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Lord James Douglas-Hamilton : My right hon. Friend has made no such assessment. Designated defective houses may either be demolished or repaired. PRC Homes Ltd., a subsidiary of the National House Building Council, is responsible for validating schemes of repair and it is for the building industry to devise schemes to meet specific requirements.
WALES
Secondary School Buildings
Mr. Llwyd : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what specific investments have been made in new funding for secondary school buildings by the Welsh Office in 1993 ; and what is proposed for 1994.
Sir Wyn Roberts : Under the voluntary aided schools capital building programme, in addition to the funding for routine repair and maintenance schemes, three secondary schools received funding for new school buildings and improvements to existing buildings in 1993-94. In the same period, under the grant-maintained schools capital building programme, in addition to the formula-related capital grant which such schools receive, six secondary schools received funding for new school buildings and improvements to existing buildings. I hope to announce successful applications for grant for new starts for both the voluntary aided and grant-maintained sectors in 1994-95 shortly. Grant has also been allocated to eight secondary schools under the technology schools initiative, including one
grant-maintained school and to one technology centre.
Building works at LEA-maintained schools are the responsibility of individual authorities and it is for each to decide on the level of spending, within the overall resources made available, on each service including education and thereafter on which school.
Public Appointments
Dr. Wright : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales (1) which of the public appointments for which he is responsible require advance notice to and consultation with the Chief Whip's office ; and which appointments made since 1979 have been so notified and consulted upon ;
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(2) which appointments since 1979 to public bodies or posts for which he is responsible have included candidates nominated by the Chief Whip's office ; if any nominees by this source have been appointed ; and if he will give details.Mr. Redwood : It is not the practice of Her Majesty's Government to answer parliamentary questions about discussions and consultations between Departments and offices of Government relating to public appointments.
Residential and Nursing Homes
Mr. Barry Jones : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many residential and nursing homes there are in Wales.
Mr. Gwilym Jones : As at 31 March 1993 there were 675 local authority and registered private and voluntary residential homes for the elderly, physically disabled and visually disabled. At the same date there were 380 registered private nursing homes.
Ministers (Travel)
Mr. Matthew Taylor : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what was the (a) budgeted and (b) actual expenditure by the Department on (1) internal and (2) overseas travel by the Secretary of State since 27 May 1993.
Mr. Redwood : The Secretary of State's travel costs are not budgeted separately from those of other Ministers. Expenditure on internal and overseas travel are not recorded separately nor is the Secretary of State's foreign travel identified separately when he travels with a party. The Department's identifiable expenditure on the Secretary of State's travel since 27 May 1993 was £15,861. The Secretary of State has been on one overseas trip to Hong Kong, Japan and the United States of America promoting Wales as a centre for investment and has travelled regularly and extensively throughout Wales.
Occupational Pensions
Mr. Barry Jones : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what assessment he has made of whether Wales social services departments are interpreting satisfactorily the guidelines on occupational pensions ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Gwilym Jones : Guidance on the assessment of an individual's ability to pay for services is contained in the charging for residential accommodation guide. I am not aware of any evidence to suggest that social services departments in Wales are not interpreting these guidelines satisfactorily.
Sitting Services
Mr. Barry Jones : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what is his estimate of the number of sitting services provided by local authorities ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Gwilym Jones : This information is not collected centrally.
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Respite Care
Mr. Barry Jones : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what assessment he has made of the adequacy of respite care provision in Wales ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Gwilym Jones : It is for local and health authorities to determine the need for respite care facilities in their areas and to procure it accordingly. Additional resources of £1,200,000 will be available to local authorities in Wales in 1994-95 to assist in the development of domiciliary, day and respite care.
Mr. Barry Jones : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what is his estimate of the number of specifically designated respite care beds in Wales ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Gwilym Jones : Information on the number of beds by specialty is collected centrally on the basis of specialties recognised by the Royal Colleges. Respite care is not one of these recognised specialties and hence the information requested is not available.
Continuing Care Beds
Mr. Barry Jones : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what is his estimate of the number of continuing care beds in Wales, by each health authority.
Mr. Gwilym Jones : Information on the number of beds by specialty is collected centrally on the basis of specialties recognised by the royal colleges. Continuing care is not one of these recognised specialties and hence the information requested is not available.
Mr. Barry Jones : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what policies he proposes to ensure that carers have a statutory right to separate arrangements and to respite care services.
