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Letter from Dr. J. M. Walsh to Mr. Malcolm Bruce, dated 23 February 1995:Parliamentary Question: To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, what was the total expenditure on all forms of advertising by his Department and its agencies for each year since 1979 in 1994 prices.
I am responding on behalf of the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, to your Parliamentary question. The ADAS expenditure on all forms of advertising is as follows:
Year Ending |£ ------------------------------------- March 1993 |108,967 March 1994 |103,760 End Jan 1995 |100,023
Letter by Dr. P. I. Stanley to Mr. Malcolm Bruce, dated 23 February 1995:
EXPENDITURE BY MAFF AND ITS AGENCIES ON ALL FORMS OF ADVERTISING The Central Science Laboratory (CSL) was launched as an executive agency of the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (MAFF) on 1 April 1992. Expenditure on advertising for each financial year since that date is:
1992/93: £8,990.60
1993/94: £566.19
1994/95 (up to and including January '95): £12,594.23
These sums include the costs of staff recruitment advertising, which, in the current financial year, has amounted to £11,176.05 up to the end of January.
TRADE AND INDUSTRY
Atomic Energy Authority
Mr. Anthony Coombs: To ask the President of the Board of Trade what change has been made to the United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority's external financing limit for 1994 95; and what corresponding change has been made to his Department's cash-limited vote.
Mr. Page: The United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority's external financing limit for 1994 95 has been increased by £22,000,000 from minus £8,800,000 to plus £13,200,000. The revised financing requirement reflects, first, an adjustment of £14,200,000 to cover additional restructuring costs and, secondly, a budgetary adjustment of £7,800,000 resulting from recent changes in trading arrangements between my Department and the UKAEA.
To accommodate the increase to the UKAEA's external financing limit, my Department's cash limit for class IV, vote 1 has been reduced by £22,000,000 from £1,184,893,000 to £1,162,893,000 following reductions in spending on other DTI programmes. The increase will not therefore add to the planned total of pubic expenditure.
Internet
Mr. Blunkett: To ask the President of the Board of Trade what measures currently exist for monitoring illegal or threatening material being placed on the Internet from (a) within the United Kingdom and (b) from outside the United Kingdom but being accessed from within.
Mr. Ian Taylor [holding answer 20 February 1995]: The Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994 has updated existing legal controls on obscene and
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pornographic material to take account of advances in computer technology. Although the monitoring of the Internet is an operational matter for the chief constable of each force, the Government have encouraged the National Council for Educational Technology to prepare guidance for teachers and parents on computer pornography. The overall question of monitoring the Internet is one that is being considered by relevant Government Departments.Export Licences, Iraq
Mrs. Clwyd: To ask the President of the Board of Trade if (a) Williams Holdings, (b) Leyland Trucks and (c) RB International have been issued with a communication licence to visit Iraq; and for what purpose.
Mr. Ian Taylor: It has been the policy of successive administrations not to comment on individual licence applications unless public interest outweighs the need for commercial confidentiality.
Mrs. Clwyd: To ask the President of the Board of Trade (1) how many export licences have been given to British firms to export to Iraq since sanctions began;
(2) how many export licences for export to Iraq have been refused since sanctions began.
Mr. Ian Taylor: The export control organisation within my Department issues licences for exports to Iraq within the procedures laid down by the UN sanctions committee. Licences may be granted for exports of foodstuffs, medicines and other goods deemed to be essential for humanitarian civilian needs.
As at 21 February 1995, a total of 791 applications for export licences to Iraq have been refused to British firms and a total of 2, 370 applications for export licences to Iraq had been granted to British firms since August 1990. This computer-generated figure cannot be confirmed without disproportionate cost.
Mr. Stephen Crouch
Mrs. Clwyd: To ask the President of the Board of Trade when Ministers or officials of his Department last met Mr. Stephen Crouch.
Mr. Ian Taylor: Neither Ministers nor officials of this Department have met Mr. Crouch in his capacity as director general of the Iraqi British Interests Group.
