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Mr. Stewart : The information requested is not available.
Inward Investment
Mr. Riddick : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what measures he is taking to encourage further inward investment into Scotland.
Mr. Stewart : The Scottish Office Industry Department is continually, through the work of Locate in Scotland, promoting Scotland as a location for inward investment. Also, earlier this month my right hon. Friend visited the far east and I myself visited the United States where discussions were held with existing and potential investors.
Smoke Alarms
Mrs. Ewing : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will publish statistics relating to the number of injuries or deaths resulting from fires in the home in each of the last five years ; what estimate he has made of the
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number of such instances in which injury or death might have been avoided had a smoke alarm been installed ; what information is available regarding the number of hearing impaired people involved in such incidents ; and if he will make a statement.Lord James Douglas-Hamilton [holding answer 25 October 1993] : The annual Home Office publication "Fire Statistics United Kingdom", copies of which are held in the Library, includes numbers of fatalities and non-fatal casualties in Scotland arising from fires in occupied buildings including dwellings. No information is available on the number of hearing impaired people involved in such incidents. In his annual report for 1992, Her Majesty's Chief Inspector of Fire Services for Scotland recorded the view of fire brigade officers that in 63 of the 92 dwelling fires involving fatalities which occurred in Scotland in 1992 the installation of a properly maintained smoke alarm system could have given an early warning of the outbreak of fire to which the occupants could have responded. In the same report Her Majesty's chief inspector estimated that some 60 per cent. of Scottish dwellings are fitted with smoke alarms. The Scottish Building Regulations require the installation of a hard wire smoke alarm system in the construction of all new houses. The Government, recognising that the cost of a smoke alarm is small compared with the benefits offered in providing early warning of the outbreak of fire, continue to promote and encourage the installtion and maintenance of smoke alarms in homes throughout Scotland.
HEALTH
Private Hospitals
Mr. Redmond : To ask the Secretary of State for Health under which provision of the NHS Acts the removal of patients from London to private hospitals in Northumbria and York is permitted.
Mr. Bowis : Decisions on where a patient should be treated are the responsibility of the purchasing authority. The transfer of detained patients from one hospital to another is authorised by section 19 of the Mental Health Act 1983.
Older Patients
Mr. Ieuan Wyn Jones : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what efforts are currently undertaken by her Department to monitor the effect of NHS purchasing agreements upon older patients.
Mr. Sackville : The responsibility for assessing the health care needs of local populations, including those of older patients, and for placing and monitoring contracts which secure good quality, value for money services to meet those needs, lies with purchasers locally.
Weil's Disease
Mr. Redmond : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recommendations she is issuing to stop people drinking direct from bottles of (a) beer, (b) lager, (c) mineral water and (d) milk in case they become infected with Weil's disease ; and if she will make a statement.
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Mouthwashes
Mr. Gareth Wardell : To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what plans she has to require manufacturers of mouthwashes which contain ethanol to provide warnings on product labels to the effect that the liquid could be carcinogenic;
(2) if she will make it a requirement on mouthwash manufacturers to specify clearly on the product label the percentage volume of the liquid comprising ethanol ;
(3) if she will initiate a publicity campaign on the link between mouthwashes containing ethanol and the incidence of oral cancer.
Mr. Sackville : The Department of Health considers that there is insufficient and conflicting evidence in relation to a link between ethanol and oral cancer and therefore does not intend to initiate a publicity campaign on this matter or introduce warnings on licensed products containing ethanol.
Ethanol is an excipient in a number of mouthwashes licensed as medicines in the United Kingdom. Regulations taking effect from 1 January 1994 will require all excipients in medicines to be declared in any package leaflet and the presence of ethanol will also have to be shown on the packaging.
Dental Handpieces (Sterilisation)
Mr. Gareth Wardell : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment she has made as to the effectiveness of the sterilisation of dental handpieces by autoclaving according to manufacturer's instructions.
Dr. Mawhinney : The effectiveness of sterilisation was referred to the Microbiology Advisory Committee which advises the Department on sterilisation practice applicable to the health service. In May 1993 the committee recommended that dental handpieces should be cleaned in accordance with the manufacturers' instructions and then subjected to steam sterilisation.
