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Dr. Mawhinney : Compliance is a matter for national health service employers.
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Rights of the Child
Ms Corston : To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what steps have been taken by her Department in fulfilment of article 24, on health and health services, of the UN convention on the rights of the child adopted by the United Kingdom Government in December 1991 ;
(2) what steps have been taken by her Department in fulfilment of article 23(1) (2) (3) and (4), on disabled children, of the UN convention on the rights of the child adopted by the United Kingdom Government in December 1991 ;
(3) what steps have been taken by her Department in fulfilment of article 32, on child labour, of the UN convention on the rights of the child adopted by the United Kingdom Government in December 1991.
Mr. Bowis : The information requested is contained in the United Kingdom's first report to the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child, which was published in March 1994, and copies of which were placed in the Library.
Health Authority Mergers
Mr. Wilshire : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what is her policy on the advertising of vacancies for chief executives designate of merged health authorities before a merger has been agreed.
Dr. Mawhinney : It is good management practice to make adequate preparations to ensure that mergers, if agreed, are effectively managed. In many cases this may necessitate advertising the post of chief executive designate in advance of the decision on the merger application being made.
Public Consultation
Mr. Kirkwood : To ask the Secretary of State for Health in what circumstances it is her Department's practice, when issuing a public consultation document, to inform those consulted that their responses will be made public unless they explicitly ask for them to be kept confidential ; and if she will arrange for her Department to do so in all cases in future.
Mr. Sackville : Responses to consultation documents are usually sought on the understanding they may be made public, unless those responding explicitly ask for them to remain confidential. This practice has been strengthened by the code of practice on access to government information, published in April.
Nuclear Weapons
Mr. Austin Mitchell : To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether she has been consulted by, or made representations to, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office on the application to the International Court of Justice on the legality of nuclear weapons made by the World Health Organisation ; and what representations she has made to the World Health Organisation on its submission.
Dr. Mawhinney : I refer the hon. Member to the replies the Minister of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs--my right hon. and learned Friend the Member for Grantham (Mr. Hogg)--gave him on 1 February at column 605 and 28 February at column 547, which stated that the
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Government's submission to the International Court of Justice will set out the position of the Government on this issue. Relevant Departments, including the Department of Health, have therefore been consulted. The Department has made no representation to the World Health Organisation about its submission to the court.Generic Prescribing
Ms Primarolo : To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) if she will publish the name of the general practitioner achieving the highest percentage of generic prescribing ;
(2) what percentage of (a) fundholder and (b) non-fundholder general practitioners are prescribing (i) 50 to 55 per cent., (ii) 55 to 60 per cent., (iii) 60 to 65 per cent. and (iv) 65 to 70 per cent. generically.
Dr. Mawhinney : The information is not available centrally.
Disciplinary Procedures
Ms Primarolo : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recommendation was made by the joint working party on disciplinary procedures in relation to monitoring of the procedures, collection of data and the reviewing of the procedures ; to what extent this recommendation has been implemented ; and what data have been collected.
Dr. Mawhinney : A joint working party to review hospital and community doctors' and dentists' disciplinary procedures reported in 1988. One recommendation was :
"Arrangements for monitoring the new procedures, including the regular collection of data, should be introduced and that the effectiveness of the procedures should be reviewed after a period of three years from the date of implementation".
Circular HC(90)9, copies of which are available in the Library, asked authorities to maintain anonymised returns of cases brought under the new procedures in order to inform a new joint working party which would review that circular. The new JWP was established in April 1993 and information gathered. However, it did not offer a full picture because of the introduction of trusts, which are free to develop their own disciplinary procedures. We are considering the options following this review.
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NHS Facilities (Visits)
Ms Primarolo : To ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will make a statement on (a) her rights and (b) the rights of the Opposition spokesperson to visit any NHS facility.
Dr. Mawhinney : I expect national health service authorities and trusts to welcome visits by hon. Members, subject only to their being able to make proper arrangements for the reception of the visitor and to avoid disruption of services to patients.
Civil Servants (Outside Appointments)
Mr. Milburn : To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many job offers were reported by staff in her Department under the requirements of the rules on the acceptance of outside appointments in each of the last 10 years by (a) staff of grade 3 and above, (b) staff below grade 3, (c) staff in sections concerned with procurement or contract work, under section 15 of the rules of 1 February 1993 and (d) staff in other sections, under section 14 ; and how many of these reports were followed by an application to join the company concerned.
