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1606183

registered interest
date	22/03/2023
answering body	Northern Ireland Office
answering dept id	21
answering dept short name	Northern Ireland
answering dept sort name	Northern Ireland
hansard heading	Cost of Living: Northern Ireland
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what steps his Department is taking to support women in Northern Ireland with the cost of living crisis.
tabling member constituency	Blaydon
tabling member printed	Liz Twist
uin	904205
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 22/03/2023 answer text <p>We have taken decisive action to help UK households tackle increases in the cost of living. Women across Northern Ireland will benefit from our package of measures, including energy bill support and support for the most vulnerable, including an additional £900 Cost of Living Payment in 2023-24 for households on means-tested benefits.</p> answering member constituency Wycombe answering member printed Mr Steve Baker question first answered 22/03/2023 14:22:11 answering member 4064 label Biography information for Mr Steve Baker
tabling member	4618 label Biography information for Liz Twist

1606184

registered interest
date	22/03/2023
answering body	Northern Ireland Office
answering dept id	21
answering dept short name	Northern Ireland
answering dept sort name	Northern Ireland
hansard heading	Livestock: Transport
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what recent discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs on the movement of livestock between Northern Ireland and the rest of the UK.
tabling member constituency	North Antrim
tabling member printed	Ian Paisley
uin	904206
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 22/03/2023 answer text <p>The Windsor Framework respects that for decades the island of Ireland has been treated as a single epidemiological unit, meaning that there have been additional requirements for the movement of livestock. These include identification requirements, health certificates and the physical inspection of animals by vets.</p><p> </p><p>In 2021, technical easements were agreed with the EU to simplify livestock moving between Great Britain and Northern Ireland. Defra is working closely with the livestock sector to ensure movements can continue with as little friction as possible.</p> answering member constituency Wycombe answering member printed Mr Steve Baker question first answered 22/03/2023 14:23:46 answering member 4064 label Biography information for Mr Steve Baker
tabling member	4129 label Biography information for Ian Paisley

1606237

registered interest
date	22/03/2023
answering body	Treasury
answering dept id	14
answering dept short name	Treasury
answering dept sort name	Treasury
hansard heading	Business: Taxation
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will hold discussions with the Secretary of State for Business and Trade on tax incentives for businesses with financial difficulties.
tabling member constituency	Strangford
tabling member printed	Jim Shannon
uin	171404
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 30/03/2023 answer text <p>The Chancellor of the Exchequer has regular discussions with the Secretary of State for Business and Trade on a range of issues, including on incentives for businesses.</p> answering member constituency Louth and Horncastle answering member printed Victoria Atkins question first answered 30/03/2023 08:14:56 answering member 4399 label Biography information for Victoria Atkins
tabling member	4131 label Biography information for Jim Shannon

1606238

registered interest
date	22/03/2023
answering body	Department for Transport
answering dept id	27
answering dept short name	Transport
answering dept sort name	Transport
hansard heading	Bus Services: Rural Areas
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will increase funding for bus services in rural areas.
tabling member constituency	Strangford
tabling member printed	Jim Shannon
uin	171405
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 27/03/2023 answer text <p>The 2021 National Bus Strategy makes clear that the Government takes the needs of rural transport users just as seriously as the needs of those in urban areas. The Department regularly engages with rural local authorities, including on the Rural Mobility Fund, and will involve them in the planned reforms to the Bus Service Operator Grant (BSOG).</p><p> </p><p>The Government provides around £250 million every year through the BSOG to help bus operators keep fares down and maintain a larger network than would otherwise be possible, as well as to help local authorities subsidise socially necessary bus services.</p><p> </p><p>The Department has also sought to help increase patronage on buses, including in rural areas, by providing up to £135 million to help operators cap single fares at £2 on over 4,700 routes in England outside London. The cap launched on 1 January and is set to run until 30 June 2023.</p><p> </p><p>We are also providing up to £80 million in additional funding to extend the Bus Recovery Grant until 30 June which takes total funding to over £2 billion since March 2020 to mitigate the impacts of the pandemic on the bus sector and support local bus services, including those in rural areas. The Department is actively working on plans for June onwards and will make further announcements on this in due course. The needs of rural authorities have been given particular consideration as part of this ongoing work.</p><p> </p><p> </p> answering member constituency North West Durham answering member printed Mr Richard Holden question first answered 27/03/2023 10:33:56 answering member 4813 label Biography information for Mr Richard Holden
tabling member	4131 label Biography information for Jim Shannon