Diabetics
Mr. Gareth Wardell : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment she has made as to the suitability of insulin pens for delivering animal insulin to diabetics ; and if she will make a statement.
Mr. Sackville : Cartridges containing animal insulins for use with insulin pens are not available. No assessments have therefore been made as to the suitability of insulin pens for delivering animal insulin to diabetics.
NHS Contractors
Dame Jill Knight : To ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will list the increases in remuneration of all contractors within the national health service for the year 1993-94, indicating any increases in pay and expenses in money and percentage terms.
Dr. Mawhinney : The increases in remuneration of national health service contractors in 1993-94 are as follows :
General Medical Practitioners : The intended average net income of general practitioners increased by £600 or 1.5 per cent. In addition, the level of practice expenses incorporated into fees and allowances increased by £2,190 or 11 per cent. Fees and allowances payable to GPs increased by an average of 3.3 per cent. as a result of these changes.
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General Dental Practitioners : The target net income of general dental practitioners increased by £537 or 1.5 per cent. In addition the practice expense of GDPs increased by £1,481 or 3.0 per cent. The average increase in pay and allowances payable to GDPs was 2.42 per cent.Pharmacists : Pharmacists' remuneration is contained within a global sum out of which all fees and allowances are paid. There is no separate element for expenses. In 1993-94, the global sum for England was increased by 1.5 per cent. to £596 million.
Ophthalmic Medical Practitioners : The NHS sight test fee paid to OMPs increased to £10.15. This included an increase of 11 pence or 1.5 per cent. in the pay element and 7 pence or 2.75 per cent. in the expenses element of the fee.
Optometrists : No agreement has yet been reached with representatives of the optometric profession about the level of sight test fee for 1993-94.
Bed-and-breakfast Accommodation
Ms Gordon : To ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will publish tables 3 and 5 from the 1991 census local base statistics 100 per cent., showing group 15.1 which includes bed-and-breakfast accommodation for homeless families separately by (a) parliamentary constituencies in Britain and (b) local authority districts in Britain.
Mr. Sackville : Tables 3 and 5 in the 1991 census English county and Scottish region reports give figures for each local authority district for group 15, "Other miscellaneous establishments". To produce separate figures for the two constituent sub-groups (15.1 "Miscellaneous family establishments" and 15.2 "Others") for local areas at this stage would incur disproportionate costs and delay other census output. Even if the statistics were to be produced, the numbers would be very small for some areas, and some of the statistics might need to be withheld or combined to preserve confidentiality. Copies of the reports are available in the Library.
Smoking
Ms Primarolo : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what is the percentage of regular smokers among 11 to 15-year-olds in boys and girls in 1990 and 1992 ; and what is the target for this age group in "The Health of the Nation".
Mr. Sackville : The Office of Population Censuses and Surveys reports of smoking among secondary schoolchildren in 1990 and 1992 provide the following information about smoking prevalence among 11 to 15-year- olds. Copies of both reports are available in the Library.
Regular smokers among boys and girls aged 11 to 15 years:
England, 1990 to 1992
Per cent.
|Boys |Girls|Total
------------------------------------------------------------
1990 |9 |11 |10 |1992 |9 |10 |10
Source: OPCS.
The "Health of the Nation" target for 11 to 15-year-olds is to reduce smoking by at least 33 per cent. by 1994 (from about 8 per cent. in 1988 to less than 6 per cent.).
Pharmaceutical Prices
Ms Primarolo : To ask the Secretary of State for Health when she plans to announce a new pharmaceutical price regulation scheme agreement.
Mr. Sackville : After several months of negotiation, the Department of Health and the Association of the British
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Pharmaceutical Society agreed the terms of a draft agreement on 10 August 1993. The draft agreement was then circulated for consultation to all companies selling branded prescription medicines to the national health service, and, with their consent, the Association of British Pharmaceutical Industries endorsed the agreement on 26 August.The agreement came into force on 1 October 1993 and is intended to run for five years. Copies will be placed in the Library. Details of the draft agreement and of its endorsement were announced in press releases from the Department on 10 August and 26 August. Copies of these press releases, H93/909 and H93/933, are available in the Library.