Angus Fire
Mrs. Clwyd: To ask the President of the Board of Trade for what purpose his Department issued Angus Fire with a communication licence to visit Iraq.
Mr. Ian Taylor: It has been the policy of successive Administrations not to comment on individual licence applications unless public interest outweighs the need for commercial confidentiality.
Child Labour
Mr. Corbyn: To ask the President of the Board of Trade what proposals to exclude the use of child labour he plans to make to the World Trade Organisation.
Mr. Ian Taylor: The Government are fully committed to international action, for example through the UN and
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the International Labour Organisation, to stop exploitation of children, but do not consider that action through the WTO would be an appropriate means to achieve this.Mr. Corbyn: To ask the President of the Board of Trade what representations were made during the general agreement on tariffs and trade discussions on the use of child labour world wide; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Ian Taylor: The issue was not on the agenda for the Uruguay round of multilateral trade negotiations. At the conclusion of the round, certain delegations asked for the issue of the relationship between the trading system and internationally recognised labour standards to be added, among a number of others, to the agenda of the World Trade Organisation. No decision has been made on this suggestion.
Export Credit Licences
Mr. Godsiff: To ask the President of the Board of Trade if he will list the number and value of export credit licences issued in each year since 1990 in respect of (a) arms-related exports and (b) non-arms-related exports.
Mr. Ian Taylor: Details of the numbers and values of export licences are contained in the annual report of the Export Control Organisation for 1993, a copy of which has been placed in the Library of the House. To provide greater detail than that which is included in the annual report would involve disproportionate cost.
Office of Electricity Regulation
Mr. John Greenway: To ask the President of the Board of Trade what further evidence, particularly on environmental matters, the Office of Electricity Regulation will be seeking before publication of the final results of the review of transmission security standards.
Mr. Page [holding answer 22 February 1995]: This is a matter for Offer. I have asked the Director General of Electricity Supply to write to the hon. Member.
Mr. John Greenway: To ask the President of the Board of Trade what proposals he has for monitoring the compliance by Offer and his departmental officials to fulfil their environmental duties under section 3(3) of the Electricity Act 1989 in connection with the proposed power lines in the vale of York.
Mr. Page [holding answer 22 February 1995]: My right hon. Friend will comply with relevant duties under the Electricity Act 1989 when reaching his decisions on the applications before him. His duties under section 3 do not apply in considering the applications by virtue of section 3(6).
It is the responsibility of the Director General of Electricity Supply to ensure that his officials comply with his duties under the Act.
United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority
Mr. Maclennan: To ask the President of the Board of Trade (1) how many people are currently employed by the UKAEA Government division at Dounreay;
(2) how many people are currently employed by AEA Technology at Dounreay.
Mr. Page: The United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority currently employs 1,092.5 people at Dounreay, excluding members of the UKAEA constabulary. They are made up as follows:
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|Number
------------------------------------------
UKAEA Government Division |663.5
AEA Technology |293
Other |136
Total |1,092.5
The UKAEA constabulary employs 485 staff in total, but for security reasons we do not disclose their location.
Non-departmental Public Bodies (Pay)
Mr. McAllion: To ask the President of the Board of Trade if he will list the non-departmental public bodies sponsored by his Department which will (a) follow the pay arrangements of the sponsoring Department and (b) pursue an independent and separate route under the delegated pay option (i) from April 1995 and (ii) from April 1996.
Mr. Heseltine: The question of which of those NDPBs sponsored by my Department having analogous pay arrangements with the civil service will decide to follow the pay arrangements of my Department or pursue an independent grading and pay system is still under consideration.
Aerospace Industry
Mr. Spellar: To ask the President of the Board of Trade what was his Department's support for the aerospace industry in the last year for which figures are available; and what is his estimate of similar support provided in (a) the United States, (b) France and (c) Germany.
Mr. Page: I refer the hon. Member to the reply given by my hon. Friend the then Under-Secretary of State for Industry and Energy to the hon. Member for Newcastle upon Tyne, Central (Mr. Cousins) on 20 December 1994, Official Report , columns 1036 37 .
