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Substance Misuse Services
Mr. Bermingham : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what are the financial resources allocated for substance misuse services ; if he will list priority issues in this field ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Freeman : Since 1984 the Department has committed nearly £65 million of new money to preventing drug misuse and providing services. This includes £17.5 million on pump priming, 188 local drug projects, over £35 million to HAs to develop and expand services, over £8 million on campaigns of information and education and £3 million on funding the headquarters costs of major voluntary organisations.
The Government's objectives have been to prevent, as far as possible, people from using drugs in the first place ; to reduce the physical harm of those who do use drugs, and to provide users with advice and treatment services to help them live without drugs.
Haemophiliacs
Mr. Bermingham : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what is the total amount of moneys paid out of the trust fund set up to assist those haemophiliacs infected with the HIV virus who are in the greatest need ; how many such applications have been made to the fund and granted ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Freeman : I understand that in the period to 31 August 1989 the trust made 1,600 single payments totalling around £0.9 million and 578 regular payments totalling around £1 million. The Macfarlane Trust is an independent charitable trust and it is a matter for the trustees to allocate funds in the way which they consider best meets the needs of those eligible for assistance within the provision of the trust deed.
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Mr. Bermingham : To ask the Secretary of State for Health which health authorities have so far been issued with writs by haemophiliacs infected with the HIV virus ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Freeman : As health authorities are separately represented, the Department does not routinely receive this information. However, I understand that most regional and district health authorities and some special health authorities have been issued with writs.
Nuclear Flask Accidents
Mr. Bermingham : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans have been made by health authorities to deal with nuclear flask accidents ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Freeman : Arrangements for dealing with the response to an accident involving the transportation of irradiated fuel are set out in consignors' contingency plans and the irradiated fuel transport flask emergency plan, a copy of which is in the Library. Radiation protection advice would be provided by health physicists specified in the emergency plan, not by the NHS.
However, in the unlikely event of this advice not being available at the time, the police could invoke the national arrangements for incidents involving radioactivity (NAIR) scheme. This scheme is intended to ensure that, for accidents involving the transportation of radioactive materials, appropriate resources are available to the police for providing protection to the general public. The NAIR scheme is co-ordinated by the National Radiological Protection Board and its participants include appropriately staffed and equipped National Health Service hospitals that are designated for NAIR purposes.
In addition, Regional Health Authorities are required to designate hospitals within their regions which are equipped and staffed to provide treatment and decontamination facilities in the unlikely event of an incident leading to the release of radioactivity.
Benzodiazepine
Mr. Bermingham : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what proposals there may be to monitor counselling given by pharmacists to patients on long-term and medium-term prescriptions for benzodiazepine ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Freeman : We have no such proposals. This is a matter for the pharmaceutical profession.
Mr. Bermingham : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what research is conducted into the effects on patients receiving medium or long -term prescriptions for benezodiazepine when sudden reduction or stoppage is made by general practitioners ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Freeman : We are not aware of any such current research. It is now generally accepted that a sudden reduction or stoppage in taking benzodiazepines can have an undesirable effect on patients. The British National Formulary, which is supplied free of charge by the Department to all prescribing doctors, carries advice on benzodiazepine withdrawal.
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National Tranquilliser Advice Centre
Mr. Bermingham : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps are being taken to ensure the future of the national tranquilliser advice centre ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Freeman : I refer the hon. Member to my reply to the right hon. Member for Tweeddale, Etterick and Lauderdale (Mr. Steel) on 25 October.
London Ambulance Service
Mr. Corbyn : To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will call for a report from the London ambulance service on what has been the average response time for a 999 call in its area by (a) London ambulance service vehicles, (b) police vehicles used as ambulances and (c) other voluntary ambulances per week since 1 September.
Mr. Freeman : During the period 1 September to 22 October the London ambulance service's average response time for 999 calls was 11.9 minutes from the receipt of the call by central ambulance control. The average time taken from the crew receiving the call to their arrival on the scene was nine minutes.
Similar information is not available in respect of Metropolitan police and British Red Cross vehicles deployed on 23 and 24 October. St. John ambulance service vehicles were also deployed on those dates and their average response time was 8.8 minutes from receipt of a call from control.
