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Poultry Flocks (Salmonella)
Mr. Spring : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will make a statement on developments in relation to compensation for poultry flocks slaughtered on account of salmonella.
Mr. Gummer : The PCA has today reported to the House on a complaint referred to him by my hon. Friend the Member for Holland with Boston (Sir. R. Body) about the scheme of compensation payments introduced in 1989 for poultry flocks slaughtered on account of salmonella. I am grateful to the Parliamentary Commissioner for this report, which I have studied carefully.
The PCA criticises the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food for failing in 1989 to discharge the obligation to devise and implement a compensation scheme which complied with the requirements of the legislation. The Government accept that the original decision to discount the estimated value of the flock by 40 per cent. to reflect the taint of salmonella infection was shown, following an arbitration case the following year, to be incorrect, but I should emphasise, as the permanent secretary has done in his comments quoted in the report, that the legal advice available to Ministers was taken fully into account at every stage, and that the Government considered that they were acting properly at the time.
In late 1988 and 1989, the Government were faced with a sudden drop of 60 to 80 per cent. of the market for fresh eggs, leaving individual producers facing a very serious commercial crisis. The Government would have been open to severe criticism had they not moved quickly to restore the position. In fact, a whole series of measures were taken to combat salmonella in a very short time on the basis of the medical, veterinary and scientific advice to protect public health and restore consumer confidence. I must stress that these measures were welcomed by the Select Committee for Agriculture in its report of February 1989, and were again welcomed in a debate in the House on 21 February.
The Government are always under a duty to be careful with the use of taxpayers' money. There were those in the House and outside who argued that no compensation was appropriate in the case of egg producers. While this view was rejected by the Government, it was thought justifiable for compensation to be discounted to reflect the fact that the flocks concerned were tainted with salmonella and therefore had a reduced market value.
This principle, which was of course designed to protect public funds, was never rejected, although it was found that the Ministry should not have applied a standard reduction to take it into account, but rather should have calculated a specific figure for each case on the basis of the facts. When, following the arbitrator's finding in September 1990 and the further legal advice obtained, it became clear that the basis of compensation applied hitherto needed to be changed, this was promptly done.
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The PCA criticises the Ministry's unwillingness to reveal the basis on which compensation was proposed. This exacerbated the pressure under which flock owners were put. The Government accepts this finding.The PCA also questions the decision in November 1990 to regard as closed the cases of those flock owners who had accepted compensation on the basis of the 40 per cent. abatement without exercising their right to arbitration. In deciding not to adjust retrospectively the compensation payments settled before the change of policy took effect, the Government were acting on a clear legal principle. We were not unmindful of the interest of individual producers or the merits of particular cases, but we had to balance these against the need to be careful with the use of public funds.
While the position remains that the Government are under no legal liability, we have reflected on the PCA's findings and now accept his view that it would be all right in the circumstances to adjust the compensation paid to all the producers affected to reflect the arrangements subsequently put in place. We shall accordingly be making ex gratia payments on a basis which has been agreed with the PCA to all those owners who were compensated on the basis of the 40 per cent. discount between March 1989 and September 1990. The total cost will be some £600,000.
Horses (Protection)
Mr. Harry Greenway : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what guidance his Department gives on the welfare and protection of horses on farms ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Soames : The state veterinary service monitors standards of welfare for all farm animals and is available to provide free advice to farmers on any aspect of farm animal welfare.
Milk Producers
Mr. Harry Greenway : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, what steps he is taking to improve the position of milk producers.
Mr. Curry : Dairy farming is one of the most profitable sectors of British agriculture and the Government will continue to encourage its efficiency and profitability.
Animals (Transport)
Mr. Bayley : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what procedures are in place to ensure that the EC directive on the transport of live animals is complied with.
Mr. Soames : Directive 91/628/EEC on the protection of animals during transport is implemented in Great Britain by the Welfare of Animals during Transport Order 1992 which came into force on 1 January 1993. The order is enforced by local authority inspectors with support and advice as necessary from the state veterinary service--SVS--which also arranges for the inspection of all consignments of livestock transported to other member states. Local authority and SVS inspectors have wide powers to stop and detain consignments of animals and to make spot checks.
