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Public Bodies
Dr. Wright : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (1) what her Department's policy is regarding the use of executive search consultants in making appointments to public bodies ; and if she will (a) list the appointments where such consultants have been used and (b) list the cost in each case since April 1992 ; (2) which of the appointments made to public bodies by her Department since April 1992 have been advertised.
Mr. Jack : Executive search consultants are occasionally used to find candidates for full-time executive appointments or other major appointments. Since April 1992, no consultants have been used for this purpose, and none of the public body posts, for which this Department has responsibility, has been advertised.
Sheep Annual Premium
Mr. Alex Carlile : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what plans she has to release grant and aid payments to those sheep farmers who have not yet received their sheep annual premium ; and if she will make a statement.
Mr. Jack : Payment of the first and second advance of premium under the 1993 sheep annual premium scheme in the United Kingdom has already been made in respect of 82 per cent. of the claims received. Outstanding advance payments will be made to producers as soon as we are satisfied that the claims meet the requirements of the scheme.
Press Releases
Mr. Matthew Taylor : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food how many press releases her Department has issued in each year since 1979.
Mr. Jack : The number of press releases issued by MAFF over recent years is as follows.
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|Number
----------------------
1980 |488
1981 |439
1982 |482
1983 |400
1984 |458
1985 |380
1986 |357
1987 |403
1988 |526
1989 |568
1990 |515
1991 |582
1992 |532
<1>1993 |506
<1>Up to December 14
1993.
Figures for 1979 are not available.
One-Net Rule
Mrs. Lait : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what decision she has reached following her consultation exercise on the application of the one-net rule.
Mr. Jack : We had hoped that the EC would agree on a Community wide rule that only one type of net should be carried on a fishing trip. This would have been a useful measure to support enforcement of technical conservation rules. Unfortunately, no agreement has been reached in the EC on this issue. We therefore consulted the industry on the way forward.
A range of views was put to us, but a significant proportion of the United Kingdom industry believed that we should not continue unilaterally to apply a one-net rule in the United Kingdom, and should discontinue it unless and until an EC-wide measure was introduced.
We have decided to accept that view : it would not be reasonable for our industry to be more tightly regulated in this regard than its competitors from other EC countries fishing in the same waters. The one-net rule will therefore end on 31 December 1993.
Lambs
Mrs. Angela Knight : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what action she proposes to take to improve the protection of orphan lambs in markets.
Mr. Soames : A new order has been made under the Animal Health Act 1981 which gives additional protection to young lambs and goat kids at livestock markets. From 1 January 1994, the amount of time unaccompanied lambs and goat kids under four weeks of age can spend in a livestock market will be limited to four hours. While at the market they must be housed in solid sided draught free pens and provided with dry bedding. A further provision to ban lambs and goat kids from markets if they have an unhealed navel will come into force on 1 January 1995.
The Welfare of Animals at Markets Order 1990 already lays down certain other provisions to protect unaccompanied lambs under four weeks of age at markets. This legislation specifies that these animals must be housed under cover in bedded accommodation, and also precludes sick lambs from being exposed for sale. These provisions also apply to goat kids.
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Bananas
Mr. Bernie Grant : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what action she is taking to prevent the smuggling of dollar bananas into the United Kingdom ; and if she will make a statement.
Mr. Jack [holding answer 10 December 1993] : Controls of imports of bananas apply at the first point of entry into the Community. Licences are required for all imports from third countries. In the single European market, once bananas have been cleared into free circulation anywhere in the Community they may be traded freely. National controls on the entry of dollar bananas already entered into free circulation by another member state are not permitted.
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Farming Debts
Dr. Strang : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what information she has on the level of indebtedness among (a) specialist sheep farmers and (b) mixed cattle and sheep farmers in the (i) severely disadvantaged areas and (ii) disadvantaged areas for each year since 1984.
Mr. Jack [holding answer 15 December 1993] : The farm business survey provides data on indebtedness from a sample of farm businesses in England. Results for the new farm classification are available only from 1986-87 onwards. The table shows the average level of total liabilities per farm and expresses this as a proportion of average total assets.
