Written Assembly Questions tabled on 3 November 2014 for answer on 10 November 2014
R - Signifies the Member has declared an interest.
W - Signifies that the question was tabled in Welsh.
(Self identifying Question no. shown in brackets)
Written Questions must be tabled at least five working days before they are to be answered. In practice, Ministers aim to answer within seven/eight days but are not bound to do so. Answers are published in the language in which they are provided, with a translation into English of responses provided in Welsh.
To ask the Minister for Communities and Tackling Poverty
Kirsty Williams (Brecon and Radnorshire): Will the Minister make a statement on gifting a park home to a friend or charity? (WAQ67953)
Answer received on 10 November 2014
The Minister for Communities and Tackling Poverty (Lesley Griffiths): A mobile home cannot be gifted to a friend or a charity.
To ask the Minister for Health and Social Services
Darren Millar (Clwyd West): What is the overall budget for the All Wales Medicines Strategy Group? (WAQ67951)
Answer received on 10 November 2014
The Minister for Health and Social Services (Mark Drakeford): The All Wales Therapeutics and Toxicology Centre (AWTTC – the executive arm of the All Wales Medicines Strategy Group) currently receives £1.172 million per annum, under a Service Level Agreement with Welsh Government. The funding enables AWTTC to provide advice on medicines management and prescribing to the Welsh Ministers and the NHS in Wales. They also appraise new medicines for routine access within NHS Wales. More details of their activities can be found at: http://www.awmsg.org/
On 5 November 2014 I issued a Cabinet Written Statement announcing a further investment of some £1million in the new services to be provided by AWTTC to strengthen the individual Patient Funding Request process and the appraisal of orphan and ultra-orphan drugs. This investment will be met by using payments to Wales from the 2014 Pharmaceutical Price Regulation Scheme (PPRS) settlement and will be phased in over three financial years
Darren Millar (Clwyd West): What is the average cost to the All Wales Medicines Strategy Group of appraising (a) an orphan medicine and (b) an ultra-orphan medicine? (WAQ67952)
Answer received on 10 November 2014
The Minister for Health and Social Services (Mark Drakeford): The All Wales Medicines Strategy Group is funded on the basis it has a wide remit that involves advising on prescribing strategy and appraising newly licensed medicines not on the NICE work programme, including license extensions and/or new formulations of existing medicines. There has been no detailed analysis undertaken of the average cost for the appraisal of an orphan or ultra-orphan medicine under current arrangements.