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Mr. Roy Hughes : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what is the latest accumulated debt on the Erskine bridge.
Lord James Douglas-Hamilton : The accumulated debt at 31 March 1988 was £73.68 million. Accounts for 1988-89 will be laid before Parliament later this spring.
Mr. Roy Hughes : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what steps he plans to take concerning the finances of the Erskine bridge.
Lord James Douglas-Hamilton : No decision has yet been taken on the financing of the bridge beyond the end of the tolling period in 1991.
Mr Roy Hughes : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what is the latest figure for the overall operating deficit on the Erskine bridge.
Lord James Douglas-Hamilton : The latest account for 1987-88 shows an operating surplus for the year of £784,763.
Mr. Roy Hughes : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he has any plans to write off the accumulated debt on the Erskine bridge.
Lord James Douglas-Hamilton : Future financing arrangements for the Erskine bridge are under consideration.
Mr. Roy Hughes : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he has any plans to (a) end or (b) increase tolls on the Erskine bridge.
Lord James Douglas-Hamilton : No decisions have yet been taken.
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Mr. Home Robertson : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, pursuant to his reply to the hon. Member for East Lothian on 14 December 1989, Official Report, column 807, in which he undertook to write to the hon. Member about the review of the staffing formula for secondary schools, if he will now write to the hon. Member.
Mr. Lang : I have written to the hon. Member.
Mr. McAvoy : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what rules govern the advertising for sale of public land in Scotland ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Michael Forsyth [holding answer 24 January 1990] : Advertising the sale of public land is carried out in accordance with instructions issued by the owning body and is general practice except in special circumstances where it is judged that the best overall benefit to the public interest is achieved without advertising. In these circumstances, it is usual for an open market value to be assessed.
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Mr. Canavan : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland when he expects to respond to the report of the Scottish Sports Council, Sport 2000 ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Michael Forsyth [holding answer 25 January 1990] : I discussed the Sport 2000 report with Professor Raymond Miquel, chairman of the Scottish Sports Council, on 20 October 1989. As the document points out, sport has an important contribution to make to the health, social fabric and economy of Scotland.
Mr. Dunn : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will publish in the Official Report , hospital expenditure per head for each of the regional health authorities in Scotland for each of the last five years.
Mr. Michael Forsyth [holding answer 30 January 1990] : The information is as follows :
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Health board |1984-85 |1985-86 |1986-87 |1987-88 |1988-89 |£ |£ |£ |£ |£ ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Argyll and Clyde |171 |181 |194 |215 |240 Ayrshire and Arran |149 |159 |173 |191 |212 Borders |150 |161 |173 |197 |233 Dumfries and Galloway |197 |206 |208 |236 |259 Fife |151 |165 |180 |194 |214 Forth Valley |185 |200 |215 |235 |259 Grampian |199 |210 |222 |243 |276 Greater Glasgow |318 |336 |355 |382 |429 Highland |205 |213 |231 |250 |278 Lanarkshire |160 |169 |179 |192 |216 Lothian |247 |260 |282 |302 |337 Orkney |126 |129 |141 |158 |171 Shetland |129 |137 |145 |169 |194 Tayside |282 |292 |312 |332 |370 Western Isles |151 |161 |170 |190 |203
Dr. Thomas : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if the United Kingdom chiefs of defence staff revealed any details to their counterparts from the Warsaw pact of United Kingdom production capacity and stockpile of unsafeguarded military nuclear materials in the meeting in Vienna that began on 16 January.
Mr. Rogers : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement about the 112 vehicles and 25 items of plant lost over a four-year period at an Army unit outlined in the "Losses Statement of the Appropriations Account 1988-89, Class I, Vote 1" ; and what action he is taking in respect of the likely fraud or misappropriation.