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Average indebtedness of specialist sheep and mixed cattle and sheep farms wholly or mainly in the Less Favoured Areas in England<1>
SDA specialist sheep farms<2> SDA mixed cattle and sheep farms<2> DA cattle and sheep farms<3>
[NL] |Accounting year<4> |Total external liabilities (£ thousands per farm) |External liabilities as a percentage of total assets (Per cent.)|Total external liabilities (£ thousands per farm) |External liabilities as a percentage of total assets (Per cent.)|Total external liabilities (£ thousands per farm)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1986-87 |28.7 |14.0 |36.0 |14.0 |36.9 |16.0
1987-88 |28.3 |15.0 |35.3 |13.0 |35.8 |16.0
1988-89 |28.5 |14.0 |36.2 |13.0 |30.1 |13.0
1989-90 |32.9 |15.0 |43.6 |13.0 |34.8 |13.0
1990-91 |28.4 |14.0 |48.1 |15.0 |21.3 |8.0
1991-92 |24.5 |12.0 |43.3 |14.0 |20.4 |8.0
1992-93 (provisional) |28.6 |14.0 |39.0 |12.0 |30.7 |10.0
<1> All data based on closing valuations.
<2> SDA farms must have at least half of their area in the LFA and at least half of that in the SDA.
<3> DA farms must have at least half of their area in the LFA and more than half of that in the DA.
<4> Ending on average in mid-February.
Farm Workers
Dr. Strang : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food how many full-time hired farm workers are employed on farm holdings in the less-favoured areas ; and if she will provide a breakdown by county according to the most recent figures for each year since 1982.
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Mr. Jack [holding answer 15 December 1993] : The number of full-time hired farm workers employed on farm holdings in the less favoured areas by county in each year since 1982 is shown in the table.
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Regular full-time hired workers on holdings<1> in less favoured areas<2> in England at June each year by county
County<3> |1982 |1983 |1984 |1985 |<4>1986 |1987 |1988 |1989 |1990 |1991 |1992
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Bedfordshire |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0
Berkshire |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0
Buckinghamshire |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0
Cleveland |6 |6 |5 |6 |107 |99 |84 |78 |79 |73 |66
Cambridgeshire |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0
Cheshire |12 |19 |13 |19 |21 |21 |19 |18 |20 |19 |16
Cornwall and Isles of Scilly |33 |37 |38 |38 |264 |255 |238 |218 |211 |194 |186
Cumbria |507 |510 |475 |448 |627 |584 |599 |562 |542 |536 |506
Derbyshire |171 |150 |136 |117 |198 |184 |167 |181 |177 |158 |158
Devon |179 |164 |159 |145 |385 |408 |445 |420 |393 |402 |393
Dorset |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0
Durham |171 |157 |150 |145 |331 |261 |281 |268 |242 |238 |247
Essex |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0
Gloucestershire |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0
Hampshire |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0
Isle of Wight |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0
Hereford and Worcester |77 |55 |56 |57 |85 |86 |69 |64 |57 |55 |65
Hertfordshire |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0
Kent |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0
Lancashire |132 |119 |109 |98 |291 |269 |250 |244 |226 |228 |222
Leicestershire |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0
Lincolnshire |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0
Merseyside |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0
Greater London (E) |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0
Greater London (SE) |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0
Norfolk |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0
Northamptonshire |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0
Northumberland and Tyne and Wear |648 |645 |622 |586 |1,070 |994 |919 |879 |809 |738 |694
Nottinghamshire |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0
Oxfordshire |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0
Avon |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0
Shropshire |202 |193 |191 |184 |252 |237 |220 |205 |192 |189 |181
Somerset |142 |134 |110 |103 |139 |117 |109 |104 |94 |81 |76
Staffordshire |28 |32 |23 |23 |126 |114 |102 |101 |99 |86 |95
Suffolk |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0
Surrey |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0
East Sussex |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0
West Sussex |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0
Warwickshire |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0
Greater Manchester |15 |20 |21 |30 |31 |25 |19 |23 |36 |42 |32
Wiltshire |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0
West Midlands |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0
South Yorkshire |18 |7 |7 |6 |40 |34 |44 |43 |34 |39 |34
North Yorkshire |464 |418 |406 |393 |549 |554 |534 |496 |478 |484 |440
West Yorkshire |128 |97 |107 |116 |194 |202 |192 |188 |258 |197 |206
Humberside |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0 |0
|------- |------- |------- |------- |------- |------- |------- |------- |------- |------- |-------
England |2,933 |2,763 |2,628 |2,514 |4,710 |4,444 |4,291 |4,092 |3,947 |3,759 |3,617
Source: June census of agriculture and horticulture each year.