Primary Care Workers
Ms Primarolo : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans she has to attract primary care workers to inner London.
Dr. Mawhinney : In 1993-94, £40 million extra has been made available for investment in primary care within the London initiative zone. It is for national health service management to decide how best to use these resources, in accordance with local needs, including, where it is considered appropriate, for primary care staff.
GP Fund Holders
Ms Primarolo : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what evidence she has on the extent to which fund-holding patients are being seen ahead of non-fund-holding patients who have greater clinical need.
Dr. Mawhinney : Departmental guidance EL(91)84 is clear. There are common waiting lists for all urgent cases. It is clinicians who decide clinical priority. Copies of the guidance are available in the Library.
General Practitioners
Ms Primarolo : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what is the average net remuneration for general practitioners in inner London family health service authority areas ; and what is the national average.
Mr. Sackville : I refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave her on 22 July at column 290. More recent data suggest that payments for achieving higher levels of coverage for childhood immunisations and cervical cytology screening and for administering Hib meningitis vaccine added an estimated £2,790 to the average general practitioner's net remuneration in 1992- 93.
Rubella Vaccination
Ms Primarolo : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans she has to include rubella vaccinations in the targets for general practitioners.
Mr. Sackville : Rubella vaccination has been part of general practitioners' targets for childhood immunisations since April 1990 when the target payments scheme started.
Consultants' Merit Awards
Ms Primarolo : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what was the cost of the consultants merit award system in each of the last five years ; and what plans she has to change the system.
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Dr. Mawhinney : In 1990-91, financial returns showed a total of £41,370,322 paid in distinction awards to consultants in the national h.
National Health Service Management Executive
Ms Primarolo : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans she has to review the costs of the NHS management executive headquarters in Leeds.
Dr. Mawhinney : My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State's statement on 21 October about the management of the health service in England, explained the intention to streamline the central management of the national health service, including the headquarters of the NHS management executive in Leeds. The functions carried out by the NHS management executive headquarters will be reviewed and management cost targets set in the light of this process. Further information about the proposed changes is provided in a background document "Managing the new NHS", copies of which are available in the Library.
Services (Purchasing)
Ms Primarolo : To ask the Secretary of State for Health on how many occasions on which a clinician's choice of provider has been judged as unwarranted in 1991-92 by the purchasing authority ; and what that figure represents as a percentage of all extra-contractual referees.
Mr. Sackville : This information is not available centrally. The grounds on which an extra-contractual referral can be refused are clearly laid out in "Guidance on Extra Contractual Referrals" (EL(92)60), copies of which are available in the Library.
MHS Policy Board
Mr. Gordon Prentice : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what criteria she will use to select the eight additional non-executive members on the NHS Policy Board drawn from the new regions.
Dr. Mawhinney : It is proposed that these non-executive members of the policy board will be appointed as chairmen of the eight interim regional health authorities, and they will need the same qualities as their forerunners. There are many suitable candidates known to us both in national health service bodies and from outside the NHS who will be considered for these posts.
Cervical Cancer
Ms Corston : To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what progress her Department is making in arrangements for a final clinical trial of the HDA test for cervical cancer ;
(2) which regional health authority was requested by her Department to fund the final clinical trials into the HDA test for cervical cancer.
Mr. Sackville : The Department is not involved in making arrangements for a clinical trial into the HDA test, and has not requested any regional health authority to fund the trial.
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Any evaluation of the test would be between Quest and the medical scientific community to arrange. Decisions on the use of regional research and development resources is for local determination.Statistics
Mrs. Peacock : To ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will make a statement on the Office of Population Censuses and Surveys' policy on the release of statistics.
Mr. Sackville : Subject to the overriding requirement of confidentiality, the Office of Population Censuses and Surveys' (OPCS) policy on the release of statistics is based on the principles of availability, openness, quality, timeliness, pre-announced timetable, simultaneity, and independence. A full statement of its policy is available from OPCS, and I have arranged for a copy to be placed in the Library. The key points are as follows :
OPCS is committed to maintaining the confidentiality of the data which it collects about individual people and groups of people such as families, households, and organisations.