Mr. Archie Hamilton : The circumstances of this loss are that the vehicles and plant were written off throughout the whole of the Falklands in the four-year period 1982 to
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1986, in the immediate aftermath of Operation Corporate when operational needs were of the highest priority and proper accounting systems had not been installed.The lack of accounting controls at that time meant that, although there was no evidence either way, the possibility of fraud or misappropriation could not be entirely discounted. However, full stores accounting procedures and systems are now in operation and all vehicles and plant in theatre are, therefore, properly controlled and documented.
Mr. Rogers : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on the estimated sum lost by failure to make adequate charges for the use of support elements at a military establishment outlined in the "Losses Statement of the Appropriations Account 1988-89, Class I, Vote 1".
Mr. Archie Hamilton : The sum noted in the appropriation account 1988-89 is in respect of estimated losses in revenue arising from low charges levied on non-Ministry of Defence students attending courses at the Royal Military College of Science, Shrivenham in the period August 1984 to July 1988. The sum represents a proportion of the military overheads of the establishment in that period, provision for which was omitted from
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course price calculations following the contracting out of the academic and academic support task to Cranfield institute of technology in August 1984. A staged increase in course prices has been carried out in order to bring them up to the correct levels and this has been reached in the majority of cases. We anticipate that the remaining courses will reach correct price levels in the next two to three years.Mr. Wigley : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what payments have been made by his Department to British Nuclear Fuels plc over the past five years in regard to post-operational decommissioning work on facilities at Sellafield used to carry out contracts for his Department ; what proportion of the work required arose from the pre-1971 period ; and over what period of time negotiations were entered into over the payments for the work.
Mr. Alan Clark : My Department has paid £12.5 million to British Nuclear Fuels plc in respect of decommissioning work carried out on facilities at Sellafield. All the payments made so far relate to pre-1971 liabilities.
Formal discussions concerning the basis on which payments for pre-1971 liabilities would be made to the company took place in the period 1986 to 1988. Those discussions involved not only the MOD but other bodies concerned with work at Sellafield. The MOD made its first payments for decommissioning work in early 1989.
Mr. Thurnham : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when he next expects to review the level of defence procurement.
Mr. Alan Clark : As normal, plans for all aspects of defence expenditure, including procurement, will be reviewed in the 1990 public expenditure survey.
Mr. Colvin : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on the radar order for the European fighter aircraft.
Mr. Alan Clark : I have nothing to add to my reply to the hon. Member for Edinburgh, East (Mr. Strang) on 23 January 1990, at columns 869- 72.
Mr. Stern : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many countries have made purchase inquiries about the European fighter aircraft.
Mr. Alan Clark : My Department has already received several inquiries relating to potential future sales of the European fighter aircraft, and we expect many more closer to the aircraft's date of completion. My hon. Friend will, of course, be aware that it has been the consistent policy of successive Administrations not to comment on individual applications for defence exports.
Mr. Cohen : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what figures he has for the number of services personnel and their families receiving (i) social security benefits and (ii) housing benefit.
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Mr. Archie Hamilton : This information is not held by the Ministry of Defence. Any social security benefit or local authority housing benefit which a service man may receive is a private matter concerning himself and the Department of Social Security or the local authority, and does not have to be reported to the Ministry of Defence.
Mr. Allan Stewart : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will list those contracts his Department has with Blue Circle Industries plc and its subsidiaries.
Mr. Neubert : We have no current headquarters contracts with Blue Circle Industries plc. Information on subsidiary companies could be provided only at disproportionate costs and, in any event, it is not our custom to release details of individual contracts for reasons of commercial confidentiality.
Mr. Allan Stewart : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on the contracts between his Department and Armitage Shanks.
Mr. Neubert : Following the holding reply I gave on 16 November 1989, at column 417, I wrote to my hon. Friend informing him that we were considering, with Armitage Shanks, the precise implications of the proposed closure of its Barrhead factory, and that the extent to which alternative sources of supply would be needed was not yet clear. That remains the position.
