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Ambulance Service
Mr. Shersby : To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will list in the Official Report the scales of pay for ambulance staff in the categories (a) ambulanceman/woman, (b) qualified ambulanceman/woman, (c) leading ambulanceman/woman under (i) the current rates of pay and (ii) those now offered by the management side on 5 December and effective from 1 April.
Mrs. Virginia Bottomley : The information is given in the table :
Current New rates
rate from 1 April 1989
|Extended
|Basic |trained<3>
|£ |£ |£
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
1. Outside London
Leading ambulanceman/woman |10,888 |11,868 |12,368
Qualified ambulanceman/woman |10,093 |11,001 |11,501
Ambulanceman/woman |7,340 |8,001 |-
2. London Ambulance Service
Leading ambulanceman/woman |10,888
|+981 LW<1>|<2>13,305 |<2>13,805
Qualified ambulanceman/woman |10,093
|+981 LW<1>|<2>12,384 |<2>12,884
Ambulanceman/woman 7,340
|+981 LW<1>|<2>9,232 |-
<1>London weighting (LW) is currently paid separately and does not count
for overtime purposes.
<2>New all-inclusive London salary to count in its entirety for all
purposes including the calculation of payments for overtime worked.
<3>Extended trained (to National Health Service training authority
standard).
Hospital Services
Mrs. Gorman : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what were the annual savings made across the National Health Service in England and Wales since competitive tendering was introduced for catering, cleaning and laundry services ; and if he will express this as a percentage of the total cost of these services.
Mr. Freeman : Overall annual saving arising from the competitive tendering initiative for National Health
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Service catering, cleaning and laundry services in England amount to some £110 million--around 17 per cent. of previous costs. Information about Wales is a matter for my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Wales.Nuts
Mr. Flynn : To ask the Secretary of State for Health if his Department has analysed dry nuts imported from Greece and Turkey to check them for radioactivity at levels above those advised by the European Commission as tolerable for consumption.
Mr. Freeman : In the interests of the consumer, port health authorities are continuing to monitor certain imported food (including dry nuts) for radioactive contamination caused by the Chernobyl nuclear accident. United Kingdom monitoring has not detected excess contamination levels in dry nuts over the last year.
Aminoacid Isomerisation
Mr. Corbyn : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what actions are being taken by his Department to evaluate the reports by G. Lubec, C. H. R. Wolf and B. Bartosch, of the paediatrics department of the university of Vienna, concerning aminoacid insomerisation and microwave exposure as reported in The Lancet of 9 December, a copy of which has been sent to him : and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Freeman : I refer the hon. Member to the reply my hon. Friend the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food gave to the hon. Member for Truro (Mr. Taylor) on 13 December at column 698. The views expressed are held jointly by the Ministry and this Department.
Self-governing Hospital, Bassetlaw
Mr. Ashton : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what is the expenditure incurred by Bassetlaw health authority in the last 12 months on newspaper advertising for public relations purposes and other official publications primarily to promote the idea of a self-governing trust for the health authority and Bassetlaw hospital.
Mrs. Virginia Bottomley : This is a matter for the local health authority and the hon. Member may like to write to the chairman of Bassetlaw health authority for the information.
Mr. James Butler
Mr. Ashton : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what was the cost of the legal advice sought by Bassetlaw health authority following its refusal to pay Mr. James Butler an early pension following his redundancy ; and what advice was given.
Mrs. Virginia Bottomley : This is a matter for the local health authority and the hon. Member may like to write to the chairman of Bassetlaw health authority about it.
NHS (Inflation)
Mr. Alex Carlile : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what allowances are being granted to hospitals throughout the country to compensate for the difference
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between the Government forecast of and the actual inflation rate in the National Health Service : and if he will make a statement.Mr. Freeman : Health authorities operate under the cash planning system and are expected to meet all pay and price increases and develop services within the total resources available to them. Additional funds are not normally provided to take account of higher than expected inflation or other unforeseen demands. This year alone we have provided an additional £1 billion for hospital and community services (HCHS) compared with 1980-89. They have also benefited from the effect of reduced superannuation contributions and new cost improvemens. Next year the total resources available to the HCHS will increase by over £1.3 billion.
Charity Donations
Mr. Alex Carlile : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what information he has on the amount of charity donations used by health authorities towards Health Service funding.