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Enforcement in other member states is a matter for the authorities concerned. The directive provides for the European Commission to carry out inspections to ensure uniform application of the rules.NATIONAL FINANCE
European Monetary Union
Mr. Austin Mitchell : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what supervisory powers over the Bank of England will be exercised by the European central bank under stage 3 of EMU if the British Government have announced their intention not to participate ; and to what extent the provisions of the treaty requiring the Bank of England to be independent of government apply in these circumstances.
Mr. Nelson : According to the protocol to the Maastricht treaty on certain provisions relating to the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, the independence provisions of article 107 of the treaty would not apply if the United Kingdom had notified the Council that it did not intend to move to the third stage of economic and monetary union. Accordingly, there would be no obligation to make the Bank of England independent.
The bank would, however, be subject to limited obligations under the European systems of central banks protocol, notably as regards the collection of statistical information (article 5), the obligation not to provide debt finance to public entities (article 21), any outstanding obligations arising from the bank's participation in the operating procedures for the EMS (article 44 together with article 6.1 of the European Monetary Institute protocol) and its obligation to provide a minimal percentage, if required to do so by the general council of the European central bank, towards the operating costs of the ECB (article 48).
Retail Sales
Mr. Redmond : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what was the percentage effect on the January retail sales figures of the number of Saturdays in January 1992 compared with January 1993 ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Nelson : The retail sales index is an indicator of the average sales per week within standard four or five-week trading periods as opposed to calendar months. The trading periods for January 1992 and January 1993 both contained four Saturdays. The level of sales in January 1993 was not influenced by an increased number of Saturdays.
External Financing Limits
Mr. Peter Bottomley : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer which commercial organisations in which Government have a controlling or total ownership, do not have external financing limits.
Mr. Portillo : A list of the organisations subject to formal external finance limits appears in table 6 of the "Cash Limits 1991-92 Provisional Outturn" White Paper (Cm 2010). A number of others do not have formal external finance limits, but their external finance is
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controlled within the framework of the new public expenditure control total. These organisations are included in table 4.16 of the statistical supplement to the autumn statement (Cm 2219). The following commercial bodies, in which Government have a controlling or total ownership, are not treated in either of the ways described above :Central government trading bodies :
Driving Standards Agency
Export Credits Guarantee Department
Forestry Enterprise
Horserace Totalisator Board
Housing Corporation
Housing for Wales
Industrial Training Boards
Remploy Ltd
Other
Bank of England
British Broadcasting Corporation
British Nuclear Fuels PLC
Channel Four Television Corporation
International Military Services
Commission for New Towns and
New Town Development Corporations in Scotland
Value Added Tax
Mr. Hoyle : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment has been made on the effect on the expenditure of people on low incomes of extending VAT to cover all foods.
Sir John Cope : My right hon. Friend is aware of the effect that the extension of VAT to food would have on the expenditure of people on low incomes. However, the hon. Member will appreciate that it would be inappropriate for me to comment further in the period leading up the Budget.
Mr. Llwyd : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what effect value added tax harmonisation will have on public transport fares ; and if he will make a statement.
Sir John Cope : Under the VAT rates agreement reached by EC Finance Ministers, to which my hon. Friend the Financial Secretary referred in his reply to the hon. Member on 15 December 1992 at column 138 , the United Kingdom retains the right to apply a zero rate to passenger transport. Any proposed change to that right would require the unanimous agreement of all member states.
Interest Rate Cuts
Mr. Llwyd : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when he last met representatives of the four main clearing banks to discuss the question of interest rates cuts being passed onto their customers ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Nelson : My right hon. Friend the Chancellor last met representatives of the four main clearing banks from 15 to 17 December and discussed with them the question of passing on cuts in the base rate to their business customers. He announced the outcome of those discussions and the results of a related study by the Bank of England in a reply to a question from the hon. Member for Chelmsford (Mr. Burns) on 26 January 1993 at columns 623-25.
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Bank Charges
Mrs. Dunwoody : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what information he has on the percentage bank charges have risen by since April 1992.
Mr. Nelson : The levels of bank charges are not collected centrally and are a matter for the commercial judgment of the banks. The January 1993 Bank of England report on bank lending to smaller businesses found that between June 1991 and December 1992 the average increase in income from fees and charges was just over 5 per cent. A copy of the report can be found in the Library.
Manufacturing Output
Mr. Alan W. Williams : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is the percentage change in manufacturing output for each year since 1987.