Mr. Pawsey : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when the hon. Member for Rugby and Kenilworth will receive a reply to his letter dated 4 December 1989 referring to Piers Helps.
Mr. Archie Hamilton : My noble Friend the Parliamentary Under- Secretary of State for the Armed Forces wrote to my hon. Friend on 29 January 1990.
Mr. Dalyell : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to his answer of 29 January, Official Report, column 62 , on what grounds he has decided not to declassify the captain's narrative of HMS Conqueror's Falklands deployment.
Mr. Archie Hamilton : The captain's narrative contains information of current operational and technical significance.
Mr. Benn : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will list all the cases when the Land Clauses Consolidation Act 1845 has been used in combination with the Defence Acts 1842 and 1854 to extinguish commoners' rights over any common land in the United Kingdom.
Mr. Archie Hamilton [holding answer 25 January 1990] : The Land Clauses Consolidation Act 1845 has been used in combination with the Defence Acts 1842 and 1854 to extinguish rights of common on at least three occasions : at RAF Fylingdales in 1960, at RAF Lakenheath in 1961, and at RAF Woodbridge in 1964. There may have been other instances, but a comprehensive list could not be provided without disproportionate cost.
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Mr. Rogers : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will list, in order of frequency and with the estimated number of operations, the 10 most common forms of surgery for which patients are admitted to hospitals in (a) Wales and (b) each health authority in Wales.
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Mr. Grist : The available figures for 1987 are shown in the table. However, the information may understate the true position in that not all hospitals provide complete clinical details relating to patient discharges and deaths.
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OPCS operation codes<1> |Type of operation |Number -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Wales 703-706 |Dilation, curettage, biopsy, and excision of lesion of cervix |9,937 420, 421, 425-433, 439 |Operation of stomach-other |9,291 607, 608 |Cystoscopy (with destruction of lesion) |8,369 770-779 |Post-natal or post-abortion operations |7,646 752, 753, 758-762 |Delivery operations-excluding normal, Caesarian section and forceps|7,411 780-789 |Treatment of fracture by operations |7,393 912-914 |Excision of superficial lesion |7,219 941-959 |Vascular procedures and operations with ill-defined site |5,610 742 |Termination of pregnancy (excluding hysterotomy) |4,732 230-239 |Tonsillectomy and adenoidectomy |4,646 Clwyd 420, 421, 425-433, 439 |Operation on stomach-other |1,587 607, 608 |Cystoscopy (with destruction of lesion) |1,135 780-789 |Treatment of fracture by operations |1,113 703-706 |Dilation, curettage, biopsy, and excision of lesion of cervix |1,074 468 |Sigmoidoscopy |1,052 230-239 |Tonsillectomy and adenoidectomy |1,018 912-914 |Excision of superficial lesion |954 170-179 |Operations on lens |927 941-959 |Vascular procedures and operations with ill-defined site |849 770-779 |Post-natal or post-abortion operations |762 East Dyfed 420, 421, 425-433, 439 |Operations on stomach-other |1,184 607, 608 |Cystoscopy (with destruction of lesion) |745 703-706 |Dilation, curettage, biopsy, and excision of lesion of cervix |664 780-789 |Treatment of fracture by operations |624 170-179 |Operations on lens |583 752, 753, 758-762 |Delivery operations-excluding normal, Caesarian section and forceps|576 230-239 |Tonsillectomy and adenoidectomy |543 912-914 |Excision of superficial lesion |542 941-959 |Vascular procedures and operations with ill-defined site |532 210, 211, 215-224 |Operations on nose (excluding nasal septum) |505 Pembrokeshire 752, 753, 758-762 |Delivery operations-excluding normal, Caesarian section and forceps|450 607, 608 |Cystoscopy (with destruction of lesion) |420 770-779 |Post-natal or post-abortion