Mr. Corbyn : To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will call for a report from the London ambulance service on the number of ambulances that have been taken off the road by the London ambulance service management whilst crews were available to staff them during the current dispute.
Mr. Freeman : The details for the two days of the action are as follows :
|Early |Middle|Night
---------------------------------------------------
Monday 23 October 1989
Manned<2> |127 |110 |67
Not used<3> |52 |86 |34
<1>Up to 1700 hours when an agreement was reached
and front line vehicles went back "on the run".
<2>Manned=the number of fully staffed ambulances
available.
<3>Not used=those ambulances not used due to the
industrial action, as crews would not work to
London ambulance service management requirements.
|Early |Middle<1>
----------------------------------------------------------------
Tuesday 24 October 1989
Manned<2> |122 |113 |-
Not used<3> |83 |73 |-
<1>Up to 1700 hours when an agreement was reached and front
line vehicles went back "on the run".
<2>Manned=the number of fully staffed ambulances available.
<3>Not used=those ambulances not used due to the industrial
action, as crews would not work to London ambulance service
management requirements.
Care in the Community
Mr. Patchett : To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make it his policy to include a code of conduct for the care of the elderly for residential care in private homes as part of the White Paper on care in the community.
Mr. Freeman : General guidance on the running of these homes is contained in "Home Life" a code of practice for
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residential care, endorsed by the Secretaries of State for Social Services and for Wales. This guidance remains valid.Additionally, we have recently put in hand a three-year programme of development projects aimed at demonstrating how the quality of life for people in residential care can be improved.
Kidney Dialysis
Sir Michael McNair-Wilson : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what is the present ratio of kidney dialysis machines to renal patients ; and what is the ratio of renal units to patients.
Mr. Freeman : Information on the number of dialysis machines is not collected centrally.
According to data for 1988 reported to the European Dialysis and Transplant Association, the ratio of patients to renal units in the United Kingdom is 224 to one if those with a functioning transplant are included. The ratio is 108 to one if patients are defined to include only those receiving dialysis for example, either from dialysis machines or continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis.
WALES
EC Aid
Mr. Morgan : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what agreement has been reached with the four county councils of south Wales for financial compensation to authorities who have lost eligibility for European regional development fund grant for major infrastructure projects due to delayed submission of integrated development operations to the European Commission.
Mr. Peter Walker : There was no such delay. The integrated development operations programme for industrial south Wales was submitted in advance of the date specified by the European Commission.
Mr. Morgan : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what consultations he held with the four county councils of industrial south Wales and the European Commission on the proposal for an integrated development operation.
Mr. Peter Walker : My officials held discussions during the summer of 1987 with the relevant local and public authorities following the European Commission's identification of industrial south Wales as a potential candidate for an integrated approach. The four county councils, along with the local authorities and interested bodies have been fully involved in the subsequent formulation of an integrated development operation programme which was submitted to the European Commission in May 1988. Against the background of the reform of the European structural funds the programme has since been the subject of discussions with the Commission which have involved representatives of the county councils.
Mr. Morgan : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what consultations he held with the four county councils of south Wales and the European Commission on the timing of submission of proposed integrated development operations to the European Commission.
Mr. Peter Walker : All the bodies involved in the formulation of the integrated development operations
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programme for industrial south Wales, including the four county councils, were fully aware that the European Commission required submission of the document by May 1988 and worked energetically to meet that requirement.Roads
Mr. Wigley : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, following the consultation undertaken by his Department on the impact of the A55 trunk road improvements programme on Gwynedd, whether any new policy initiatives are being taken by his Department.
Mr. Peter Walker : The continued fall in unemployment, spreading industrial investment and new job creation in north Wales all underline the effectiveness of the Government's policies in regenerating the area's local economy.
Following my statement to the Welsh Grand Committee in December 1988, my hon. Friend the Minister of State has sought views on how the opportunities afforded by the massive investment in the A55 improvements can best be used to the advantage of north Wales. I expect to make an announcement before the end of the year.
Mr. Wigley : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what was the original cost estimate of dualing the A55 trunk road between Conwy and Bangor, together with the original target completion date for this work ; what is the latest cost estimate and latest estimated completion date ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Wyn Roberts : In "Roads in Wales 1980" the estimated cost was £166 million, including the cost of the Conwy crossing and the Bangor bypass. Estimated completion was towards the end of the decade. The cost estimated in "Roads in Wales" 1989 is £322 million. Completion is now expected in the early 1990s.