Mr. Nelson : Indices of manufacturing output may be found on the CSO Databank which can be accessed by the House of Commons Library. Information is currently available for periods up to December 1992.
Privatisation
Mr. Peter Bottomley : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what plans he has to arrange the sales of British Coal, Caledonian MacBrayne, Channel Four Television Company, Commonwealth Development Corporation, Covent Garden Market Authority, English Industrial Estates Corporation and Welsh Fourth Channel Authority.
Mr. Dorrell [pursuant to his reply, 23 February 1993, c. 558] : There are no plans to sell Channel Four Television Corporation or the Welsh Fourth Channel Authority, which remain public corporations.
Debt Relief
Mr. Denham : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will list, for each country receiving debt relief on current Trinidad terms, their projected debt service payments for each of the next three years.
Mr. Nelson [holding answer 24 February 1993] : The information requested is not available. The latest generally accepted source of published information on developing country debt (World bank debt tables 1992-93) is based on data collected up to the end of 1991. Since all but two of the 14 Trinidad terms restructurings so far agreed were concluded after the end of 1991, the projected repayments figures do not reflect the reduction in debt service provided by these agreements.
Trinidad terms allow for the equivalent of the cancellation of up to half the eligible debts consolidated under the agreements, and a commitment by creditors to consider the case for a reduction in the whole stock of eligible debt after a period of two to three years' proven financial and economic responsibility, under arrangements monitored by the IMF. In total, about US$ 1.5 billion will be forgiven under the terms of the existing agreements, and more will follow.
Tax Statistics
Ms Harman : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is the average and marginal tax rate including income tax and statutory social insurance payments of a single
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person, a married couple and a family consisting of a married couple plus two children earning in total (a) half, (b) three-quarters, (c) average earnings, (d) 1.5 times, (e) twice, (f) three times, (g) five times and (h) 10 times average earnings, in each EC member state.Mr. Dorrell [holding answer 25 February 1993] : Information for 1992-93 relating to the United Kingdom is given in the table :
Income tax and national insurance contributions at multiples of
average earnings
Single person
Multiple of average |Amount of tax and |Tax and NIC as |Marginal tax and NIC
earnings<1> |NIC<2> |percentage of gross |rate
|earnings
|£ per week |per cent.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
" |36.55 |21.1 |34
3/4 |65.96 |25.4 |34
1 |95.37 |27.6 |34
1" |143.93 |27.7 |25
2 |212.68 |30.7 |40
3 |351.08 |33.8 |40
5 |627.88 |36.3 |40
10 |1,319.88 |38.1 |40
Married man (wife not earning)
Multiple of average |Amount of tax and |Tax and NIC as |Marginal tax and NIC
earnings<1> |NIC<2> |percentage of gross |rate
|earnings
|£ per week |per cent.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
" |28.29 |16.4 |34
3/4 |57.70 |22.2 |34
1 |87.11 |25.2 |34
1" |135.67 |26.1 |25
2 |199.45 |28.8 |40
3 |337.85 |32.5 |40
5 |614.65 |35.5 |40
10 |1,306.65 |37.8 |40
<1> Average earnings are taken to be the average gross weekly earnings of full-time males on adult rates
with pay unaffected by absence. These are estimated to be £346.00 per week in 1992-93 using the
Government Actuary's Department assumption of 5¬ per cent. growth in whole economy underlying earnings
over 1991-92 as published in the 1992 Autumn Statement.
<2> National Insurance Contributions are at the standard Class 1 rate for employees not contracted-out
of the state additional (eanings related) pension scheme. The tax figures assume that no allowances or
reliefs are available other than the standard allowances.
Similar information on the other EC member states is not readily available and could be provided only at disproportionate cost. Some of the information requested is, however, obtainable from "The Tax/Benefit Position of Production Workers 1988-1991" published by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. A copy is available in the Library.
National Insurance
Ms. Harman : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what would be the estimated revenue yield in 1993-94, and what would be the full year effect, of abolishing the employee's national insurance upper earnings limit from October 1993.
Miss Widdecombe : I have been asked to reply.
If the upper earnings limit for employees' contributions were abolished from October 1993, we estimate that the additional revenue yield for the six months indicated in
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1993-94 would be £1.2 billion and the full year effect would be £1.5 billion. About three million employees would have to pay extra national insurance contributions as a result.HEALTH
Health Care
Mr. Ronnie Campbell : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what is the amount of funding per capita for health care in the last 10 years in Northumberland and Newcastle health authority.