operations |401 780-789 |Treatment of fracture by operations |393 703-706 |Dilation, curettage, biopsy, and excision of lesion of cervix |343 400-409 |Operation on abdominal wall, peritoneum, and mesentery |323 941-959 |Vascular procedures and operations with ill-defined site |317 912-914 |Excision of superficial lesion |286 742 |Other termination of pregnancy (excluding hysterotomy) |241 440-445 |Operations on appendix |226 Gwent 912-914 |Excision of superficial lesion |2,067 770-779 |Post-natal or post-abortion operations |1,905 607-608 |Cystoscopy (with destruction of lesion) |1,635 703-706 |Dilatation, curettage, biospy, and excision of lesion of cervix |1,588 420, 421, 425-433, 439 |Operations on stomach-other |1,331 752, 753, 758-762 |Delivery operations-excluding normal, Caesarian section and forceps|1,189 780-789 |Treatment of fracture by operations |1,058 764-769 |Caesarian section |742 410, 411 |Inguinal hernia operations |632 210, 211, 215-224 |Operations on nose (excluding nasal septum) |616 Gwynedd 420, 421, 425-433, 439 |Operations on stomach-other |1,091 703-706 |Dilatation, curettage, biopsy, and excision of lesion of cervix |1,082 780-789 |Treatment of fracture by operations |600 400-409 |Operations of abdominal wall, peritoneum, and mesentery |584 607, 608 |Cystoscopy (with destruction of lesion) |581 752, 753, 758-762 |Delivery operations-excluding normal, Caesarian section and forceps|571 170-179 |Operations on lens |460 440-445 |Operations on appendix |457 468 |Sigmoidoscopy |397 764-769 |Caesarian section |371 Mid Glamorgan 703-706 |Dilatation, curettage, biopsy, and excision of lesion of cervix |2,228 607, 608 |Cystoscopy (with destruction of lesion) |1,725 770-779 |Post-natal or post-abortion operations |1,602 780-789 |Treatment of fracture by operations |1,601 752, 753, 758-762 |Delivery operations-excluding normal, Caesarian section and forceps|1,601 420, 421, 425-433, 439 |Operations on stomach-other |1,424 912-914 |Excision of superficial lesion |1,293 651 |Ligation of vasectomy of vas deferens |1,145 941-959 |Vascular procedures and operations with ill-defined site |971 764-769 |Caesarian section |931 Powys 703-706 |Dilatation, curettage, biopsy, and excision of lesion of cervix |106 651 |Ligation or vasectomy of vas deferens |93 770-779 |Post-natal or post-abortion operations |78 410, 411 |Inguinal hernia operations |76 230-239 |Tonsillectomy and adenoidectomy |50 742 |Other termination of pregnancy |40 890-898 |Operations on veins |40 752, 753, 758-762 |Delivery operations-excluding normal, Caesarian section and forceps|36 754-757, 763 |Forceps delivery |35 400-409 |Operations on abdominal wall, peritoneum, and mesentery |30 South Glamorgan 250, 251 |Drainage of abscess and simple dental extraction |1,831 703-706 |Dilation, curettage, biopsy, and excision of lesion of cervix |1,643 420, 421, 425-433, 439 |Operations on stomach-other |1,609 770-779 |Post-natal or post-abortion operations |1,471 912-914 |Excision of superficial lesion |1,431 300-329 |Operations on heart and intrathoracic vessels |1,218 607, 608 |Cystoscopy (with destruction of lesion) |1,163 252-259 |Operations on teeth, gums and jaw-other |1,145 780-789 |Treatment of fracture by operations |1,069 752, 753, 758-762 |Delivery operations-excluding normal, Caesarian section and forceps|957 West Glamorgan 941-959 |Vascular procedures and operations with ill-defined site |2,016 742 |Other termination of pregnancy |1,784 752, 753, 758-762 |Delivery operations-excluding normal, Caesarian section and forceps|1,485 703-706 |Dilation, curettage, biopsy, and excision of lesion of cervix |1,209 880-889 |Operation on arteries |1,049 703-706 |Cystoscopy (with destruction of lesion) |964 780-789 |Treatment of fracture by operations |928 420, 421, 425-433, 439 |Operations on stomach-other |870 680-683, 685-689 |Operations involving oviduct-excluding division and ligation |840 770-779 |Post-natal or post-abortion operations |811 <1> Based on a condensed list of the Office of Population Censuses and Surveys classification of surgical operations, 3rd revision.