Mr. Freeman : NHS trust funds may be used for any purpose relating to the Health Service subject to the specific terms of individual trusts. The 1988-89 summarised account of trust funds held by regional and district health authorities and special health authorities for the London postgraduate teaching hospitals and special trustees record total expenditure of £122.6 million excluding transfers to reserve (subject to audit). This sum includes some expenditure which would not have been appropriate for Exchequer funding.
Great Ormond Street
Mr. Alex Carlile : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans the Government have to finance the Great Ormond Street children's hospital.
Mr. Freeman : The Hospitals for Sick Children special health authority, of which Great Ormond Street children's hospital is part, received an initial revenue cash limit for 1989-90 of some £44.0 million. Subsequent additions to this have included £0.4 million to help meet the costs of the review body awards for doctors, dentists, nurses, midwives and the professions allied to medicine, and £0.1 million towards the costs of implementing the NHS review. The overall revenue allocation for the London postgraduate special health authorities for 1990-91 will increase by 2.27 per cent. in real terms. Detailed initial revenue cash limits for individual special health authorities will be issued in the new year.
Charity Donations
Mr. Alex Carlile : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what regulations cover the use by health authorities of charity donations for Health Service funding.
Mr. Freeman : The management and use of NHS trust funds is a matter for the appointed trustees in accordance with general trust and charity law. Health authorities have powers under sections 90 to 96 of the National Health Service Act 1977 (as amended) to accept, hold and administer any property on trust for all or any purposes relating to the Health Service and to engage in fund-raising activities for providing or improving any services.
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Guidance to health authorities on the extent and use of fundraising powers and the management and accounting for trust funds is set out in health circulars HC (80)11 and HC (85)6.Alternative Medicine
Mr. Rost : To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will itemise the draft European Community directives currently under consideration relating to alternative and complementary medicine ; what representations he is making in Brussels to ensure their acceptability ; and what consultations are taking place and with which representatives of United Kingdom bodies likely to be affected by such directives.
Mr. Freeman : The services of the commission have under consideration proposals relating to the harmonisation of requirements for the marketing of homeopathic products. These have been the subject of preliminary discussion with member states. United Kingdom interests will have the opportunity to comment on any proposals for draft directives following their formal publication by the commission.
Mr. Rost : To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will itemise the expenditure on research funding and other financial support allocated to alternative and complementary medicine ; and what percentage this represents of total funding by his Department on the medical research budget.
Mr. Freeman : As far as research is concerned I refer my hon. Friend to the reply I gave the hon. Member for Angus, East (Mr. Welsh) on 27 November at column 102. The Department has given a grant of £60,000 over two years to the Research Council for Complementary Medicine towards the council's central adminstrative expenses.
Mr. Rost : To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what increased role he anticipates for alternative and complementary medicine resulting from the pending structural reforms in the National Health Service ;
(2) what is his assessment of the impact of his proposed reforms in the National Health Service on a wider availability of alternative and complementary therapies, for patients within the National Health Service.
Mr. Freeman : We have no proposals to make alternative and complementary therapies more widely available within the NHS. Medical treatment provided under the NHS must by law be prescribed by a medical practitioner. Such practitioners can offer to use alternative or complementary therapies in their treatment of patients, but the wider use of such methods within the NHS depends upon those who use them persuading more of their fellow practitioners of the benefits and effectiveness of such treatment.
Hospices
Mr. Baldry : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what contribution he is prepared to make to the costs of voluntary hospices.
Mrs. Virginia Bottomley : There will be a substantial increase in funds to health authorities next year, so that they can contribute more to the voluntary hospice
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movement. We are allocating £8 million to health authorities in 1990-91, specifically earmarked for terminal care provided by voluntary organisations. This will bring the total contribution from public funds up to nearly £20 million a 70 per cent. increase over the 1988-89 figure. Health authorities will use this money to increase the contribution they already make to voluntary hospices and similar organisations which provide palliative care and support for patients with terminal illnesses and their families.These extra funds are a clear mark of the Government's strong support for the hospice movement. They are also an important step towards creating a closer partnership between the NHS and the movement. The Government's objective is to work towards a position in which the contribution from public funds available to voluntary hospices and similar organisations matches that of voluntary giving. This will provide a clear basis on which to plan ahead.
We are deeply appreciative of the high standard of continuing care that has been developed and provided by the independent hospice movement and welcome its growing partnership with the National Health Service in caring for people who are terminally ill and their families.