1. Minor holdings are excluded.
2. Workers on holdings with either all or part of their land in the less favoured areas have been included.
3. Some counties have been merged to preserve confidentiality.
4. A re-definition of the LFA occurred in 1986.
Hill Livestock Compensatory Allowance
Dr. Strang : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if she will list the number of producers entitled to hill livestock compensatory allowances by county and local authority subdivisions, distinguishing between those located in severely disadvantaged areas and disadvantaged areas.
Mr. Jack [holding answer 15 December 1993] : The table shows the most up to date information available on the number of claims paid under the 1993 hill livestock compensatory allowance scheme from producing farming eligible land wholly within the severely disadvantaged area--SDA-- or the disadvantaged area--DA--or on mixed land--SDA combined with DA land. There are also about 4,000 holdings in the United Kingdom which consist of SDA or DA land plus other land. Most of the claims expected for the 1993 scheme have by now been received.
|SDA |DA |Mixed
----------------------------------------------------
England
Cheshire |97 |26 |38
Cleveland |5 |13 |4
Cornwall |53 |508 |118
Cumbria |1,477|368 |852
Derbyshire |591 |166 |146
Devon |713 |629 |115
Durham |448 |132 |107
Greater Manchester |110 |67 |32
Hereford and Worcestershire |180 |121 |100
Lancashire |409 |425 |286
Northumberland |582 |139 |248
North Yorkshire |932 |396 |701
Scilly Isles |7 |Nil |Nil
Shropshire |365 |118 |229
Somerset |234 |25 |36
South Yorkshire |44 |56 |32
Staffordshire |204 |243 |93
Tyne and Wear |Nil |11 |Nil
West Yorkshire |549 |114 |98
Wales
Gwynedd |1,179|744 |542
South Glamorgan |4 |1 |1
Mid Glamorgan |336 |39 |63
West Glamorgan |161 |84 |50
Gwent |270 |278 |59
Dyfed |1,272|1,854|769
Powys |2,840|281 |701
Clwyd |909 |85 |345
Northern Ireland
Antrim |1,184|1,212|612
Armagh |623 |1,346|376
Down |724 |835 |683
Fermanagh |3,070|82 |114
Londonderry |1,222|735 |502
Tyrone |2,550|1,568|854
Scotland<1>
|SDA & Mixed|DA
--------------------------------------------------
Aberdeen |756 |177
Angus |143 |13
Argyll |1,042 |Nil
Ayr |726 |103
Banff |378 |47
Berwick |142 |15
Bute |42 |4
Bute Arran |86 |Nil
Caithness |729 |Nil
Clackmannan |14 |Nil
Dumfries |685 |15
Dunbarton |88 |14
Fife |103 |7
Inverness |2,516 |3
Kincardine |154 |16
Kinross |45 |4
Kirkcudbright |557 |2
Lanark |582 |58
Lothian, East |38 |4
Lothian, Mid |115 |Nil
Lothian, West |53 |4
Moray |157 |4
Nairn |55 |2
Orkney |906 |Nil
Peebles |180 |4
Perth |573 |22
Renfrew |170 |3
Ross |2,458 |20
Roxburgh |280 |11
Selkirk |115 |Nil
Stirling |208 |16
Sutherland |715 |Nil
Wigtown |413 |30
Zetland |1,530 |Nil
<1> For statistical purposes, claims in Scotland
are classified as relating to Severely
Disadvantaged and mixed land if they cover any
severely disadvantaged land.
