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29 Nov 2007 : Column WA129
29 Nov 2007 : Column WA129
29 Nov 2007 : Column WA129
Thursday 29 November 2007
Age-friendly Cities
Baroness Greengross asked Her Majesty's Government:
What arrangements they will put in place to take forward the World Health Organisation age-friendly cities guide. [HL251]
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Communities and Local Government (Baroness Andrews): The Government have taken steps to promote the World Health Organisation age-friendly cities guide. The Department for Work and Pensions and the Department for Communities and Local Government will continue to promote the guide through their communications on ageing. The Department for Communities and Local Government will ensure that the analysis in this important report is built into the development of the forthcoming national strategy for housing in an ageing society.
Alcohol
Lord Avebury asked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether they will respond to the recent recommendations of the Alcohol Health Alliance UK on increasing alcohol taxation, the regulation of the drinks industry and the funding of alcohol treatment and prevention programme. [HL270]
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department of Health (Lord Darzi of Denham): The Government have signalled their intention to give greater priority to alcohol prevention and treatment. From April 2008, the National Health Service will have a new indicator, for the rate of alcohol-related hospital admissions, linked to the new Home Office Alcohol and Drugs Public Service Agreement. We believe that this new priority, coupled with work during 2008 to identify the cost of alcohol-related ill health to the NHS, with the opportunities to reduce this, will give a strong incentive for primary care trusts to invest in alcohol prevention as well as treatment.
Controls on alcohol advertising are a mix of the statutory and voluntary. The Licensing Act 2003 has given additional powers to licensing authorities to set conditions which ensure that licensees exercise responsibility.
The renewed national alcohol strategy, Safe, Sensible, Social, has committed the Home Office to commission a full scrutiny of how far the industry's own social responsibility standards are effective in preventing harm. The department will shortly commission an independent review of alcohol pricing, promotion and harm. This will begin in December 2007 and report in July 2008, covering the full range of issues around
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We have made clear that, in each of these areas, if the evidence justifies it, we will be ready to consult next year on the need for regulatory change, including possible legislation.
Decisions on taxation are a matter for the Chancellor of the Exchequer, taking account of health, economic and other issues.
Building Regulations: Energy Performance
Lord Beaumont of Whitley asked Her Majesty's Government:
Further to the Written Answer by Baroness Andrews on 21 March 2007 (WA 199), what progress has been made towards improving the building regulations energy performance standards. [HL332]
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Communities and Local Government (Baroness Andrews): On 23 July 2007, the Government confirmed, through the housing Green Paper, their timetable for moving to zero-carbon new dwellings and the role that the building regulations will play in this.
To deliver this timetable, Part L of the building regulations which sets energy performance standards will be amended in 2010, 2013 and 2016.
The standards that will be set for new dwellings at each of these milestones has already been announced (25 per cent improvement in 2010; 44 per cent in 2013; and zero-carbon in 2016). The performance standards for existing dwellings and for other types of buildings will be considered in the run-up to the 2010 amendment of Part L and will be consulted on in the normal way.
Buses
Lord Roberts of Llandudno asked Her Majesty's Government:
How many school buses failed their MoT or safety test in the last year for which figures are available. [HL562]
Lord Bassam of Brighton: The Vehicle and Operator Services Agency (VOSA) does not record this specific information. VOSA publishes figures of how many PSV annual safety tests were conducted in each financial year in its effectiveness report. This is available online at www.vosa.gov.uk or in the House of Commons Library, business and transport section.
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Embryology
Lord Alton of Liverpool asked Her Majesty's Government:
Further to the Written Answer by Lord Darzi of Denham on 23 October (WA 100), why they will not protect women's health and welfare by similarly restricting the types of human eggs that may be used in embryo research in either any future human fertilisation and embryology Bill or the Government’s response to the report from the Joint Committee on the Human Tissue and Embryos (Draft) Bill. [HL72]
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department of Health (Lord Darzi of Denham): The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA) undertook a consultation in 2006 on the donation of eggs for HFEA licensed research projects. The HFEA concluded that the donation of eggs for research where the donor is not undergoing treatment herself, or where she is a patient who agrees to share some eggs for research, is acceptable provided that donation is with fully informed consent.
Lord Alton of Liverpool asked Her Majesty's Government:
Further to the Written Answers by Lord Darzi of Denham on 29 October (WA 144-5), whether use of tissue other than umbilical cord blood following tissue typing of embryos will be restricted to just bone marrow and peripheral blood stem cells of the resulting children, or whether this might include other organs; whether this distinction will be reflected in any future human tissue and embryos Bill; and how the extraction of bone marrow to treat conditions that are not life-threatening might be permitted if this is likely to require intrusive or repeated surgery. [HL187]
Lord Darzi of Denham: The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Bill contains provision (Schedule 2 paragraph 3) that will allow the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA) to license embryo testing where the sick sibling could be treated with umbilical cord blood stem cells, bone marrow or other tissue of any resulting child.
The Bill introduces a new paragraph 1ZA(1)(d) into Schedule 2 to the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 1990, which refers specifically to the tissue types:
“In a case where a person (‘the sibling’) who is the child of the persons whose gametes are used to bring about the creation of the embryo (or of either of those persons) suffers from a serious medical condition which could be treated by umbilical cord blood stem cells, bone marrow or other tissue of any resulting child, establishing whether the tissue of any resulting child would be compatible with that of the sibling”.