Welsh Language
Mr. Wigley : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many representations have been received by the Welsh Office during the past six months calling for new legislation relating to the Welsh language.
Mr. Wyn Roberts : Around 25 from individuals and organisations.
Correspondence
Mr. Pawsey : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what percentage of letters from hon. Members to his Department received a reply (a) in under four weeks, (b) within four to six weeks, (c) within six to eight weeks and (d) over eight weeks, in each of the last three years.
Mr. Peter Walker : The information is shown in the following table :
|1987 |1988 |<1>1989
|per cent.|per cent.|per cent.
------------------------------------------------------------
Under 4 weeks |89 |91 |92
Within 4 to 6 weeks |9 |7 |6
Within 6 to 8 weeks |1 |1 |1
Over 8 weeks |1 |1 |1
<1> To 27 October 1989.
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Vicarages and Manses
Mr. Denzil Davies : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what provisions will apply from April 1990 in respect of grants for home improvements for vicarages and manses in Wales.
Mr. Grist : Subject to parliamentary approval, the provisions of part VIII of the Local Government and Housing Bill will apply in respect of vicarages and manses in Wales.
Contraception
Mr. Terry Davis : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will give a breakdown of the number of individuals receiving contraceptive advice and treatment by contraceptive method (a) through National Health Service family planning clinics in Wales for the years 1987 and 1988 and (b) from general practitioners in Wales for the years 1987 and 1988.
Mr. Grist : The information is shown in the following table :
Family planning clinic services
Method<1> Number of patients
|1987 |1988
---------------------------------------------
Oral contraceptives |36,324 |34,545
IUD |9,138 |7,936
Cap/Diaphragm |4,459 |3,835
Sheath |14,075 |12,589
Chemicals |589 |645
Rhythm |9 |38
Female sterilisation |76 |47
Vasectomy |86 |64
Other |2,910 |2,794
None |4,753 |5,019
|-------|-------
Total |72,419 |67,512
<1> If the patient was already using a birth
control method the method in use at the time
of the first visit during the year was
recorded unless another method was chosen at
the visit in which case the new method was
recorded.
General medical practitioners contraceptive service
<1>Number of patients
|1987 |1988
---------------------------------------------------------
Intra-Uterine Devices |4,651 |3,934
Other than Intra-Uterine Devices |120,887|131,015
|-------|-------
Total |125,538|134,949
Number of patients at 1 October for whom payment was due at the end of the quarter.
Family Planning
Mr. Terry Davis : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what is the total cost for 1985, 1986, 1987 and 1988 in Wales for (a) general practitioner provision for family planning servies and (b) district health authority family planning clinic services.
Mr. Grist : The available information, shown in the following table, relates to (a) the contraceptive fees paid to general practitioners plus the estimated net ingredient cost of contraceptive drugs and appliances precribed by general practitioners and dispensed by retail pharmacists and appliance contractors, and (b) expenditure, including overheads, on family planning services provided through health authority community health services.
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£ thousands
|1985-86|1986-87|1987-88|1988-89
-----------------------------------------------------------------
(a) Family Practitioner
Services |2,175 |2,443 |2,575 |3,429
(b) DHA Community
Health Services <1><2> |1,308 |1,434 |390 |432
<1>The figures for 1985-86 and 1986-87 exclude Gwynedd Health
Authority whose Community Health Services expenditure in those
years is only available in total for all services.
<2>Due to restructuring of Health Authority accounts the figures
for 1987-88 and 1988-89 include support service costs for
clinics but exclude costs of drugs and medical supplies issued
by nursing and medical staff.
Sources: Health Authority Annual Accounts; Family Practitioner
Committee Annual Accounts; Prescription Pricing Division, Welsh
Health Common Services Authority.
Regional Aid
Mr. McLeish : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will give (a) the number of applications for regional selective assistance received between 1 April 1988 and 30 September 1989, (b) the total number of applications approved, (c) the total amount of expenditure involved and (d) the total estimated expenditure for 1988-89, 1989-90, 1990-91 and 1991- 92 in cash and constant prices.