Mr. Sackville : The information requested is available for Department of Health staff from 1989. There were three staff of grade 3 and above that reported job offers : one each in 1990, 1991 and 1992, all of which resulted in formal applications to take up appointment and were subsequently approved by the Advisory Committee on Business Appointments. There were no reported job offers by staff below grade 3 or those in sections concerned with procurement or contract work.
Budget Statistics
Ms Primarolo : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what was (a) the staff budget and (b) the total budget in each year since 1989 for her Department and the NHS Executive.
Mr. Sackville : Information is shown in the table on the budgets for staff costs and total administration costs for the Department as a whole-- including the National Health Service Executive, but excluding the agencies --and separately for the executive since 1990-91, the earliest year for which these figures are available.
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|1990-91|1991-92|1992-93|1993-94
|£000's |£000's |£000's |£000's
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Staff Budget: Whole Department |82,968 |87,540 |95,172 |99,351
Of Which:
Staff Budget: NHS Executive |24,300 |20,912 |30,089 |25,135
Total Administrative Budget:
Whole Department |221,391|260,966|297,922|237,228
Of Which:
Total Administrative Budget:
NHS Executive |31,615 |27,066 |43,115 |34,831
Source: Annual accounts and budgetary control reports of the
Department of Health.
Notes:
1. Figures have not been adjusted for inflation.
2. Figures for the NHS Executive are not directly comparable from year
to year because of organisational changes between the NHS Executive
and the rest of the Department.
3. Figures for the whole Department include the NHS Executive, but do
not include the Departments' agencies.
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Disability
Mr. Alan Howarth : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans the Government have for participation in the European Union's third action programme for disabled people for the period 1992 to 1996.
Mr. Bowis : The Government have arranged for 78 organisations to represent the United Kingdom in the European Union's third action programme for disabled people, Handicapped People Living in Europe Independently in an Open Society--HELIOS--II, and hosted a United Kingdom HELIOS II national information day in London on 16 March 1994.
Health Authority Funding
Mr. Ainger : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what provision was made in the cash allocations to health authorities in 1994-95 for changes in statutory sick pay regulations.
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Mr. Sackville : Specific allocations are not made for individual pay or price pressures. Health authorities are expected to manage within the total resources available to them. Provided pay rises are earned through increased efficiency, hospital and community health services activity will increase by around 4 per cent. this year.
Mr. Ainger : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what was the total revenue allocation for regional health authorities in each year since 1988-89, including 1994-95 ; and what was the percentage change in each year.
Mr. Sackville : Total cash limits for each regional health authority from 1988-89 to 1994-95 are shown in the table.
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Total Revenue Regional Allocations 1988-89-1994-95
£'000s
Region |1988-89 |1989-90 |1990-91 |1991-92 |1992-93 |1993-94 |1994-95
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Northern |797,242 |848,201 |919,839 |1,147,719 |1,296,989 |1,405,474 |-
Yorkshire |892,850 |951,237 |1,038,375 |1,319,565 |1,506,424 |1,683,748 |-
Northern and Yorkshire |- |- |- |- |- |- |3,135,357
Trent |1,108,652 |1,186,453 |1,306,016 |1,624,908 |1,857,143 |2,090,721 |2,122,377
East Anglia |476,823 |509,021 |573,993 |679,020 |772,669 |870,369 |-
Oxford |528,725 |571,433 |625,762 |782,812 |901,697 |987,004 |-
Anglia and Oxford |- |- |- |- |- |- |1,917,369
North West Thames |921,523 |987,621 |1,095,615 |1,414,088 |1,607,377 |1,698,024 |-
North East Thames |1,159,454 |1,216,604 |1,343,012 |1,576,063 |1,741,036 |1,916,795 |-
North Thames |- |- |- |- |- |- |3,819,284
South East Thames |1,021,511 |1,070,897 |1,197,440 |1,456,340 |1,608,091 |1,818,090 |-
South West Thames |821,339 |866,172 |974,174 |1,174,744 |1,306,669 |1,399,450 |-
South Thames |- |- |- |- |- |- |3,291,405
Wessex |664,598 |711,839 |799,142 |1,000,087 |1,148,345 |1,299,640 |-
South Western |786,162 |843,043 |929,814 |1,191,631 |1,355,032 |1,499,430 |-
South and West |- |- |- |- |- |- |2,857,420
West Midlands |1,278,807 |1,358,535 |1,475,301 |1,776,990 |1,990,023 |2,208,628 |-
Mersey |643,564 |680,280 |741,964 |945,184 |1,068,046 |1,159,332 |-
North Western |1,098,130 |1,161,388 |1,264,943 |1,485,585 |1,665,604 |1,798,677 |-
North West |- |- |- |- |- |- |3,041,056
|----- |----- |----- |----- |----- |----- |-----
England Total |12,199,380 |12,962,724 |14,285,390 |17,574,736 |19,825,145 |21,835,382 |22,488,406
|------- |------- |------- |------- |------- |------- |-------
Yearly Percentage Change |- |6.3 per cent. |10.2 per cent.|23.0 per cent.|12.8 per cent.|10.1 per cent.|3.0 per cent.