TOPRAC
Mr. Nicholas Winterton: To ask the President of the Board of Trade what recent representations he has received concerning the proposed award of an investment grant to the Turkish company TOPRAC for the opening of a sanitary ware and tile manufacturing company on Merseyside; what is the value of the proposed grant; whether its award has been approved by the European Union; when it is expected the grant will be paid; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Page [holding answer 22 February 1995]: The Department of Trade and Industry has received a number of representations about this matter. An announcement will be made in due course and I will be writing to my hon. Friend.
Mr. Nicholas Winterton: To ask the President of the Board of Trade (1) what specific consultation he undertook with the British sanitary ware and tile manufacturing industry about the implications for existing companies of the proposed award of an investment grant to the Turkish company TOPRAC for the opening of a
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sanitary ware and tile manufacturing company on Merseyside; (2) what assessment he has made of the impact on employment for existing companies in the sanitary ware and tile manufacturing industries of the proposed award of an investment grant to the Turkish company TOPRAC for the opening of a sanitary ware and tile manufacturing company on Merseyside.Mr. Page [holding answer 22 February 1995]: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer given by the then Under-Secretary of State for Industry and Energy to the hon. Member for Stoke-on-Trent, North (Ms Walley) on 30 November 1994, Official Report, column 705 .
Trade (Sanitary Ware and Tiles)
Mr. Nicholas Winterton: To ask the President of the Board of Trade what was the net balance of trade in sanitary ware and tiles between the European Union and the rest of the world in the latest year for which figures are available.
Mr. Page [holding answer 22 February 1995]: The information for sanitary ware products is published on the Eurostat Comext database which may be accessed via the Library of the House; sanitary ware products are defined as products 6975, 8122, and 89321 of the standard international trade classification. It is not possible separately to identify trade in tiles.
HEALTH
Learning Difficulties
Mr. Galbraith: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what is the average annual cost of caring for a person with learning difficulties in (a) the community and (b) hospital.
Mr. Bowis: The total national health service expenditure on hospital services for people with learning disabilities in 1992 93 was £750 million. The average expenditure per in-patient year in NHS directly managed units and trusts was £38,325. Total NHS and local authority expenditure on community services for people with learning disabilities was £945 million. The average cost per person is not available centrally.
Multiple Sclerosis
Mr. Gordon Prentice: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will (a) the universities, (b) the hospitals and (c) other major institutions that are conducting research into multiple sclerosis; and if she will list the Government grants that have been (i) sought and (ii) granted in each case in the last 12 months for which figures are available.
Mr. Bowis: The Department of Health is currently funding a project entitled "Walking and mobility in patients with MS--is modification by physiotherapy effective?". The project is being undertaken by Professor Wiles at the university of Wales, Cardiff.
The main agency through which the Government fund medical research is the Medical Research Council, which receives its grant in aid from the office of my right hon.
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Friend the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster. The MRC is funding research into multiple sclerosis in:(a) Its own establishments which are on university sites: MRC cellular immunology unit, Oxford
MRC environmental epidemiology unit, Southampton--
direct support for MRC's own establishment granted in
1993 94.
(b) Universities:
Institute of Neurology, university of London--Dr. L. Cuzner, Department of Neurochemistry, indirect support granted in 1993 94.
St. Georges's hospital medical school.
In addition, very large sums are invested by pharmaceutical companies in medical research, some of which may relate to multiple sclerosis.
Worcester District General Hospital
Mr. Luff: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when she expects the construction of the new Worcester district general hospital to be resumed.
Mr. Sackville: This is a matter for West Midlands regional health authority. My hon. Friend may wish to contact Mr. Bryan Baker, chairman of West Midlands regional health authority, for details.
Breast Cancer
Mrs. Golding: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment she has made of the arrangement governing the delivery of breast cancer surgery.
Mr. Sackville: No assessment has been made. Arrangements governing the delivery of breast cancer surgery is a matter for local decision.