OPCS makes information available from all the statistical data which it collects on its own behalf, in as convenient a form as possible.
OPCS is open about its sources and methods.
OPCS is committed to the provision of good quality statistics. Statistics are made available as early as practicable.
Statistics are released to a pre-announced timetable.
OPCS's statistics are made available to all users from the same time, with limited specified exceptions on a strict need-to-know basis.
The Registrar General for England and Wales is solely responsible for the content and timing of OPCS's statistical publications and press releases.
Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease
Mr. Burns : To ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will make a statement on Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease arising as a result of medical intervention.
Mr. Sackville : There is no evidence that Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD) has been transmitted in the United Kingdom through any human organs or tissues other than pituitary gland extracts or dura mater. There has been one reported case, in the United States of America in 1974, in which a patient who had previously received a corneal transplant subsequently developed CJD, and another possible case related to the transplantation of heart membrane tissue.
Cases of CJD in the United Kingdom continue to be monitored, and particular attention paid to factors in the patient's medical history that could possibly have caused CJD.
We are satisfied that existing controls protect the public from transmission of CJD through medical interventions. However, the Department will urgently assess any new evidence which suggests a need to review these controls, and will provide further guidance as necessary.
A document summarising the situation has been placed in the Library.
Dentistry
Mr. Blunkett : To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many dentists, who have not given notice to leave the dental list, have given written notice to each family health service authority to terminate or de- register some or all of their capitation arrangements for child patients each month since July 1992.
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Dr. Mawhinney [holding answer 21 October 1993] : Tables will be placed in the Library showing, for each month, the number of dentists in contract with each family health services authority who have de-registered child patients since July 1992. Where dentists hold contracts with more than one FHSA, the number of dentists quoted could include duplications. The information provided by FHSAs weekly since July 1992 shows that in the period up to 15 October 1993, 239 dentists gave written notification to de- register some child patients. This represents 1.37 per cent. of the number of dentists, 17,400, in contract with FHSAs at 30 June 1992.
The number of children de-registered was 1,734. At 31 August 1993 child registrations were 8 per cent. higher than at 1 July 1992.
Mr. Blunkett : To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many dentists who have not given notice to leave the dental list have given written notice to each family health service authority to de-register some or all of their continuing care arrangements for adult patients in each month since July 1992 ; how many dentists have de-registered patients ; and how many patients have been de-registered.
Dr. Mawhinney [holding answer 21 October 1993] : Tables will be placed in the Library showing for each month, the number of dentists in contract with each family health services authority who have de-registered adult patients and the total number of adult patients de-registered since July 1992. Where dentists hold contracts with more than one family health service authority, the numbers of dentists quoted could include duplications. The information provided weekly by family health service authorities since July 1992 shows that in the period up to 15 October 1993, 2,222 dentists gave written notification to de-register 556,204 adult patients.
Despite these notified de-registrations, the total number of adult patients registered with a dentist in England increased by over 0.884 million (4.3 per cent.) from 20.580 million to 21.465 million over the period 1 July 1992 to 31 August 1993.
DEFENCE
Low Flying
Mr. Redmond : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what response was given by the officer commanding Royal Air Force unit Goose bay to the letter from the commander of No. 5 wing, Canadian forces, dated 11 June, requesting assurances that Royal Air Force units visiting Goose bay are notified of the importance of complying with Canadian national and local flying orders.
Mr. Hanley : Following the letter from the commander of No. 5 wing, Canadian forces, officer commanding RAF Goose bay wrote to officers commanding of all Tornado GR1 squadrons which deploy to Goose bay on a regular basis stressing the importance of adhering to the Canadian national and Goose bay local flying orders during deployments to Goose bay. Moreover, commanding officers were reminded that these procedures would be covered as part of the brief given on arrival at Goose bay. Similar advice will be given to any other squadrons planning to deploy to Goose bay in the future.
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Mr. Redmond : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on future plans for Royal Air Force training at Canadian forces base Goose bay beyond the expiry of the current multinational memorandum of understanding.
Mr. Hanley : The current multinational memorandum of understanding on the use of Canadian forces base Goose bay expires on 31 March 1996. The Canadian authorities are carrying out an environmental review of the effect of military activity in the area. Continued use of Goose bay by the Royal Air Force will depend on decisions taken by the Canadian Government in the light of this review, and on any subsequent negotiations with the Canadian Government.
