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Nurses
Mr. Simon Hughes:
To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will list the hospital and community health services nurses who are (a) qualified, (b) unqualified,
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(c) midwives, (d) learner staff and (e) Project 2000 students, as whole-time equivalents, employed in each year since 1991. [18898]
Mr. Gwilym Jones:
The information is given in the following table. Details for midwifery staff are included in the figures and are not available separately.
| 1991 | 1992 | 1993 | 1994 | 1995 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Qualified(14) | 17,633 | 17,763 | 17,650 | 16,565 | 16,647 |
| Unqualified | 7,019 | 7,355 | 7,222 | 6,616 | 6,636 |
| Education staff | 376 | 333 | 263 | 238 | 63 |
| Not known(15) | 22 | 104 | 288 | 1,802 | 1,382 |
| Learners(16) | 2,934 | 1,970 | 1,033 | 144 | 7 |
| Project 2000 students(17) | 100 | 1,078 | 1,871 | 1,969 | 1,951 |
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NHS Employees' Pay
Mr. Simon Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what were the NHS salaries and wages costs for (a) general and senior managers, (b) nurses and midwives and (c) administrative and clerical staff in each financial year from 1988-89 to 1993-94. [18899]
Mr. Gwilym Jones:
The information is as follows:
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| £000 | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1988-89 | 1989-90 | 1990-91 | 1991-92 | 1992-93 | 1993-94 | |
| General and senior managers | 1,781 | 6,567 | 9,543 | 19,432 | 20,919 | 30,836 |
| Nurses and midwives(18) | 318,797 | 338,151 | 364,519 | 402,501 | 425,736 | 421,737 |
| Administrative and clerical staff(19) | 61,337 | 66,747 | 77,430 | 79,134 | 96,059 | 110,832 |
Notes:
(18) Information on salaries and wages cost for family health services authorities are not held centrally, and figures for nurses and midwives cannot be disaggregated from administrative and clerical costs.
(19) These figures exclude the costs of GPs' administrative staff as the information was not separately collected.
Sources:
Financial returns and annual accounts of district health authorities, NHS trusts, family health services authorities, the Health Promotion Authority for Wales and the Welsh Health Common Services Authority.
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Barry Community Hospital
Mr. Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales (1) what representations he has had from the director of Welsh Health Estates concerning additional funding for major roof and boiler remedial works at the new Barry community hospital; [19331]
- (2) if he will make a statement on the responsibilities of (a) his Department, (b) the Welsh Health Common Services Authority, (c) Beard Dove as successor body to the authority's estate care branch, (d) Bro Taf health authority, (e) Llanlough Hospital Trust and (f) Sir Robert McAlpine for defects at Barry community hospital;[19332]
(3) on what previous occasions his Department has subrogated the claim for remedial works on a hospital pending resolution of the claim for damages arising from defective design or workmanship in design and build hospital contracts in circumstances similar to those applying at Barry community hospital. [19333]
Mr. Hague: There are issues relating to contractual liability which have to be resolved and I cannot comment on the responsibilities of specific bodies for the defects. No request has been received for additional funding and there has not been a similar case since this was the first hospital commissioned through a design and build contract.
Parliamentary Questions
Mr. Flynn:
To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many answers to parliamentary questions by
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Ministers in his Department in the last 12 months have exceeded the advisory cost limit; and if he will make a statement. [19349]
Mr. Hague:
Where the cost of answering a particular parliamentary question is estimated to exceed £450, it is the general practice for Departments to make it clear that the question could be answered only by incurring disproportionate cost. Given the large numbers of questions tabled, it would be unreasonable for my Department systematically to calculate the exact cost of answering every single parliamentary question.
Mr. Alex Carlile:
To ask the Secretary of State for Wales where the Welsh TECs' surplus on working capital will be spent in the coming financial year; what assessment he has made of the advantages and disadvantages of TECs developing such a surplus; and if he will make a statement. [19025]
Mr. Hague:
TECs may generate surplus on the services which they deliver on behalf of the Welsh Office. TECs are able to do so where they can achieve efficiency savings with service providers. Their ability to generate surplus, acts as an incentive to the pursuit of such savings.
TECs need to generate surplus in order to help cover their overheads and to maintain reserves at levels which are at least sufficient to cover their fixed capital and working capital needs. Reserves are primarily a matter for the directors of TECs to determine, since they have a duty to ensure that prudent levels are maintained.
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However, TECs are expected to reinvest any reserves which accumulate in excess of those essential needs on activities or projects which are of potential benefit to the communities which they serve. TECs are required to set out their plans for the expenditure of such reserves in their annual business plans, which are subject to approval by my Department. Additionally, planned expenditure on major projects--currently £150,000 or more--requires specific prior approval for each project and is subject to more detailed scrutiny. My Department monitors both the use of reserves and the in-year generation of surpluses as the year progresses, in order to ensure that planned expenditure proceeds and that any accumulation of reserves is matched by expenditure plans for the following year.
TECs are currently preparing their final business plans for 1997-98. However, on the evidence of their earlier draft documents, their plans for the reinvestment of reserves next year are likely to cover a wide variety of schemes including child care facilities, initiatives aimed at young people who are not in training, education or employment, the "Bargaining for Skills Initiative"--partnership between Wales Trades Union Congress and Welsh TECs--adaptations for training disabled people, health and safety awareness for employers and employees,
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enhanced career guidance in schools, the "Meister Technician Initiative", support for modern communication technologies in schools, graduate employment opportunities, training support for inward investment.
Mr. Alex Carlile:
To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what was the average income per family of four in (a) the county of Powys and (b) Wales for the last five years for which figures are available; what proportion of that income was spent on tax including VAT and national insurance payments; and if he will make a statement.[19026]
Mr. Hague:
The information available centrally does not provide reliable estimates at this level of detail.
Mr. Alex Carlile:
To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will list each Welsh county's expenditure per secondary school pupil for each of the last five years for which information is available; and if he will make a statement. [19032]
Mr. Hague:
Information on local authority net current expenditure on secondary education per pupil is given in the following table.
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| Financial Year | 1990-91 | 1991-92 | 1992-93 | 1993-94 | 1994-95 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| £ | £ | £ | £ | ||
| Clwyd | 1,923 | 2,146 | 2,287 | 2,133 | 2,206 |
| Dyfed | 1,891 | 2,026 | 2,191 | 2,106 | 2,274 |
| Gwent | 1,991 | 2,194 | 2,293 | 2,320 | 2,303 |
| Gwynedd | 1,989 | 2,266 | 2,429 | 2,410 | 2,398 |
| Mid Glamorgan | 1,903 | 2,293 | 2,355 | 2,228 | 2,249 |
| Powys | 1,813 | 1,935 | 2,158 | 2,254 | 2,291 |
| South Glamorgan | 1,887 | 2,064 | 2,162 | 2,116 | 2,123 |
| West Glamorgan | 2,168 | 2,392 | 2,515 | 2,383 | 2,340 |
| Wales | 1,951 | 2,186 | 2,304 | 2,246 | 2,264 |
(20) Figures from 1991-92 onwards include local management of schools balances. Expenditure on school meals and transport are excluded.
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