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Wheelchairs

Mr. Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement on procurement policy for NHS wheelchairs. [111055]

Mr. Hutton: National Health Service Supplies negotiate framework agreements for the purchase of manual and electrically powered indoor/outdoor wheelchairs (EPIOCs) with manufacturers. The current agreement covers eight manufacturers. Wheelchair centres may purchase wheelchairs outside these agreements, subject to compliance with all local standing orders and European legislation. It is the responsibility of wheelchair centres to purchase the correct specification of wheelchair for individual patients.

Mr. Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many wheelchairs have been supplied to the NHS in each of the last five years. [111056]

Mr. Hutton: Figures on the number of wheelchairs supplied to the National Health Service are not available. However numbers issued by the National Health Service are as follows:

Year	Manual	Powered	Total
1994-95	193,719	9,441	203,160
1995-96	190,073	10,000	200,073
1996-97	185,471	10,135	195,606
1997-98	not available	not available	--
1998-99	195,082	12,939	208,021

Because of changes to information collection, no information is available for 1997-98.

The figures for 1998-99 were obtained from an NHS Supplies exercise requesting data from trusts regarding wheelchair purchases and issues.

Cot Deaths

Mr. Oaten: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment his Department's sponsored research into sudden unexpected deaths in infancy made of the incidence of deaths among (a) children sleeping on a

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mattress that was new for that child and (b) children sleeping on a mattress that had been previously used by other children. [111163]

Yvette Cooper: The Expert Group to Investigate Cot Death Theories, Chaired by Lady Limerick, looked at the data from the "Confidential Enquiry into Stillbirths and Deaths in Infancy/Sudden Unexpected Deaths in Infancy" study, relating to age of mattress. They found that this could not be used either to support or reject the hypothesis that older mattresses were more dangerous. They thus made no recommendations in this area. Copies of the Expert Group's report have been placed in the Library.

NHS Funding (North-east)

Mr. St. Aubyn: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent representations he has received regarding the level of NHS funding to the North-east from (a) hon. Members, (b) the North-east Development Agency and (c) others. [111087]

Mr. Denham: We have received a number of representations about the level of National Health Service funding for the North-east.

For 2000-01 the health authorities in England have received revenue allocations totalling £33.6 billion. This represents a cash increase of 6.78 per cent. Of this, health authorities in the North-east have received £1.9 billion, a cash increase of 7.11 per cent.

In-patient Statistics

Mr. Matthew Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to his answer of 14 February 2000, Official Report, column 585W, on in-patient statistics, whether his answers are cumulative figures for all people admitted who are above the age stated, or whether they were only for those of that particular age range, between the age stated and the next age. [111243]

Mr. Denham: The answer given on 14 February 2000, Official Report, column 385W shows cumulative totals for all people admitted who are above the age stated.

SOCIAL SECURITY

Departmental Functions (Food)

Mr. Yeo: To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if all food served at his Department's official functions meets the standards of production required of domestic producers. [109776]

Angela Eagle [holding answer 11 February 2000]: With the beginning of the PRIME contract in April 1998, most food that is served at Departmental official functions is now provided through catering outlets run by the sub-contractor, Sutcliffe Catering (UK) Limited. As a reputable company, Sutcliffe Catering ensures that all food is procured from suppliers who meet the standards of production required of domestic producers.

ONE Pilot

Jackie Ballard: To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what extra funding his Department has given to the Benefits Agency in Somerset for the implementation of the ONE pilot. [110462]

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Angela Eagle: ONE is a new initiative designed to bring together the services offered by the Benefits Agency, the Employment Service and local authority benefit departments in one place and provide help to all working-age clients in returning to employment. ONE is currently being piloted in 12 areas of the country.

The additional funding given to the Benefits Agency to implement the ONE pilot in Somerset during the 1999-2000 operational year was £283,285.

This covered local implementation costs, staffing and management of the ONE service and the cost of covering the duties of staff undertaking training for ONE delivery. The total of additional resource available for these activities in the Somerset pilot, that is including the amounts made available to the Employment Service and Local Authorities, was £588,669, so the Benefits Agency received 48 per cent. of the total.

Local implementation and delivery money was only part of the additional resource provided. Somerset also benefited from centrally managed funds, such as estates adaptations and information technology improvements. The contract for call centre telephony, which the Somerset pilot is testing, was also funded centrally. There is no breakdown by pilot area available for these centrally managed resources.

Council Tax

Mr. Coleman: To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will make a statement about (a) progress on research into the effects of council tax benefit restriction and (b) when the report will be published. [110542]

Angela Eagle: In March 1999 we commissioned independent researchers to monitor the effects of the Council Tax Benefit restriction introduced in April 1998. Although local authorities have sought to co-operate with the research, many encountered difficulties and delays in extracting usable data. We extended the fieldwork period in order to allow the maximum number of authorities to take part but the amount and quality of data we will collect from the study may be limited. All social research conducted as part of the DSS Research Programme is published. The only exceptions would be if the results breached confidentiality, were potentially libellous or unreliable. As long as the data are of sufficient quality and we are confident that the findings are reliable, we hope to publish a report of the study in Spring.

Electricity (Renewable Sources)

Mr. Gareth R. Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what proportion of the electricity used by his Department is generated from renewable sources; and if he will make a statement. [111037]

Mr. Bayley: 0.3 per cent. of the Department's electricity is generated from renewable resources under a specific contract with the Renewable Energy Company. The Department's estates partners, Trillium, are currently seeking further renewable sources for the next round of electricity tenders, and will be reporting to DSS Estates on progress. In addition, consideration is also being given to the potential for Combined Heat and Power (CHP) generation on larger sites. The Department and its

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estate partners are committed to a target of obtaining 10 per cent. of the Department's electricity from renewable resources by 2010.

Peat Compost

Mr. Paul Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what steps he is taking to phase out the use of peat compost in gardens (a) owned and (b) tended by his Department; and if he will make a statement. [110720]

Mr. Bayley: This Department issued a Greening Operations Policy Statement in May 1999, which sets out its aims and objectives for greening its operations. With the Department's estate having been outsourced to Trillium, its Chief Executive was a joint signatory to the Statement and its accompanying Improvement Programme.

Our policy on using materials in horticulture is to substitute slow renewables such as peat with organic waste products. Under the arrangements for delivery of the Improvement Programme Trillium has instructed its Service Partners to use peat substitutes whenever possible and DSS Estates monitors Trillium's performance on this and other targets in the Improvement Programme.

Funeral Costs

Mr. Todd: To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security when the assumed cost of a funeral within the Social Fund was last revised. [110898]

Angela Eagle: There is no assumed cost of a funeral within the Social Fund Funeral Payment scheme.

Under current legislation, where an eligible person is deemed to have good reason for taking responsibility for funeral expenses, the scheme allows for the fees levied by the burial authorities and crematoria (in so far as it is necessary to incur them), specified travel expenses and up to £600 for any other funeral expenses.

We do not plan any further reforms in the immediate future but will continue to keep the scheme under review.

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