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Terrorist Suspects
Mr. Redmond : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will introduce safeguards to ensure that suspected terrorists who should be interviewed under his two-year experiment at either Bridewell police station, Liverpool or Paddington Green police station, London, will not be taken to other police stations for interview.
Mr. Waddington : No. Main Bridewell and Paddington Green are the stations used whenever possible in terrorist cases by the Merseyside and Metropolitan police respectively. It may be necessary on occasions to use other stations if the accommodation for terrorist suspects is full or out of use, but tape recordings would still be made in such circumstances.
Juvenile Offenders
Mr. Thurnham : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what is the latest number of juvenile offenders in youth custody ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Mellor : On 31 December 1989 there were 358 sentenced juvenile offenders in prison service establishments. This compares with 907 sentenced juvenile offenders who were held in prison establishments on 31 December 1984. It is the Government's policy that juvenile offenders should, wherever possible, be dealt with other than by a custodial sentence. Many young offenders are already dealt with under a range of demanding and constructive community-based measures. Under the proposals in the White Paper, "Crime, Justice and Protecting the Public", the courts will have a wider range of powers for dealing with young offenders in the community.
Column 458
West Midlands Police
Mr. Beaumont-Dark : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will call for a report on the progress of the inquiry into the West Midlands serious crime squad ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Peter Lloyd : I refer the hon. Member to the reply given to the hon. Members for Mansfield (Mr. Meale) and for Dumbarton (Mr. McFall) on 25 January at column 873. I understand that the investigation team, led by Mr. Shaw, assistant chief constable of the West Yorkshire police, is continuing to examine the files relating to all the arrests made by the squad since 1986, and is also investigating individual complaints made against officers of the squad. It will be some time before all cases have been examined.
Passports
Mrs. Gorman : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he has any plans to privatise the passport-issuing function of his Department.
Mr. Waddington : There are no such plans, but work is well advanced on arrangements for the proposed conversion of the passport department to an executive agency, and for making use of relevant private sector expertise where this would help to improve standards of service.
Child Crime (Accountability)
Mr. Andrew Mitchell : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what representations he has received about his proposals to make parents more accountable for crimes committed by their children.
Mr. John Patten : Since we published the White Paper "Crime, Justice and Protecting the Public" last month, we have received about 10 responses on the proposals to increase parental responsibility. These broadly support the proposals contained in the White Paper. We look forward to receiving more responses in the next few weeks.
Immigration
Mr. Wigley : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment he has made of the implications of other European Community countries' immigration policies for the Government's policies on immigration and deportation.
Mr. Waddington : While the United Kingdom's policies on immigration and deportation are not determined by those of other Community countries, the Government seek to keep informed of developments in and between Community countries, and is engaged in discussion with them in the context of the implementation of the Single European Act.
Victim Support
Mr. Spearing : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what grants he has made in each of the last five financial years to the National Association of Victims Support Schemes ; and what assessment he has made of the effect of actual and planned changes in funding by his Department.
Column 459
Mr. John Patten : Home Office funding of victim support since 1986 has been as follows :victim support support
This funding has enabled local victim support schemes to expand to cover 94 per cent. of the population of England and Wales with the following effects on provision of service :
<1>Estimates.
For 1990-91 the planned level of grant in aid subject to parliamentary approval is £4.47 million for local schemes and £235, 000 for headquarters.
Birmingham Pub Bombings
Mr. Mullin : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what representations he has received from Birmingham city council on the Birmingham pub bombings case.
Mr. John Patten : We are not aware of recent representations from Birmingham city council about the Birmingham pub bombings case.
Mr. Battle : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he has completed his consideration of the new evidence in the Birmingham pub bombings case.
Mr. John Pattern : No. My right hon. and learned Friend is still considering very carefully the further material presented to him by a solicitor on behalf of the six men and will decide as soon as possible whether it justifies any intervention on his part.
Mr. Tony Banks : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he has sought the opinion of the Lord Chief Justice on the new evidence in the Birmingham pub bombings case.
Domestic Violence
Mr. Michael Brown : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many special units have been established within the Metropolitan police area dealing with cases of domestic violence.
Mr. Peter Lloyd : There are 33 units operated by the Metropolitan police offering support to the victims of domestic violence, reflecting the priority given to this in the Commissioner's strategy statement for 1990.
Column 460
Homosexuality Law
Mr. Chris Smith : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps he intends to take in relation to the criminal law on homosexuality in (a) Jersey and (b) the Isle of Man.
Mr. Peter Lloyd : Discussions between the Home Office and the Jersey and Isle of Man authorities are continuing. Both islands have been made aware of the urgent need to amend their current legislation in order to enable the United Kingdom to conform with its international obligations under the European convention on human rights.
Prisoners (Media Interviews)
Mr. Gale : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps he intends to take to prevent the holding of press conferences by, and the sound or television broadcasting of, interviews with persons detained, following conviction, in Her Majesty's prisons ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Mellor : Media interviews with prisoners about their individual cases are not permitted. We are reviewing our procedures to try to ensure that, when the media are invited into establishments for a particular purpose, unauthorised interviews do not take place.
Jurors
Mr. Redmond : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he has any plans to enrol extra jurors for cases expected to last several months.
Mr. John Patten : We have no present plans to change the law in this respect, although we will keep it under review. A trial can generally proceed so long as nine jurors are still serving. Enlarging the jury beyond 12 at the outset would introduce complexity, and place a greater burden on the pool of jurors. The special procedures introduced in the Criminal Justice Act 1987 for handling serious and complex fraud trials (which the hon. Member may have particularly in mind) were designed to keep the proceedings before the jury as short as possible.
Animal Protection
Mr. Malcolm Bruce : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make it his policy to extend the scope of the Protection of Animals Act 1911 to afford the same protection to wild animals as that presently afforded to domestic and captive animals ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Waddington [holding answer 15 March 1990] : Wild animals which are in captivity are protected by the Protection of Animals Act 1911 (1912 in Scotland), but we do not have any plans to extend the scope of this legislation to include animals which are not in captivity.
However, there ar other statutes which provide protection for particular species in the wild, for example, deer, seals and badgers. Under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981, special protection can be given to certain species which are considered to be in need of it on conservation grounds.
Column 461
HEALTH
Ambulance Dispute
Mr. Nellist : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what information he hs as to the cost to public funds of the ambulance dispute ; and if he will make a statement.
Mrs. Virginia Bottomley : The cost of providing military assistance during the ambulance dispute up to the end of January was £3.3 million. The cost of assistance by the police and other agencies has not yet been fully assessed by the authorities concerned.
Free Prescriptions
Mr. Pike : To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will give the total numbers of people entitled to free prescriptions on the ground of low income alone (a) on 31 March 1988 and (b) on the latest date for which figures are available.
Mrs. Virginia Bottomley : At 31 March 1988 about 3.8 million people were entitled to free prescriptions on the grounds of low income. The corresponding figure for 31 March 1989, the latest date for which information is available, is estimated to have been 3.4 million.
South West Thames RHA
Mr. Cox : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what discussions he is to have with officials of the South West Thames regional health authority on the health cuts now being considered by the authority ; and if he will make a statement.
Mrs. Virginia Bottomley : No discussions are planned with officials of the South West Thames regional health authority. Regional health authorities must live within their allocated resources and difficult decisions about priorities have sometimes to be made. South West Thames RHA has received a cash increase of 36 per cent. over the last three years.
RHAs (Resources)
Mr. Chris Smith : To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will list, by each regional health authority, the percentage cash increase in resources being made available for the financial year 1990-91, over the financial year 1989-90.
Mr. Freeman : The information requested is shown in the table. The percentage figures shown represent the cash increase in each authority's 1990-91 initial revenue cash limit compared with the equivalent 1989-90 figure.
Hormone Replacement Therapy
Mrs. Gorman : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent representations he has received on the preventive properties against illness of hormone replacement therapy.
Mrs. Virginia Bottomley : In recent months I have received representations and have also met and discussed hormone replacement therapy with my hon. Friend and the assistant medical director of the Amarant Trust. I have also met the voluntary organisation, Women's Health Concern. I also had a meeting about osteoporosis with the National Council of Women and affiliated organisations at which we discussed hormone replacement therapy.
Psychotherapy
Mr. Frank Field : To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make it his policy to retain, within the National Health Service, specialist in-patient psychotherapeutical services for severely disturbed patients and families.
Mr. Freeman : It is national policy that all district health authorities should, as resources allow, develop locally based psychiatric services, the main components of which are summarised in paragraph 7.3 of the White Paper "Caring for People" (Cm 849). Within this overall objective, it is for each authority to determine the exact content of its service, including whether facilities for in-patient psychotherapy should form part.
Psychosocial Nursing
Mr. Frank Field : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans he has for the training of nurses in psychosocial nursing.
Mrs. Virginia Bottomley : All nurses who are admitted to part 3 of the Professional Register (Registered Mental Nurse) are given training in psychosocial nursing. This aspect of development psychology is encompassed in the knowledge base of the 1982 syllabus of training.
Waiting Lists
Mr. Battle : To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will publish a table showing the number of people on waiting lists for urgent and non-urgent operations for each health authority in Yorkshire and Humberside for each year since 1979.
Mr. Freeman : The available information is given in the table. The Ko"rner committee on health services information felt that the distinction between urgent and non-urgent cases was too subjective to be reliable. The information has thus not been subdivided in this way since 1987.
Column 463
In-patient waiting list, surgical specialties<1>, by district health authority, Yorkshire
and Humberside standard region, as at 31 March 1979 to 1989
1979
Hull |93 |7,589 |7,682
East Yorkshire |10 |2,185 |2,195
Grimsby |40 |2,627 |2,667
Scunthorpe |28 |2,563 |2,591
Northallerton |0 |386 |386
York |18 |3,352 |3,370
Scarborough |28 |1,407 |1,435
Harrogate |45 |2,726 |2,771
Bradford |57 |5,416 |5,473
Airedale |67 |1,122 |1,189
Calderdale |15 |2,172 |2,187
Huddersfield |176 |3,599 |3,775
Dewsbury |2 |1,236 |1,238
Leeds Western |<2>- |<2>- |<2>-
Leeds Eastern |<2>- |<2>- |<2>-
Wakefield |117 |2,912 |3,029
Pontefract |17 |2,990 |3,007
Barnsley |196 |3,961 |4,157
Doncaster |<2>- |<2>- |<2>-
Rotherham |<2>- |<2>- |<2>-
Sheffield |<2>- |<2>- |<2>-
1980
Hull |40 |6,179 |6,219
East Yorkshire |2 |1,796 |1,798
Grimsby |30 |2,668 |2,698
Scunthorpe |6 |2,089 |2,095
Northallerton |0 |334 |334
York |6 |1,985 |1,991
Scarborough |37 |1,504 |1,541
Harrogate |33 |2,144 |2,177
Bradford |98 |4,334 |4,432
Airedale |63 |1,433 |1,496
Calderdale |19 |1,372 |1,391
Huddersfield |43 |2,603 |2,646
Dewsbury |3 |748 |751
Leeds Western |<2>- |<2>- |<2>-
Leeds Eastern |<2>- |<2>- |<2>-
Wakefield |125 |2,198 |2,323
Pontefract |9 |1,942 |1,951
Barnsley |72 |3,831 |3,903
Doncaster |<2>- |<2>- |<2>-
Rotherham |<2>- |<2>- |<2>-
Sheffield |<2>- |<2>- |<2>-
1981
Hull |24 |6,333 |6,357
East Yorkshire |8 |1,660 |1,668
Grimsby |28 |2,615 |2,643
Scunthorpe |7 |2,293 |2,300
Northallerton |0 |371 |371
York |2 |1,766 |1,768
Scarborough |40 |1,703 |1,743
Harrogate |25 |1,513 |1,538
Bradford |60 |4,181 |4,241
Airedale |17 |1,519 |1,536
Calderdale |8 |1,214 |1,222
Huddersfield |0 |2,077 |2,077
Dewsbury |2 |595 |597
Leeds Western |<2>- |<2>- |<2>-
Leeds Eastern |<2>- |<2>- |<2>-
Wakefield |69 |2,455 |2,524
Pontefract |7 |1,391 |1,398
Barnsley |36 |2,777 |2,813
Doncaster |<2>- |<2>- |<2>-
Hull |23 |4,550 |4,573
East Yorkshire |0 |1,444 |1,444
Grimsby |8 |2,354 |2,362
Scunthorpe |32 |2,966 |2,998
Northallerton |1 |434 |435
York |0 |1,787 |1,787
Scarborough |13 |1,682 |1,695
Harrogate |11 |1,065 |1,076
Bradford |61 |3,995 |4,056
Airedale |6 |1,457 |1,463
Calderdale |10 |1,186 |1,196
Huddersfield |1 |1,962 |1,963
Dewsbury |2 |668 |670
Leeds Western |308 |3,162 |3,470
Leeds Eastern |659 |3,724 |4,383
Wakefield |119 |1,788 |1,907
Pontefract |7 |1,542 |1,549
Barnsley |60 |2,346 |2,406
Doncaster |489 |2,942 |3,431
Rotherham |23 |2,675 |2,698
Sheffield |992 |10,345 |11,337
Hull |55 |6,973 |7,028
East Yorkshire |0 |1,588 |1,588
Grimsby |19 |2,467 |2,486
Scunthorpe |44 |5,125 |5,169
Northallerton |0 |677 |677
York |2 |3,249 |3,251
Scarborough |16 |1,988 |2,004
Harrogate |6 |1,222 |1,228
Bradford |110 |5,677 |5,787
Airedale |196 |1,606 |1,802
Calderdale |6 |1,209 |1,215
Huddersfield |4 |2,862 |2,866
Dewsbury |12 |1,127 |1,139
Leeds Western |452 |3,875 |4,327
LeedsEastern |855 |5,022 |5,877
Wakefield |55 |3,353 |3,408
Pontefract |64 |2,183 |2,247
Barnsley |102 |3,580 |3,682
Doncaster |533 |5,221 |5,754
Rotherham |168 |3,972 |4,140
Sheffield |1,391 |12,237 |13,628
Hull |78 |6,228 |6,306
East Yorkshire |1 |1,307 |1,308
Grimsby |29 |1,797 |1,826
Scunthorpe |12 |4,843 |4,855
Northallerton |0 |644 |644
York |7 |2,713 |2,720
Scarborough |21 |2,061 |2,082
Harrogate |0 |1,146 |1,146
Bradford |206 |5,340 |5,546
Airedale |155 |2,108 |2,263
Calderdale |7 |1,237 |1,244
Huddersfield |1 |2,585 |2,586
Dewsbury |4 |904 |908
Leeds Western |428 |3,728 |4,156
Leeds Eastern |615 |4,535 |5,150
Wakefield |20 |2,601 |2,621
Hull |2 |7,079 |7,081
East Yorkshire |0 |1,268 |1,268
Grimsby |46 |1,491 |1,537
Scunthorpe |12 |4,120 |4,132
Northallerton |0 |559 |559
York |4 |2,751 |2,755
Scarborough |29 |1,749 |1,778
Harrogate |5 |1,292 |1,297
Bradford |141 |5,231 |5,372
Airedale |98 |2,263 |2,361
Calderdale |10 |1,232 |1,242
Huddersfield |0 |2,770 |2,770
Dewsbury |8 |798 |806
Leeds Western |633 |3,406 |4,039
Leeds Eastern |531 |4,628 |5,159
Wakefield |16 |1,934 |1,950
Pontefract |399 |1,802 |2,201
Barnsley |23 |2,032 |2,055
Doncaster |337 |4,713 |5,050
Rotherham |78 |3,903 |3,981
Sheffield |1,120 |10,137 |11,257
1986
Hull |0 |6,615 |6,615
East Yorkshire |0 |1,101 |1,101
Grimsby |8 |1,237 |1,245
Scunthorpe |0 |2,030 |2,030
Northallerton |0 |419 |419
York |9 |2,656 |2,665
Scarborough |43 |1,541 |1,584
Harrogate |35 |1,604 |1,639
Braford |181 |6,103 |6,284
Airedale |101 |2,537 |2,638
Calderdale |1 |985 |986
Huddersfield |0 |2,697 |2,697
Dewsbury |4 |652 |656
Leeds Western |555 |3,650 |4,205
Leeds Eastern |595 |4,939 |5,534
Wakefield |39 |2,122 |2,161
Pontefract |508 |1,671 |2,179
Barnsley |90 |2,358 |2,448
Doncaster |401 |4,172 |4,573
Rotherham |113 |4,060 |4,173
Sheffield |1,112 |10,300 |11,412
1987
Hull |0 |6,908 |6,908
East Yorkshire |0 |1,410 |1,410
Grimsby |27 |1,373 |1,400
Scunthorpe |0 |2,832 |2,832
Northallerton |0 |676 |676
York |11 |2,522 |2,533
Scarborough |83 |1,621 |1,704