HEALTH
GP Services
Mr. Bayley : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what was the average level of funding per capita allocated by each regional health authority to district health
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authorities in 1993-94 for purchasing the range of services covered by the fund-holding scheme on behalf of patients in non-fund-holding general practitioner practices.Dr. Mawhinney : This information is not available centrally.
Mental Health
Mr. Rendel : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what proportion of each regional health authority's total expenditure is spent on activities relating to mental health.
Mr. Bowis : The table shows for 1991-92, the latest date for which complete information is available, the amount spent on purchasing mental illness services as a proportion of total expenditure on health services purchased.
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Region |Mental illness expenditure|Total expenditure |Per cent. of total
[NL] |£ |£
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Northern |151,378,056 |1,073,970,006 |14.00
Yorkshire |144,658,241 |1,230,231,970 |11.75
Trent |180,272,375 |1,541,372,674 |11.69
East Anglian |94,477,404 |638,876,984 |14.78
North West Thames |184,718,170 |1,378,278,559 |13.40
North East Thames |198,692,023 |1,461,683,860 |13.59
South East Thames |167,543,458 |1,394,960,544 |12.00
South West Thames |175,275,593 |1,176,983,444 |14.89
Wessex |101,116,358 |860,078,849 |11.75
Oxford |88,973,153 |759,287,989 |11.71
South Western |119,137,120 |1,099,303,848 |10.83
West Midlands |182,282,830 |1,559,521,546 |11.68
Mersey |116,670,000 |888,269,765 |13.13
North Western |180,776,909 |1,475,731,484 |12.24
|------- |------- |-------
Total |2,085,971,690 |16,538,551,522 |12.61
Notes:
1. This information is available on a DHA purchaser basis from the financial returns completed by health authorities.
2. Mental illness includes elderly mentally ill, speciality functions-mental illness, child and adolescent psychiatry, forensic
psychiatry, psychotherapy, old age psychiatry; Services include community mental illness services, single speciality hospitals and
units on district general hospitals sites.
Nurses
Mrs. Dunwoody : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what qualifications a nurse would be expected to have in order to carry out (a) immunisations, (b) vaccinations and (c) home assessments of elderly people.
Mr. Sackville : These activities may be carried out independently by a first level registered nurse with additional and appropriate training, or by a first or second level nurse under the direction of a qualified medical or nursing practitioner.
Mrs. Dunwoody : To ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will list, for the last four years, the number of (a) practice nurses and (b) community nurses.
Mr. Sackville : The information is shown in the table.
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Practice nurses as at 1 October each year England Whole-time equivalents Year |Number --------------------- 1989 |4,630 1990 |7,740 1991 |8,780 1992 |9,120 Note: Figures are independently rounded to the nearest 10 whole-time equivalents.
Community nurses by speciality as at 30 September each year England Whole-time equivalents Year |Number --------------------- 1989 |39,790 1990 |41,240 1991 |40,650 1992 |40,750 Note: Figures are independently rounded to the nearest 10 whole-time equivalents.
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Prescription Costs
Mr. Whittingdale : To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what is the cost of a prescription to a pregnant mother in each member country of the European Community ;
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(2) what is the cost of a prescription to an old-age pensioner in each member country of the European Community.Dr. Mawhinney : The latest available information is shown in the table.
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Cost of a prescription in European Community member states
|Pensioner |Maternity
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
|Belgium |Free for certain specified illnesses.
|15 per cent. of cost up to a limit of 200 Belgian francs for certain drugs. |25 per cent. of cost up to a limit of
|25 per cent. of cost up to a limit of 300 Belgian francs for other drugs. |300 Belgian francs for certain
|drugs.
|50 per cent. of cost up to a limit of
|500 Belgian francs for other drugs.
