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HEALTH
Infertility Services
Mr. Harvey: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) when he will receive the third set of guidelines from the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists on the provision of specialised infertility services; [108122]
- (2) what have been the findings of his Department's survey to ascertain the current provision of infertility services; [108123]
(3) if he will make it his policy to ensure that equality of access to infertility services is provided throughout England; [108124]
(4) what guidelines he plans to issue to health authorities on the provision of infertility services. [108125]
Yvette Cooper: The Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists published its final set of guidelines on the provision of specialised infertility services on 20 January 2000. The Department has copies.
The survey returns are still being analysed. The conclusions will be published shortly.
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While the Government have already set their priorities for the National Health Service in the immediate future (cancer, coronary heart disease, mental health) we remain committed to ending the postcode lottery for all services in the National Health Service. We will therefore be working towards greater equity in access to services within available resources over the coming years.
There are no immediate plans to issue guidance to health authorities on infertility services.
Mr. Baker:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will set out his Department's assessment of the hierarchy, by method of transmission, of likelihood of risk of transmission of BSE. [111897]
Yvette Cooper
[holding answer 1 March 2000]: In experiments involving strains of prion that have been adapted to laboratory animals, such as mice, it has been shown that intracerebral inoculation is more likely to cause infection than intravenous injection which, in turn, is more likely to cause infection than intra-peritoneal or sub-cutaneous inoculation. Parenteral exposure is, in turn, more likely to cause infection than oral exposure.
Experiments on mice challenged with a strain of scrapie--a Transmissible Spongiform Encephalopathy of sheep--that had been adapted to mice showed that exposure by placing the inoculum directly into the stomach was about 100,000 fold less efficient than by direct inoculation into the brain.
As part of its remit to consider emerging scientific findings the Spongiform Encephalopathy Advisory Committee (SEAC), the expert Committee that advises the Government on all aspects of TSEs, has considered
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the results of experiments designed to investigate the link between BSE and variant CJD (vCJD). The Committee has stated that
Mr. Keetch:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health What funding there is in the current year for medical activities relating to (a) prostate, (b) breast and (c) testicular cancer; if he will break down each figure into (i) treatment, (ii) prevention, (iii) detection and (iv) research; and if he will make a statement. [112331]
Yvette Cooper
[holding answer 1 March 2000]: The information on overall spending on cancer is not currently held centrally. Spending on cancer in-patient care is estimated to account for 6.3 per cent. (£1,479 million) of National Health Service hospital expenditure but there is no measure of the additional spending on cancer services not normally provided on an in-patient basis, for example cancer screening, chemotherapy, radiotherapy and community palliative care services. Breast screening for women aged 50-64 is estimated to cost around £37 million per annum. However, information is not available on the annual spend for cancer diagnosis, treatment and prevention for individual cancer tumour types.
Government funding for cancer research is provided through the Medical Research Council (MRC) 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. The MRC funds medical research as part of the Government's funding of the science and engineering base and is the main agency through which the Government support research on the causes and treatment of disease. The Department also funds research to support policy development in health and social care and manages the NHS research and development budgets.
The Department also provides support for research commissioned by charities and the MRC that takes place in the NHS. Over £63 million per year of this funding supports cancer research, with £16 million going to the Royal Marsden Hospital alone.
BSE and vCJD were caused by a closely similar prion strain, and concluded that vCJD was an acquired prion disease caused by exposure to BSE or BSE like agent.
However, these results do not provide information about the route of exposure, and research to establish this factor remains part of the Government's TSE Research Strategy.
| £ million | |
|---|---|
| Breast | 9.33 |
| Prostate | 1.55 |
| Testicular | 0.49 |
We have recently agreed an additional £1 million for prostate cancer research next year.
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These figures underestimate the total expenditure, as detailed estimates of NHS support funding expenditure are not collected routinely.
New research projects are being funded regularly through both the MRC and DH/NHS directly commissioned programmes and priorities for research funding are kept under review.
Mr. Brady:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health what planning assumptions he has made on the basis of the additional revenue which the NHS will receive as a result of hypothecation of increased levels of tobacco duty in 2000-01. [112785]
Yvette Cooper:
The allocations to health authorities for 2000-01 take account of the possibility that £250 million will be available to the National Health Service as a result of changes in tobacco duty, in the light of my right hon. Friend the Chancellor of the Exchequer's Pre-Budget Report speech last November. Decisions about tobacco duty will be announced by the Chancellor in his Budget Speech.
Helen Jones:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health what was the incidence of cerebral palsy per thousand of the population (a) nationally and (b) in the north-west Region for each of the past 10 years. [113661]
Ms Stuart:
Data are not collected centrally on the numbers of children in England with cerebral palsy.
Mr. Goggins:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will publish the key targets for 2000-01 for the Medical Devices Agency. [114357]
Yvette Cooper:
We have agreed the agency's key targets for 2000-01 and copies have been placed in the Library.
Mr. Steen:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will list the members of the Medicines Control Agency and the interest each one has in (a) local, (b) national and (c) international drug companies. [113614]
Ms Stuart:
The Medicines Control Agency is an executive agency of the Department of Health and is accountable direct to Ministers. It has over 500 staff who are Civil Servants and subject to all the normal Civil Service employment rules, including those on interests in commercial concerns.
Chest and Heart Services (Wales)
Mr. Denzil Davies:
To ask the Prime Minister if his proposals to establish fast track chest pain clinics and a National Heart Director apply in Wales. [113635]
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The Prime Minister:
The responsibility for health in Wales has been transferred to the National Assembly for Wales.
Mr. Cohen:
To ask the Prime Minister if he will list the occasions when Heads of foreign Governments have made representations to him relating to the allocation of a particular Government contract; who the Head of Government was in each case; and in each case if the contract allocation was in accord with the representations made. [113065]
The Prime Minister:
It is established practice under exemption 1(c) of the Code of Practice on Access to Government Information not to disclose information received in confidence from foreign Governments.
Mr. Llew Smith:
To ask the Prime Minister what evaluation he has made of the mechanisms presented in the Prior Options Review for opening up the operation of non-departmental public bodies. [113304]
The Prime Minister:
In line with a commitment in the Modernising Government White Paper, we have recently reviewed the entire review process for non-departmental public bodies. We have concluded that the Prior Options stage of the review process should reflect the Government's wider objectives. This includes taking greater account of the views of stakeholders and focusing on delivering services which are of a higher quality, more responsive and better integrated.
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