Mr. Sackville : The allocation of funds to the district health authorities--DHAs--is a matter for the Northern regional health authority and detailed information is not collected centrally. However, information which relates the expenditure of the DHAs to their resident populations is shown in the table.
The figures, which pre-date the national health service reforms, show the DHAs as providers of health care, and reflect patterns of local service provision and the effects of patient flows across health authority boundaries.
Revenue expenditure per head of population
|Northumber-land |Newcastle district
|district health |health authority
|authority
|pounds (cash) |pounds (cash)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
1982-83 |162 |361
1983-84 |172 |385
1984-85 |183 |406
1985-86 |193 |431
1986-87 |204 |461
1987-88 |220 |514
1988-89 |243 |575
1989-90 |257 |626
1990-91 |271 |687
Sources:
(a) Annual accounts of the Northumberland and the Newcastle district health
authorities.
(b) Mid-year estimates of resident population-1987-90 (Office of Population,
Censuses and Surveys).
Notes:
1. The figures for the DHAs are based upon their total revenue expenditure
on the services which they managed or accounted for in the relevant
financial years.
2. Capital expenditure incurred by the DHAs and all expenditure incurred by
the Northern RHA on behalf of the Northern region as a whole is excluded.
3. The population figures used make no allowance for people resident in
particular districts who receive treatment in others. For consistency the
population estimates employed are those based on the 1981 census.
Activity Rates
Mr. Bayley : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what was the increase in activity rates, overall and by specialty, in each region in 1990-91 and 1991-92 ; and what is the Department of Health estimate for the increase in activity by specialty in each region in 1992-93.
Dr. Mawhinney : Information about activity rates for the major specialties in each regional health authority is given in the table. Activity forecasts by district and specialty are not collected centrally.
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Total finished consultant episodes (ordinary plus day case
admissions), total all specialties and selected specialties
Specialty |1990-91 |1991-92 |Percentage change
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
England
All specialties |8,785,252 |9,306,707 |6
General surgery |1,252,832 |1,300,343 |4
Urology |291,582 |333,963 |15
Trauma and orthopaedics |652,157 |688,099 |6
ENT |340,271 |366,123 |8
Ophthalmology |219,897 |247,987 |13
General medicine |1,200,726 |1,251,775 |4
Paediatrics |1,051,000 |1,061,201 |1
Geriatric medicine |471,130 |513,433 |9
Obstetrics |927,845 |949,502 |2
Gynaecology |762,332 |786,797 |3
Northern Regional Health Authority
All specialties |628,583 |655,287 |4
General surgery |98,285 |99,348 |1
Urology |24,837 |24,648 |-1
Trauma and orthopaedics |43,785 |48,195 |10
ENT |24,918 |25,883 |4
Ophthalmology |15,610 |16,278 |4
General medicine |101,230 |104,346 |3
Paediatrics |76,653 |80,937 |6
Geriatric medicine |28,160 |30,859 |10
Obstetrics |61,953 |61,449 |-1
Gynaecology |54,688 |55,836 |2
Yorkshire Regional Health Authority
All specialties |722,130 |751,428 |4
General surgery |100,833 |108,683 |8
Urology |29,196 |29,847 |2
Trauma and orthopaedics |54,898 |54,389 |-1
ENT |27,958 |29,248 |5
Ophthalmology |14,875 |16,575 |11
General medicine |94,580 |85,410 |-10
Paediatrics |63,674 |66,853 |5
Geriatric medicine |51,712 |53,250 |3
Obstetrics |83,632 |82,461 |-1
Gynaecology |65,258 |69,874 |7
Trent Regional Health Authority
All specialties |809,186 |858,823 |6
General surgery |113,208 |118,643 |5
Urology |24,076 |28,581 |19
Trauma and orthopaedics |61,223 |64,647 |6
ENT |30,950 |32,768 |6
Ophthalmology |18,890 |19,767 |5
General medicine |114,822 |126,800 |10
Paediatrics |95,323 |99,420 |4
Geriatric medicine |47,547 |53,965 |13
