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Memphis Project

Ms Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Health on what date the Memphis project was submitted for Treasury approval; on what date such approval was granted; and on what date the project commenced and at what estimated cost. [39817]

Mr. Horam: The Memphis project commenced in 1994 and was completed in August 1995. The cost was within departmental delegated limits. Treasury approval was therefore unnecessary.

Ms Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what was the cost of the Track software and acquired for the Memphis project from the Intelligent Office Company Ltd. of Hammersmith; and if he will give details of the competitive tendering procedure used in the acquisition of the Track software for the Memphis project. [39800]

Mr. Horam: The cost of the software is subject to commercial confidentiality. It was procured from a company through one of the Department's EC/GATT contracts.

Ms Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what arrangements were made to advertise the Memphis

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project in the contract supplement of the Official Journal of the EU. [39816]

Mr. Horam: The Department has framework agreements with a number of companies covering various categories of information technology work, which were awarded after an EC/GATT procurement. The contracts for Memphis were awarded following competitions between companies with framework agreements in appropriate categories.

Ms Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what independent evaluation there has been of the expected benefits of the Memphis project as to volume, standard and time scale. [39814]

Mr. Horam: These topics are covered in post- implementation reviews, which are carried out at the end of major information technology projects. They are conducted by independent companies drawn from those with which the Department has framework agreements. A PIR was carried out at the end of the Memphis project.

Leukaemia (Newbury)

Mr. Rendel: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what studies (a) are taking place and (b) he proposes into levels of leukaemia and related disorders in the Newbury district. [39717]

Mr. Horam: The Committee on Medical Aspects of Radiation in the Environment--COMARE--has considered allegations of increased incidence of childhood cancer around a number of nuclear establishments. Its third report considered whether there was any association in local childhood cancer incidence in west Berkshire and north Hampshire and exposure to radioactivity from the nuclear establishments which were then known as the Atomic Weapons Research Establishment, Aldermaston, the Royal Ordnance factory, Burghfield, and the Atomic Energy Research Establishment, Harwell. The report did not include RAF Greenham Common.

In this report COMARE recommended that a study on the geographical distribution of childhood cancer incidence on a nationwide basis should be carried out. This study is currently under way and COMARE will consider all new data now available in assessing whether there is an association between local levels of contamination and cancer incidence.

Breast Lumps

Ms Harman: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what guidance his Department has issued on the setting up of one-stop clinics for the treatment of breast lumps. [39834]

Mr. Horam: Guidance for purchasers on improving outcomes in breast cancer will be issued shortly. It will be for health authorities in consultation with their provider units to agree assessment, treatment and care arrangements for women with breast symptoms.

GP Fundholders

Ms Harman: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what were the total savings of GP fundholders in the last year. [39729]

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Mr. Malone: Final audited information for 1995-96 is not yet available.

Ms Harman: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate he has made of the total cost of staff, equipment, computing and management costs in respect of GP fundholding practices in the last year. [39730]

Mr. Malone: Audited information is not available.

NHS Expenditure

Ms Harman: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what is the amount of money reported by each health authority in England to his Department as its outturn spend for 1995-96 and its planned spend for 1996-97 in respect of (a) in-patient case for mental illness, (b) out-patient care for mental illness, (c) residential care for mental illness, (d) day care for mental illness, (e) community nursing care for mental illness, (f) in-patient care for learning disability, (g) out-patient care for learning disability, (h) residential care for learning disability, (i) day care for learning disability and (j) community nursing care for learning disability. [39830]

Mr. Malone: This information is not yet available.

Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease

Mr. Alan W. Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to his answer of 2 July, Official Report, column 367, how many highly suspect cases of the new strain of Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease have been reported to the national surveillance unit in Edinburgh (a) up to the end of 1995, (b) in the quarter ending 31 March 1996 and (c) in the quarter ending 30 June 1996. [39846]

Mr. Horam: I refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave the hon. Member for Linlithgow (Mr. Dalyell) on 23 July, Official Report, column 215, which explained that the term "highly suspect case" is not used in respect of Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease. There are now 12 confirmed cases of the new variant of CJD. Of these, three died in 1995, five in the first quarter of 1996 and three in the second; one patient is still alive.

Mr. Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what is the incubation period for (a) the normal strain as reported conventionally world wide, (b) the strain accidentally caused by pituitary hormone treatment and (c) the new strain reported on 20 March of CJD. [39843]

Mr. Horam: The vast majority of Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease are sporadic and occur spontaneously. It is not possible to ascertain how long a patient may have been incubating the disease before the clinical signs become evident. Studies of the Kuru epidemic in New Guinea showed incubation periods of between five and 30 years. In cases of iatrogenic infection incubation periods have varied from 18 months for central exposures to 25 years for peripheral exposures. The incubation time for the new variant of CJD is uncertain but is likely to be in the range of five to 20 years.

Single-sex Wards

Ms Harman: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what was the number of single-sex wards as a percentage of the total in each of the last six years. [39821]

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Mr. Horam: This information is not collected centrally.

Trust Hospitals (Invoices)

Ms Harman: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what was the average number of invoices sent out by trust hospitals in the last year. [39745]

Mr. Horam: This information is not held centrally.

Ministerial Visits

Mr. Rendel: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many visits (i) he and (ii) his Ministers made to (a) the Newbury constituency and (b) other constituencies in the last 12 months. [39870]

Mr. Horam: Since October 1995 no visits have been made to the Newbury constituency by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State or his ministerial colleagues. There have been 29 visits to other constituencies by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State and 199 visits by his ministerial colleagues.

General Practice Audit

Ms Harman: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what powers the Audit Commission have to audit general practice. [39748]

Mr. Horam: Auditors appointed by the Audit Commission have powers to examine all general practice records necessary to validate national health service income and expenditure.

Community Pharmacists

Ms Harman: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many NHS community pharmacists there were in each of the last five years. [39825]

Mr. Malone: I refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave the hon. Member for Littleborough and Saddleworth (Mr. Davies) on 17 June, Official Report, columns 352-53.

Young Runaways

Sir Sydney Chapman: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the Centrepoint National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children report "Nowhere to Hide: Giving Young Runaways a Voice", a copy of which has been sent to him; and what proposals he has to address the problem for young runaways. [39651]

Mr. Malone: A copy of the published report has not yet been received. I shall consider the recommendations when I receive them.

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