HIV
Mr. Key : To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement on the conclusions drawn from the expert symposium jointly organised by the health departments and the Health Education Authority on 24 November.
Mrs. Virginia Bottomley : The Health Departments and the Health Education Authority organised an expert symposium on 24 November to assess the current and future spread of HIV and AIDS in the United Kingdom. The proceedings will be published early in the new year. The clear conclusion of the symposium was that AIDS is a major threat throughout the world. There are three major modes of HIV transmission, all of which are now well- established in the United Kingdom. These are :
sexual intercourse, between men and between a man and woman. sharing of infected needles and syringes during injecting drug misuse.
transmission from mother to unborn child.
Complacency must be avoided in our efforts to combat HIV and AIDS. There is still much to discover, but the long incubation period when a person is infectious with no obvious sign of illness, together with the usually fatal outcome of the disease, mean that it would be foolhardy to depart from a precautionary approach. We must establish the facts, we must plan, and we must educate.
In the light of this the Government remain committed to providing a framework for response which encourages effective and responsible action among statutory and voluntary bodies, and individuals. The five main aims of our strategy are :
To stem the spread of HIV infection through public awareness campaigns, community-based prevention initiatives, and improved infection control procedures ;
To improve understanding of the epidemiology of HIV infection, how it is transmitted, the natural history of the disease, and how HIV-related illness can be prevented and treated ;
To provide appropriate diagnostic, treatment, care and support services for those affected by HIV :
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Through a range of measures to foster a climate of understanding and compassion, to discourage discrimination, and to safeguard confidentiality, within the wider context of public health requirements ;To foster and encourage the full and continuing exchange of information between countries, and to encourage countries not to adopt coercive and discriminatory measures.
Yellow Card System
Mr. Ashley : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what is the estimated proportion of adverse reactions that are reported through the yellow card system.
Mrs. Virginia Bottomley [holding answer 14 December 1989] : Doctors are asked to report all suspected adverse reactions to new drugs but only serious reactions to established drugs. Exact reporting rates are not known but a number of studies and questionnaires have indicated that they rarely exceed 10 to 15 per cent.
Peto Institute
Mr. Yeo : To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement about United Kingdom support for the international Peto institute.
Mr. Scott : I have been asked to reply.
We continue to value conductive education as practised at the Peto institute in Budapest and welcome the Hungarian Government's plans to build a new international institute in response to increasing demand from a number of countries as well as the United Kingdom. We recognise that there is a wide and effective range of services for disabled children in this country and we believe that increased availability of conductive education would be a valuable addition to those services.
Conductive education is an educational system based on a whole person approach, which aims to develop children with a motor disability to enable them to participate fully in mainstream education. The professional input comes from one individual, the conductor, who takes the child through the whole range of processes connected with development. The conductor's role integrates some of the knowledge and skills of a number of separate professional groups, for example, physiotherapists, occupational therapists, teachers and nurses. Close and active parental involvement is an important feature of the system.
We have concluded that the best way forward is to enter into an agreement with the Hungarian Government that in return for a financial contribution towards the capital costs of the new institute the United Kingdom would have guaranteed access to a proportion commensurate with our contribution of the available places both for children to receive conductive education and for trainees to be trained as conductors. In this way we would secure the continuing availability of conductive education for United Kingdom children in Budapest while building up a nucleus of trained conductors to provide this service in the United Kingdom.
We have therefore agreed to provide a total of £5 million from Government funds over the next four financial years towards the capital costs of the new institute subject to conclusion of a satisfactory agreement covering access for the children and trainee conductors, and to satisfactory progress with construction. In addition, we will be seeking to stimulate interest in the private and voluntary sectors with a view to supplementing the Government contribution by a similar amount raised
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from these sources. Officials will be taking forward the detailed negotiations with the Hungarian authorities early in the new year.SOCIAL SECURITY
Attendance Allowance
Mr. Blunkett : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many (a) applications were made, (b) allowances were granted, (c) reviews undertaken and (d) allowances were reviewed and then withdrawn with respect to the attendance allowance in each of the years 1985 to 1989.
Mr. Scott : The information is in the table.
Attendance allowance:
Number of new claims, awards reviews and allowances withdrawn
1985 to 1989
Year |New claims|Awards |Reviews |Allowances
|withdrawn
------------------------------------------------------------------
1985 |277,017 |184,599 |41,995 |22,985
1986 |286,889 |174,064 |42,648 |23,701
1987 |319,667 |208,693 |58,273 |22,717
1988 |361,720 |207,863 |56,087 |25,141
<1>1989 |276,981 |176,346 |51,731 |20,563
<1> To 30 September 1989.