Mr. Rogers : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will publish for each health authority (a) the net income from private patients and clinics and (b) the amounts written off as bad debts in each year since 1979.
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Mr. Grist : The information requested is shown in the following tables :
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Net income from private patients<1> £ thousands |1979-80|1980-81|1981-82|1982-83|1983-84|1984-85|1985-86|1986-87|1987-88 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Clwyd |120.1 |171.2 |202.7 |156.6 |251.8 |305.4 |363.4 |358.9 |419.2 East Dyfed<2> |63.7 |111.6 |117.4 |106.8 |90.9 |139.5 |153.4 |194.4 |220.9 Gwent |3.2 |2.2 |0.9 |0.4 |- |7.0 |16.1 |13.2 |16.8 Gwynedd |69.6 |98.4 |99.4 |97.9 |107.4 |104.5 |201.1 |209.8 |203.8 Mid Glamorgan |11.9 |14.3 |22.0 |14.5 |29.5 |20.4 |27.2 |51.5 |52.2 Pembrokeshire<2> |- |- |- |40.0 |46.1 |58.4 |62.2 |84.8 |87.1 Powys |- |- |- |- |- |- |0.3 |- |- South Glamorgan |41.4 |26.5 |18.2 |30.3 |29.0 |45.4 |91.2 |101.5 |85.6 West Glamorgan |12.7 |19.0 |33.4 |35.0 |47.5 |59.4 |86.3 |100.7 |141.5 WHCSA |- |- |- |- |- |- |- |- |- |--- |--- |--- |--- |--- |--- |--- |--- |--- Total Wales |332.6 |443.2 |494.0 |481.5 |602.2 |740.0 |1,001.2|1,114.8|1,226.6 Source: Health authorities annual accounts. <1>Consists of private in-patients (section 65), private non-resident patients (section 65) and accommodation and services provided under section 58 of the National Health Service Act 1977. <2>Dyfed health authority until 1982-83.
Bad debts and claims abandoned: Private patients<3> £ thousand |1979-80|1980-81|1981-82|1982-83|1983-84|1984-85|1985-86|1986-87|1987-88|1988-89 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Clwyd |n.a. |n.a. |n.a. |n.a. |n.a. |n.a. |2.9 |2.2 |1.4 |1.4 East Dyfed<4> |n.a. |n.a. |n.a. |n.a. |n.a. |n.a. |0.5 |2.7 |1.1 |0.5 Gwent |n.a. |n.a. |n.a. |n.a. |n.a. |n.a. |- |- |- |- Gwynedd |n.a. |n.a. |n.a. |n.a. |n.a. |n.a. |0.1 |2.9 |1.2 |0.7 Mid Glamorgan |n.a. |n.a. |n.a. |n.a. |n.a. |n.a. |0.6 |1.0 |0.4 |0.7 Pembrokeshire<4> |n.a. |n.a. |n.a. |n.a. |n.a. |n.a. |2.2 |1.7 |0.4 |1.9 Powys |n.a. |n.a. |n.a. |n.a. |n.a. |n.a. |- |- |- |- South Glamorgan |n.a. |n.a. |n.a. |n.a. |n.a. |n.a. |0.0 |0.2 |1.2 |0.2 West Glamorgan |n.a. |n.a. |n.a. |n.a. |n.a. |n.a. |- |1.0 |2.2 |4.2 WHCSA |n.a. |n.a. |n.a. |n.a. |n.a. |n.a. |- |- |- |- Wales |n.a. |n.a. |n.a. |n.a. |n.a. |n.a. |6.3 |11.7 |7.9 |9.6 <3>Consists of private in-patients (section 65) and private non-resident patients (section 66). Private patients' bad debts and claims abandoned were not separately identified until 1985-86. <4>Dyfed health authority until 1982-83. Source: Health authorities annual accounts.
