Page:Hansard (UK) - Vol 566 No. 40 August 29th 2013.pdf/78

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James Brokenshire: It is important that in the nondevolved areas sufficient support should be given to the Welsh language, and the Government is committed to ensuring this is done.

The Home Office leads on immigration and passports, drugs policy, crime policy and counter-terrorism and works to ensure visible, responsive and accountable policing in Wales and the rest of the UK.

Further details of the services the Home Office provides, can be found at:

https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/home-office/about

James Brokenshire: This Government is fully committed to the Welsh language and fully committed to providing Government services in the Welsh language where there is demand for them.

It is important that in the non-devolved areas sufficient support should be given to the Welsh language, and the Government is committed to ensuring this is done. Since September 2009, the Home Office has adopted a Welsh Language scheme. The measures set out in the policy document form the basis of an annual report sent to the Welsh Language Commissioner where the Home Office provides evidence to ensure compliance with the agreed measures for the scheme. This was last reviewed in July 2013 as part of the Home Office’s Welsh Language Scheme report for 2012-13 and was sent to the Welsh Language Commissioner.

Norman Lamb: Through our Mandate to the NHS, we have asked NHS England to make measurable progress towards making our health service among the best in Europe at supporting people with ongoing health problems, such as osteoarthritis, to live healthily and independently/ with much better control over the care they receive. The NHS Outcomes Framework contains the indicators that will be used to hold NHS England to account for making progress.

One of NHS England’s objectives is to ensure the NHS becomes dramatically better at involving patients and their carers, and empowering them to manage and make decisions about their own care and treatment. Achieving this objective would mean that by 2015; the 5 million carers who look after friends and family members will routinely have access to information and advice about the support available, including respite care.

It is for clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) in partnership with local stakeholders, including local government and the public to assess the needs of their local population and to commission services accordingly. CCGs will work closely with public health colleagues in this assessment to address local needs within the health community including physiotherapy.

Local authorities are now responsible for commissioning weight management services. Public Health England will work with and support local authorities to tackle obesity and is currently developing its work programme to do this. The programme will include support to local authorities to commission weight management services in England.

Norman Lamb: Information is not available in the format requested.

Information on the number of weeks waited for finished admission episodes with a joint replacement as the main operative procedure for patients with a diagnosis of osteoarthritis resident in the former East Lancashire Teaching Primary Care Trust (PCX) area from 2009-10 to 2011-12 is shown in the following table: