| Previous Section | Home Page |
Cervical Cancer
Mr. Kevin Hughes : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment she has made of the efficacy of the current test for screening for cervical cancer ; and what action she is taking to reduce the number of tests which prove negative when cancer is present.
Mr. Sackville : The effectiveness of the "pap" smear test for cervical cancer screening has been demonstrated by experience in Canada, the Grampian region and Nordic countries with noteworthy decreases in the incidence and mortality due to cervical cancer. The Department advised health authorities in health circular HC(88)1, a copy of which is available in the Library, of the recommendation for a comprehensive education programme to train doctors and nurses in how to take satisfactory smears. In order to ensure that there are continuing improvements in laboratory standards when processing smears, the Department issued guidance on a protocol for a proficiency testing scheme in gynaecological cytopathology for laboratory staff. This advised of the need for regional cytopathology external quality assurance groups and the Department set up a national co- ordinating committee to promote accuracy in reporting smear test results.
AIDS
Mr. Cohen : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what advice her Department's chief medical officer has given the public about sexual activity involving an
Column 633
individual suffering with HIV or AIDS ; what is the latest estimate of the risk of contracting the disease when a condom is (a) used and (b) not used ; and if she will make a statement.Mr. Sackville : Data are available from the results of "The European Study Group on Heterosexual Transmission of HIV", published in March 1992, a copy of which is available in the Library. Couples where one partner was already infected with HIV were followed up six-monthly. Among 44 couples using condoms intermittently, six women were infected with HIV. No partners were infected in 24 couples using condoms consistently.
The AIDS public education campaign has encouraged the use of condoms as a means of protection against HIV and other sexually transmitted diseases.
Ultraviolet Radiation
Mr. Jenkin : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what advice her Department has received from the expert advisory Committee on Medical Aspects of Radiation in the Environment regarding ultraviolet radiation and health.
Mr. Sackville : In response to a recent request from the United Kingdom Health Departments, COMARE has now furnished advice on ultraviolet radiation (UV) and adverse health effects in the context of existing public health advice on minimising UV exposure, and the need for further research. In particular, COMARE was asked to consider its advice against a background of evidence of a raised incidence of skin cancer in the United Kingdom and recent concerns about changes in solar UV levels secondary to possible changes in the stratospheric ozone layer.
COMARE concludes that there is sufficient evidence to demonstrate that skin cancer incidence is related to exposure to UV radiation, and that risk is determined largely by patterns of exposure to existing levels of solar UV radiation, which is influenced by people's lifestyle. The committee makes a number of recommendations relating to additional public health advice on minimising exposure to natural and artificial sources of UV, and on common standards for consumer information for sunglasses and sunscreen products. The Government accept the committee's recommendations and the Health Departments are considering urgently how best to implement them. The Government note COMARE's intention to consider research needs further in the light of relevant research currently under way or planned. The Government are grateful to COMARE for its work in this area and looks forward to receiving further advice on research needs. Following is the full text of the committee's advice :
Statement of advice from COMARE to Health Departments
Health effects of ultra violet radiation
Introduction--
1. The United Kingdom Health Departments have asked COMARE to consider the adverse health effects of UV radiation (UVR) in relation to existing public health advice on minimising UV exposure, and the need for further research. This has been considered against a background of :
(a) evidence of an increased incidence of all skin cancers, and in particular the increase in malignant melanoma (MM) over recent years, and
(b) whether there is a need to issue additional advice in
Column 634
the light of the recent concerns that solar UV levels might be altered secondary to possible changes in the stratospheric ozone layer.Health effects--
2. The Committee have noted with concern that there has been a 50 per cent. increase in the incidence of malignant melanoma in England and Wales (1,827 cases in 1980 rising to 2,635 cases in 1986). The much more common, although seldom fatal, forms of skin cancer which are grouped as non- melanotic skin cancers (NMSC) increased from 19, 000 cases in 1980 to over 25,000 cases in 1986. We consider that this rising incidence of skin cancers constitutes a public health problem in the United Kingdom. Other health effects are known to be associated with excessive exposure to UVR, and additional research is needed in these areas.
3. We consider that there is sufficient evidence to show that skin cancer incidence is related to exposure to UV radiation and that risk is determined largely by patterns of exposure to existing levels of solar UV radiation which is influenced by people's occupation and behaviour. The risk however, varies with the degree of skin pigmentation, being greatest in the skin type with red hair and fair skin which does not tan.
Cancer registration--
4. The Committee reiterates its view that skin cancer registration procedures should be improved so that the statistics can be updated more regularly. It was recognised by the working party chaired by Professor Eva Alberman which reported last year on the national cancer registration scheme (Series MB1 No. 17) that better and more timely figures were required. Many of the working party's 17 recommendations are currently being taken forward by the cancer registries in the regional health authorities and by the NHS information management group in the Department. COMARE has previously expressed its support for this review.
Solar Monitoring--
5. The Committee note that the National Radiological Protection Board (NRPB) set up three experimental solar UV monitoring stations in the United Kingdom in 1988, and that the instrumentation of these units has subsequently been improved. We acknowledge the value of these measurements in providing baseline data for any changes which may occur in the future. We welcome the NRPB proposal to extend this scheme to latitudes further north and south to provide a more comprehensive picture of the terrestrial solar UV levels over United Kingdom latitudes.
6. The Committee note the widespread concerns about long term stratospheric ozone depletion and support the initiatives already being taken by the signatories to the Montreal Protocol to reduce the release of ozone- depleting chemicals into the atmosphere. 7. We note that seasonal variations in solar UV levels, and short term variations due to cloud cover and local weather, are far in excess of any long term UV changes currently anticipated as a result of stratospheric ozone depletion. For this reason it would not be helpful to publish daily information on solar UVR levels ; such retrospective information would be of little practical value. It should be recognised that currently the most important factor in a person's exposure to solar UVR is lifestyle and we recommend that there is a need to inform the public of the risks of excessive exposure to sunlight.
Research requirements--
8. We consider that considerable additional scientific information on the health effects of UV is required to enable a more accurate assessment of the various aspects of health risk and to facilitate effective targeting of public health education (see 10 below). Whilst a clear association between non-melanotic skin cancer and cumulative UV exposure has been demonstrated, the relationship between UV exposure and malignant melanoma trends needs further consideration. We will consider further research needs in the light of ongoing work, in particular the work of the NRPB Advisory Group on non- ionising radiations.
Column 635
Public Health Advice--9. We endorse the general content and basis of existing health advice as set out in the Health Education Authority leaflet ("Are you dying to get a suntan?"), and agree that there is a need to reinforce certain important aspects. In particular the Committee recommend that there is a need to advise about the potential longterm dangers of sunburn to children and babies, and to emphasise the need for individuals to develop a better awareness of their own skin's sensitivity to solar UVR, bearing in mind the very great variation in sensitivity which exists between different members of the population.
10. We fully endorse the Health Department's proposal to reinforce existing public health advice on UV, and to consider the specific health advice given to users of sunbeds/sunlamps and tungsten halogen lamps and recommend that this be taken forward urgently. We also support proposals to consider the application of common standards to consumer information for sunglasses and suntan products. The Committee wish to be kept fully informed of progress in these areas.
Herbicides
Mr. Ron Davies : To ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will outline the possible effects of human consumption of the pesticides atrazine and simazine.
Mr. Sackville : No adverse health effects have been detected in humans from the approved United Kingdom agricultural and non-agricultural uses of these herbicides. In some experiments where doses hundreds of times the highest estimated human intake in the United Kingdom have been fed to laboratory rats, the incidence of mammary tumours was increased.
The independent and statutory Advisory Committee on Pesticides has confirmed that the levels of atrazine and simazine found in some drinking water supplies in the United Kingdom do not endanger the health of consumers. Residues of these chemicals have not been found in food crops.
The United Kingdom has a legal obligation to comply with the European Community's drinking water directive--80/778/EEC--which sets very stringent limits on non-toxicological grounds, and restrictions on the use of both these herbicides were announced in May 1992. Approvals for non-crop use, which is the main source of water contamination, will be revoked on 31 August 1993 and further restrictions will apply to all other uses from the same date.
Ambulance Services
Mr. Tony Lloyd : To ask the Secretary of State for Health which ambulance stations have been closed in Greater Manchester over the last three months ; how many times ; and for how long.
Mr. Sackville : This information is not held centrally. The hon. Member may wish to contact Mr. E. S. Schofield, the chairman of Bury health authority, which is responsible for the management of the Greater Manchester ambulance service.
Mr. Tony Lloyd : To ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will make it her policy to answer questions on the running of the ambulance service.
Mr. Sackville : NHS ambulance services are contracted to provide patient transport services by purchasing health authorities which are responsible for the delivery of those services. Ambulance service policy is a matter for Ministers.
Column 636
General Practitioner Beds
Mr. Jessel : To ask the Secretary of State for Health if it remains Government policy, as set out by the then Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Health in a letter to the hon. Member for Twickenham on 25 July 1990, that Teddington memorial hospital and the general practitioner beds within it have a secure future for as long as general practitioners and patients continue to want to use them ; if the Richmond, Twickenham and Roehampton district health authority has been made aware that this is Government policy ; if she will ask the authority to comply ; and if she will inform the hon. Member for Twickenham of the result.
Mr. Sackville : I have recently visited Teddington memorial hospital.
All health authorities are obliged to consider carefully the health needs of their population and should ensure that in contracting for health services, both acute and in the community, they have consulted local people including, for example, GPs.
Mr. Jessel : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what is the occupancy rate for the 27 general practitioner beds at the Teddington memorial hospital ; and what representations she has received from general practitioners, and from the applicants for trust status concerning the demand for continuation of provision of general practitioner beds.
Mr. Sackville : Information on bed occupancy rates is not collected centrally.
Local GPs and staff at Teddington memorial have written to Ministers expressing their concern about the provision of general practitioner beds. I will reply shortly.
Mr. Jessel : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what powers she has to require a district health authority acting as a purchasing authority to provide for the purchase of general practitioner beds where there is clear evidence of demand from general practitioners and their patients.
Mr. Sackville : District health authorities are expected to purchase a wide range of health services for their local populations. The level and type of services purchased are for the authorities themselves to determine in the light of local needs and priorities.
Market Testing
Dr. Marek : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what has been the total cost so far of the market-testing initiative in her Department since November 1991.
Mr. Sackville : The estimated cost of the market-testing initiative in the Department since November 1991 is in the order of £150,000.
Dr. Marek : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate she has made of savings in her Department as a result of the market-testing programme.
Mr. Sackville : No such estimate has been made.
Dr. Marek : To ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will give a date when she will announce the areas of work in her Department to be market tested ; and whether all relevant information will be made publicly available.
Column 637
Mr. Sackville : I refer the hon. Member to the reply my right hon. Friend the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster gave my hon. Friend the Member for Cambridgeshire, South-East (Mr. Paice) on 22 June, column 102.AGRICULTURE, FISHERIES AND FOOD Equal Opportunities
Mr. Janner : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food how many and what percentage of officers in grades 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 and 7 respectively and overall in his Department are women.
Mr. Curry : The information is set out in the table, being non- industrial staff in post on 29 June 1992 in MAFF and its agencies. (Part- time staff are counted as 0.5).
Female staff in post
Grade/grade equivalent |Number |Percentage
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1 |0.0 |0.0
2 |1.0 |12.5
3 |2.0 |7.7
4 |0.0 |0.0
5 |11.0 |9.2
6 |11.5 |7.1
7 |137.5 |14.7
|163.0 |12.9
The total number of women in the Department and its agencies is 4, 293.5. This is 43.5 per cent. of total staff.
The female grade 2 is the chief executive of the Agricultural Development Advisory Service.
Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy
Mr. Ron Davies : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what is his latest estimate of the likely future incidence of BSE ; when he expects the outbreak to peak and at what level ; and when he now expects the disease to disappear in the United Kingdom.
Mr. Soames : It is impossible to predict accurately the future incidence of BSE since it is not known how many cattle received sufficient inefective agent in feed to cause disease. Nevertheless, 1992 is expected to be the peak year in relation to the number of confirmed cases. And all the evidence continues to show that the ruminant feed ban, introduced in July 1988, is the key measure which will ultimately lead to the eradication of BSE. It is not expected that the effect of the ban will be reflected in a decline in the annual total number of cases until next year. Thereafter it is expected that there will be a clear downward trend until the ultimate disappearance of the disease, possibly by the end of the 1990s.
Bovine Somatotropin
Mr. Martlew : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will make a statement on the use of bovine somatotropin in the United Kingdom after 1992.
Mr. Soames : Within the Community the use of BST except in authorised field trials is banned until the end of 1993. The Commission is obliged to present a report including appropriate proposals for subsequent arrangements before 30 June 1993.
Column 638
Clenbuterol
Mr. Ron Davies : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, pursuant to this answer of 19 June, Official Report , column 685 , if he will list the number of cases, of which the Department are aware, of beef cattle fed with the drug clenbuterol entering the United Kingdom and their country of origin.
Herbicides
Mr. Ron Davies : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will make a statement on the uses of the pesticides atrazine and simazine.
Mr. Soames : I refer the hon. Member to the answer given on 21 May, Official Report , col. 252 .
Abattoirs
Mr. Ron Davies : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food when he will be able to tell abattoir owners whether their applications for derogation from upgrading their plants to EC standards have been successful.
Mr. Soames : The Department's veterinary officers are currently in the process of visiting all fresh meat premises seeking derogations in order to upgrade to the new EC structural standards. Before a derogation can be granted, a detailed work plan must be agreed between the plant and the Department. This work is proceeding as quickly as possible and owners will be informed individually about the outcome of their derogation applications.
Market Testing
Dr. Marek : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what has been the total cost so far of the market-testing initiative in his Department since November 1991.
Mr. Curry : The full cost of the market testing initiative in the Department since November 1991 has been £44,000.