Mr. Peter Walker : A total of 417 applications for regional selective assistance grants were received by my Department between 1 April 1988 and 30 September 1989. In the same period, 310 offers of grant were made to the value of £127 million.
Total expenditure in 1988-89 was £42.5 million (£44.8 million at 1989-90 prices). I refer the hon. Gentleman to the reply I gave him on 20 March 1989 for details of the vote provision for 1989-90 and planned provision for 1990-91 to 1991-92.
RSA project and training grants.
Gross expenditure comprises project and training grants, exchange risk losses on European loans and payments under the Business Improvements Service scheme.
Mr. McLeish : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will give (a) the total number of applications for regional development grants outstanding at 31 March 1988, (b) the total number of applications processed by 30 September 1989, (c) the total amount of expenditure involved and (d) the total estimated expenditure planned for 1988-89, 1989- 90, 1990-91 and 1991-92 in cash and constant prices.
Mr. Peter Walker : A total of 1,911 of the 1,935 applications for regional development grants outstanding at 31 March 1988 had been processed by 30 September 1989, involving offers of grant to the value of £98.3 million. Total expenditure in 1988-89 was £58.6 million (£61.8 million at 1989-90 prices). I refer the hon. Gentleman to the reply I gave him on 20 March 1989 for details of the vote provision for 1989-90 and planned provision for 1990-91 and 1991-92.
Gross expenditure on original (RDG I) and revised (RDG II) schemes.
Grants
Mr. McLeish : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will give (a) the total number of applications for investment grants and innovation grants from 1 April 1988 to 30 September 1989, (b) the total number of applications approved, (c) the total amount of expenditure involved
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and (d) the total estimated expenditure planned for 1988-89 and 1989-90, 1990-91 and 1991-92 in cash and constant prices.Mr. Peter Walker : A total of 655 applications for regional enterprise (investment and innovation) grants were received by my Department between 1 April 1988 and 30 September 1989. Of these, 337 applications had been approved by 30 September involving grant offers of over £2.8 million.
Total expenditure in 1988-89 was £0.218 million (£0.230 million at 1989-90 prices). I refer the hon. Gentleman to the replies I gave him on 20 March 1989 for details of the vote provision for 1989-90 and planned provision for 1990-91 and 1991-92.
Severn Barrage
Mr. Ron Davies : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what assessment he has made of the impact on the proposed Cardiff bay barrage of the Severn estuary barrage ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Peter Walker : The Cardiff bay barrage will be designed to withstand the present full tidal range. A barrage across the Severn estuary would serve to reduce the tidal range and therefore result in a lower loading on the Cardiff bay barrage.
NHS Treatment Centres
Mr. Barry Jones : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales (1) how many patients he expects to use each National Health Service treatment centre for each of the first three years ; what proportion of the total in- patient waiting list for each specialty this represents ; and by what date he expects the current in-patient waiting lists to be cleared ;
(2) what financial resources are to be allocated for treatment centres ; and what proportion of that figure will be used for (a) administration, (b) wages and salaries and (c) clinical use.
Mr. Grist : Welsh Office staff are currently finalising the details of operation of treatment centres in discussion with managers and clinicians in the NHS. When these discussions are complete I shall write to the hon. Gentleman.
NHS Reform
Mr. Barry Jones : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what additional staffing requirements he anticipates due to the implementation of the proposals contained within the National Health Service White Paper.
Mr. Grist : A considerable amount of work is currently being undertaken within the NHS in Wales in the field of manpower planning and management. District health authorities have recently completed the second round of a continuing manpower resource planning exercise introduced last year to identify future manpower requirements in terms of numbers and skills. The manpower implications of a number of initiatives, including the proposals contained in the White Paper "Working for Patients", are being addressed as part of that ongoing process.
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Hospital Admissions
Mr. Barry Jones : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what are the latest available figures for each year and by Welsh health authority for the number of hospital admissions due to post-operative infections, for (a) general surgery, (b) orthopaedics, (c) ophthalmology and (d) all specialties.
Mr. Grist : The information requested is not centrally available.