1606239

registered interest
date	22/03/2023
answering body	Department for Transport
answering dept id	27
answering dept short name	Transport
answering dept sort name	Transport
hansard heading	Electric Vehicles: Charging Points
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will provide funding to increase the number of electric vehicle charging points in rural areas.
tabling member constituency	Strangford
tabling member printed	Jim Shannon
uin	171406
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 28/03/2023 answer text <p>The Government is committed to ensuring that the deployment of electric vehicle (EV) charging infrastructure happens across all areas of the country.</p><p> </p><p>More than 189 different local authorities across the UK, including those in rural areas, have been awarded over £55 million funding through the On-Street Residential Chargepoint Scheme which will see more than 14,000 chargepoints installed across the UK.</p><p> </p><p>From 1 April 2022, the Government expanded the Workplace Charging Scheme to support small accommodation businesses and charities to install chargepoints for their guests and visitors. This should help provision more chargepoints in rural areas, for example it should support places like village halls to provide chargepoints for their communities.</p><p> </p><p>In England, the Government’s Local Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Fund will address regional charging inequality and ensure no part of the country is left behind. The Government has developed a data-led allocation model to award the funding, which considers factors such as the level of rurality and the number of vehicles without off-street parking within the local authority.</p><p> </p><p>The majority of funding programmes for charging infrastructure are available on a UK wide basis. Where public funding initiatives are planned for England only, corresponding additions are usually allocated to the devolved administrations through Barnett consequentials. It is then for those nations to decide how that funding should be spent.</p> answering member constituency Hereford and South Herefordshire answering member printed Jesse Norman question first answered 28/03/2023 09:18:43 answering member 3991 label Biography information for Jesse Norman
tabling member	4131 label Biography information for Jim Shannon

1606240

registered interest
date	22/03/2023
answering body	Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
answering dept id	13
answering dept short name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
answering dept sort name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
hansard heading	Coastal Areas: Environment Protection
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what funding her Department plans to provide for rock armour coastal pathway protection schemes; and if she will increase UK-wide funding for those schemes.
tabling member constituency	Strangford
tabling member printed	Jim Shannon
uin	171407
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 28/03/2023 answer text <p>The Government announced in March 2020 a record £5.2 billion investment over 6 years in flood and coastal erosion schemes to better protect communities across England. Our £5.2 billion 2021-27 programme includes defences for the coast where it is sustainable and affordable to defend the coastline. In areas where it is not, other approaches such as managed realignment or transition will be needed. Approximately 1/6th of the projects in the £5.2bn programme will help better protect coastal communities.</p> answering member constituency Taunton Deane answering member printed Rebecca Pow question first answered 28/03/2023 11:20:18 answering member 4522 label Biography information for Rebecca Pow
tabling member	4131 label Biography information for Jim Shannon

1606242

registered interest
date	22/03/2023
answering body	Department for Culture, Media and Sport
answering dept id	217
answering dept short name	Culture, Media and Sport
answering dept sort name	Culture, Media and Sport
hansard heading	Local Press: Government Assistance
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether her Department is taking steps to provide financial support to local newspapers.
tabling member constituency	Darlington
tabling member printed	Peter Gibson
uin	171550
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 24/03/2023 answer text <p>The Government is committed to supporting local and regional newspapers as vital pillars of communities and local democracy. They play an essential role in holding power to account, keeping the public informed of local issues and providing reliable, high-quality information.</p><p>However, as the independent Cairncross Review into the future of journalism identified, society is increasingly moving online and local news publishers are facing significant challenges in transitioning to sustainable digital business models.</p><p>The Government supported the majority of Cairncross recommendations and has taken them forward through a range of fiscal and regulatory interventions. With regard to financial support, this has included the delivery of the £2 million Future News Fund; the zero rating of VAT on e-newspapers; and the extension of a 2017 business rates relief on local newspaper office space until 2025. The BBC also supports the sector, through the £8m it spends each year on the Local News Partnership, including the Local Democracy Reporting Scheme. The Government was pleased to see the BBC conduct a thorough review of this initiative in 2020, as recommended by the Cairncross Review. As set out in our response to the Review, we would support any efforts by the BBC to grow the scheme.</p> answering member constituency Hornchurch and Upminster answering member printed Julia Lopez question first answered 24/03/2023 15:54:03 answering member 4647 label Biography information for Julia Lopez
tabling member	4754 label Biography information for Peter Gibson

1606245

registered interest
date	22/03/2023
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	Prescription Drugs: Waste Management
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 his Department is taking to help reduce the waste of prescription medicines.
tabling member constituency	Darlington
tabling member printed	Peter Gibson
uin	171551
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 27/03/2023 answer text <p>NHS England is leading a programme on medicines optimisation which aims to help patients to improve outcomes and safety, take medicines as intended, avoid taking unnecessary medicines and reduce wastage. For example, Regional Medicines Optimisation Committees were established in 2016 to support and optimise local prescribing practice and reduce unwarranted variation. Community pharmacies also offer the New Medicines Service, providing further support to patients newly prescribed certain medicines, and the Discharge Medicines Service, enabling hospitals to refer recently discharged patients to a community pharmacy for support with new medication.</p><p> </p><p>Structured Medicine Reviews are offered by general practices (GPs) where increasingly pharmacists are part of multi-disciplinary teams to review patients’ medication, optimise medication and prevent wastage. In addition, electronic Repeat Dispensing (eRD) allows a GP to send repeat prescriptions to a patient’s pharmacy to manage the dispensing of the specific medicines required. As part of the eRD service, the pharmacy is required to make sure that the patient still needs all of their medicines and dispense to the patients only those that are needed.</p><p> </p><p>In September 2021, the findings and recommendations of the national overprescribing review were published, setting out a series of practical and cultural changes necessary to ensure patients receive the most appropriate treatment for their needs while ensuring value for money.</p><p> </p><p>All pharmacies must by law accept unwanted medicines from patients for disposal. However, the Department does not promote the reuse of medicines returned from patients. Where medicines have left a pharmacy, it is not possible to assure the quality of returned medicines on physical inspection alone. When medicines are returned from patients’ homes, there is no way of guaranteeing that the medicines have been stored or handled appropriately. This could affect patient safety. Therefore, no estimate of the potential savings of repurposing unused prescribed medication has been made.</p> answering member constituency Harborough answering member printed Neil O'Brien grouped question UIN 171552 171553 171554 question first answered 27/03/2023 16:18:15 answering member 4679 label Biography information for Neil O'Brien
tabling member	4754 label Biography information for Peter Gibson