Mr. Gwilym Jones : It is impossible to separate the needs and rights of carers from those of the people for whom they care. In every case, the assessment of needs--including the need for respite care--must take full account of the interests of both and indeed section 8(1) of the Disabled Persons (Services, Consultation and Representation) Act 1986 requires a local authority, when assessing the needs of a disabled person living at home and receiving a substantial amount of care on a regular basis from an informal carer, to take account of the ability of that carer to continue to provide that support.
Elderly Carers
Mr. Barry Jones : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what initiatives he will take to relieve the financial burdens on elderly carers ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Gwilym Jones : This is a matter for my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Social Security.
Community Care
Mr. Barry Jones : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what assessment he has made of the acceptability of national minimum standards for care in the community ; and if he will make a statement.
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Mr. Gwilym Jones : It is the responsibility of local authorities to manage the implementation of community care. We will continue to monitor progress closely and offer guidance and direction as is considered necessary.
Nursing
Mr. Barry Jones : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will make a statement on the use of nursing banks and agencies in Wales.
Mr. Gwilym Jones : There are nursing banks to meet the staffing needs of most hospitals in Wales. Nurses attached to the banks are frequently former members of staff who because of personal circumstances no longer work regularly. Nursing agencies are not widely used in Wales.
Mr. Barry Jones : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many intensive care nurses are employed in each of the major hospitals of Wales.
Mr. Gwilym Jones : Detailed breakdowns of the number of nursing staff employed by health authorities and NHS trusts into occupational groups such as that requested are not available.
Mr. Barry Jones : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales (1) what assessment he has made of whether there are sufficient (a) cardiac intensive care nurses and (b) general paediatric intensive care nurses ; and if he will make a statement ;
(2) what steps he is taking to obtain more intensive care trained nurses ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Gwilym Jones : It is for individual health authorities and NHS trusts to determine their staff requirements for the intensive care they provide. Currently in Wales there are no major difficulties with the recruitment of nurses and intensive care units are staffed to their establishments.
Housing
Mr. Dafis : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales on what date he will next meet the Welsh Housing Consultative Council ; and if he will discuss with them the publication of the House Condition Survey.
Mr. Gwilym Jones : My officials wrote to the Council of Welsh Districts on 10 January to establish whether it had any agenda items for a meeting of the Welsh Housing Consultative Committee.
Wind Farms
Mr. Llew Smith : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what representations he has received since 1991 (a) for and (b) against proposals for wind farm developments in Wales.
Mr. Gwilym Jones : I have received 91 representations in favour of developments, two of which included petitions with 10 and 60 signatures respectively, and 275 representations against developments, one of which included a petition with 897 signatures.
Co-operatives
Mr. McMaster : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what plans he has to encourage the development of retail, wholesale and manufacturing co- operatives.
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Mr. Redwood : The Welsh Office offers a range of assistance to new and existing businesses including co-operatives. There is also a Wales co- operative development and training centre which receives funding from the Welsh Development Agency and from the training and enterprise councils through the business start-up scheme.
Nursery and Primary School Spending
Mr. Dafis : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what were the levels of spending per nursery and primary school pupil for the last available year for each education authority in Wales, and for Wales as a whole.
Sir Wyn Roberts : The information is given in table 14.18 of "Statistics of Education and Training in Wales : Schools' No. 2, 1994," a copy of which is available in the Library of the House.
Postal and Proxy Votes
Mr. McMaster : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will make available in braille the application form to vote by post or proxy due to disability or physical incapacity.
Mr. Redwood : This is a matter for my right hon. and learned Friend the Secretary of State for the Home Department.
Helwick Bank
Mr. Wardell : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will arrange for the deposit in the Library of (a) the 1992 and 1993 Helwick bank hydrographic and beach profile surveys and (b) the H. R. Wallingford report on the potential impact of the dredging of Helwick bank.
Mr. Gwilym Jones : The initial Helwick bank hydrographic and beach profile survey was deposited in the Library of the House in July 1993. I will deposit both the summer 1993 hydrographic and beach profile survey and the H. R. Wallingford report, "Wave and Sand Transport Studies" as soon as possible.
Schools Inspectorate
Mr. Dafis : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will publish details of the total cost of the administration of Her Majesty's inspectors of schools for each year since 1990-91.
Sir Wyn Roberts : The Office of Her Majesty's chief inspector of schools in Wales--OHMCI--was established as a separate Government Department in September 1992. Prior to that date, when Her Majesty's inspectors of schools formed part of the Welsh Office, administration costs were not separately identified. Administration costs after September 1992 are a matter for OHMCI.
Grant-maintained Schools
Mr. Dafis : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will publish details of the expenditure incurred by the Welsh Office to inform schools regarding application for grant-maintained status.