Mrs. Golding: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what response she has given to the Macmillan directory of specialist breast cancer services in the United Kingdom, a copy of which has been sent to her.
Mr. Sackville: None yet. We are studying the Macmillan directory of specialist breast cancer services in the United Kingdom with interest.
Mrs. Golding: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps she is taking to reduce the United Kingdom mortality rate from breast cancer.
Mr. Sackville: We were one of the first countries in the world to establish a national breast screening programme based on a call and recall system for women aged 50 to 64, through which we have promoted the production of guidance on the treatment of breast cancer. In "The Health of the Nation--A Strategy for Health in England", the Government have set a target to reduce breast cancer mortality in women screened by 25 per cent. by the year 2000. The Government annually fund research into breast cancer and breast cancer screening; and have also funded health promotion material to increase breast awareness among women generally.
Additionally, the chief medical officers of England and Wales established an expert advisory group on cancer and commissioned it to review the delivery of cancer services, including breast cancer. Its consultative report "A Policy Framework for Commissioning Cancer Services" published on 18 May 1994, recommends significant
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change in the provision of cancer care and treatment. Copies of the report are available in the Library.Mrs. Golding: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what progress has been made towards implementing Macmillan's 10 minimum standards of care for women with breast cancer.
Mr. Sackville: We welcome the Macmillan's 10 minimum standards of care for women with breast cancer; its campaign is entirely consistent with our desire to empower the patient and to have more choice in the treatment provided. The consultative document "A Policy Framework for Commissioning Cancer Services", published last year, recommends that all patients should have access to a uniformly high quality of care to ensure maximum cure rates and improve quality of life. The report, revised in the light of consultation, will be considered by Ministers shortly.
Spending Statistics
Mrs. Beckett: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) if she will list spending per head of population by (a) each health authority and (b) each family health services authority for 1993 94; and if she will give the national averages for that period; (2) how much is currently spent per capita on health services for residents in (a) London, (b) Birmingham, (c) Manchester, (d) Liverpool, (e) Leeds, (f) Newcastle, (g) Bristol and (h) England; and what proportion is spent on treatment in (i) hospitals and (ii) by community services excluding the element of cost which is attributable to medical education and research.
Mr. Sackville: I refer the hon. Lady to the reply I gave to the hon. Member for Darlington (Mr. Milburn) on 12 December 1994, Official Report , column 465 .
In 1993 94, district health authorities spent £370 per capita on health services while family health services authorities spent £153. These figures do not include expenditure by regional health authorities, the Department of Health or other statutory bodies. It is not possible to break these figures down further between spend on hospital and community services, nor is it possible to remove the cost element of research and education from the figures. Comparisons of these per capita spend figures need to be treated with caution. First, not all the expenditure covered arises from population related activities. Secondly, crude population do not reflect the differences in age structure or relative health care need or in the cost of providing services. These differences feature in the formulae used to inform the main allocations made to DHAs.
NHS Executive and Policy Boards
Mrs. Beckett: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will list the general practitioners on (a) the NHS executive and (b) the policy board.
Mr. Malone: The national health service executive employs a number of professional staff from a general practice background including six currently working in the division responsible for primary care policy. None of the current members of the NHS policy board is a general practitioners.
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General Practice Research Database
Mr. Alex Carlile: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many bids were received for the contract to manage the general practice research database.
Mr. Sackville: Twenty-six expressions of interest were received from organisations wishing to provide services connected with the regular collection, validation and supply of anonymised patient data for the general practice research database.
Lindane
Mr. Gunnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what studies her Department has carried out into the relationship between the use of lindane and the incidence of breast cancer.
Mr. Sackville: None. The main agency through which the Government support biomedical and clinical research is the Medical Research Council, which receives its grant in aid from the office of my right hon. Friend the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster. The MRC is an independent body deciding what research to support on its own expert judgment. The Department of Health expert committee on
carcinogenicity has been asked to advise on any relationship between organochlorines, including lindane, and breast cancer when it next meets in March 1995, and will consider the latest available research.
