NHS England has completed a gap analysis of the need for freezer capacity and is looking at how to support services to provide an equitable expansion of that capacity. 

The Department and NHS England will work with professional bodies, including the Royal College of Pathologists, to review tissue retention guidance and consent processes.

The Department is looking at ways to support trusts to expand freezer capacity, and will provide an update on this in the autumn.

There are no plans to publish the full gap analysis. The data is management information which is not routinely published.

NHS England has completed a gap analysis of the need for freezer capacity and is looking at how to support services to provide an equitable expansion of that capacity. 

The Department and NHS England will work with professional bodies, including the Royal College of Pathologists, to review tissue retention guidance and consent processes.

The Department is looking at ways to support trusts to expand freezer capacity, and will provide an update on this in the autumn.

There are no plans to publish the full gap analysis. The data is management information which is not routinely published.

The Department and NHS England do not hold information centrally on the number of National Health Service cancer treatment centres that have access to medical grade freezers. Further information on the availability and adequacy of freezing capacity in specific cancer treatment centres may be obtained through direct engagement with NHS providers.

The Energy related Products Framework identified commercial refrigeration as an area where energy efficiency could be improved. The Government is developing its understanding of the barriers to uptake and potential enablers:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/energy-related-products-policy-framework.

The Government has recently funded a research project to support the refrigeration industry on its journey to net zero. Supermarkets are one of the six end use sectors in this study and a number of major retailers are involved. Investigation of the science, impact and benefits of fitting doors to retail display cabinets will be one of the technologies evaluated as part of this study.

Household refrigerators are subject to regulations that set minimum energy performance standards and mandatory energy labelling, both of which were updated in 2021 to improve the efficiency of appliances on the market, making them cheaper to run and helping consumers to choose the right product for them. In making those changes, the Department did not make the specific assessment referred to in the question.

Public Health England (PHE) is responsible for the central storage and distribution of ultra-low temperature COVID-19 vaccines. In its preparations to receive vaccines, PHE determined the freezer capacity requirement to support the United Kingdom programme during summer 2020 and secured the freezers against that requirement. These were commissioned and in service before arrival of the vaccine. They provide sufficient storage for approximately five million doses of COVID-19 vaccines which require minus 60 degree Celsius storage or below.

The Government has engaged in strategic procurement activity to ensure that we have the necessary ultra-low cold chain capacity needed for the storage and distribution of our portfolio of COVID-19 vaccines.

We remain focused on ensuring our smooth and orderly withdrawal from the EU with a deal as soon as possible. However, as a responsible Government we have been preparing to minimise any disruption in the event of a no deal.

Defra Ministers and officials have been meeting regularly with the food and farming industry to understand the potential impacts of a no deal scenario in October and to support contingency planning by industry. This has included working to understand storage capacity in the UK at that time of year and the likely industry-led response to any potential disruption.

The Government is developing a number of potential interventions to help sheep producers should assistance be required in the event of EU exit without a Withdrawal Agreement. Our preference is to consider financial support to farmers to offset part of the lost income caused by market disruption rather than to purchase and store lamb. There is insufficient storage capacity to intervene in the lamb market in any meaningful way and the likely worst case scenarios are best addressed through income support in the short term.

Ultimately our aim is to continue trading and exporting our sheep meat post 1 November 2019. With third country listing from the EU, we will continue to be able to export lamb to the EU, and our exports to third countries will not be affected.

The expertise, capability, levers and resilience to plan for and respond to supply chain disruption lies within the industry, and Defra will continue its close working with industry to support their contingency planning.

Action to improve the safety of fridges and freezers has been led by the UK at a global level. The UK Government worked closely with the British Standards Institution and the International and European Standardisation Committees to update the fire safety requirements in the Standard for refrigeration appliances which has applied since 11 July 2019.

The essential safety requirements which must be met for fridges and other white goods are set out in the Electrical Equipment (Safety) Regulations 2016. From 11 July 2019, any business using the revised Standard for refrigeration appliances to demonstrate compliance with legal safety requirements under the Regulations, will need to ensure their appliances pass the tests introduced in the revised Standard. Refrigeration appliances using flammable materials will not pass the tests introduced in the new Standard.

