Health education and preventive medicine

This page highlights some of the current parliamentary material available on health education and preventive medicine. This includes select committee reports, briefing papers on current legislation and other subjects produced by the parliamentary research services, and the latest Early Day Motions put down by MPs.

Standard Notes

DateDescription
19.02.2013Draft Care and Support Bill 2012-13
This note provides general information on the draft Care and Support Bill that was announced in the Queen's Speech on 9 May 2012 and published by the Government on 11 July 2012.
25.10.2012HIV and AIDS statistics: UK
HIV and AIDS statistics: UK. By Rachael Harker. SN/SG/2210. This note summarises recent statistics on Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) and Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) and also includes a POSTBOX on HIV Infection and Treatment. Section 1 describes how the numbers of those diagnosed with and those dying from HIV/AIDS in the UK have changed over time. The characteristics that put people most at risk of HIV are considered in Sections 2 and the manner and place in which individuals with HIV acquire their infection in examined in Section 3. The general prevalence of HIV, and levels of awareness of infection, are examined in Section 4. International statistics on HIV and AIDS are briefly considered in Section 5, while Section 6 looks at public knowledge and attitudes to the disease.
03.09.2012Plain packaging of tobacco products
This note briefly sets out the background to the current debate in the UK on whether or not the introduction of plain packaging for all tobacco products will have a significant impact on levels of smoking. It also considers the European Commission's review of the Tobacco Products Directive (2001/37/EC), including the merits of extending the scope of the Directive to include the introduction of plain packaging for cigarettes. Finally, this note considers the position in Australia, the first country to introduce this kind of legislation.
23.05.2012Food Advertising on Television
This note discusses the effects of the Ofcom ban on junk food advertising aimed at children and future policy options
18.05.2012Prohibition of tobacco display in shops
The purpose of this note is to consider in detail both sets of regulations: the Display Regulations and the Specialist Tobacconists Regulations.

Research Papers

DateDescription
27.01.2010Sunbeds (Regulation) Bill [Bill 19 of 2009-10]
The Bill seeks to create a duty on sunbed businesses to prevent use of sunbeds by under-18s, to provide for local authority enforcement of this duty, and to give Ministers powers to make regulations imposing further conditions on commercial sunbed use.
23.11.2007Health and Social Care Bill, Bill 9 of 2007-08
Health and Social Care Bill. (Bill 9 of 2007/08). House of Commons Library Research Paper 07/81.
08.12.2005Health Bill : Part 1 Smokefree premises, places and vehicles (Bill 69 of 2005-06)
The Health Bill:Part 1 Smokefree premises, places and vehicles (Bill 69 2005-06). House of Commons Library Research Paper 05/79
24.11.2005The Health Bill (excluding Part 1) Bill 69 of 2005-06
14.03.2005Smoking in Public Places (Wales) Bill (Bill 23 of 2004/05)
The Smoking in Public Places (Wales) Bill. (Bill 23 of 2004/05). House of Commons Library Research Paper 05/22.

Early Day Motions

DateDescription
09.02.2012PLAIN PACKAGING ON TOBACCO PRODUCTS
That this House is concerned that every year in England alone over 340,000 children under the age of 16 are encouraged to try smoking for the first time; notes that research shows the ...
08.02.2012DRAFT NICE GUIDANCE FOR THE USE OF ABIRATERONE
That this House notes with serious concern that the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) has issued draft guidance for the use of the drug abiraterone, a life ...
07.02.2012TWENTIETH ANNIVERSARY OF THE SOUTHERN WATER LEARN TO SWIM SCHEME
That this House congratulates the award-winning Southern Water Learn to Swim scheme, which is celebrating its twentieth anniversary this year; notes that the scheme has now helped to ...
07.02.2012TAX ON ADDED SUGAR
That this House is concerned that one in five students leaving primary school are now obese and that consumption of sugar has tripled worldwide over the past 50 years; notes that obesity ...
06.02.2012NURSERY MILK SCHEME
That this House is deeply concerned about planned changes to arrangements for the delivery of the current Nursery Milk Scheme which is likely to affect the numbers of children who drink ...

POST Papers

DateDescription
16.07.2012Drug Resistant Tuberculosis
This note examines the extent of, and risks posed by, drug-resistant TB.
16.07.2012Preventing Diabetes
This POSTnote describes the causes of diabetes and the known risk factors, and examines policy options for diabetes prevention.
15.03.2012Consumer Genetic Testing
This POSTnote explores the scientific, regulatory, and ethical issues related to genetic tests sold to consumers.
01.05.2011Natural capital accounting, May 2011
This POSTnote outlines the need for "environmental accounting" by governments, to maintain the capacity of ecosystems to sustain human well-being at acceptable levels.
01.11.2010UK indoor air quality, November 2010
This POSTnote describes sources of indoor air pollution, the evidence for adverse effects on human health and outlines possible policy responses.
01.11.2010Biofortification of foods, November 2010
This POSTnote describes developments in biofortification, examines its potential impact, and the implications for policy makers in the UK and abroad.

Glossary

  • Research Papers (RP) - briefings produced by the House of Commons Library on Bills, topical issues and regular statistics
  • Standard Notes (SN) - shorter, topical briefings from the Commons Library
  • Early Day Motions (EDMs) - formal motions submitted by MPs in the House of Commons
  • POST Notes - short briefing notes produced by the Parliamentary Office of Science and Technology
  • Lords Library Notes (LLN) - an occasional series of papers compiled by the House of Lords Library