Sir Wyn Roberts : The day-to-day costs involved in providing schools with information about grant-maintained status are met out of the Department's running costs and it is not possible to disaggregate them.
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It is, however, possible to identify two specific initiatives as they involved the use of outside contractors. In October 1992 three booklets on the grant-maintained arrangements were issued to all schools in Wales. The cost of producing and distributing these was £23,900. In October and November last year three conferences on grant-maintained status were arranged for heads and governors of schools. The cost of these has still to be finalised.Housing
Mr. McMaster : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales when he last met representatives of organisations representing housing co-operatives to discuss funding and strategy ; what is his policy regarding the development of housing co-operatives ; what criteria he applies when determining financial assistance to housing co-operatives ; what plans he has to encourage the development of housing co-operatives ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Gwilym Jones : I expect Housing for Wales and local authorities to consider proposals for such schemes on their merits in the context of local housing strategies and available resources.
Dinas Dinlle Beach
Mr. Alex Carlile : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what recent representations he has received in respect of Dinas Dinlle beach, Gwynedd ; what steps he is taking to ensure the safety and cleanliness of all beaches in Wales ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Gwilym Jones : No such representations have been received by my right hon. Friend. In common with the large majority of bathing waters on the Welsh coastline identified under the EC bathing waters directive, Morfa Dinlle--which includes the beach at Dinas Dinlle--consistently meets its mandatory standards. Dwr Cymru is currently engaged in a £230 million remedial works programme to ensure that all EC identified bathing waters in Wales meet these standards. Under the Environmental Protection Act 1990, district councils have a duty to ensure that all public amenity beaches are kept clear of litter and refuse above the mean high water mark.
Mink Farm, Llanybydder
Mr. Morley : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, pursuant to his answers of 7 December, Official Report , column 181 , and 31 January, Official Report , column 524 , in respect of a mink farm at Llanybydder, Dyfed, established in February 1988, what reasons were given for the withdrawal of the application for a licence ; and on what grounds the mink farm was allowed to operate without a licence.
Mr. Redwood : No reasons were given for the withdrawal of the licence application. The mink farm was allowed to operate pending a decision on the licence application.
Hip Replacements
Mr. Flynn : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales (1) what percentage of hip replacement operations carried out in (a) Wales and (b) at the Prince of Wales orthopaedic centre, Rhydlafar, Cardiff, in the last three years have required revision operations ;
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(2) what percentage of hip replacement operations using the Zimmer implant carried out (a) in Wales and (b) at the Prince of Wales orthopaedic centre, Rhydlafar, Cardiff, in the last three years have required revision operations ;(3) what percentage of hip replacement operations using the Johnson and Johnson implant carried out (a) in Wales and (b) at the Prince of Wales orthopaedic centre, Rhydlafar, Cardiff, in the last three years have required revision operations ;
(4) what percentage of hip replacement operations using the BioMet implant carried out (a) in Wales and (b) at the Prince of Wales orthopaedic centre, Rhydlafar, Cardiff, in the last three years have required revision operations.
Mr. Gwilym Jones : This information is not held centrally.
Rural Planning
Mr. Ainger : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what are the current major issues being examined by each department devoted to rural strategic policy planning in (a) the Development Board for Rural Wales and (b) the Welsh Development Agency ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Redwood : (a) The DBRW's corporate plan identifies the following strategic issues which will impact on its policy in the medium term :
--impact of the recession
--agricultural change and the impact of CAP
--the closure of Trawsfynydd power station
--future European priorities
--environmental improvement, especially the Board's sites and property
--partnership with other public bodies
--private sector involvement in property development
--Newtown housing transfers
More generally the board will also take account of the impact of other policies which might affect rural areas in co-operation, where appropriate, with other agencies such as the Welsh Development Agency and the Rural Development Commission.
(b) The Welsh Development Agency's rural development programme for 1994-95 will continue to support the rural economy by targeting resources at specific rural locations, working in partnership with other organisations, and identifying new economic opportunities. The agency will continue to become involved in European Commission initiatives specifically designed for rural areas, and will continue to support sectoral initiatives.
Mr. Ainger : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many posts there are on (a) the Development Board for Rural Wales and (b) the Welsh Development Agency devoted to strategic rural policy planning ; and if he will list the departments and their responsibilities and the grades of those posts.
Mr. Redwood : The development and marketing departments of the Development Board for Rural Wales, which employ some 55 professional staff, have the main responsibility for strategic rural policy planning. However, a number of other board staff have some involvement in the development of its rural policies, but this is not separately identifiable or measurable. The Welsh Development Agency also has a number of staff with responsibilities for strategic rural planning, although some have other responsibilities too.
