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Royal Yacht
Mr. Corbett: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many times in each of the past five years the royal yacht has been used for private journeys; where and by whom these journeys were made; and what payment for each voyage was received. [16911]
Mr. Soames [holding answer 20 February 1997]: During the past five years, Her Majesty's yacht Britannia has been used for private journeys on the following occasions:
| Dates | Embarked | From/to |
|---|---|---|
| 6-18 August 1992 | The Queen The Duke of Edinburgh The Duke of York The Princess Royal The Prince Edward | Portsmouth/Aberdeen |
| 5--16 August 1993 | The Queen The Duke of Edinburgh The Duke of York The Princess Royal The Prince Edward | Portsmouth/Aberdeen |
| 1994 | nil | |
| 3-14 August 1995 | The Queen The Duke of Edinburgh The Prince Edward | Portsmouth/Aberdeen |
| 7-17 August 1996 | The Queen The Duke of Edinburgh The Princess Royal Captain Timothy Laurence | Portsmouth/Aberdeen |
The voyage in August 1995 included an official visit by Her Majesty the Queen to Oban. The voyage in August 1996 included an official visit by Her Majesty the Queen to Stranraer. Provision for HMY Britannia is currently made from defence votes, and payments are not made by individual users. Following the Government's decision to commission a replacement for Britannia, the Queen has indicated that she and other members of the royal family wish to make repayment on a basis to be agreed for any personal use made of the new royal yacht.
Mr. Corbett:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what rules govern whether a voyage made by the royal yacht is official or private. [16890]
Mr. Soames
[holding answer 20 February 1997]: Official voyages by HMY Britannia include public duties, both royal and commercial, and her regular activities such as training. Private voyages are any that do not include public duties.
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Mrs. Wise:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will list for each quarter since March 1988 the mean
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and median waiting times for (a) in-patient admission to hospital, (b) day case treatment and (c) all admissions from waiting lists to hospital in England. [15446]
Mr. Horam:
Estimated mean and median waiting times for patients waiting for treatment on an in-patient or day case basis and for all patients waiting at the end of each quarter since March 1988 are given in the table.
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Note:
Ordinary cases are those involving an overnight stay.
Source:
Korner aggregate returns submitted from providers of hospital services in the NHS.
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Ms Corston:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to his answer of 13 February, Official Report, column 284, what research trials of Lariam have been carried out by (a) drug companies and (b) other bodies since 1990; and if the Medicines Control Agency has reviewed the results of those trials since that date. [17207]
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Mr. Malone:
As stated in my reply of 13 February, information on research trials held by the Licensing Authority is confidential. The Medicines Control Agency evaluates the results of studies and other relevant data.
Mr. Alan Howarth:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will list the contracts awarded by his
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Department to (a) EDS, (b) Andersens, (c) BMI, (d) Capita and (e) Sema since 1992, and the broad function to be carried out by the contractor and the value of the contract in each case. [17613]
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Mr. Horam:
Information regarding the numbers and nature of contracts awarded by this Department could be provided only at disproportionate cost. The total sums paid to those suppliers listed are as follows:
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| 1992-93 | 1993-94 | 1994-95 | 1995-96 | 1996-97 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| £ | £ | £ | £ | £ | |
| EDS | nil | nil | nil | nil | 13,029.21 |
| Andersens | nil | nil | nil | 36,783.87 | 293.75 |
| BMI | nil | 78.40 | 246.75 | nil | 4.389.50 |
| Capita | 37,653.81 | 62,971.10 | 29,789.51 | 1,815.38 | 71,468.26 |
| Sema | nil | 9,213.18 | 52,628.25 | 27,927.40 | nil |
Figures for 1991-92 can be provided only at disproportionate cost.
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Local Authority Social Services
Mr. Thurnham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what criteria he uses to assess the performance of local authority social services departments; if he will publish a list of social services departments ranked by their performance according to these criteria; and if he will make a statement. [17671]
Mr. Burns: We recently published "Better Value For Money in Social Services", a national overview of trends and costs in social services in England over the last decade or so. Copies are available in the Library. This report, together with other published data, should assist local authorities to assess their own efficiency to ensure their services give value for money. We do not define centrally criteria which would form a basis for the performance of individual social services departments to be measured and ranked. Performance indicators for all services provided by local authorities are published annually by the Audit Commission.
Mr. Thurnham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what is his policy in respect of public inquiries into the actions of social services departments in alleged cases of child neglect; and if he will make a statement. [17663]
Mr. Burns: Section 81 of the Children Act 1989 provides that my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State may cause an inquiry to be held into any matter connected with the social services committee of a local authority, in so far as those functions relate to children. Section 84 of the Children Act provides that if my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State is satisfied that a local authority has failed, without reasonable excuse, to comply with any of the duties imposed under the Children Act, he may make an order declaring the authority to be in default with respect to that duty. The order may contain directions for the purpose of ensuring that the duty is complied with. It is unlikely that it would be appropriate to use section 84 to investigate an individual's case.
Section 7 of the Local Authority Social Services Act 1970 requires local authorities to act under the general guidance of my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State in the exercise of their social services functions. The guidance called "Working Together under the Children Act 1989" was issued under section 7. Part 8 of that guidance requires that, whenever an individual case involves an incident leading to the death of a child where child abuse is confirmed or suspected, or a child protection issue likely to be of major public concern
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arises, there should be an individual review by each agency and a composite review by the area child protection committee.
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