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Clinical Negligence
Mr. Malins: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if NHS trusts are free to use private sector insurance to obtain clinical negligence cover. [89354]
Mr. Denham
[holding answer 2 July 1999]: There is no legal impediment to a National Health Service trust using commercial insurance for clinical negligence risks. However, the NHS Executive has always strongly discouraged trusts from doing so on the basis that it does
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not represent good value for money, and trusts have accepted that advice. The Clinical Negligence Scheme for trusts was established to help trusts manage their clinical negligence liabilities. At present all trusts are members of that Scheme.
Mr. Malins:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health from whom the Clinical Negligence Scheme for Trusts has sought reinsurance; and if the reinsurance was competitively tendered. [89355]
Mr. Denham
[holding answer 2 July 1999]: The Clinical Negligence Scheme for trusts is a voluntary risk pooling scheme set up under Section 21 of the National Health Service and Community Care Act 1990 to help NHS trusts manage their clinical negligence liabilities. It is self-funding through annual contributions from member trusts. At present all NHS trusts are members of the scheme. Individual members' contributions are assessed according to the type of services they provide and their past claims history.
Mr. Laurence Robertson:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health which patients qualify for free prescriptions; which illnesses qualify patients for free prescriptions; and if he will make a statement. [89663]
Mr. Denham
[holding answer 2 July 1999]: The information requested is contained in leaflet HC11 "Are you entitled to help with health costs?", copies of which are available in the Library.
Ministerial Visits
Mrs. Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development (1) what dates she and the Minister of State plan to be absent from the office in 1999; [89618]
- (2) what overseas visits are proposed for (a) her and (b) Ministers in her Department from 1 July to 1 December. [89617]
Mr. Foulkes
[holding answer 2 July 1999]: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State and I have planned overseas visits on Government business up to 1 December 1999 as follows:
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| Date | Destination | Project |
|---|---|---|
| 5-9 July | Nicaragua and Honduras | DFID Projects |
| 19-21 July | Sierra Leone | DFID Projects |
| 28-30 July | Brussels | Lome Ministerial meetings |
| 30 August-3 September | Bolivia | DFID Projects |
| 25-27 September | Washington | IMF/World Bank meetings |
| 29 September | New York | Ministerial Group on Environment and Poverty |
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Both the Secretary of State's and my diaries for the rest of the year are likely to include speaking engagements and overseas travel which are as yet undetermined.
My ministerial responsibilities involve working from offices in East Kilbride and London.
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Mr. Don Foster:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment if he will list actual and planned expenditure in each financial year by his
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Department, agencies and non-departmental public bodies on (a) market research, (b) conferences, (c) direct mail, (d) advertising and publicity, (e) opinion polling, (f) websites, (g) hospitality, (h) central administration costs and (i) external consultants and advisers on (i) summer literacy schools, (ii) the National Grid for Learning, (iii) the New Deal for Schools Phase 3 and (iv) special educational needs. [88182]
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Mr. Charles Clarke:
The following tables list the actual and planned expenditure for the financial years 1997-98, 1998-99 and 1999-2000 as appropriate. These costs represent expenditure which has been identified as additional to that which would have been incurred as part of the normal operational activity.
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| Year | Market research | Conferences | Direct mailing | Advertising and publicity | Opinion polling | Websites | Hospitality | Central administration costs | External consultants and advisers |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1997-98 | |||||||||
| Planned | 0 | 15,000 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2,500 | 7,500 |
| Actual | 0 | 15,000 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3,500 | 7,500 |
| 1998-99 | |||||||||
| Planned | 0 | 70,000 | 4,000 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 12,000 | 10,000 |
| Actual | 0 | 70,000 | 4,000 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10,500 | 10,000 |
| 1999-2000 | |||||||||
| Planned | 0 | 0 | 4,000 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 9,000 | 0 |
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(11) These costs were unable to be separated from total spend incurred in this category
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(12) These costs were unable to be separated from total spend incurred in this category
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Mr. Spring:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment how many school playing fields were sold (a) between 1979 and 1997 and (b) from May 1997 to date; and how these figures were collated. [88662]
Mr. Charles Clarke:
The Department did not collect information in the form requested before 1 October 1998, when section 77 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998 came into force. However, sports bodies suggest that under the previous Government 40 playing fields a month were being sold off. Since 1 October 1998 an average of 8 applications a month have been approved. Because of the tightening up of the rules, local authorities are usually only putting forward proposals which meet our very strict criteria which have been further strengthened by new guidance we published on 7 June.
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