Notes: 1. Final revenue cash limits include adjustments and transfer between revenue and capital.
2. The 1994-95 figure is the initial cash limit and will be amended during the year.
3. Regional health authorities were restructured in 1994-95.
4. Up to 1990-91 regional allocations were made on the basis of the population treated within the region (catchment populations). From 1991-92
allocations have been made for resident populations irrespective of where residents are treated. Because of this change regional figures before
and after 1991-92 are not strictly comparable.
5. Changes were made to the definition of capital spending in 1993-94. Some items of expenditure formally treated as capital are now treated as
revenue.
Mr. Ainger : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what was the total amount of cash top sliced by regional health authorities from their allocations in each year since 1988-89, including 1994-95 ; and what was the total cash available to district health authorities for discretionary use in each year.
Mr. Sackville : In 1993-94 regional health authorities top sliced £2 billion from their allocations for resident population and allocated £15.5 billion to district health authorities to spend on their resident population. In 1994-95 the figures were £1.8 billion and £16.6 billion respectively. Information is not available centrally prior to 1993-94.
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Powered Wheelchairs
Mrs. Peacock : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment she has made of the benefit to permanently disabled adults and children of providing them with an indoor/outdoor powered wheelchair ; how many permanently disabled adults and children there are ; and what would be the total cost of providing each of them with such a powered wheelchair.
Mr. Bowis : Decisions about the issue of wheelchairs, including powered indoor/outdoor wheelchairs, are matters for health authorities and national health service hospital and community care units--trusts--in the light of their resources and priorities.
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Excluding those on the blind register and those with mental disabilities, the number of people registered as disabled with local authorities at 31 March 1993 was 1,336,925. Of these, 679,057 were classified as being very severely, severely or appreciably handicapped. Not all of these people will require a wheelchair. In the 12 months to 31 March 1993, the number of wheelchairs, including powered wheelchairs, on issue by the NHS in England was 179,308 and expenditure on the wheelchair service was £39,859,696. There are no figures available centrally about the total cost of providing powered indoor/outdoor wheelchairs to everyone who might benefit from them.The cost of each such wheelchair will vary considerably according to the user's needs and can range from a standard model costing around £2,500 up to £20,000 for sophisticated wheelchairs for people with very severe disabilities.
NHS Pay Settlement
Mr. Blunkett : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what discussions she, or her officials, have had with representatives of the Epsom Healthcare NHS trust, regarding arrangements for meeting the pay increase recommended by the pay review bodies.
Dr. Mawhinney : The trust has advised that it will be making pay awards, agreed locally, in line with the recommendations of the national pay review bodies. These increases have been implemented with effect from 1 April 1994.
Mr. Blunkett : To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what advice has been issued by her Department or the
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NHS Executive regarding the pay settlement recommended by the pay review bodies ; and if she will make a statement ;(2) what is the total number of NHS trusts which have so far declared themselves unable to fund the pay increase recommended by the pay review bodies ; and if she will list them.
Dr. Mawhinney : No advice has been issued and no trusts have declared themselves unable to fund the pay increase.
Job Evaluation
Mr. Blunkett : To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many NHS trusts currently have contracts with external consultants for job evaluation programmes within the trust ; and what data are being collected by her Department on total expenditure on such contracts.
Dr. Mawhinney : It is for each individual national health service trust to determine whether it wishes to employ external consultants for this purpose. The information is not available centrally.
Maternal Deaths
Mr. Wigley : To ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will list the numbers of (i) direct maternal deaths, (ii) indirect maternal deaths, (iii) fortuitous maternal deaths and (iv) late maternal deaths in England and Wales reported to the confidential inquiry into maternal deaths in each of the three-year periods 1985-87 and 1988-90 which were of women born in (a) the United Kingdom, (b) the Republic of Ireland, (c) the New Commonwealth and Pakistan, (d) other countries and (e) unstated countries.
Mr. Sackville : The information is contained in the table. Data are available for the 1988 to 1990 period only.