Action to improve the safety of fridges and freezers has been led by the UK at a global level. The UK Government worked closely with the British Standards Institution and the International and European Standardisation Committees to update the fire safety requirements in the Standard for refrigeration appliances which has applied since 11 July 2019.

The essential safety requirements which must be met for fridges and other white goods are set out in the Electrical Equipment (Safety) Regulations 2016. From 11 July 2019, any business using the revised Standard for refrigeration appliances to demonstrate compliance with legal safety requirements under the Regulations, will need to ensure their appliances pass the tests introduced in the revised Standard. Refrigeration appliances using flammable materials will not pass the tests introduced in the new Standard.

It is in everyone’s interests to secure a good deal with the European Union and that is exactly what we are committed to do. The Government recognises the concerns of stakeholders and is determined to get the best deal for the UK in our negotiations to leave the EU, including for our globally recognised sheep meat.

As a responsible Government it is our duty to prepare for every eventuality, including that of no-deal. Significant work is underway to ensure that UK exporters can maintain access to EU markets. We are confident that we will achieve third country listing with the EU prior to our departure, as we did prior to the April date. This will allow the UK to export to the EU. A no-deal Brexit would mean that goods traded between the EU and the UK will be subject to the same tariffs as goods from third countries.

The UK is the largest producer of sheep and by far the largest exporter of sheep meat in the EU. Around 30% of production is exported, with 95% of these exports going to the EU. The application of high EU tariffs on UK exports of sheep meat will have a substantial negative effect on the income of UK sheep farmers. At Defra, we are doing all we can to mitigate the challenges they face and we have contingency plans in place to minimise disruption. We will be monitoring the market situation closely and My Rt Hon friend, the Secretary of State, has made it clear that we will support our most vulnerable sectors, such as our sheep farmers.

Government has also pledged to continue to commit the same cash total in funds for farm support until the end of this parliament, expected in 2022. This includes all funding provided for farm support under both Pillar 1 and Pillar 2 of the current CAP. This commitment applies to the whole UK.

We are in regular dialogue with the farming unions, processors and allied industries about storage, feed and other supplies in the event of a no deal. These discussions have been constructive and will continue.

The UK’s objection to the adoption of the CENELEC standard on household refrigeration appliances by the EU Committee on Standards has been in place since 2016. This reflects the specific concerns that the standard should go further in relation to fire safety. However, the UK does support other recent changes to the Standard including issues relating to electrical safety, mechanical safety and refrigerant safety.

All household refrigeration appliances sold in the UK must be safe before they can be placed on the market as they must comply with the relevant Electrical Equipment (Safety) Regulations.

There are already strict product safety laws in place that apply to fridges and to freezers.

Under the Electrical Equipment (Safety) Regulations, manufacturers must only place safe electrical goods on the market and they must continue to monitor safety in use and to take appropriate action if those products are subsequently identified as being unsafe.

The UK is leading on proposals to enhance the standard for fridges and freezers at an international level.

My Lords, we believe that Britain’s product safety requirements are among the strongest in the world. Manufacturers have a legal responsibility to place safe products on the market. The UK is leading on proposals to enhance the standard for fridges and freezers at an international level.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what plans they have to strengthen legal safety requirements for fridges and freezers sold in the United Kingdom.

My Lords, I am of course aware of the Which? report. It made it quite clear that most or all of the fridge freezers it referred to did meet existing standards. The Which? report was looking at enhanced standards. The Government will certainly look at that and are working with Which? and other parties. This is why I stressed in my opening Answer that seeing whether even more stringent standards can be set has to be done internationally. But those products certainly meet existing standards—which, as I said in my original Answer, are among the safest in the world.

My Lords, the recent Which? report said that current safety standards are not fit for purpose and that its tests have resulted in “Don’t buy” recommendations for 250 models, most of them from household names accounting for 45% of the market. In particular, Which? advised not buying plastic-backed models. While we await the appropriate report on the Grenfell Tower blaze, what actions will the Government take to reassure consumers and support the findings of the Which? report?