Paediatricians
Mrs. Ewing: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if she will list the number of consultant paediatricians employed per regional health authority; and what are the estimated required levels of staffing.
Mr. Malone: The information in the table shows the number of paediatricians in each region together with consultant child and adolescent psychiatrists since these are also involved in the treatment of children. Although the Government encourage consultant expansion, it remains for local employing bodies to decide how many
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additional consultants are needed and where those extra staff can best be placed. These decisions must be made in the light of local priorities.
Hospital medical consultants by region whole-time equivalent-30
September 1993
|Child and adolescent
Region |Paediatric group |psychiatry
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Northern |60 |20
Yorkshire |80 |20
Trent |80 |30
East Anglia |40 |20
North West Thames |50 |30
North East Thames |60 |30
South East Thames |80 |20
South West Thames |50 |20
Wessex |50 |20
Oxford |50 |20
South Western |50 |20
West Midlands |90 |30
Mersey |50 |20
North Western |80 |20
Special health authorities |30 |10
England Total |910 |320
Notes:
1. Paediatric group consists of paediatrics, paediatric neurology and paediatric surgery.
2. Data rounded to the nearest 10.
Mr. Ewing: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what is her latest estimate of the number of paediatricians currently in training giving a breakdown of the numbers per training establishment.
Mr. Malone: The available information relating to doctors in training in the paediatric group is shown in the table.
Doctors in the speciality of child and adolescent psychiatry also treat children. At 30 September 1993, there were 120 senior registrars, 40 registrars and 10 senior house officers in this speciality in England-- whole-time equivalent, rounded to the nearest 10.
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Junior Doctors in Paediatric Group by Region and Grade Whole-Time Equivalent-30 September 1993
|Senior house
|officer/
Region |Senior Registrar|Registrar |house officer
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Northern |10 |20 |80
Yorkshire |10 |20 |110
Trent |20 |30 |150
East Anglia |10 |10 |40
North West Thames |10 |40 |100
North East Thames |20 |20 |100
South East Thames |10 |30 |120
South West Thames |10 |20 |70
Wessex |10 |20 |70
Oxford |10 |20 |70
South Western |10 |20 |90
West Midlands |20 |30 |130
Mersey |10 |20 |80
North Western |20 |40 |130
Special Health Authorities |30 |50 |40
England Total |220 |410 |1,380
Note:
<1> Paediatric group consists of paediatrics, paediatric neurology and paediatric surgery.
<2> Data rounded to the nearest 10.
Accident and Emergency Departments
Mr. Milburn: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to her answer of 6 February, Official Report , column 27 , if she will itemise the number of accident and emergency departments by region in each year.
Mr. Sackville: The information is shown in the table.
Trusts and directly managed units<1> with
accident and emergency
department<2> by region in England.
|1991-92|1992-93|1993-94
--------------------------------------------------
Northern |20 |19 |16
Yorkshire |18 |17 |17
Trent |15 |18 |14
East Anglian |10 |9 |10
North West Thames |17 |13 |15
North East Thames |17 |16 |16
South East Thames |17 |15 |16
South West Thames |15 |14 |15
Wessex |15 |14 |12
Oxford |11 |8 |10
South Western |15 |12 |15
West Midlands |26 |27 |27
Mersey |12 |11 |12
North Western |26 |29 |20
SHAs |4 |4 |3
<1> A trust or directly managed unit may consist
of a number of hospitals each with its own
accident and emergency department.
<2> With medical staff on site and where the
intention is to open 168 hours per week.
Frozen Embryos
Mr. Alton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) how many frozen embryos are currently in store; how many belong to parents with whom there is no longer any contact; what representations she has received from the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority or individual clinics about the storage and future of frozen embryos; and if she will make a statement;
(2) when she expects to receive the report she has requested from the HFEA on the freezing of embryos; and if she will make a statement;
(3) if she will place a copy of the final recommendations and report of the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority embryo freezing working group in the Library;
(4) which groups she has consulted on the fate of frozen embryos stored for more than five years.
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