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Sheriff Courts
Mr. McFall: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will make a statement on the average waiting time a defendant has had to wait between being charged and the subsequent trial in sheriff courts in the last five years. [28670]
Lord James Douglas-Hamilton: This information is not available.
HEALTH
Speech and Language Therapists
Mrs. Ray Michie: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will list the number of speech and language therapists at each grade from spine points 23 to 27 in each of the past five years. [28445]
Mr. Malone: The available information is shown in the table. A new pay and grade system, using pay points on a single spine, was introduced in March 1991. Data are available only by the new spine points from September 1991 to September 1994, which is the latest year
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available. The figures are "snapshots" of a process of gradual transition which was on-going throughout the period 1991 to 1994.
| NHS HCHS | 1991 | 1992 | 1993 | 1994 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Speech and language therapists on spine points 23 to 27 | 730 | 700 | 690 | 690 |
Note:
Figures are rounded to the nearest ten.
Source:
Department of Health Non-Medical Workforce Census.
Long-term Care
Mr. Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what is the average cost of one year's long-term care for a disabled person. [29033]
Mr. Bowis: Information collected centrally on expenditure and use of care relates to the client group and not to the nature of an individual's disability. Provisional 1994-95 figures are of a gross cost to local authorities of £18,000 per supported physically or learning disabled resident in residential or nursing homes--calculated from reported gross expenditure divided by the average number of supported residents at the beginning and end of the financial year.
Mr. Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what percentage of disabled people in Britain need long-term care. [29031]
Mr. Bowis: Information on the percentage of disabled people in need of long-term care is not available centrally.
Duplicate NHS Numbers
Mr. Cohen: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many duplicate NHS numbers have been issued by his Department; what plans he has to end this duplication; and if he will make a statement. [29697]
Mr. Horam: Duplicate national health service numbers have so far been issued to some 7,500 newly registered babies.
We are able to identify duplicate numbers quickly. Until the problem is resolved, the NHS central register is giving all of the babies concerned new NHS numbers to replace the duplicate numbers issued originally.
More than one option has been identified to prevent the issuing of duplicate numbers and these options are being evaluated. The study is due to make its recommendations at the end of May 1996. The chosen option will be implemented as quickly as possible.
Mr. Milburn:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health what have been the payments made to GP fundholders in each region in each year since 1990-91 in (a) management allowances and (b) computer costs. [29401]
20 May 1996 : Column: 74
Mr. Malone:
I refer the hon. Member to the reply my right hon. Friend the then Minister for Health gave him on 26 January 1994, column 300; the reply I gave him on 25 January 1995, columns 259-60; and the reply I gave him on 18 July 1995, columns 1152.
| Region | 1994-95 |
|---|---|
| £ | |
| Northern and Yorkshire | 8,341,650 |
| Trent | 8,020,837 |
| Anglian and Oxford | 6,940,223 |
| North Thames | 7,892,904 |
| South Thames | 9,589,025 |
| South and West | 6,823,238 |
| West Midlands | 9,052,199 |
| North West | 8,261,032 |
Source:
Annual financial returns of Family Health Services Authorities.
Redundancies
Mr. Milburn: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to his answer of 19 December 1995, Official Report, column 1134, if he will update the figures of redundancy payments. [29473]
Mr. Malone: Expenditure by Dorset Healthcare trust has been amended from £88,293 to £23,394, a difference of £64,889 as a result of a validation exercise. This exercise has not yet been concluded and the figures for 1994-95 remain provisional.
Research Fraud
Mrs. Dunwoody: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what study his Department has commissioned through the scientific research councils into the prevalence of research fraud; and what plans he has to commission further studies. [29566]
Mr. Malone: It is the responsibility of the whole medical research community and all its sponsors to ensure good practice in the conduct of research and this operates primarily through the principles of peer review and through guidelines on good practice. The Department's research programmes cover research into health and social care of relevance to the Department and the national health service. The Department has not commissioned work on the more general issues of research conduct and there are no plans, currently, to do so.
Mrs. Dunwoody: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what investigations in respect of misconduct are undertaken before research funds are allocated to units undertaking research; and what plans he has to increase the level of these investigations. [29563]
Mr Malone: The Department is committed to maintaining high standards in the commissioning and management of research which operates primarily through peer review and through guidelines on good practice--the Department's code of practice for commissioning and managing research, introduced in 1992.
20 May 1996 : Column: 75
Research commissioned by the Department, whether from an individual or an academic institution, is subject to the terms of an agreed contract which embodies the code of practice.
With such research management arrangements in place, it is not considered necessary to carry out separate investigations in respect of misconduct before research funds are allocated and there are no plans, at present, to introduce such investigations in the future.
Mrs. Dunwoody:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many Government-funded scientific research units have developed printed codes of research, which they require junior scientists undertaking research for the first time to sign; and if he will make a statement. [29560]
Mr. Malone:
The Department has had a code of practice for the commissioning and management of research and development in place since 1992 to help ensure quality and relevance of research funded by this Department. The management arrangements of all research undertaken by the Department, and by the non-departmental public bodies funded by the Department, is reviewed annually with particular emphasis on the application of the code of practice. The conditions of employment of researchers are a matter for the employing authority. Any research commissioned by the Department, whether from an individual or from an academic institution, is subject to the terms of an agreed contract which embodies the principles of the code of practice.
Codes of research in other scientific research units are the responsibility of the Office of Science and Technology.
Mrs. Dunwoody:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will review the policy of general practitioner alignment of health visitors; and if he will publish the results of that review. [29567]
Mr. Horam:
Health visitors work very closely with their general practitioner colleagues, other members of the primary health care team and the practice population.
From 1973, some district nurses and health visitors have become attached to GP practices and this has enhanced both the practice team and patient care.
We are currently completing a major listening exercise about primary care. A report will be published in June this year.
Mrs. Dunwoody:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will review the target requirements for health visitors to visit a new patient within five working days. [29549]
Mr. Horam:
The patients charter standard is based on current good practice. It is a challenging but achievable standard, and there are no plans to review it.
20 May 1996 : Column: 76
Mr. David Nicholson:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health what was the total amount of spending in the UK on the NHS, expressed as a percentage of total public spending, in each year since 1974. [29643]
Mr. Horam:
A consistent series of figures is available only from 1978-79. The information is in the table:
| UK expenditure on the national health service as a percentage of general Government | |
|---|---|
| Year | expenditure(X)(14) |
| 1978-79 | 10.9 |
| 1979-80 | 10.7 |
| 1980-81 | 11.4 |
| 1981-82 | 11.6 |
| 1982-83 | 11.5 |
| 1983-84 | 11.4 |
| 1984-85 | 11.3 |
| 1985-86 | 11.4 |
| 1986-87 | 11.6 |
| 1987-88 | 12.0 |
| 1988-89 | 12.6 |
| 1989-90 | 12.5 |
| 1990-91 | 12.7 |
| 1991-92 | 13.2 |
| 1992-93 | 13.1 |
| 1993-94 | 12.9 |
| 1994-95 | 13.0 |
| 1995-96 (estimated outturn) | 13.3 |
(14) GGE(X) is General Government Expenditure excluding privatisation proceeds and lottery-financed spending and net of interest and dividend receipts.
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