Dr. Marek : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will give a date when he will announce the areas of work in his Department to be market tested ; and whether all relevant information will be made publicly available.
Mr. Curry : I refer the hon. Member to the reply given by my right hon. Friend the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster to my hon. Friend the Member for Cambridgeshire, South-East (Mr. Paice), on 22 June 1992, Official Report, col. 102 .
Dr. Marek : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what estimate he has made of savings in his Department as a result of the market-testing programme.
Mr. Curry : No such forward estimate has been made.
Grass-growing Machines
Mr. Mackinlay : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what research he has undertaken into the effectiveness of hydroponic grass-growing machines as a provider of food for stabled horses.
Column 639
Mr. Curry : None.Mr. Mackinlay : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what representations his Department has received in respect of the quality and effectiveness of hydroponic grass-growing machines.
Mr. Curry : I am not aware of any representations on this matter.
Disabled Employees
Mr. Janner : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food how many and what percentage of officers in grades 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 and 7 respectively and overall in his Department are registered disabled people.
Mr. Curry : The information set out as at 29 June 1992 relates to MAFF staff and its agencies. Part-time staff are counted as 0.5. Figures have been aggregated to preserve individuals'
confidentiality.
Grade/ Registered disabled Grade equivalent |Number |Percentage -------------------------------------------------------------------- 1-7 |4 |0.3
The total number of known registered disabled staff in the Department and its agencies is 126.5. This is 1.3 per cent. of total staff.
These figures do not include staff with disabilities who have chosen not to register.
Agriculture Council
Dr. Spink : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will make a statement on the outcome of the Agriculture Council held on 30 June.
Mr. Gummer : I represented the United Kingdom at this meeting of the Council.
The regulations implementing the Council's decisions of 21 May on common agricultural policy reform and on 1992-93 farm prices were formally adopted. Despite pressure from some delegations, no changes were made to the agreement. The Commission made a number of declarations on subjects of concern to particular delegations, but these do not commit the United Kingdom or the Council.
TRADE AND INDUSTRY
Subsidiarity
Ms. Quin : To ask the President of the Board of Trade what definition of subsidiarity was used in the discussions between EC regional policy Ministers in Lisbon on 15-16May.
Mr. Sainsbury : I represented the United Kingdom at this meeting. No precise definition of subsidiarity was used. However, subsidiarity is generally defined in the Community context as the principle that the Community should take action only when objectives cannot be achieved at the level of individual member states acting alone, and that such action should not exceed the minimum necessary to achieve those objectives.
Column 640
Internal Market Council
Ms. Quin : To ask the President of the Board of Trade if he will list the matters to be discussed at the next meeting of the EC Internal Market Council ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Needham : I will chair the next Internal Market Council on 22 September.
The agenda will not be finalised until early September.
Telephone Faults
Mr. Tom Clarke : To ask the President of the Board of Trade what discussions he has had with Oftel on the priority telephone fault repair service for the disabled ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Leigh : My right hon. Friend and I meet the Director General of OFTEL from time to time to discuss a wide range of telecommunications issues. He fully shares the Government's view of the importance of a free priority fault repair service for those disabled customers whose lives depend on having constant telephone access to outside medical help.
Accidents at Home
Mr. Gerrard : To ask the President of the Board of Trade what representations he has received from the toy industry regarding delays in publication of statistics for accidents in the home.
Mr. Leigh : No representations have been received from the toy industry regarding delays in the publication of statistics on accidents in the home.
Mr. Gerrard : To ask the President of the Board of Trade if he will list the hospitals surveyed by his Department for the production of statistics on accidents in the home.
Mr. Leigh : The hospitals currently collecting data for the home accident surveillance system (HASS) are as follows :
North Tees general hospital, Stockton-on-Tees
Luton and Dunstable hospital, Luton
Skegness and District hospital, Skegness
Selly Oak hospital, Birmingham
Prince Charles hospital, Merthyr Tydfil
Royal Berkshire hospital, Reading
Mount Vernon hospital, Hillingdon
Macclesfield district general, Macclesfield
Manor hospital, Nuneaton
William Harvey hospital, Ashford, Kent
Blackburn royal infirmary, Blackburn
Daisy Hill hospital, Newry, Co. Down
Monklands district hospital, Airdrie
Kings Collegee hospital, Denmark Hill
Hereford general hospital, Hereford
Queen Mary's university hospital, Roehampton
Airedale general hospital, Keighley
Bournemouth general hospital, Bournemouth
NB The North Devon district hospital, Barnstaple will replace William Harvey hospital in November 1992.
Mr. Gerrard : To ask the President of the Board of Trade when he expects to publish statistics for accidents in the home for the years 1990 and 1991.
| Next Section
| Home Page |