Harrogate |30 |1,827 |1,857
Bradford |146 |6,925 |7,071
Airedale |73 |1,990 |2,063
Calderdale |5 |991 |996
Huddersfield |0 |2,175 |2,175
Dewsbury |2 |427 |429
1988<3>
Hull |<4> |<4> |7,357
East Yorkshire |<4> |<4> |1,833
Grimsby |<4> |<4> |1,032
Scunthorpe |<4> |<4> |2,875
Northallerton |<4> |<4> |686
York |<4> |<4> |2,734
Scarborough |<4> |<4> |2,099
Harrogate |<4> |<4> |1,332
Bradford |<4> |<4> |6,294
Airedale |<4> |<4> |2,223
Calderdale |<4> |<4> |1,086
Huddersfield |<4> |<4> |1,793
Dewsbury |<4> |<4> |571
Leeds Western |<4> |<4> |5,300
Leeds Eastern |<4> |<4> |6,644
Wakefield |<4> |<4> |2,282
Pontefract |<4> |<4> |1,701
Barnsley |<4> |<4> |2,382
Doncaster |<4> |<4>
|Rotherham |<4> |<4> |3,087
Sheffield |<4> |<4> |9,713
1989<3>
Hull |<4> |<4> |6,867
East Yorkshire |<4> |<4> |1,579
Grimsby |<4> |<4> |1,746
Scunthorpe |<4> |<4> |2,881
Northallerton |<4> |<4> |663
York |<4> |<4> |2,498
Scarborough |<4> |<4> |2,076
Harrogate |<4> |<4> |1,901
Bradford |<4> |<4> |6,734
Airedale |<4> |<4> |2,452
Calderdale |<4> |<4> |1,053
Huddersfield |<4> |<4> |2,215
Dewsbury |<4> |<4> |781
Leeds Western |<4> |<4> |5,644
Leeds Eastern |<4> |<4> |6,333
Wakefield |<4> |<4> |2,045
Pontefract |<4> |<4> |2,056
Barnsley |<4> |<4> |2,492
Doncaster |<4> |<4> |3,924
Rotherhama |<4> |<4> |3,350
Sheffield |<4> |<4> |9,895
<1> General surgery, Urology, T & O, ENT, Ophthalmology, Oral surgery, Restorative
dentistry, Paediatric dentistry, Orthodontics, Neurosurgery, Plastic surgery,
Cardiothoracic surgery, Paediatric surgery,Gynaecology, Radiotherapy.
<2> Data are not available, due to NHS restructuring in 1982.
<3> Less self deferred cases.
<4> Data are not available.
Project 2000
Mr. Battle : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what incentives are being offered to nurses to remain in the nursing profession, in the light of Project 2000 ; and if he will make a statement.
Column 467
Mrs. Virginia Bottomley : Our aim is to ensure the Health Service's ability to recruit and retain the staff it needs. We have increased the pay of nursing staff by an average of 43 per cent. in real terms since 1979. The new grading structures for clinical and educational staff allow nurses to be better rewarded for the work they do and provide improved career prospects. The current pilot scheme of flexible pay supplements for nursing and midwifery staff is intended to improve retention and re-entry rates in areas where there are special difficulties. There is also an increased emphasis on the importance of providing flexible working arrangements and improved facilities for re-entry after breaks in service, on which the national steering group on equal opportunities for women in the NHS has published advice.Community Care
Mr. Hannam : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he is taking to ensure that users of community care services are formally consulted when local authorities are drawing up their plans for community care ; and if he will make a statement.
Mrs. Virginia Bottomley : We will be issuing guidance to local authorities on community care plans. This will reinforce our intention, set out in the White Paper "Caring for People", that local authorities should consult representatives of users of services and their carers in drawing up plans.