NHS Property (Maintenance)
Mr. Barry Jones : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what was the total cost of backlog maintenance for National Health Service properties in Wales, and by health authority, for the latest available year ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Grist : This information is not held centrally. However, district health authorities in Wales are required to review the condition of their stock annually and for 1988-89, it was estimated that it would cost about £132.7 million to bring the whole of the NHS Estate in Wales to a standard where it was exhibiting only minor deterioration. This sum may be broken down by district health authority as follows :
DHA |£ million ------------------------------------ Clwyd |19.2 East Dyfed |4.5 Gwent |14.6 Gwynedd |10.0 Mid Glamorgan |26.4 Pembrokeshire |0.7 Powys |1.2 South Glamorgan |45.0 West Glamorgan |11.1
HOME DEPARTMENT
Racial Harassment
Mr. Cohen : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many perpetrators of racial or anti-semitic harassment have been charged by the police under (a) section 5 of the Public Order Act 1986 and (b) section 47 of the Offences Against the Person Act 1861.
Mr. John Patten : I refer the hon. Member to the reply given to him on 21 July 1989 at column 401.
Malicious Communications
Mr. Cohen : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many prosecutions have taken place under the Malicious Communications Act ; and how many of those relate to racist and anti-semitic material.
Mr. John Patten : Data is not yet available on the number of offences committed under the Malicious Communications Act 1988, which did not come into force until September 1988. Information as to whether prosecutions specifically relate to racist and anti-semitic material is not being collected centrally.
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Local Government Grants
Mr. Bernie Grant : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if it is his intention to implement the report entitled "A Scrutiny of Grants Under Section 11 of the Local Government Act 1966" published on 3 July ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. John Patten : The report entitled "A Scrutiny of Grants Under Section 11 of the Local Government Act 1966" has been welcomed by the Government for its thorough analysis of the problems surrounding section 11 grant. Ministers are presently considering the changes needed in order to improve the effectiveness of assistance provided for ethnic minorities by section 11 grant.
The Government hope that it will not be too long before an announcement can be made.
Mr. Lorrain Osman
Mr. Chris Smith : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many prisoners have been held on remand in Her Majesty's prisons for a period exceeding three and a half years ; if he will list all such prisoners ; what steps he proposes to take to bring to an end such extended remands ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. John Patten : On 31 August 1989 one unconvicted prisoner had been held in Pentonville prison for more than three and a half years. Mr. Lorrain Osman was committed to custody pending completion of extradition proceedings and remains in cutsody awaiting the final outcome of the succession of appeals that he has lodged. He may not be surrendered for extradition while appeal proceedings are pending. A judicial review and further habeas corpus proceedings began on 4 October. Extradition proceedings are not subject to the custody time limits contained in the regulations made under section 22 of the Prosecution of Offences Act 1985.
Mr. Chris Smith : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make available in the Library those communications he has had from the Governor of Hong Kong since May 1989 in relation to the case of Mr. Lorrain Osman ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. John Patten : My right hon. Friend has received none.
Fugitives
Mr. Chris Smith : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department on how many occasions in the last five years he has used his discretion under the Fugitive Offenders Act (a) to order or (b) to refuse the return of a fugitive in extradition cases ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. John Patten : The Secretary of State signed 28 surrender warrants in extradition cases under section 9(1) of the Fugitive Offenders Act 1967, during the period from 1 January 1984 until 26 September 1989, when the Act was replaced by the Extradition Act 1989. In the same period no requests were refused.
Arrest Warrants
Mr. Chris Smith : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether deputy clerks in the magistrates courts have authority to issue arrest warrants ; and if he will make a statement.
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Mr. John Patten : In magistrates courts warrants of arrest may be issued only by magistrates.
Commonwealth Immigrants
Mr. Wigley : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what was the total expenditure in each of the last three years under section 11 of the Local Government Act 1966, as outlined in his Department circular 72/1986, relating to expenditure for Commonwealth immigrants by local authorities ; and of those sums how much was spent on education.
Mr. John Patten : The amount of grant paid out under section 11 of the Local Government Act 1966 for the most recent three year period for which actual figures are available is as follows :
|£ million
------------------------------
1986-87 |104
1987-88 |93
1988-89 |89
The figures represent 75 per cent. of total section 11 expenditure. The remaining 25 per cent. is a matter of local authority contribution.
In each of the three years education provision has accounted for approximately 80 per cent. of total grant.
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