Mr. Blunkett : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security (1) what new guidance has been issued in the last two years regarding eligibility for attendance allowance ;
Column 850
(2) what new guidance has been issued in the last two years regarding the review of attendance allowance.Mr. Scott : Guidance about the eligibility criteria for attendance allowance and about the review of decisions is issued by the independent attendance allowance board in its "Handbook for Delegated Medical Practitioners". Copies of the handbook published in July 1988, and copies of a revised version issued to delegated medical practitioners in October 1989, are in the Library. The published edition took account of the changes introduced by the Social Security Act 1988 for people whose disabilities pose a risk of substantial danger at night, and the 1989 version incorporates new or revised guidance about thalassaemia in children, cystic fibrosis, the assessment of substantial danger, claimants who are at risk of falling and those who refuse to undergo medical examination.
Benefits
Mr. Meacher : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how much a single man aged 22 years (a) living with parents and (b) living in a council flat received in unemployment benefit and supplementary benefit with or without income support if he was unemployed on 1 April in each year between 1979 and the current year ; and if he will express these payments in real terms taking 100 as the base for 1 April 1979.
Mr. Scott : The information is in the table.
Column 849
1 April 1989
|£
------------------------------------------------------------------
1. Unemployment Benefit-Standard personal benefit
rate |32.75
2. Value of 1 in real terms, taking 100 as the base
for 1 April 1979 |98.8
3. Income Support personal allowance for person
aged 18-24 |26.05
4. Value of 3 in real terms, taking 100 as the base
for 1 April 1979 |94.6
5. Income Support personal allowance for person
aged 18-24 |26.05
6. Value of 5 in real terms, taking 100 as the base
for 1 April 1979 |84.6
1 April 1989
|£
------------------------------------------------------------------
1. Unemployment Benefit-Standard personal benefit
rate |32.75
2. Value of 1 in real terms, taking 100 as the base
for 1 April 1979 |98.8
3. Income Support personal allowance for person
aged 18-24 |26.05
4. Value of 3 in real terms, taking 100 as the base
for 1 April 1979 |94.6
5. Income Support personal allowance for person
aged 18-24 |26.05
6. Value of 5 in real terms, taking 100 as the base
for 1 April 1979 |84.6
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Gross Expenditure
Mr. Meacher : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will give gross spending for his Department (a) in cash terms and (b) in real terms using April 1979 as 100 both (i) as a percentage of gross domestic product and (ii) per 100,000 of the population for each year from 1978 to 1989, inclusive.
Mr. Scott : The information requested is set out in the table.
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|1978-79|1979-80|1980-81|1981-82|1982-83|1983-84|1984-85|1985-86|1986-87|1987-88|1988-89|1989-90
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
DSS total expenditure: (£ million)
Cash |16,437 |19,416 |23,483 |28,582 |32,451 |35,159 |38,119 |41,487 |44,424 |46,263 |47,162 |50,200
In 1978-79 prices |16,437 |16,625 |16,990 |18,835 |19,944 |20,645 |21,324 |22,025 |22,815 |22,564 |21,446 |21,334
Expenditure per 100,000 population: (£ million)
Cash |30.1 |35.5 |42.9 |52.1 |59.3 |64.2 |69.4 |75.3 |80.5 |83.6 |85.0 |90.3
In 1978-79 prices |30.1 |30.4 |31.0 |34.4 |36.4 |37.7 |38.8 |40.0 |41.3 |40.8 |38.6 |38.4
Percentage of GDP |9.5 |9.4 |9.9 |11.0 |11.4 |11.4 |11.5 |11.5 |11.5 |10.8 |9.9 |9.7
Benefit Offices
Mr. Meacher : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will list each of his Department's benefit offices based in (a) each local authority and (b) each constituency indicating which are (i) national insurance offices, (ii) income support area offices, (iii) integrated local officers and (iv) caller offices.
Mrs. Gillian Shephard : I regret that the information is not available and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
Local Office Evaluation
Mr. Meacher : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will list the eight local offices participating in "Delivery of Service in the 90s".
Mrs. Gillian Shephard : The offices are :--
Blackpool South
Cowdenbeath
Ealing
East Kilbride
Glasgow (Maryhill)
Glasgow (Rutherglen)
St. Helens
Southampton
Computerisation
Mr. Meacher : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will publish his latest estimate of the savings, in cash and staff terms, from the computerisation programme for each year to and including 1995.