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Confidential enquiries into Maternal Deaths 1988-90
England and Wales
Category of death by place of birth
|Direct<1> |Indirect<2> |Fortuitous<3>|Late<4>
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
United Kingdom |89 |59 |19 |26
Republic of Ireland |- |- |1 |-
New Commonwealth and Pakistan |20 |6 |4 |8
Other countries |3 |3 |- |1
Not stated |27 |14 |10 |7
|------- |------- |------- |-------
Totals |139 |82 |34 |42
<1>Direct = Death was directly related to obstetrics.
<2>Indirect = Pregnancy was related, but not the primary cause of death.
<3>Fortuitous = Death was unconnected with pregnancy.
<4>Late = Death occurred more than 42 days after cessation of pregnancy.
Mr. Wigley : To ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will list the numbers of (i) direct maternal deaths and (ii) indirect maternal deaths registered in England and Wales in each of the three-year periods 1985-87, 1988-90 and 1991-93 which were of women born in (a) the United
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Kingdom, (b) the Republic of Ireland, (c) the New Commonwealth and Pakistan, (d) other countries and (e) unstated countries.Mr. Sackville : The information is shown in the table.
Information for 1993 is not yet available.
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Deaths of women aged 16 to 50 from complications of pregnancy, childbirth
and the puerperium by country of birth, 1985-87, 1988-90 and 1991-92,
England and Wales
Maternal deaths
Country of birth Direct<1> (ICD9 Indirect<1> (ICD9
630-646, 649-676) 647, 648)
|1985-87|1988-90|1991-92|1985-87|1988-90|1991-92
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Total |114 |129 |81 |23 |25 |9
United Kingdom |90 |102 |57 |20 |23 |6
Republic of Ireland |3 |1 |1 |- |- |-
New Commonwealth and Pakistan182 13 3 2 1
Other countries |9 |8 |10 |- |- |2
Unstated countries |- |- |- |- |- |-
<1> International classification of diseases 9th revision-ICD9-630-676
cover complications of pregnancy, childbirth and the puerperium. Of these,
ICD9 647 and 648 may be considered indirect causes of the pregnancy as they
cover conditions in the mother classifiable elsewhere in the ICD9 but
complicating pregnancy, childbirth and the puerperium. The remaining
conditions may be considered direct causes relating to pregnancy,
childbirth and the puerperium.
Notes:
1. There may have been other deaths to women who were pregnant or had
recently given birth where this information was not shown on the death
certificate or was not selected as the underlying cause of death.
2. There are no data yet available for 1993.
Hospital Integration Support
Mr. Milburn : To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to her answer of 21 April, Official Report , columns 661-62 , which hospitals received financial support under the hospital integration support systems project ; and to what amount in each year.
Mr. Sackville : Tables have been placed in the Library which identify those hospitals which have received either capital or revenue funding from the hospital information support systems initiative.
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Ambulance Service
Mr. Blunkett : To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many (a) officers and (b) ambulance men and women were in post per thousand resident population in each year since 1991-92 in each regional health authority.
Mr. Sackville [holding answer 19 May 1994] : The information available is shown in the tables.
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Number of ambulance staff (whole-time equivalent) in post per thousand resident population
in each regional health authority area in England
Estimated Ambulance Ambulance men and
officers and women
|(provisional)|Whole-time |Per 1,000 |Whole-time |Per 1,000
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
September 1991
Northern |3,091.7 |170 |0.05 |1,100 |0.36
Yorkshire |3,680.9 |220 |0.06 |1,340 |0.36
Trent |4,719.8 |280 |0.06 |1,580 |0.33
East Anglian |2,082.7 |130 |0.06 |670 |0.32
North West Thames |1,519.1 |40 |0.03 |420 |0.28
North East Thames |1,476.0 |70 |0.05 |490 |0.33
South East Thames |2,251.7 |120 |0.05 |790 |0.35
South West Thames |1,757.0 |100 |0.05 |550 |0.32
Wessex |2,979.4 |140 |0.05 |810 |0.27
Oxford |2,560.0 |130 |0.05 |700 |0.27
South Western |3,298.6 |220 |0.07 |1,250 |0.38
West Midlands |5,265.6 |260 |0.05 |1,580 |0.30
Mersey |2,415.8 |90 |0.04 |730 |0.30
North Western |4,011.2 |200 |0.05 |1,310 |0.33
London Ambulance Service |7,098.7 |170 |0.02 |1,970 |0.28
|------- |------- |------- |------- |-------
Total |48,208.2 |2,340 |0.05 |15,290 |0.32
September 1992
Northern |3,089.9 |180 |0.06 |1,150 |0.37
Yorkshire |3,698.0 |220 |0.06 |1,290 |0.35
Trent |4,745.0 |270 |0.06 |1,550 |0.33
East Anglian |2,089.4 |120 |0.06 |670 |0.32
North West Thames |1,529.0 |80 |0.05 |550 |0.36
North East Thames |1,484.6 |70 |0.05 |460 |0.31
South East Thames |2,258.9 |120 |0.05 |800 |0.35
South West Thames |1,761.9 |100 |0.06 |590 |0.33
Wessex |2,993.3 |140 |0.05 |810 |0.27
Oxford |2,581.4 |120 |0.05 |710 |0.27
South Western |3,315.9 |220 |0.07 |1,260 |0.38
West Midlands |5,277.6 |320 |0.06 |1,580 |0.30
Mersey |2,415.5 |90 |0.04 |710 |0.29
North Western |4,018.0 |170 |0.04 |1,300 |0.32
London Ambulance Service |7,113.9 |210 |0.03 |2,010 |0.28
|------- |------- |------- |------- |-------
Total |48,378.3 |2,420 |0.05 |15,420 |0.32
Sources:
1. Work force: Department of Health statistical survey - KM49.
2. Population figures: Office of Population Censuses and Surveys.
Notes:
1. Includes data for NHS trusts in each region.
2. It is not possible to disaggregate the numbers of officers and control assistants.
3. The 1991 figures for Northern region and 1992 figures for North West Thames region have been corrected
and vary from those published previously. The 1992 population figures-estimates-have been updated and vary
from those published previously.
4. London ambulance service population figures determined by using districts in the four Thames regions
whose ambulance service is covered by the LAS.
Mouth Cancer
Ms Primarolo : To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many notifications and deaths from mouth cancer have been recorded for each of the last five years, by region, age, gender and socio-economic group.
Mr. Sackville [holding answer 23 May 1994] : Data on cancer registrations for England and Wales and for the regions by site, sex and age are published in the "Cancer Statistics", series MB1. Tables will be placed in the Library which show the number of deaths from mouth cancer-- international classification of diseases 140-145--by regional health authority, age, sex and social class.
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Waiting Lists Initiative
Mr. Blunkett : To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to her answer of 17 May, Official Report , column 424 , if she will provide details of (a) funds allocated for each regional health authority under the waiting list initiative announced 17 February and (b) how much of each regional health authority allocation was spent on the purchase of services from independent sector providers, giving details of the independent providers involved and the value of the contracts.
Dr. Mawhinney [holding answer 23 May 1994] : The information is shown in the table. Initial returns show that at least 38,000 in and out -patients have benefited from earlier treatment as a result of the Government's initiative.
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Value of health care bought from private hospitals resulting from £12 million
made available under the waiting list initiative in February 1994
Regional health |Allocation (£) |Value of health care |Number of patients
|bought from private
|hospitals
|facilities
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Northern |951,000 |The Nuffield Hospital, Newcastle - £175,000 |70
Yorkshire |1,094,000 |The Nuffield Hospital, Hull and
|The East Riding BUPA Hospital, Anlaby - £154,000|163
|The Falloden Hospital, Leeds - £5,400 |32
Trent |880,000 |None
East Anglia |110,000 |The Evelyn Hospital, Cambridge and
|The Cambridge Lea Hospital - £80,000 |56
North West Thames |1,057,000 |None
South East Thames |1,179,000 |None
South West Thames |909,000 |None
Wessex |716,000 |None
Oxford |651,000 |The Paddocks Hospital, Aylesbury - £4,000 |6
AMI Chiltern, Great Missenden - £7,000 |4
South Western |971,000 |The Taunton Nuffield,
The Exeter Nuffield, and
The Woodmill Hospital, Exeter - £84,000 |84
St. Mary's Hospital, Bristol - £155,000 |55
The Woodmill Hospital, Exeter - £130,000 | |42
West Midlands |1,520,000 |None
Mersey |729,000 |None
North Western |1,233,000 |None
|------- |--------------- |-------
Total |12,000,000 | £794,400 |512
<1> No bid for additional funding was received from North East Thames RHA.
Health Visitors
Ms Primarolo : To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) how many health visitors are employed in each district health authority area ;
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(2) how many health visitors are employed in relation to the number of children in each health authority area.Mr. Sackville [holding answer 26 May 1994] : The information will be placed in the Library.