Bad debts and claims abandoned: total £ thousand |1979-80|1980-81|1981-82|1982-83|1983-84|1984-85|1985-86|1986-87|1987-88|1988-89 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Clwyd |0.9 |3.7 |3.3 |4.2 |1.0 |37.1 |12.6 |9.3 |11.2 |3.0 East Dyfed<5> |0.6 |1.0 |3.2 |2.1 |28.8 |3.8 |4.4 |200.4 |7.0 |6.2 Gwent |0.5 |1.7 |0.7 |1.2 |0.4 |2.1 |2.7 |4.2 |5.1 |12.1 Gwynedd |0.1 |1.3 |1.9 |4.8 |4.0 |6.3 |12.2 |5.4 |14.9 |22.8 Mid Glamorgan |0.5 |0.4 |0.3 |1.0 |3.8 |9.1 |6.8 |16.0 |19.0 |12.1 Pembrokeshire<5> |- |- |- |0.3 |0.3 |11.1 |2.2 |1.7 |1.9 |3.9 Powys |1.1 |0.9 |0.2 |0.2 |0.5 |1.4 |0.7 |0.7 |1.2 |1.1 South Glamorgan |1.2 |2.1 |1.6 |2.8 |8.3 |37.5 |6.5 |17.2 |117.1 |9.5 West Glamorgan |0.8 |51.9 |3.1 |4.2 |8.5 |107.9 |12.7 |33.8 |19.8 |13.2 WHCSA |- |- |- |- |- |17.4 |246.2 |253.9 |- |- Wales |5.7 |63.0 |14.3 |20.8 |55.6 |233.7 |307.0 |542.6 |197.3 |83.9 <5>Dyfed health authority until 1982-83. Source: Health authorities annual accounts.
Mr. Morgan : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales (1) if he will make available to the public the correspondence between his Department and the chairman of the Welsh Development Agency regarding the future of Wintech ;
(2) if he will make it his policy to expand the work of Wintech ; and if he will make a statement ;
(3) if he will place copies of correspondence between his Department and the chairman of the board of the Welsh Development Agency regarding the future of Wintech in the Library ;
(4) if he will review the provision of technological and scientific support services to industry by the Welsh Development Agency ; (5) what representations he has (a) had and (b) proposes to have about the future of Wintech.
Mr. Peter Walker : It is agency policy to keep its operations under continuous review in order to respond more effectively to the changing demands of industry. A review of the agency's technology development activities was completed last year and changes announced in September 1989. These were directed to focusing the agency's technology activities more closely on improving service to high technology businesses in Wales and increasing efforts to secure technology transfer through the attraction of key research and development operations to Wales, in order to enhance Wales' technological base.
Apart from the hon. Gentleman's questions, I have received no representations concerning the future of the
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agency's technology development activities ; nor do I intend to elicit any. It is not my policy to publish such correspondence as I may have with the chairman of the Welsh Development Agency.Sir John Stradling Thomas : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what steps he proposes to deal with the question of drainage rates and the relationship of the internal drainage boards' finance and membership in relation to district councils.
Mr. Peter Walker : The Internal Drainage Board (Finance) Regulations 1990, which came into force on 24 January, make provision both for the financing arrangements for internal drainage boards and for the membership of these boards. Each internal drainage board is given power to raise its expenses by means of a drainage rate on the agricultural sector, and special levies on the charging authorities, within its area. The regulations provide that the composition of each board should broadly reflect the relative financial contributions of the agricultural and non- agricultural sectors to its expenditure. Members representing the agricultural sector will continue to be elected or otherwise qualify as at present. Those representing the non-agricultural sector will be appointed by the district councils.