I have asked the chief executive of the DBRW and the chief executive's office at the WDA to write to the hon.
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Member with details of the grades and responsibilities of the posts involved. Copies of the replies will be placed in the Library of the House.South Glamorgan Health Authority
Mr. Morgan : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what was the cost to public funds of (a) the dismissal and subsequent exoneration of Alan Crew as unit general manager of the Cardiff Royal Group of Hospitals and (b) the suspension on full pay and preparation of, and withdrawal of, disciplinary proceedings against consultant orthopaedic surgeon and director of the Welsh Office treatment centre, Mr. Ian Mackie ; and whether South Glamorgan health authority has sought any additional contingency funds assistance from his Department to cover these costs ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Gwilym Jones : These are matters for South Glamorgan health authority to handle as employer. The authority has not sought any additional financial assistance in respect of either case.
University of Wales
Mr. Morgan : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what consultations he has had with the chairman of the Welsh Development Agency and the chairman of the Welsh Higher Education Funding Council in relation to the winding-up of the University of Wales review.
Arable Areas
Mr. Tipping : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales in how many cases payments to farmers and landowners under the arable area payments scheme have been withheld or recovered in Wales ; what is the amount of money withheld or recovered in each case ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Redwood : Every case in which payments may be withheld or recovered is examined very carefully and applicants have an opportunity to comment before a final decision is taken. This means that it is possible to provide only very provisional figures at this stage. Some 30 payments have so far been reduced or withheld entirely, but there are further cases still under consideration. These figures exclude penalties for late applications and adjustments made following corrections notified by the applicant under the special arrangements which applied in 1993 for dealing with genuine errors. The total amounts withheld in individual cases vary considerably.
Health Promotion Authority
Mr. Morgan : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will place a copy in the Library of each annual audit and any quinquennial value for money or other extraordinary audit of the Health Promotion Authority for Wales and Heartbeat Wales.
Mr. Gwilym Jones : The summarised accounts of the Health Promotion Authority for Wales, which on its establishment on 1 April 1987 took over responsibility for Heartbeat Wales, are audited by the Comptroller and Auditor General each year and are laid before the House.
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Lloyds Bank
Mr. Wigley : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will meet representatives of Lloyds bank to discuss their proposal to close their Welsh headquarters and move the administration to Taunton.
Mr. Redwood : I like to maintain contact with the banks and hope to be able to meet Lloyds bank shortly to discuss a range of matters.
HEALTH
Respite Beds
Mr. Hinchliffe : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what is the number of respite beds for (a) elderly people, (b) people with a mental illness and (c) people with learning difficulties in each year since 1979.
Mr. Bowis : Places for respite care are not separately identified on the routine statistical returns. The closest available information concerns local authority-arranged short-term placements but these figures include not only residents receiving respite care but those admitted for other reasons, such as assessment, emergency and phased care.
Paediatricians
Ms Primarolo : To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many (a) consultant paediatricians, (b) specialist trained paediatric nurses and (c) hospital nurses have been employed in the Trent region in each of the last five years.
Dr. Mawhinney : The information is shown in the table.
Hospital nurses, qualified nurses in paediatric area of work and consultant paediatricians-Trent region at 30 September 1988 to 1992, excluding agency and locum staff Whole-time |1988 |1989 |1990 |1991 |1992 equivalents --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Consultant paediatrics/ paediatric neurology |60 |60 |60 |70 |70 Qualified paediatric nursing staff |840 |910 |960 |1,020 |1,020 Hospital nurses |31,930 |31,900 |31,910 |31,660 |29,530 Project 2000 |- |- |- |- |1,090 Community nurses |4,210 |4,150 |4,140 |4,190 |4,160 Hospital midwives |1,650 |1,650 |1,710 |1,630 |1,600 Notes 1. All figures are rounded to the nearest 10. 2. Qualified paediatric nursing staff include some who may not be registered RSCNs. 3. Project 2000 nursing statistics supplied by Trent RHA. 4. Community nursing staff includes those in primary health care-such as health visiting, district nursing, school nursing etc-and community midwives.
Patient Transport Service
Ms Walley : To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) if she will investigate the extent to which the specification on which the tendering procedure for the patient transport service contracts in North Staffordshire was based matches the existing level of PTS ; (2) if she will investigate whether the specification on which the successful bid for the passenger transport service
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contract in North Staffordshire is based takes precise account of high-dependency cases transported between different clinics and units ; and if she will make a statement.Mr. Sackville : We have no plans to carry out an investigation. The issue of the patient transport service contract for north Staffordshire is being resolved through local conciliation.
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