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Abortions

82. Mr. Stevens : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what is the total number of abortions so far performed under the Abortion Act 1967 ; and how many of these were performed on non-United Kingdom resident women.

Mr. Freeman [holding answer 24 January 1989] : The total number of notifications of legal abortions, to resident and non-resident women, carried out under the Abortion Act 1967 from 27 April 1968 to 30 June 1988 in England and Wales, is 2,899,405 . Of these 921,608 (31.8 per cent.) were performed on non-United Kingdom resident women.

The total number of abortions is based on notifications received (1968 to 1980) and on occurrences (1981 to 1988). Data for 1988 are provisional.

Listeria

Dr. David Clark : To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement about the possibility of monitoring for listeria in milk and cheese.

Mr. Kenneth Clarke [holding answer 20 February 1989] : Microbiological control of foods such as milk and cheese is primarily achieved by adherence to good manufacturing and retail practice based on the hazard analysis and critical control point approach. The Department's advice to manufacturers, retailers, and enforcement officers is to concentrate on these aspects rather than to undertake enhanced routine final product testing.

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Column 802

NHS (Expenditure)

32. Mr. McLoughlin : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what was the spending on the National Health Service in 1979 and in the latest available year, in real terms.

Mr. Mellor [holding answer 21 February 1989] : Gross spending on the NHS in England totalled £6.5 billion in 1978-79 and in the current financial year amounts to over £19.4 billion. This represents a real terms increase of some 37 per cent. Additional expenditure planned for next year is expected to bring this increase to over 41 per cent. which includes the additional £163 million announced by my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister on 16 February. This is before taking account of the extra cash that will be released in 1989-90 by the reduction in employers' superannuation contributions and from health authorities' cost improvement and income generation schemes. Taken together with the cash increase these will amount to the equivalent of a 5.5 per cent. real terms increase in the resource available to the NHS in 1989-90 alone.

Retired People

Mr. Roy Hughes : To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will consider creating a standing committee of representatives of the pensioners' movement together with the Minister and senior civil servants dealing with the areas mainly affecting the retired in health matters.

Mr. Mellor [holding answer 21 February 1989] : I have not plans to do so. We do, of course, regularly meet groups representing elderly people to discuss health matters.

Zidovudine

Mr. Alfred Morris : To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will receive copies of all reports given by the independent data and safety monitoring committee to the chairmen of the MRC/INSERM co-ordinating committee of the trial on the benefits of zidovudine for healthy people who are HIV positive ; and if he will make a statement.

Mr. Mellor [holding answer 22 February 1989] : The Medical Research Council will keep the Department of Health up to date with the trial's findings as appropriate. However, I do not expect to receive copies of reports given by the independent data and safety monitoring committee to the chairman of the MRC/INSERM co-ordinating committee ; the conduct of the trial is strictly a matter for the MRC and INSERM.

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