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Mr. Michael : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales whether he will make it his policy that individuals who had applied for housing improvement and repair grants and (a) were told that there was no hope of money being forthcoming and therefore had to go ahead without help but (b) would now have received money under the recently announced open-ending of grant money, should be compensated for at least a part of what they have lost.
Mr. Grist : The priority given to home renovation grants must be a matter for individual local authorities to determine. There is no justification for compensation for those who have undertaken work without grant.
Mr. Michael : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales (1) against what criteria he intends to advise health authorities in Wales to judge the advisability of contracting a particular service to a hospital outside the authority's own area ;
(2) how he intends to assess the impact on journeys for patients and their families of any decisions by a health authority in Wales to contract particular services to a hospital outside that authority's own area ;
(3) whether he will instruct health authorities in Wales to assess the likely impact on travel for patients and their families of contracting any service to a hospital outside the health authority's own area and to weigh that assessment in the balance with other relevant criteria before letting any contract.
Mr. Grist : It will be the responsibility of district health authorities to secure an adequate range, quality and depth of services for their local populations through appropriate contractual arrangements. The document "Contracts for Health Services : Operations Principles", which was circulated to the National Health Service in Wales on 20
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October 1989, stated that, in determining the content of the contracts they seek to let, district health authorities will need to reconcile need for service, quality of access to service, and value for money in the mode of provision. As now, the majority of services will be provided in local hospitals. However, referrals already take place to hospitals in other districts and health authorities will therefore wish to make some contracts for such referrals. In considering these contracts, authorities will carefully consult general practitioners to establish anticipated patterns of referral and will take into account the impact of travelling on patients and their families. We should emphasise that in all cases the object will be to secure the patterns of referral preferred by referrers themselves and that no patients will be forced to travel against their will for treatment. The arrangements made by health authorities to secure services for their populations will be subject to scrutiny in the annual reviews of performance chaired by director, National Health Service (Wales).Mr. Barry Jones : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales (1) if he will list the amount of distinction awards paid to consultants in each of the area health authorities of Wales for the last five years ;
(2) what sums have been made available for top-up bonuses to hospital consultants in each health authority in Wales in the financial year 1988-89 and in the current financial year ; and how much will be budgeted for each authority for the 1990-91 financial year ;
(3) what total sum has been made available for distinction awards to hospital consultants in Wales in the financial year 1988-89 and in the current financial year ; and how much will be made available in the 1990-91 financial year.
Mr. Grist : The information is as follows :
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Payments of Distinction Awards to Consultants<1> Health Authority |1984-85 |1985-86 |1986-87 |1987-88 |1988-89 |£ |£ |£ |£ |£ ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Clwyd |151,435 |169,892 |176,187 |166,838 |328,862 East Dyfed |85,265 |113,465 |93,683 |87,044 |94,720 Gwent |193,194 |216,255 |257,142 |321,938 |343,278 Gwynedd |58,123 |70,186 |95,904 |115,189 |113,659 Mid Glamorgan |111,784 |86,101 |121,133 |127,622 |164,590 Pembrokeshire |26,317 |30,106 |30,559 |51,174 |54,734 Powys |4,489 |9,780 |10,700 |5,717 |12,364 South Glamorgan |1,146,812 |1,360,037 |1,621,917 |1,814,516 |1,906,649 West Glamorgan |197,253 |217,700 |210,540 |8,752 |253,742 |------- |------- |------- |------- |------- Wales |1,974,672 |2,273,522 |2,617,765 |2,698,790 |3,272,598
Allocations to Health Authorities for Consultant Distinction Awards Health Authority |1988-89 |1989-90<2><3> |1990-91<2><3> |£ million |£ million |£ million ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Clwyd |0.599 |0.348 |0.231 East Dyfed |0.142 |0.127 |0.138 Gwent |0.418 |0.382 |0.412 Gwynedd |0.281 |0.216 |0.231 Mid Glamorgan |0.344 |0.168 |0.181 Pembrokeshire |0.095 |0.065 |0.069 Powys |0.014 |0.006 |0.007 South Glamorgan |2.092 |2.108 |2.277 West Glamorgan |0.522 |0.320 |0.343 |------- |------- |------- Total all Health |4.507 |3.740 |3.889 Authorities Notes: <1> Medical and dental consultants, NHS staff and honorary contract holders <2> Allocation in 1989-90 takes account of overprovision in 1988-89. <3> Further funding may be made available in the light of any recommendation for increases in the numbers of consultant distinction awards by the Review Body on Doctors and Dentists Remuneration.
