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Schizophrenia
Dr. Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Health on what basis the relative effectiveness of admission of patients with schizophrenia to (a) a district general hospital and (b) an area mental hospital is assessed; and over what period after discharge. [19824]
Mr. Bowis: We are working with the Royal College of Psychiatrists to develop outcome scales to assess the health and social functioning of mentally ill people.
Human Embryos
Mrs. Ann Winterton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what action is taken in respect of human embryos stored for more than five years, but less than the 39 years specified by the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (Statutory Storage Period for Human Embryos) Regulations in the event that the woman for the relief of whose infertility they had been stored ceases to receive treatment. [19657]
Mr. Horam: Embryos will normally remain in store until used for treatment purposes or until the storage period agreed with the couple expires. The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority is preparing guidance for licensed centres on the steps that should be taken to review the situation with the couple concerned before the storage period ends.
Mrs. Winterton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will place in the Library copies of all forms of consent authorised by his Department for use by infertility and research clinics in connection with the creation, storage and use of human embryos. [19656]
13 Mar 1996 : Column: 622
Mr. Horam: Copies of consent forms issued by the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority will be placed in the Library. These forms are not subject to authorisation by the Department of Health.
Mrs. Winterton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will place in the Library a copy of all codes of practice issued by the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority in connection with the consent which is sought by the donors of gametes and human embryos, with specific reference to (a) maximum storage periods, (b) the individuals for the relief of whose infertility those embryos may be used and (c) the research or other non-therapeutic purposes for which those embryos may be used. [19655]
Mr. Horam: The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority's code of practice provides guidance to licensed centres about consent to storage of gametes and embryos, consent to use of gametes and embryos in treatment and consent for use of gametes and embryos in research. Copies of the code of practice are available in the Library.
HIV (Anti-viral Medicines)
Mr. Chris Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to his answer of 5 March, Official Report, column 184, what assessment he has made of the funding requirements of health authorities necessary to ensure that where combination therapies of antiviral medicines are determined by clinicians as being the best response to HIV for a particular patient, there will be no financial obstacle to their prescription. [19937]
Mr. Horam: The Department allocates specific funding in relation to treating people with HIV and AIDS. The AIDS treatment and care budget is no longer ringfenced, and health authorities have the flexibility to move funds into HIV/AIDS from their main allocations if they so wish. The AIDS treatment budget already allows for significant costs for drug therapies and we will be monitoring the uptake and impact of combination therapies.
Blind and Partially Sighted People
Mr. Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what evaluation he has made of the benefit of specialised computer equipment for blind and partially sighted people; [20236]
- (2) what proposals he has to encourage the use of specialised computer equipment by blind and partially sighted people. [20239]
Mr. Bowis: The Department has not carried out such an evaluation. We have, however, made a grant of £25,000 per year for three years to the computability centre in Warwick. The centre is a national charity which provides information and advice on computers to disabled people, carers, employers and professionals.
Mr. Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what percentage of blind and partially sighted people in the United Kingdom are under the age of 18 years. [20238]
Mr. Bowis: Local authority registers show that at 31 March 1994 in England, around 2 per cent. of people registered as blind and 2.5 per cent. of those registered as partially sighted were aged under 18.
13 Mar 1996 : Column: 623
Information relating to Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland are matters for my right hon. Friends the Secretaries of State for Wales and Scotland and my right hon. and learned Friend the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland respectively.
Mr. Cunningham:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many blind and partially sighted people live in (a) Coventry, (b) the west midlands and (c) the United Kingdom. [20237]
Mr. Bowis:
Information on the numbers of people registered with local authorities as blind or partially sighted is shown in the table. As registration of blindness with local authorities is voluntary the figures may not provide a wholly reliable indicator of the prevalence of blindness or partial sight in the population.
| Blind and partially sighted people | Blind people | Partially sighted people | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Coventry | 1,440 | 730 | 720 |
| West Midlands | 22,210 | 13,700 | 9,510 |
| England | 265,370 | 149,670 | 115,710 |
Source: DH triennial return SSDA902.
Information relating to Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland are matters for my right hon. Friends the Secretaries of State for Wales and for Scotland and my right hon. and learned Friend the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland respectively.
Mr. Cunningham:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many blind and partially sighted people in the United Kingdom use specialised computer equipment for individual use otherwise than as students or as employees. [20235]
13 Mar 1996 : Column: 624
Mr. Bowis:
This information is not available centrally.
Dr. Lynne Jones:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the qualification of staff of residential accommodation for mentally ill people in (a) the community and (b) psychiatric hospitals. [19825]
Mr. Bowis:
Registering authorities decide the level of qualification and suitability of staff in residential homes. Each trust determines the staff and skills that they need to deliver the service which they provide through their contracts.
Mr. Jenkin:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health what proportion of the population in the North Essex health authority area are now served by fundholding general practitioners. [18598]
Mr. Malone:
A total of 47 per cent. of the population in North Essex health authority are currently registered with a fundholding practice. We expect this to rise to 60 per cent. this April.
Mr. Morgan:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health what consultations he has had with the chairmen of NHS trusts concerning insuring trust directors against liabilities other than in cases of malfeasance. [20555]
Mr. Malone:
None. Guidance to the national health service on the personal liability of non-executive directors is in course of preparation. The decision as to whether insurance is appropriate will remain one for individual trust boards.
13 Mar 1996 : Column: 625
Housing Rents
Mr. Wigley: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what is the current average gross weekly rent (a) for council rented accommodation and (b) housing association rented accommodation in Wales; and what were the corresponding figures five years earlier. [17882]
Mr. Hague: The available information on average actual rents is as follows:
| 1990-91 | 1995-96 | |
|---|---|---|
| £ | £ | |
| Rented from: | ||
| Local authority | 24.26 | 36.11 |
| Housing Association(3) | n/a | 42.31 |
(3) Comparable information is available only from 1994-95 and even then such overall average rents do not reflect the different sizes, ages and locations of dwellings in the local authority and housing association stocks.
Executive Agencies
Mr. Cummings: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales on how many occasions in each of the past five years Ministers in his Department have passed (a) hon. Members' letters and (b) hon. Members' questions to agencies for response; and what this figure is as a percentage of the total number of letters and questions received. [19418]
Mr. Hague: Letters passed to my Department's next steps agency--CADW--are as follows:
| Year | Letters | Percentage of total |
|---|---|---|
| 1991 | 84 | 3 |
| 1992 | 21 | 1 |
| 1993 | 61 | 2 |
| 1994 | 90 | 3 |
| 1995 | 111 | 4 |
Questions passed to my Department's next steps agency--CADW--is as follows:
| Year | Number of questions | Percentage of total |
|---|---|---|
| 1991 | 3 | less than 1 |
| 1992 | 4 | less than 1 |
| 1993 | 1 | less than 1 |
| 1994 | 1 | less than 1 |
| 1995 | 3 | less than 1 |
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