Mr. Scott : The latest estimate of cumulative staff savings resulting from the computerisation of social security benefits is shown below. The figures (at 1988-89) prices are for both this Department and the Department of Employment.
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|£ million|Posts
----------------------------------------
1989-90 |42 |4,000
1990-91 |80 |7,500
1991-92 |160 |15,000
1992-93 |195 |18,000
1993-94 |220 |20,000
1994-95 |220 |20,000
Mr. Meacher : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security to what extent his Department's (a) budget and (b) staffing level has been cut for the year 1990-91 in the light of savings achieved through computerisation.
Mr. Scott : The Department's administration budget for 1990-91 was settled during the recent public expenditure survey. Details will be published early in the new year in the public expenditure White Paper.
The provision for 1990-91 reflects the wide range of the Department's activities, including our major computerisation programme.
Mr. Meacher : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what (a) manually held and (b) computer-held information on individual claimants his Department's officers and officials are (a) required and (b) permitted to pass to a third party ; and to whom it is passed.
Mrs. Gillian Shephard : Information passed to third named in legislation is limited to that which is necessary for carrying out statutory functions such as the collection of contributions, payment of benefit, operation of the occupational pension scheme, registration and payment of, and awarding benefit in respect of, the community charge and operation of the housing benefit rebate scheme. In other circumstances, where there is no statutory function, requests for information from social security records made by other Government Departments are considered only if the information would prevent the duplication of public funds, would help the prosecution of a serious crime, would meet the welfare needs of the individual concerned or would be in the public interest.
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Information may be required under the terms of an order of a court of law and the information required under the terms of that order is provided to the court.Information may also be disclosed in confidence to the police in cases which involve serious crime.
Where the individual concerned provides written consent to information being provided to a third party, the request will normally be met.
Internal Market
Mr. Meacher : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what plans his Department has (a) nationally, (b) regionally and (c) at local office level to adjust the benefit service to respond to completion of the internal market in 1992.
Mr. Scott : I do not expect that the completion of the internal market in 1992 will require any changes to the benefit service provided by the Department.
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Research Projects
Mr. Meacher : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what research projects, are currently being carried out under total or partial sponsorship of his Department ; whom they are being carried out by ; and when they will be completed and published.
Mrs. Gillian Shephard : The table details the research projects currently being carried out under total or partial sponsorship by the Department ; by whom they are being carried out and the latest information on completion dates.
Most research studies are expected to result in publication. Within this general expectation, no decisions have yet been made with the researchers about the content and timing of publication of many of the studies currently in progress. However, two studies on the income and expenditure of disabled people and the living standards of unemployed families are due to be published early in 1990 by Her Majesty's Stationery Office.
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Project title |Contractor |Completion date
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Survey of incomes in and out of work |Social and Community Planning |March 1990
|Research
Econometric analysis of the Survey of incomes |Universities of Warwick and Oxford|Late 1991
in and out of work
National Child Development Survey<1> |City University |Late 1992
The dynamics of lone parent families |York and Bath Universities |August 1990
Operation of the Social Fund |Social Policy Research Unit (SPRU)|March 1991
|York University
Housing Benefit Review Boards |SPRU |October 1990
Consumer Consultative Committees |University College of North Wales |October 1990
|and the Welsh Consumer Council
Monitoring the Lewisham Direct Access Hostel |Campbell and Devore Associates |February 1990
Placement of long-term Resettlement Unit |Newcastle University |February 1990
Residents
Perceptions of Family Credit |SPRU |February 1990
Note:
<1> This project is co-founded by several government departments, and the Economic and Social Research Council.
Family Credit
Mr. Meacher : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security why he has reduced his estimate of the number of families eligible for family credit to 500,000.
Mrs. Gillian Shephard : The figure of 500,000 was announced on 17 March 1989 in a reply given to my hon. Friend the Member for Bolton, North- East (Mr. Thurnham), at column 391-92, as the estimate of the eligible population during 1988, and was obtained from a special examination of family expenditure survey returns for April to December 1988. It relates to employees only. A technical note setting out the basis of the estimates was placed in the Library on 24 April 1989.
Estimates of the number of eligible families for any period since 1988 will be possible only when information from the 1989 family expenditure survey becomes available.
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