Mr. Michael : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will set out the procedure by which distinction awards are allocated for senior hospital consultants in Wales.
Mr. Grist : Distinction awards are made on the recommendation of the Advisory Committee on Distinction Awards. That committee approaches its
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regional network of committees, the Royal College and Faculties, the public health laboratory service, the Medical Research Council and regional specialist advisers for nominations. The chairman of the committee then visits each regional committee between May and September to discuss their recommendations and all the nominations received from other sources in order to draw up a provisional list for the consideration and final decision of the advisory committee.Mr. Michael : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what are the criteria against which distinction awards are made to senior hospital consultants in Wales.
Mr. Grist : There are no formal objective criteria of award worthiness. General guidelines only are used by the awards committees which look for performances
"over and above the call of duty."
Principally these can be indicated by (a) clinical excellence and recognition of leadership in a specialty ; (b) research, innovation and improvement in the service ; and (c) hard work and outstanding service to the NHS.
Mr. Michael : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what was the number of hospital consultants who received top-up bonuses in each health authority in Wales in the financial year 1988-89 and in the current financial year.
Mr. Grist : The numbers of practitioners who received distinction awards in 1988-89 in each health authority are as follows :
|Number ------------------------------ Clwyd |35 East Dyfed |17 Gwent |35 Gwynedd |23 Mid Glamorgan |24 Pembrokeshire |6 Powys |4 South Glamorgan |127 West Glamorgan |36 Notes: Although practitioners are eligible for only one distinction award, some are included more than once in the above list because they work for more than one health authority. Figures for 1989-90 are not available because the awards for this financial year have not yet been announced.
Mr. Michael : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what is the period of years for which any distinction awards will operate when awarded to any hospital consultant in Wales.
Mr. Grist : Distinction awards are, at present, paid to consultants until they retire. The White Paper "Working for Patients" proposes a number of changes which would result in the new awards being reviewable every five years and new or increased awards being pensionable only if the practitioner works for another three years in the NHS.
Mr. Michael : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales who is involved in deciding the allocation of distinction awards to senior hospital consultants in Wales and who takes the final decision.
Mr. Grist : Consultant distinction awards in Wales are made by the Secretary of State on the recommendation of the Advisory Committee on Distinction Awards.
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Mr. Barry Jones : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what is the maximum salary of National Health Service consultants in Wales, inclusive of distinction awards.
Mr. Grist : The maximum salary of NHS consultants is currently £38, 340. In addition to this, a consultant may be in receipt of one of the following distinction awards A £36,420 ; A £26,840 ; B £15,340 or C £6,760. The current maximum compares with a maximum of £15,279 in 1979, an increase in real terms of 36 per cent.
Mr. Barry Jones : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales (1) if he will make a statement on truancy in each of the local education authorities in Wales ;
(2) what is his estimate of truancy as a percentage in the (a) fourth and (b) fifth years in high schools in (i) Clwyd, (ii) Powys, (iii) Gwynedd, (iv) Mid Glamorgan, (v) South Glamorgan, (vi) West Glamorgan, (vii) Gwent ; and if he will make a statement ; (3) what measures he proposes to lessen truancy concerning the schools of Wales ; and if he will make a statement.
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