Denmark |Free for insulin. |Free.
|25 per cent. of cost of certain drugs. |25 per cent. of cost.
|50 per cent. of cost of other drugs. |50 per cent. of cost.
France |Free for certain specified illnesses. |Free.
|35 per cent. of cost of certain drugs.
|65 per cent. of other drugs.
Germany |15 per cent. of cost of cheaper drugs. |Free.
|For more expensive drugs free up to a specified limit but full cost between the limit and the
|retail price.
Greece. |Free for certain specified illnesses. |Free.
|25 per cent. of drug cost. |25 per cent. of cost.
Ireland |Free for certain specified illnesses. |Free.
|Free for those on low income. |Free.
|Full price of drug up to £360 pa (Irish Punt). |Full price.
Italy |Free for certain specified illnesses. |Free.
|Free for life-saving prescribed drugs. |Free.
|Free for those on low incomes. |Free.
|2,000 Lire per item below income ceiling. |2,000 Lire.
|First 40,000 Lire of prescription cost in full plus 10 per cent. of any additional cost if above|First 40,000 Lire plus 10 per cent.
|income ceiling. |of cost.
|Free.
|Luxembourg |Free for certain prescribed drugs.
|20 per cent. of the drug cost.
Netherlands |Free. |Free.
|Contribution for more expensive drugs. |Contribution.
Portugal |Free for certain specified illnesses. |Free.
|15 per cent. for certain drugs for those on low incomes. |15 per cent.
|45 per cent. for other drugs for those on low incomes. |45 per cent.
|20 per cent. for certain drugs. |20 per cent.
|50 per cent. for other drugs. |50 per cent.
Spain |Free. |40 per cent. of drug cost.
United Kingdom |Free. |Free.
Blood Donors
Mr. Spellar : To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to her answer of 2 December, Official Report, columns 706-7, what assessment she has made of the problems with standards in other countries, most recently Germany ; and if she will now institute a ban on imports of blood and blood products from countries which use paid donors.
Mr. Sackville : Under the Medicines Act 1968 every company which manufactures blood products for marketing in the United Kingdom is inspected and licensed and individual products are licensed for safety, quality and efficacy. Blood or plasma collected overseas for processing into blood products which are to be imported into the United Kingdom under United Kingdom product licence is subjected to the rigorous screening tests that are required by our licensing authority. Furthermore all plasma pools from which any blood product released in this country is produced are tested for viral markers by the National Institute for Biological Standards and Control. No blood is imported and in the light of these safeguards we do not propose to ban imports of blood products.
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Hospitals (Use)
Mr. Pawsey : To ask the Secretary of State for Health which view will prevail where there is a fundamental difference of opinion between health and industry purchasers and fund-holding general practitioners about the use of a particular hospital.
Dr. Mawhinney : General practitioner fund-holders have the freedom to purchase the best possible care for their patients from whichever hospital they judge best. They are however required to share their broad purchasing intentions with district health authorities in advance to enable provider units to plan effectively.
Charing Cross Hospital
Lady Olga Maitland : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment she has made of whether Charing Cross hospital, as it is presently equipped and staffed, will be able to meet the requirements as the focal point of all west London cancer services ; and what extra expenditure will be required in order for it to do so.
Dr. Mawhinney : No specific studies of the capacity of the Charing Cross site for cancer services have been carried out. However, the Hammersmith/Charing Cross relocation
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group is studying the possible relocation of all the services of the Hammersmith and Charing Cross (including cancer services) on to one site.Royal Marsden Hospital
Lady Olga Maitland : To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many representations she has received from the international medical community in connection with the future of the Royal Marsden hospital ; and if she will list them.
