2023 11:36:22 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	318 label Biography information for John Spellar

1612782

	registered interest
	date	20/04/2023
	answering body	Department of Health and Social Care
	answering dept id	17
	answering dept short name	Health and Social Care
	answering dept sort name	Health and Social Care
	hansard heading	Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency: Recruitment and Training
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will undertake an audit of skills capacity within the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency; and what steps he is taking to ensure that any skills needs are met through appropriate (a) recruitment and (b) training.
	tabling member constituency	Warley
	tabling member printed	John Spellar
	uin	181876
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 26/04/2023 answer text <p>The Department has no plans to undertake an audit of skills within the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA). The MHRA leads responsibility for the recruitment and training of its staff. We receive regular updates on the performance and capacity of the MHRA through established mechanisms, including quarterly and annual accountability reviews.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 26/04/2023 16:41:02 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	318 label Biography information for John Spellar

1612783

	registered interest
	date	20/04/2023
	answering body	Department of Health and Social Care
	answering dept id	17
	answering dept short name	Health and Social Care
	answering dept sort name	Health and Social Care
	hansard heading	Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency: Staff
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make an assessment of the potential impact of staffing levels at the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency on (a) the time taken by the agency to conduct clinical studies and (b) patient access to clinical studies in each of the last three years.
	tabling member constituency	Warley
	tabling member printed	John Spellar
	uin	181877
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 26/04/2023 answer text <p>The average response time for the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) to issue its initial written opinion following assessment of a clinical trial authorisation application in each of the last three years was 22.83 days for the financial year 2020/21; 27.45 days for the financial year 2021/22; and 45.94 days for the financial year 2022/23.</p><p>The extended timeline for financial year 2022/23 is the result of increased demand to process applications and respond to queries, in response to which the MHRA is increasing resources and improving processes in this area. Vacancies within the Clinical Trials Unit of the MHRA have been filled, including key leadership posts. The MHRA has also recruited seven new clinical trials assessors over the last 12 months and is currently prioritising their training. Moreover, the MHRA is supplementing new assessor capacity with an additional fixed-term resource of appropriately experienced and qualified specialists to support the training and supervision of new staff. The MHRA does not monitor patient access to clinical trials.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 26/04/2023 16:35:43 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	318 label Biography information for John Spellar