The HEFA issues guidance in its code of practice on tissue typing. Following licensing of the creation and transfer of a saviour sibling embryo, this issue falls outside the remit of the HFEA. However, the Human Tissue Act 2004 requires that the Human Tissue Authority must approve any transplants
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Lord Alton of Liverpool asked Her Majesty's Government:
Further to the Written Answers by Lord Hunt of Kings Heath on 28 June (WA 157—8), Baroness Royall of Blaisdon on 12 July (WA 240—1) and Lord Darzi of Denham on 23 October (WA 101), whether the reference under the proposed Section 4A(5)(e) of the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 1990 (as proposed to be inserted under Clause 4(2) of the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Bill) to “such other thing as may be specified in regulations” will cover any predominantly or substantially human organism that conceivably may be created by injecting human embryonic stem cells into an embryo of another species in which the animal cells primarily produce extra-embryonic tissues. [HL243]
Lord Darzi of Denham: The reference to “such other thing as may be specified in regulations” as proposed to be inserted under Clause 4(2) of the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Bill, has the scope to cover any predominantly or substantially human organism that conceivably may be created by injecting human embryonic stem cells into an embryo of another species in which the animal cells primarily produce extra-embryonic tissues. Such delegated legislation would be subject to affirmative resolution, requiring approval by resolution of both Houses.
Lord Alton of Liverpool asked Her Majesty's Government:
Further to the Written Answers by Lord Hunt of Kings Heath on 8 May (WA 248), how much government funding has been allocated towards research into direct reprogramming of differentiated cells to a pluripotent state without the creation of embryos, in the light of findings reported in the journal Cell on 25 August 2006 (126:663-676), in the journal Nature on 19 July (448:313-324) and in the journal Cell Stem Cell on 7 June (1:55-70). [HL285]
Lord Darzi of Denham: The Government support research into all approaches to harness the potential of stem cells to treat human disease. While the Medical Research Council has not yet received any applications to pursue the induced pluripotent stem cell approach, it has supported three projects over the past three years directly related to efforts to reprogramme differentiated adult stem cells. The total value of these awards is £4.2 million.
In 2005, the Department for Trade and Industry, as was, funded two projects involved in methods for the differentiation of stem cells. The funding for the projects was a total value of £1.58 million and was part of an open competition for the award of £10 million in research funding. No projects from this competition looked at the direct reprogramming process.
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Food: Supplements
Baroness Greengross asked Her Majesty's Government:
When the European Commission anticipates bringing forward figures for the permitted levels of vitamins and minerals in food supplements; and [HL405]
Who is representing the United Kingdom in the European working group discussions on the process of setting the permitted levels of vitamins and minerals in food supplements; and [HL406]
What discussions they are holding with other European Union member state Governments on the issue of permitted levels of vitamins and minerals in food supplements other than as part of the working group meetings; and [HL407]
When Ministers last met the European Commissioner to discuss the permitted levels of vitamins and minerals in food supplements; and [HL408]
What were the conclusions of the Food Standards Agency and Better Regulation Executive assessment of the regulatory impact on (a) specialist manufacturers of food supplements, (b) specialist retailers and (c) other businesses of the setting of maximum permitted levels for vitamins and minerals in food supplements under the provisions of Article 5 of the Food Supplements Directive; and what plans they have to compensate small and medium-sized enterprises that suffer adversely as a result of the directive; and [HL409]
What further actions they anticipate being taken by the Food Standards Agency and the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency in relation to the trade in food supplements and herbal medicines from the Channel Islands. [HL410]
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department of Health (Lord Darzi of Denham): The Food Standards Agency (FSA) is responsible for food supplements issues and is representing the United Kingdom in working group discussions relating to the EC food supplements directive.
The European Commission has indicated its intention to produce proposals for setting maximum levels of vitamins and minerals in food supplements in the form of draft amending legislation to go forward to the Standing Committee on the Food Chain and Animal Health for consideration in early 2009.
I am advised by the FSA that there have been no meetings between its officials and their counterparts of other member states aside from those during, and in the margins of, the first working group meeting held on 24 September, and that no such meetings have been arranged. No recent meetings have been held between health Ministers and the European Commissioner concerning setting maximum permitted levels of vitamins and minerals in food supplements under the directive.
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The FSA is continuing its work on determining the potential economic impact of setting maximum levels to support future negotiations. In the absence of proposals from the Commission, a range of possible options is being considered. Until proposals are received and this work completed, the impact on small and medium-sized enterprises of setting levels is unknown. I cannot, therefore, comment on the matter of compensation.
The FSA has written to the Governments of Jersey and Guernsey suggesting a collective meeting where the application of the EC Food Supplements Directive and the associated implications for trade will be discussed, and it is awaiting replies to this correspondence.
The Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency has begun discussions about the implementation of the traditional herbal medicinal products directive, as part of discussions on the implementation of the Pharmaceutical Directive, with the Government of Guernsey and wrote on 28 June 2007 to the Government of Jersey to open similar discussions. The discussions with Guernsey are ongoing.
Government: Draft Bills
Lord Goodlad asked Her Majesty's Government:
In each Session since 1997-98, how many Bills were published in draft; how many Bills were partially published in draft; how many other sets of draft clauses were published; and how many government Bills, not including draft Bills, were published.[HL300]
The Lord President of the Council (Baroness Ashton of Upholland): The numbers of government Bills and government draft Bills published is given in the table below. Full information is not available on the few cases where the draft Bill was substantially but not completely the proposed Bill. A Bill as introduced may anyway differ in a number of respects from a draft Bill, including in respect of the addition of new material, so there is no firm distinction between a draft Bill and a partial draft Bill. There will be other cases where clauses have been published in draft (including for example most Finance Bills), but no systematic records are available of such cases.
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