Dr. Mawhinney : Representations were received from the following. International Medical Community Representations in Connection with the Royal Marsden
Sophie D. Fossa
Professor Harry Bartelink, MD, PhD
Assistant Professor Simon Powell, MRCP, FRCR, PhD
Professor V. Craig Jordan, PhD, DSc
Director of Institute of Oncology, Slovenia
Barrie D. Evans, MD, MRCP, FRACP, BDS
A. H. G. Paterson, MD
Soo Khee Chee
Dr. Khoo Tan Hoon Seng, MB, BS, FRCR
Dr. Joseph T. S. Wee, MB, BS, FRCR
Dr. Chua Eu Tiong
Dr. Thida San
Dr. Kam Weng Fong, FRCR
Dr. Tsoa Shiu Ying
Dr. Chua Eu Jin
Dr. Kim Shang Lee, FRCR
Hong Ga Sze
A. W. Thomas, BSc, MTech, FBCS
Richard G. Margolese, MD, FRCS
Professor Victor Ling
Professor Karen Antman, MD
Professor Robert C. Hickey, MD
Teenage Advertising
Mr. Llew Smith : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment she has made of the effect of cigarette advertising upon teenage take-up of smoking.
Mr. Sackville : The Government believe that tobacco advertising does have an effect on consumption. This is why successive Governments over the last 22 years have controlled tobacco advertising by a system of voluntary agreements. The Government have not made any estimate of the effect of tobacco advertising on teenagers compared to the effect on the population as a whole.
Hospital Closures
Mr. Gordon Prentice : To ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will list by region and by date of closure all former NHS hospitals closed since 1986 and their current use.
Mr. Sackville : This information is not available centrally.
Animal Diseases
Mrs. Dunwoody : To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what action she proposes to monitor the re-emergence in the United Kingdom of previously eliminated diseases, following the free movement of animals ;
(2) if she will hold immediate talks with the Minister of Agriculture about methods of preventing the re-emergence of brucellosis in rural constituencies.
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Mr. Sackville : Though brucellosis in humans is not a statutorily notifiable disease, there is a laboratory reporting system which receives between 10 and 30 reports each year. The Department works closely with the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food on all aspects of brucellosis and other diseases which can be transmitted from animals to humans including their prevention. This liaison takes full account of all developments including the free movement of animals.
Medical Records
Mr. Gordon Prentice : To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many hospitals charge other hospitals for X-rays and other medical records for patients who transfer between hospitals.
Mr. Sackville : This information is not available centrally.
Mr. Gordon Prentice : To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many complaints have been filed under the clinical complaints procedure against hospitals neglecting to pass on to third parties medical records of patients treated by them.
Dr. Mawhinney : This information is not available centrally.
Dental Services, Wandsworth
Mr. Cox : To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many dentists working in the London borough of Wandsworth provide full NHS dental services at the latest convenient date.
Dr. Mawhinney : This information is not available centrally.
Hypnotherapy
Mr. Hunter : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans she has to introduce measures to regulate hypnotherapists and related practitioners.
Mr. Sackville : None. We welcome, however, the efforts of reputable training institutes in hypnotherapy, as in other areas of complementary therapy, to develope standards of training, voluntary registration and certification of hypnotherapists.
Residential Care Homes
Mr. Cox : To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many private residential care homes were inspected in the Greater London area in each of the last three years.
Mr. Bowis : The inspection of private and voluntary residential care homes is the responsibility of local authorities under the Registered Homes Act 1984.
Clinical Complaints Procedure
Mr. Gordon Prentice : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment she has made of the operation of the clinical complaints procedure.
Dr. Mawhinney : My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State announced on 13 June at columns 552-53 the setting up of a review of the national health service complaints
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procedures. All aspects of national health service complaints procedures, including the clinical complaints procedure, are being examined and a report is expected in the new year.Credit Approvals
Mr. Martin : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what credit approvals she is making available for personal social services for 1994-95.
Mr. Bowis : Basic credit approvals of £114.2 million and supplementary credit approvals (SCAs) of £26.1 million will be available for the personal social services for 1994-95. The total of £140.3 million is an increase of 2.0 per cent. in real terms on 1993- 94. SCAs will again be available for information technology for community care (£12.2 million), mental illness (£10.9 million) and AIDS/HIV services (£3 million). Annual capital guidelines will be £121.2 million.
NHS Trusts
Mr. Trend : To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many expressions of interest she has approved for the fifth wave of NHS trusts.
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