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Consultants

Dr. Godman: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how much has been spent on consultants' reports over the past five years. [16494]

Lord James Douglas-Hamilton: Expenditure over the past five years by the Scottish Office and its associated agencies on external consultants including management consultants has been:


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HEALTH

Lariam

Ms Corston: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will list, with dates, the changes made between 1990 and 1997 in the product data sheet issued to patients with the drug Lariam, describing use and possible side-effects; and what were the reasons for the changes. [15193]

Mr. Malone: The changes that have been made to the product information for Lariam--mefloquine--between 1990 and 1997 have been placed in the Library. The reasons for the changes are that new evidence has become available to the marketing authorisation holder and to the Medicines Control Agency. The sources of the

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information include suspected adverse reactions received through spontaneous adverse reaction reporting schemes and clinical studies on efficacy or safety of the product.

Copies of data sheets that have been included in the Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry data sheet compendium between 1990 and 1996, along with the current data sheet and the patient information leaflets for the same period, have been placed in the Library.

NHS Trusts (Lease Cars)

Mr. Hall: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will list the number of NHS trust chairmen and non-executive directors with lease cars on 31 December (a) 1995 and (b) 1996. [16242]

Mr. Malone: The information requested is not held centrally.

Mr. Hall: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what are the different arrangements applying to (a) Crown and (b) lease cars provided to members of boards of NHS trusts. [16236]

Mr. Malone: Under the terms of section 24 of the general Whitley council handbook, national health service employers may offer Crown cars to employees where they deem it to be in the interests of the service. The Whitley council scheme does not apply to chairmen and non-executive directors. They may be provided with lease cars when this represents value for money when compared with other methods of funding their travel on NHS business. However, they must make a personal contribution for any private use equivalent to the full amount of the taxable benefit.

NHS Medical Services

Mr. Spearing: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to his oral statement on 11 February, Official Report, column 156, concerning the size of the current Red Book contract for the delivery of NHS general medical services, what opportunities will be offered by his proposed amendment to the National Health Service (Primary Care) Bill [Lords] which are not possible under a current Red Book contract. [16023]

Mr. Malone: The National Health Service (Primary Care) Bill will permit those who work in the NHS to shape services to reflect local needs and circumstances rather than work solely to the national terms of service.

Hospitals (Lancashire)

Mr. Nigel Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many capital spending projects are (a) under way and (b) planned at hospitals in Lancashire. [16144]

Mr. Horam: As at 31 December 1996, there were 10 schemes under way in the North West region. A further 10 projects are planned. Details for Lancashire are not available separately.

Abortion

Sir David Steel: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will embody the British Medical Association guidelines on conscientious objection to abortion in a departmental circular to GPs. [16095]

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Mr. Horam: In 1991 the general medical services council of the British Medical Association issued guidance to general practitioners through local medical committees, reminding them of their objections under their terms of service. The guidance remains extant, and GPs who have a conscientious objection to abortion should refer the patient to another doctor as soon as possible.

Sir David Steel: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will direct regional health executives not to employ criteria for NHS abortions which are not provided for in the Abortion Act 1967. [16096]

Mr. Horam: The Abortion Act 1967 as amended sets out the grounds on which abortion may lawfully be carried out. The criteria health authorities use when deciding on the level of abortion services are not covered by the Act.

Sir David Steel: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement of the Abortion Law Reform Association report on "NHS Abortion Services". [16161]

Mr. Horam: The Abortion Law Reform Association report has indicted that where the conditions of the Abortion Act 1967 as amended are met there is an overall national improvement in access to abortion services.

Any specific service issues are a matter for local health authorities and should be brought up with them in the first instance.

Dentists

Mr. Nigel Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many dentists worked in the NHS in the north-west of England (a) at the latest available date and (b) in 1979. [16169]

Mr. Malone: The table shows the number of general dental service dentists at 30 September 1979 and 1995 in north-west England.

General Dental Service: number of dentists by family health services authority at 30 September north-west England

19791995
North-west England1,5112,083
Cheshire241319
Liverpool123152
St. Helens and Knowsley7595
Sefton7793
Wirral89121
Lancashire284442
Bolton5379
Bury4358
Manchester136167
Oldham4267
Rochdale4558
Salford4967
Stockport91108
Tameside4673
Trafford6287
Wigan5597

1. The figures represent the number of dentists (principals) on the family health services authority list and their assistants and vocational trainees.

2. Some dentists have contracts with more than one family health services authority. These dentists have been counted only once.

3. Excludes salaried, hospital, and community dentists.

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Hospitals (North-west)

Mr. Nigel Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) how many patients were treated in hospitals in the north-west in (a) 1995 and (b) 1979; [16147]

Mr. Horam: Information on the number of patients treated is not collected centrally. In-patient activity is recorded in terms of finished consultant episodes. The latest year for which information is available is 1995-96, and the information is contained in "Ordinary and day case admissions: England", copies of which are available in the Library.

Prior to 1988-89, data were collected on a different basis. Information for 1979 is not available in the form requested for the North-west region.

Private Employment Agencies

Mr. Hall: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will list the private employment agencies used by his Department and its agencies in each of the last three years for which figures are available, indicating (a) the names of the agencies, (b) the number employed by the agencies in work for this Department, (c) the total cost to his Department of using employment agencies and the median cost paid to the agency per person recruited and (d) the average length of contract for persons recruited via such agencies. [16184]

Mr. Horam: The information requested is shown in the table.

Figures are not available to provide the median cost paid to each agency and the average length of contracts, but agency staff are used only to cover short-term absences.


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