Salmonella
Mrs. Gorman : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what are the sources of his information regarding the number of incidents of salmonella enteritidis-induced food poisoning reported during the first six months of the current year.
Mr. Freeman : The sources of information this year (which is less than three months old) are the same as in past years, and are detailed in annex 1 of the public health laboratory service's evidence to the House of Commons Select Committee on Agriculture in October 1988.
The sources of information for the routine surveillance of human salmonellosis in England and Wales include :
(i.) reports of human isolates to the PHLS communicable disease surveillance centre (CDSC) from public health and other laboratories ;
(i.) referrals of human isolates of salmonellas for detailed identification to the PHLS division of enteric pathogens from public health and other laboratories ;
(iii.) laboratory reports of outbreaks to CDSC ;
(iv.) local authority reports of outbreaks to CDSC ;
(v.) outbreaks ascertained by CDSC by other means and verified.
Mrs. Gorman : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what is his assessment of the future trend in outbreaks of food poisoning through the consumption of eggs infected by salmonella enteritidis. Mr. Freeman : It is impossible to predict trends in outbreaks of salmonellosis with any degree of certainty. Early indications, however, from data from the PHLS division of enteric pathogens indicate that the levelling off in total salmonella enteritidis phage type 4 isolates seen last year has been maintained in the early part of this year. There is room for cautious optimism that this trend will continue.
Column 468
Cataract Operations
Mr. Stern : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what is the average length of the waiting list for cataract operations throughout the United Kingdom.
Mrs. Virginia Bottomley : Information about specific conditions and proposed method of treatment of patients on hospital waiting lists is not collected centrally. On 31 March 1989 the average length of lists for patients awaiting admission for treatment by a consultant ophthalmologist in district health authorities in England was 491. The individual lists, which varied from one in Kettering to over 3, 000 in central Manchester, are influenced by the nature of local and neighbouring facilities, the size of the population being served, and the number of consultants providing the service.
Child Abuse Allegations
Mr. Ray Powell : To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will consider financial assistance to the organisation called Parents Against Injustice which seeks to help those parents who have been falsely accused of abusing their children.
Mrs. Virginia Bottomley : The Department has contributed to the organisation's headquarters administrative expenses each year since 1987. In the current financial year the contribution totalled £24, 000. I have agreed to meet representatives of the organisation.
Dental Health
Mr. Colin Shepherd : To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will list the dental experts who were involved in the COMA panel's report on sugars.
Mr. Freeman : The members of the committee on medical aspects of food policy's panel on dietary sugars are listed in the report. The dental member was Professor A. J. Rugg-Gunn of the departments of child dental health and oral biology at the dental school of the university of Newcastle upon Tyne.
A number of submissions on dental and other aspects of health were received and considered by the panel. These are also listed in the report, copies of which are available in the Library.
Mr. Colin Shepherd : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what has been the change in the occurrence of dental cavities in the teeth of five-year-old children over the last 10 years for which figures are available.
Mr. Freeman : Surveys of children's dental health are carried out at 10-yearly intervals by the Office of Population Censuses and Surveys on behalf of the health departments. The last survey which was conducted in 1983 showed that the proportion of five-year-olds in England and Wales with dental decay experience fell from 72 per cent. in 1973 to 49 per cent. The average number of teeth estimated to have had some decay, allowing for the condition of missing deciduous teeth, was 4.0 in 1973 dropping to 1.8 in 1983.
Mr. Michael Morris : To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make it his policy when considering the findings of the COMA panel report on sugars relating to the reduction of dental caries to assess the findings of the
Column 469
United States Food and Drugs Administration in 1986, the British Nutrition Foundation in 1987, and the European congress on diet, nutrition and dental caries held in 1988 ; and if he will make a statement.Mr. Freeman : The panel on dietary sugars of the committee on medical aspects of food policy (COMA) took account of these, and other, reports in coming to its conclusions. The COMA report is, we believe, the definitive statement on present knowledge of the relationship between dietary sugars and health.
The COMA report on dietary sugars and human disease was published by HMSO on 12 December 1989. Copies are in the Library.