Mr. McFall : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if RAF aircrew planning low-level training flights over Germany are required to supply details of their intended route to the authorities responsible for the German low-flying management system.
Mr. Hanley : Royal Air Force aircrew planning to fly at low level over Germany during daylight hours are not required to supply details of their intended route to the authorities responsible for the German low- flying management system. The German night low-flying system is one of fixed routes and RAF aircrew planning to fly at low level at night are required to notify which route they intend to fly.
Corporal Haymand (Spectacle Repairs)
Mr. Redmond : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what was the cost of flying Corporal Martin Haymand serving with the Royal Regiment of Wales in the Falkland Islands, the round trip to Bristol to have his spectacles repaired ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Hanley : Corporal Hayman required spectacles for carrying out his normal duties. While an optician visits the Falkland Islands each year the next visit is scheduled for July 1994. On medical advice, corporal Hayman was advised to return to the United Kingdom to obtain replacement spectacles after his own were broken. He occupied a spare seat on a regular RAF flight, returning to the Falkland Islands four days later taking the next available free seat. These seats would have been unoccupied if corporal Hayman had not used them and therefore there was no extra cost to the taxpayer.
Nuclear Testing
Mr. Redmond : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will list by year since 1965 the number of nuclear bomb tests that have been carried out by his Department.
Mr. Aitken : The United Kingdom has conducted the following numbers of nuclear tests since 1965 :
|Number
---------------------
1965 |1
1966 |0
1967 |0
1968 |0
1969 |0
1970 |0
1971 |0
1972 |0
1973 |0
1974 |1
1975 |0
1976 |1
1977 |0
1978 |2
1979 |1
1980 |3
1981 |1
1982 |1
1983 |1
1984 |2
1985 |1
1986 |1
1987 |1
1988 |0
1989 |1
1990 |1
1991 |1
1992 |0
1993 |0
Mine Counter-Measures
Mr. Redmond : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will list by year for the last four years, the number of new mine counter- measures vehicles his Department has purchased ; what is the estimate for the current financial year ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Aitken : There have been no purchases of mine counter-measures vessels in the last four years. The last batch ordered was for four single role minehunters (SRMH) in 1987. The first of this batch, HMS Inverness, was accepted from the shipyard, Vosper Thornycroft Ltd, in February 1991 and the last of the batch, HMS Bridport, was accepted in June 1993. We hope to make an announcement on single role minehunters before the end of the year.
International Atomic Energy Agency (Inspectors)
Mr. Llwyd : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make it his policy to allow the International Atomic Energy Agency to conduct special inspections at undeclared sites in the United Kingdom.
Mr. Aitken : The powers of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to make special inspections at declared sites in the United Kingdom are defined in article 73 of the United Kingdom/Euratom/IAEA agreement on the application of safeguards in the United Kingdom (Cmnd. 6730). Because the United Kingdom is a nuclear weapon state under the terms of the nuclear non-proliferation treaty, the question of special inspections at undeclared sites does not arise.
Defence Diversification
Mr. Llew Smith : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what is the Government's policy on defence diversification.
Mr. Aitken : The Government's policy is that decisions on how to adapt to changing market circumstances, and what products to make, are for the commercial judgment of companies.
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The Department of Trade and Industry provides advice and assistance to companies who may be considering diversification, including a recently published handbook called "Changing Tack". That Department, together with the Department of Employment, also administers the United Kingdom participation in the EC KONVER programme, which is designed to assist regions affected by the decline in the armaments industry and the closure of military bases.Housing
Mr. Colvin : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many married quarters in the United Kingdom have been transferred to local housing authorities ; and what is their total value for the last 10 years.
Mr. Hanley : Over the last 10 years at least, 1,918 surplus married quarters have been sold to housing associations or local authorities at a value of over £55 million. Because records for the earlier years are not maintained in a way which allows such sales to be easily identified, these figures may underestimate the true position. In addition a substantial programme of leasing has been carried on throughout the period and we currently have 1,057 properties on lease to these organisations and others.
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