Obstetrics |84,733 |85,742 |1
Gynaecology |76,470 |76,020 |-1
East Anglian Regional Health Authority
All specialties |360,934 |379,294 |5
General surgery |50,822 |51,661 |2
Urology |12,274 |16,864 |37
Trauma and orthopaedics |27,329 |29,203 |7
ENT |15,703 |16,334 |4
Ophthalmology |9,604 |10,231 |7
General medicine |45,912 |49,638 |8
Paediatrics |43,533 |41,569 |-5
Geriatric medicine |23,803 |26,006 |9
Obstetrics |36,456 |38,387 |5
Gynaecology |31,403 |33,073 |5
North West Thames Regional Health Authority
All specialties |536,203 |576,714 |8
General surgery |75,230 |76,830 |2
Urology |18,508 |18,131 |-2
Trauma and orthopaedics |37,312 |40,984 |10
ENT |17,636 |19,998 |13
Ophthalmology |11,869 |14,484 |22
General medicine |63,279 |70,175 |11
Paediatrics |67,271 |64,990 |-3
Geriatric medicine |28,626 |33,287 |16
Obstetrics |61,716 |62,876 |2
Gynaecology |44,972 |48,594 |8
North East Thames Regional Health Authority
All specialties |695,279 |746,633 |7
General surgery |98,229 |101,162 |3
Urology |28,755 |32,318 |12
Trauma and orthopaedics |48,897 |51,550 |5
ENT |30,385 |31,202 |3
Ophthalmology |11,463 |13,644 |19
General medicine |95,804 |92,551 |-3
Paediatrics |88,401 |77,902 |-12
Geriatric medicine |35,407 |37,865 |7
Obstetrics |74,790 |93,489 |25
Gynaecology |71,251 |72,818 |2
South East Thames Regional Health Authority
All specialties |629,250 |673,068 |7
General surgery |90,816 |91,713 |1
Urology |25,336 |28,680 |13
Trauma and orthopaedics |44,156 |44,520 |1
ENT |24,684 |26,726 |8
Ophthalmology |15,416 |16,602 |8
General medicine |88,339 |87,362 |-1
Paediatrics |81,882 |88,772 |8
Geriatric medicine |36,455 |37,805 |4
Obstetrics |71,785 |72,304 |1
Gynaecology |53,424 |56,249 |5
South West Thames Regional Health Authority
All specialties |457,600 |500,588 |9
General surgery |67,027 |71,983 |7
Urology |16,103 |19,760 |23
Trauma and orthopaedics |33,786 |37,227 |10
ENT |17,233 |19,911 |16
Ophthalmology |11,347 |13,539 |19
General medicine |59,767 |68,993 |15
Paediatrics |56,924 |58,494 |3
Geriatric medicine |25,179 |30,049 |19
Obstetrics |50,430 |52,148 |3
Gynaecology |42,702 |44,992 |5
Wessex Regional Health Authority
All specialties |526,284 |562,571 |7
General surgery |71,257 |74,761 |5
Urology |16,189 |18,655 |15
Trauma and orthopaedics |42,894 |43,920 |2
ENT |20,574 |22,847 |11
Ophthalmology |14,086 |16,675 |18
General medicine |73,067 |78,026 |7
Paediatrics |60,412 |67,814 |12
Geriatric medicine |29,914 |34,257 |15
Obstetrics |46,824 |45,493 |-3
Gynaecology |40,615 |43,644 |7
Oxford Regional Health Authority
All specialties |383,333 |404,923 |6
General surgery |54,577 |59,220 |9
Urology |4,586 |6,230 |36
Trauma and orthopaedics |33,117 |34,659 |5
ENT |17,405 |17,804 |2
Ophthalmology |8,756 |10,061 |15
General medicine |50,701 |52,630 |4
Paediatrics |53,883 |55,953 |4
Geriatric medicine |13,870 |14,975 |8
Obstetrics |45,041 |40,132 |-11
Gynaecology |33,800 |34,997 |4
South Western Regional Health Authority
All specialties |588,049 |617,689 |5
General surgery |86,917 |92,618 |7
Urology |15,063 |21,804 |45
Trauma and orthopaedics |46,039 |49,764 |8
ENT |19,490 |22,013 |13
Ophthalmology |16,272 |18,863 |16
General medicine |73,466 |80,616 |10
Paediatrics |65,525 |62,008 |-5
Geriatric medicine |33,171 |33,883 |2
Obstetrics |59,281 |51,590 |-13
Gynaecology |46,534 |48,464 |4
West Midlands Regional Health Authority
All specialities |959,648 |1,006,699 |5
General surgery |135,227 |141,046 |4
Urology |26,288 |32,256 |23
Trauma and orthopaedics |78,064 |81,399 |4
ENT |37,182 |40,647 |9
Ophthalmology |22,165 |23,045 |4
General medicine |155,987 |159,636 |2
Paediatrics |128,908 |124,426 |-3
Geriatric medicine |36,860 |40,283 |9
Obstetrics |104,825 |111,785 |7
Gynaecology |75,900 |77,898 |3
Mersey Regional Health Authority
All specialties |487,107 |523,515 |7
General surgery |82,084 |81,108 |-1
Urology |13,194 |15,788 |20
Trauma and orthopaedics |35,710 |37,834 |6
ENT |16,009 |19,572 |22