Mr. Michael Morris : To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether any official medical report concerning the incidence of dental caries has distinguished between natural sugars and added sugars in terms of their effects on dental health.
Mr. Freeman : The report on dietary sugars and human disease produced by the committee on medical aspects of food policy included the relationship between sugar and dental caries. It distinguished between sugars naturally integrated into the cellular structure of a food (intrinsic) from those, whether natural or added, which are free in the food (extrinsic).
It argued that this distinction was more logical and comprehensive than distinctions such as that between "added" and "natural" sugars. It noted (para. 2.6) that
"this difference in physical location influenced [the sugars] availability for bacterial metabolism in the mouth ."
and concluded that
"if the prevalence of dental caries in the UK is to be reduced further it will be necessary to reduce the amount and frequency of consumption of non- milk extrinsic sugars"
(para. 6.13).
We are not aware of any other official report which has made a distinction between "natural" and "added" sugars.
Visitors (National Health Service Treatment)
Mr. Pawsey : To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many visitors from overseas were treated by the National Health Service in each year since 1980 ; and what was the cost.
Mr. Freeman : We do not hold information centrally on the number of overseas visitors treated by the National Health Service or the cost of their treatment. Such visitors are normally charged for hospital treatment unless they are from a country with which we have a reciprocal agreement.
Health Authorities, Yorkshire
Mr. Battle : To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what is hospital expenditure per head for each of the regional health authorities in Yorkshire and Humberside for each of the last 10 years ;
(2) if he will give the figures for hospital expenditure per head of population for each Yorkshire and Humberside health authority for each year since 1979.
Mr. Freeman : Figures of revenue expenditure per head of population on hospital services (HS) and on hospital and community health services (HCHS) for the district health authorities providing health services in Yorkshire
Column 470
and Humberside are shown in the table for the years since the establishment of those authorities on 1 April 1982. I should point out that the table includes all the district health authorities comprising the Yorkshire health region with the addition of Barnsley, Doncaster, Rotherham and Sheffield health authorities which form part of the Trent health region.Total revenue expenditure per resident for hospital services (HS) and hospital and community health services (HCHS) 1982-1983 £ cash
1983-1984 £ cash
1984-1985 £ cash
1985-86 £ cash
1986-87 £ cash
1987-88 £ cash
1988-1989 £ cash Sources: (a) Annual accounts of the named health authorities. (b) Mid-year estimates of resident populations 1982 to 1988 (Office of Population, Censuses and Surveys). Notes: 1. Hospital and community health services (HCHS) covers total expenditure including that on hospital, community health and where applicable patient transport (i.e. ambulance), blood transfusion and other services. District capital expenditure and expenditure on family practitioner services is excluded. 2. The table also excludes all revenue and capital expenditure incurred by the Yorkshire and Trent regional health authorities on behalf of their regions as a whole. Such revenue expenditure on health and community health services was equivalent to about £7 and £14 per head for the Yorkshire and Trent regions respectively in 1988-89. 3. Significant variations in expenditure figures per head of population at district level arise principally because: (i) people travel across district boundaries for treatment and sub-regional resource allocations reflect the pattern of service provision locally; (ii) the population figures used make no allowance for people resident in one district who receive treatment in another or for the differences in morbidity and age/sex structure of particular populations.
Self-governing Hospital Trusts
Mr. Cryer : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what is the amount of money allocated for assisting self-governing hospital trusts for 1990-91 ; and if he will make a statement.
Mrs. Virginia Bottomley : The total available in 1990-91 for NHS review-related initiatives is just over £300 million. So far no resources have been allocated to regions specifically for work on NHS trusts.
Column 473
Personal Social Services
Mr. Alfred Morris : To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will list for each of the last 10 years (a) the gross sum for expenditure on the personal social services in England assumed in the rate support grant settlement and (b) the actual outturn ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Freeman : The table sets out details of the provision in the rate support grant settlement and actual expenditure on the personal social services in England for the period 1981-82 to 1989-90. Comparable figures for the rate support grant provision are not readily available for earlier years. The outturn figure for 1989-90 is based on local authority budget estimates.
It is of course the responsibility of each local authority to determine its own spending priorities, in the light of legislative requirements and of its own knowledge of local needs, within the overall resources available.
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