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Feltham Young Offenders Institution
Mr. Moore: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he expects the taskforce chaired by the Director General of the Prison Service to report to him on the management of Her Majesty's Young Offenders Institution and Remand Centre, Feltham. [85485]
Mr. George Howarth: The Director General established a taskforce to take forward the recommendations made by the Chief Inspector of Prisons in his report on the inspection of Feltham. The Director General chairs a steering group to which the taskforce reports. The taskforce has submitted four reports to the steering group on various aspects of the Chief Inspector's report on Feltham. The steering group is expected to report to Ministers shortly.
CABINET OFFICE
Biotechnology
Mr. Alan Simpson: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office if he will place in the Library a copy of the Government's central co-ordinated rebuttals strategy for use following his oral statement of 21 May 1999, Official Report, columns 1371-73, on biotechnology. [85491]
Dr. Jack Cunningham: The Government's strategy is to encourage open, rational and well informed debate. This is the best way to safeguard the public interest. On 21 May I made a series of announcements including the publication of a review of the regulatory framework, and a report from the Chief Medical Officer and the Chief Scientific Adviser on public health implications of genetically modified foods. These will provide the foundation for such a debate.
HEALTH
Cancer
Mr. Paul Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) if he will estimate the cost of creating, reviewing and maintaining an internet directory of cancer care services; and if he will make a statement; [84240]
- (2) what plans he has to introduce and maintain an internet directory of cancer care services and information; and if he will make a statement. [84239]
26 May 1999 : Column: 154
Mr. Hutton: The Government's Information Management and Technology strategy for the National Health Service "Information for Health", published in September last year, called for (amongst other things) the creation of a National Electronic Library for Health (NELH) of accredited healthcare information that would be made available to patients, the public and healthcare professionals.
One element of the NELH is the provision of information about cancer services. The cost of providing these is estimated at £75,000. The NELH project will be working with voluntary organisations with patient representative groups to promote and make available as widely as possible reliable and relevant information on a number of health topics, including cancer.
The NHS Information Authority is currently working in collaboration with the NHS Executive and the Centre for Health Information Quality to identify the costs and options for creating, reviewing and maintaining online healthcare information services. A business plan will be put to the NHS Information Authority with the objective of creating the NELH by the end of the year.
Mr. Burstow:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make it his policy to commission research into the causes of ME and the development of appropriate diagnostic procedure. [84574]
Mr. Hutton
[holding answer 18 May 1999]: The Chronic Fatigue Syndrome/Myalgic Encephalomyelitis Working Group which has been convened by the Chief Medical Officer will specifically address the question of diagnostic criteria and will also make recommendations about the need to identify and commission further research into CFS/ME. The working group is already putting together a submission for a systematic literature review which will look at which treatments are effective and sub-groups. This will be considered by the Department's Policy Research Programme.
Mr. Brake:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will list the studies his Department has funded since January 1998 to investigate the effects of pollution on health, with particular reference to pollution from (a) landfill sites, (b) factories and (c) exposure to chemicals in the home; and when these studies were or will be published. [84897]
Ms Jowell:
This Department has carried out and commissioned a number of studies on the health effects of pollution since January 1998, many jointly with other Government Departments. The details of these studies have been placed in the Library. It is not the Department's policy to publish the findings separately, though researchers are encouraged to publish their findings in peer--reviewed journals and in the scientific press, on completion of the studies. The vast majority are disseminated in this way.
This Department, together with the Department of the Environment, Transport and the Regions has co-funded an indoor air pollution research programme as well as research into the non-auditory health effects of noise and the health effects of chemicals in the environment.
26 May 1999 : Column: 155
Together with the DETR and the Health and Safety Executive (HSE), it has cofunded a programme of work on trends in male reproductive health and the possible influences of occupational and environmental chemicals. Also, together with DETR, HSE, the Scottish Office, the Welsh Office and the Department of Health and Social Services in Northern Ireland the Department contributes towards a contract with the Imperial College of Science, Technology and Medicine to form the Small Area Health Statistics Unit (SAHSU). SAHSU has also carried out research on the effects of air pollution on health, since January 1998.
The Department also manages the National Health Service research and development levy which is used to support research and development of relevance to the National Health Service in hospitals, general practice and other health care settings, and to fund the NHS research and development programme. In addition, the Medical Research Council--which receives most of its income via grant-in-aid from the office of my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry--funds medical research as part of the Government's funding of the science and engineering base.
In addition to those projects listed, the Department expects to issue a major call for proposals on the effects of air pollution on health over the summer and a call for further research on the effects on health of landfill sites.
Mr. Gerrard:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what consultation the regional NHS executive offices will carry out before distributing HIV/AIDS treatment and care money recently allocated to them with (a) people with HIV and (b) providers of HIV services; [85065]
Ms Jowell:
The guidance issued to regional offices for the distribution of the additional £6.2 million for HIV/AIDS treatment and care made it clear that the funds were to be used to assist with the extra costs of combination therapies for those with a clinical need. The guidance also recommended that ROs consult with others, including their constituent health authorities and their regional Specialised Commissioning Group where appropriate, before distributing the funds.
Regional Offices may also consult other groups or individuals before making their final decision. The guidance to Regional Offices does not specify a date by which the allocations totalling £6.2 million are to be made. Most Regional Offices are currently in the process of deciding, in consultation with others, the basis for the distribution to health authorities.
The forthcoming guidance to the National Health Service on the use to be made of this sum, and the balance of the HIV/AIDS treatment and care and HIV prevention funds, includes the requirement for Regional Offices to submit a separate report to Ministers at the year end on the use of the £6.2 million allocated to them.
26 May 1999 : Column: 156
Dr. Tony Wright:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many deaths of women have been caused by use of a combined oral contraceptive in the last 10 years; and in each case what was (a) the reaction that caused the death and (b) the product. [85038]
Mr. Denham:
In the last ten years, between 20 May 1989 and 20 May 1999, there have been a total of 2,408 adverse reactions suspected to be associated with the combined oral contraceptive pill received through the United Kingdom's Yellow Card adverse drug reaction reporting scheme. A fatal outcome was reported in 104 of these reports as listed in the table. The 104 deaths reported over ten years need to be taken in the context of around three million women taking the Pill each year in the UK.
Not all deaths suspected to be related to the use of the combined oral contraceptives are reported to the Medicine Control Agency/Committee on Safety of Medicines via the Yellow Card spontaneous adverse drug reaction scheme; we therefore cannot provide the total number of deaths. It is also essential to bear in mind that a report of a suspected adverse drug reaction does not mean that the reaction/death was caused by the medicine concerned. Many other factors are likely to contribute.
(2) by what date regional NHS executive offices will distribute the £6.2 million HIV/AIDS treatment and care money recently allocated to them. [85064]
| Suspected reaction | Number of cases with a fatal outcome |
|---|---|
| Cardiac failure | 1 |
| Sudden death unexplained | 1 |
| Left ventricular failure | 1 |
| Myocardial infarction | 5 |
| Pulmonary embolism | 84 |
| Subarachnoidhemorrhage | 1 |
| Cerebral vein thrombosis | 1 |
| Brain stem infarction | 1 |
| Cerebral infarction | 2 |
| Cerebrovascular accident | 1 |
| Cerebral thrombosis | 2 |
| Chest pain | 1 |
| Pelvic venous thrombosis | 1 |
| Respiratory arrest | 1 |
| Ovarian Carcinoma | 1 |
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