Ophthalmology |12,144 |14,763 |22
General medicine |63,781 |66,258 |4
Paediatrics |55,146 |56,291 |2
Geriatric medicine |27,019 |30,727 |14
Obstetrics |45,915 |51,189 |11
Gynaecology |41,799 |39,048 |-7
North Western Regional Health Authority
All specialties |887,029 |927,034 |5
General surgery |125,263 |128,609 |3
Urology |34,638 |37,682 |9
Trauma and orthopaedics |62,744 |67,282 |7
ENT |38,437 |39,282 |2
Ophthalmology |25,618 |30,060 |17
General medicine |119,981 |129,010 |8
Paediatrics |103,530 |105,819 |2
Geriatric medicine |52,760 |55,448 |5
Obstetrics |92,006 |92,534 |1
Gynaecology |77,299 |78,896 |2
Special Health Authority
All specialties |114,637 |122,441 |7
General surgery |3,057 |2,958 |-3
Urology |2,539 |2,719 |7
Trauma and orthopaedics |2,203 |2,526 |15
ENT |1,707 |1,888 |11
Ophthalmology |11,782 |13,400 |14
General medicine |10 |324 |3140
Paediatrics |9,935 |9,953 |0
Geriatric medicine |647 |774 |20
Obstetrics |8,458 |7,923 |-6
Gynaecology |6,217 |6,394 |3
Source: DH form KP70.
British Mercenaries
Mr. Conway : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what treatment within the NHS is available to mercenary soldiers returning to the United Kingdom injured in service abroad ; and what charges can be made in treatment by a health authority.
Mr. Sackville : Eligibility to free national health service treatment is based on United Kingdom residence rather than nationality. If the individual is no longer a United Kingdom resident, he will be liable to pay for NHS hospital treatment unless covered by one of a number of exceptions. These are listed in the "Patient's Guide", which will be placed in the Library.
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Management Consultancy
Ms. Janet Anderson : To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much has been spent by the NHS management executive on management consultancy costs in relation to patient-focused hospital projects ; and for what purpose.
Mr. Sackville : The national health service management executive has not directly commissioned management consultants for patient-focused projects. It has, however, supported a number of health care organisations which, individually, have hired their own consultants.
Exercise Therapy
Mr. Redmond : To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) if she will consider giving funding to local authorities who run exercise therapy sessions so that general practitioners can prescribe this treatment to their national health service patients suffering from diabetes, overweight, high-blood pressure and depression ; and if she will make a statement ;
(2) if she will give funding to Wealden district council to enable it to expand its exercise therapy prescribed by Dr. David Hanraty for patients ; and if she will make a statement.
Dr. Mawhinney : The Oasis project in Hailsham received funding of £3,400 in 1982 as a pilot project from the joint Department of Health/Health Education Authority "Look After Your Heart" programme. The project was included as an example of a healthy alliance in the "Health of the Nation Coronary Heart Disease Key Area Handbook". The project should become self-financing over time. Similar projects have been or are being set up in other parts of the country, funded locally. There is no intention to fund local authorities generally for this kind of project--as with all healthy alliances all participants should benefit, including local authorities, who should themselves benefit from use of local leisure facilities by more members of the community which they serve.
Pulmonary Embolism
Mr. Fabricant : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what research her Department has undertaken into the use of heparin and low molecular weight heparin to reduce the number of deaths from pulmonary embolism following surgical operations ; and if she will conduct a comparative study into its amount of use in England and Wales and that of other countries.
