| Previous Section | Home Page |
Sir Hector Monro : I refer the hon. Member to the reply that I gave to the hon. Member for Islington, South and Finsbury (Mr. Smith) on 20 April 1993, column 89 .
Farm Woodland Premium Scheme
Mr. Maclennan : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what reasons underlie his decision to suspend payment of the farm woodland premium scheme in Scotland until October ; and if he will make a statement.
Sir Hector Monro : The farm woodland premium scheme has been highly successful in Scotland in its first full year of operation. Although there have been more planting proposals submitted than originally expected, my Department is continuing to process new applications and the resulting payments in the normal way.
Central European Time
Mr. Maclennan : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what plans he has to hold consultations with people resident in the north of Scotland about the possibility of Britain moving into the central European time zone.
Lord James Douglas-Hamilton : The Government have no proposals at present for changing the existing arrangements for summertime. No changes will be made without fully taking into account the views of the public and sectoral opinion throughout Scotland.
Breast Screening
Mr. Raymond S. Robertson : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will publish a progress report on the Scottish breast screening programme ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Lang : I have today approved the publication of a report covering the background, introduction and structure of the Scottish breast screening programme together with the 1991-92 results and a copy has been placed in the Library of the House. The report shows that :
f the Programme is to reduce mortality in the screened population in Scotland by 30 per cent. overall ;
Each year in Scotland approximately 2,600 new cases of breast cancer are diagnosed and a total of 1,300 women of all ages die from the disease ;
Mammographic screening is but one strategy in the fight to defeat breast cancer and, by the year 2000, the Screening Programme is expected to result in about 1,650 extra years of life gained annually in Scotland ; on average, each of the women in whom death from breast cancer is prevented will have an additional 15 years of life ; In 1991-92, 126,867 Scottish women were invited for screening ; The United Kingdom target for uptake of invitation is 70 per cent. and Scotland is above this with an average uptake of 72 per cent. of all women invited for screening ;
Column 539
0.9 per cent. of all women screened went on to have a biopsy, and 72 per cent. of these women were diagnosed with cancer ; this level of diagnosis is well above the 50 per cent. target set by the United Kingdom standards ;In 1991-92, 578 cancers were detected, equalling 6.3 per 1,000 women screened ; this again is well above the United Kingdom detection standard of 5 per 1,000 women screened.
The Scottish breast screening programme is an example of the increased emphasis on improving health structures set out as a goal in the patients charter. It also accords with the patients charter in seeking to provide a high-quality service and stanrdards and value for money.
Column 540
Junior Doctors
Mr. Home Robertson : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what are the average and maximum weekly number of hours on duty and on call of junior hospital doctors in Scotland.
Mr. Stewart [holding answer 27 April 1993] : Information on actual hours worked by junior doctors is not held centrally. As at 30 September 1992, the latest available figures, the average number of contracted hours for junior doctors and the maximum hours contracted by any doctor were as shown in the table :
Column 539
Junior hospital doctors: contracted average weekly hours of work; as at 30 September 1992<1>
Average hours
contracted
Type of contract |Number of doctors|Basic |Additional duty |Total |Maximum hours
|contracted total
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Whole time:
Full shift |142 |40 |21 |61 |108
Partial shift |138 |40 |30 |70 |78
Rota (on call) |2,631 |40 |40 |80 |116
All whole time contracts |2,911 |40 |39 |<2>79 |116
Part time:
Rota (on call) |28 |20 |26 |46 |n/a
Others |91 |37 |- |37 |n/a
Notes:
Doctors contracted for full or partial shift patterns of working are not contracted for on call work.
<1>Data are provisional.
Excludes staff with honorary contracts and staff in dental specialities.
Excludes data for the Dundee Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust.
Grades included in the table are: senior registrar; registrar; senior house officer; and house officer.
<2>Includes both shift and on call additional duty hours.
Column 540
Violence
Mr. David Marshall : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what plans he has to increase the levels of resources provided towards the reduction of murder and violence in Scotland ; and if he will make a statement.
Lord James Douglas-Hamilton [holding answer 26 April 1993] : My right hon. Friend has a number of bids for additional resources under consideration.
|
| Home Page |