1606246

registered interest
date	22/03/2023
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	Prescription Drugs: Recycling
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 ensure that surplus prescribed medication is recycled.
tabling member constituency	Darlington
tabling member printed	Peter Gibson
uin	171552
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 27/03/2023 answer text <p>NHS England is leading a programme on medicines optimisation which aims to help patients to improve outcomes and safety, take medicines as intended, avoid taking unnecessary medicines and reduce wastage. For example, Regional Medicines Optimisation Committees were established in 2016 to support and optimise local prescribing practice and reduce unwarranted variation. Community pharmacies also offer the New Medicines Service, providing further support to patients newly prescribed certain medicines, and the Discharge Medicines Service, enabling hospitals to refer recently discharged patients to a community pharmacy for support with new medication.</p><p> </p><p>Structured Medicine Reviews are offered by general practices (GPs) where increasingly pharmacists are part of multi-disciplinary teams to review patients’ medication, optimise medication and prevent wastage. In addition, electronic Repeat Dispensing (eRD) allows a GP to send repeat prescriptions to a patient’s pharmacy to manage the dispensing of the specific medicines required. As part of the eRD service, the pharmacy is required to make sure that the patient still needs all of their medicines and dispense to the patients only those that are needed.</p><p> </p><p>In September 2021, the findings and recommendations of the national overprescribing review were published, setting out a series of practical and cultural changes necessary to ensure patients receive the most appropriate treatment for their needs while ensuring value for money.</p><p> </p><p>All pharmacies must by law accept unwanted medicines from patients for disposal. However, the Department does not promote the reuse of medicines returned from patients. Where medicines have left a pharmacy, it is not possible to assure the quality of returned medicines on physical inspection alone. When medicines are returned from patients’ homes, there is no way of guaranteeing that the medicines have been stored or handled appropriately. This could affect patient safety. Therefore, no estimate of the potential savings of repurposing unused prescribed medication has been made.</p> answering member constituency Harborough answering member printed Neil O'Brien grouped question UIN 171551 171553 171554 question first answered 27/03/2023 16:18:15 answering member 4679 label Biography information for Neil O'Brien
tabling member	4754 label Biography information for Peter Gibson

1606247

registered interest
date	22/03/2023
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	General Practitioners: Pharmacy
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 his Department is taking to help reduce waste in GP dispensing practices.
tabling member constituency	Darlington
tabling member printed	Peter Gibson
uin	171553
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 27/03/2023 answer text <p>NHS England is leading a programme on medicines optimisation which aims to help patients to improve outcomes and safety, take medicines as intended, avoid taking unnecessary medicines and reduce wastage. For example, Regional Medicines Optimisation Committees were established in 2016 to support and optimise local prescribing practice and reduce unwarranted variation. Community pharmacies also offer the New Medicines Service, providing further support to patients newly prescribed certain medicines, and the Discharge Medicines Service, enabling hospitals to refer recently discharged patients to a community pharmacy for support with new medication.</p><p> </p><p>Structured Medicine Reviews are offered by general practices (GPs) where increasingly pharmacists are part of multi-disciplinary teams to review patients’ medication, optimise medication and prevent wastage. In addition, electronic Repeat Dispensing (eRD) allows a GP to send repeat prescriptions to a patient’s pharmacy to manage the dispensing of the specific medicines required. As part of the eRD service, the pharmacy is required to make sure that the patient still needs all of their medicines and dispense to the patients only those that are needed.</p><p> </p><p>In September 2021, the findings and recommendations of the national overprescribing review were published, setting out a series of practical and cultural changes necessary to ensure patients receive the most appropriate treatment for their needs while ensuring value for money.</p><p> </p><p>All pharmacies must by law accept unwanted medicines from patients for disposal. However, the Department does not promote the reuse of medicines returned from patients. Where medicines have left a pharmacy, it is not possible to assure the quality of returned medicines on physical inspection alone. When medicines are returned from patients’ homes, there is no way of guaranteeing that the medicines have been stored or handled appropriately. This could affect patient safety. Therefore, no estimate of the potential savings of repurposing unused prescribed medication has been made.</p> answering member constituency Harborough answering member printed Neil O'Brien grouped question UIN 171551 171552 171554 question first answered 27/03/2023 16:18:15 answering member 4679 label Biography information for Neil O'Brien
tabling member	4754 label Biography information for Peter Gibson