Dr. Mawhinney : At present, neither the Department of Health nor the Medical Research Council is conducting any such research. The need for initiating studies in this area, including those that make international comparisons, is considered alongside other priorities for research funding.
Learning Disabilities
Mr. Alfred Morris : To ask the Secretary of State for Health under what legislation local authorities are empowered to pay supplementary grants for people with learning disabilities living in unregistered homes.
Mr. Yeo : Local authorities can use the provisions of paragraph 2(1)(a) of schedule 8 to the National Health
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Service Act 1977 to provide financial support for people in unregistered residential accommodation who are in receipt of social security benefits. This power will be subsumed into section 26 of the National Assistance Act 1948 from 1 April 1993.Mr. Alfred Morris : To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what plans she has to introduce legislation requiring all group homes for people with learning disabilities to be registered with the local authority ;
(2) what research the Government are funding or considering funding into the future status of unregistered homes for people with learning disabilities.
Mr. Yeo : None. The Registered Homes (Amendment) Act 1991 comes into force on 1 April. It extends the requirement for registration of independent residential care homes to homes for fewer than four residents. Like the Registered Homes Act 1984, the amendment Act applies only where personal care as well as accommodation and board are provided.
Mr. Alfred Morris : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment she has made of the implications of the Registered Homes (Amendment) Act 1991 for homes which are currently unregistered which have four or more residents.
Mr. Yeo : Independent homes which provide personal care as well as board and accommodation for four or more people are required to register under the Registered Homes Act 1984. If some, but fewer than four, residents receive such services, registration as a small home will be required when the Registered Homes (Amendment) Act comes into force in April.
Homeless Mentally Ill
Mr. Battle : To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what progress has been made tackling the lack of permanent move-on accommodation under the homeless mentally ill initiative ; (2) if she will fund the revenue care costs for the move-on housing supplied to the homeless mentally ill initiative by the Housing Corporation ;
(3) who is to fund the revenue care costs for the move-on housing supplied to the homeless mentally ill initiative by the Housing Corporation.
Mr. Yeo : The Housing Corporation has agreed to secure 750 move-on places for people resettled by the homeless mentally ill initiative, a £20 million scheme to offer accommodation and psychiatric support to homeless mentally ill people. In general, it is for local social services departments to meet the costs of providing social care for people once they are resettled into the community. However, the Department is prepared to consider meeting some costs on an interim basis if longer-term guarantees of funding can be secured. Officials are having constructive discussions with the relevant local authorities about this.
Benzodiazepine
Ms. Primarolo : To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what steps she is taking to ensure that benzodiazepine prescribing does not increase following the ending of the Roche case ;
(2) what assessment she has made of the effect of measures to reduce benzodiazepine addiction since 1988 ; and what further measures she proposes ;
Column 93
(3) how many prescriptions were issued for benzodiazepines in each year since 1989.Dr. Mawhinney : Guidance on the prescribing of benzodiazepines was given to doctors by the Committee on the Safety of Medicines in "Current Problems number 21", in January 1988. This advice is still appropriate and doctors also have access to detailed guidance in the "British National Formulary".
No assessment has been made of the effect of these measures, but there has been a steady reduction in the number of benzodiazepine prescriptions since 1989. The information requested is shown in the table.
Thousands
Year |Number of
|prescriptions
------------------------------------------
1989 |17,274
1990 |16,507
1991 |15,662
Notes:
1. From January 1991, the data are based
on items. Previously they were based on
prescription fees and some items may
attract more than one fee.
2. Figures for 1992 are not yet
available.
Ms. Primarolo : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what was (a) the total sum allocated for addiction problems and (b) the proportion of this allocated specifically to problems of benzodiazepine addiction (i) in 1988 and (ii) in 1992.
Dr. Mawhinney : A total of £11.2 million was specifically allocated to health authorities in 1988-89 for the provision of services for drug misusers, including funds to help prevent the spread of HIV among drug misusers and from them to the wider population. The figure for 1992-93 is £20.8 million. In addition to these sums, health authorities can also fund drug misuse services from their general allocations. It is for health authorities to decide which services they purchase for people with drug problems, including those suffering from addiction to benzodiazepines.
Ms. Primarolo : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate she has of the number of people addicted to benzodiazepines as a proportion of all addicts in (a) 1988 and (b) 1992.
Dr. Mawhinney : This information is not currently available centrally.
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