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OVERSEAS DEVELOPMENT ADMINISTRATION
China
Mr. Alton : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will list all non-governmental organisations, international associations and companies which received funds from Her Majesty's Government for projects in China together with the projects and the amounts involved in each case for 1991-92 and 1992-93.
Mr. Lennox-Boyd : A list of those projects that received United Kingdom bilateral assistance in 1991-92 and 1992-93, showing expenditure and the organisations involved, has been placed in the Libraries of the Houses.
Under the European Union co-operation programme, disbursements to China in 1991-92 and 1992-93 were 24 mecu--£18.47 million--United Kingdom share £2.96 million.
ODA contributed £304,000 to the United Nations Industrial Development Organisation over these two years for an artificial limb factory project in Fuzhou.
The World Food Programme's food aid commitments to China for 1991, 1992 and 1993 totalled 412,000 tonnes.
The United Nations Population Fund, the International Planned Parenthood Federation, the United Nations Development Programme, the United Nations Children's Fund and the Food and Agriculture Organisation have programmes in China. Our contributions to the core budgets of these agencies in 1991- 92 and 1992-93 were as follows :
|£ million
------------------------------
UNFPA |16.5
IPPF |14.5
UNDP |58.0
UNICEF |18.5
FAO |19.8
I refer the hon. Gentleman to the annual reports of the World bank, the International Finance Corporation and the Asian Development bank, which are in the House of Commons Library, for details of the activities they support in China.
Rwanda
Mr. Worthington : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what gaps there are in the food pipeline to Rwanda ; and how is it proposed to close them.
Mr. Lennox-Boyd : Despite major logistical problems, the World Food Programme is maintaining basic food supplies to all the refugee camps bordering Rwanda, and is also moving supplies into both north and south Rwanda. We are providing £1.25 million of emergency food aid. In addition, we have given two mobile grinding mills to WFP for the production of maize flour, at a cost of £290,000.
Mr. Worthington : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what reports he has received about cholera outbreaks in Burundi and the extent to which these are connected with refugees from Rwanda ; and how the international community is responding to them.
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Mr. Lennox-Boyd : Some 60 cases of cholera have been reported in the Burundian capital, Bujumbura, with no evident link to refugees from Rwanda. United Nations agencies are presently monitoring the situation.
Mr. Worthington : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what is the role of the World Health Organisation in a crisis such as the situation in Rwanda ; and what assessment he has made of how the organisation is fulfilling that role in Rwanda.
Mr. Lennox-Boyd : The World Health Organisation has responded quickly to the situation in Rwanda. It is a member of the United Nations humanitarian advance team in Nairobi and has also participated in the United Nations flash appeal. It has dispatched seven emergency health kits- -each provides medical supplies for 70,000 beneficiaries for three months-- for Rwanda refugees in surrounding countries. It is establishing four stations to monitor cross-border assistance into Rwanda. It is too early to assess how well the WHO is fulfilling its role as the leading health agency in this emergency situation.
Mr. Ieuan Wyn Jones : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what were the findings of the recent Overseas Development Administration mission to Rwanda ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Lennox-Boyd : The Overseas Development Administration mission visited the Kagera region of north-western Tanzania, the Kabale district in southern Uganda, and the Byumba prefecture in northern Rwanda on 21 to 26 May 1994.
The mission found that the British emergency aid already provided has been used effectively and was much appreciated, and that the relief efforts of the UN agencies, particularly UNHCR in northern Tanzania, the non- governmental organisations and the Red Cross movement were impressive and well co-ordinated. The political situation remains volatile and the refugee exodus is continuing. External emergency aid will be required for the foreseeable future. The main conclusions of the mission are that our future strategy should focus on :
improving the strategic planning and management of the overall humanitarian aid operation
expanding the operational capacity of non-governmental organisation implementing agencies to reach refugees/displaced in greatest need responding to the governments of Tanzania and Uganda concerns regarding the environmental impacts of the crisis.
As a result of these findings, my noble Friend the Minister for Overseas Development announced on 2 June that Britain is allocating a further £5 million of emergency aid to support displaced and refugees in Rwanda and neighbouring countries. This brings the amount of emergency aid provided bilaterally since April 1994 to over £11 million.
Aid (Military Expenditure)
Mr. Worthington : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what element of military expenditure is included in Britain's aid figures.
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Multilateral Aid
Mr. Worthington : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what percentage of Britain's aid budget contributes to multilateral aid ; and how this has changed over the past five years.
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