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Press Releases
Mr. Brady:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department for the period 2 May 1997 to 29 February 2000 what was (a) the number of occasions on which couriers were used to distribute news releases from his Department and (b) the total cost of using couriers to distribute news releases. [113970]
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Mr. Straw:
The Home Office press office does not use couriers to distribute news releases and has no record or recollection of one being used during the period detailed. Press releases are distributed via the Electronic News Distribution Service, e-mail, post and are placed on the Home Office website.
Mr. Brady:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will list the (a) national, (b) regional and (c) local newspapers and media bodies to which his Department sent news releases during the period 2 May 1997 to 29 February 2000. [113997]
Mr. Straw:
Home Office press releases are distributed in a number of different ways including electronically, by fax, e-mail and by post. All are now posted on the Home Office website. National media receive all Home Office press releases while others, depending on a range of factors such as subject and content, are distributed to the regional, local or specialist media. Identifying the distribution list of every press release since 2 May 1997 would, however, incur disproportionate costs. If the hon. Member would like to write to me about a particular news release that he has in mind, I would be happy to provide any further information that is available.
Shipman Inquiry
Mr. Brady: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will establish the Shipman inquiry under Salmon rules to allow open hearings at which the parties can be represented and cross-examined. [109118]
Mr. Milburn [holding answer 8 February 2000]: I have now placed a letter to Lord Laming of Tewin in the Library, setting out the agreed format and powers for the inquiry into the issues arising out of the case of Harold Shipman.
Epilim
Mr. Love:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what assessment he has made of (a) the side-effects of the drug Epilim, (b) the circumstances in which it should not be prescribed to children, (c) the number of cases since 1995 in which children who have been given Epilim have
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developed (i) fits and (ii) other adverse reactions, (d) the number of cases since 1995 where Epilim has been given to pregnant women and (e) the number of cases since 1995 of pregnant women who have been treated with Epilim and who have then given birth to babies with birth defects; [107571]
Ms Stuart:
As with all medicines, the safety of Epilim, the anticonvulsant sodium valproate, is continually monitored by the Medicines Control Agency (MCA) and the independent advisory body, the Committee on Safety of Medicines (CSM) through the Yellow Card Scheme for spontaneous reporting of suspected Adverse Drug Reactions (ADRs). A number of articles have been published in the bulletin 'Current Problems in Pharmacovigilance' to draw ADRs associated with Epilim to the attention of health professionals.
23 suspected ADRs associated with the drug Epilim, all involving children between the ages of 2-11, have been reported to the MCA/CSM from the beginning of 1995 to date. Two of these cases had fits. Reporting of a suspected adverse reaction is not necessarily evidence that the medicine caused the reaction.
In the same period in the United Kingdom, 22 cases of birth defects for women exposed to the drug Epilim during pregnancy were reported to the MCA/CSM. The product information for Epilim contains detailed advice about use in pregnancy and the prescribing physician should weigh up the risks and benefits in the individual woman's case. The number of cases since 1995 where Epilim has been given to pregnant women is not available.
Epilim is contraindicated in all patients including children where there is allergy to sodium valproate, active liver disease or family history of severe liver disease.
The daily dose of the drug Epilim as stated in the Marketing Authorisation for adults and children over 20 kilograms is gradually increased until control of fits is achieved, usually to within the range 20-30 milligrams/ kilograms body weight per day. For children under 20kg, the daily dose of 20 mg/kg of body weight per day may be exceeded in severe cases when plasma levels can be closely monitored. Full guidance on prescribing and monitoring is in the summary of product characteristics published in the Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry Compendium of Data Sheets and Summaries of Product Characteristics.
Mr. Hancock:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health what representations he has received this year and in the past three years on the health effects of power lines; and if he will make a statement. [108589]
Yvette Cooper:
A number of letters have been received from hon. Members, research organisations and pressure groups and individual members of the public, concerning the possibility of health effects associated with proximity to power lines. Results of the United Kingdom Childhood Cancer Study published in December 1999 found no evidence to link childhood cancer with exposure to magnetic fields from electricity supply. The
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Department has funded work on the impact of electric fields which will report later this year. The National Radiological Protection Board's Advisory Group on Non-ionising Radiation keep the relevant research under review and will be publishing a comprehensive overview later this year.
Mr. Winnick:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) on how many occasions his Department has discussed a MRI scanner in Walsall with the New Opportunities Fund; [112760]
Yvette Cooper
[holding answer 2 March 2000]: During the months leading up to the announcement of funding from the New Opportunities Fund for cancer equipment in September 1999, there were numerous discussions between officials at the Department and the New Opportunities Fund about where equipment for cancer should be allocated. This built on discussions between officials within the Department and the National Health Service regional offices. This regular and ongoing dialogue will have included discussions about the possibility of funding an MRI scanner in Walsall.
Mr. Winnick:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health who makes the final decision on whether finances would be available for a MRI scanner in Walsall. [112758]
Yvette Cooper
[holding answer 2 March 2000]: The final decisions on whether finances would be available for a MRI scanner in Walsall were made by the Board of the New Opportunities Fund, based on the advice they received from the Department. This will have followed discussions between officials within the Department and the West Midlands Regional Office.
Mr. Winnick:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health if the petition handed in to the New Opportunities Fund on 16 February for an MRI scanner in Walsall has been received by his Department. [112821]
Yvette Cooper
[holding answer 3 March 2000]: The petition handed into the New Opportunities Fund on 16 February was, on that same day, passed by the Chief Executive of the New Opportunities Fund, Stephen Dunmore, to the Department.
Mr. Horam:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much each NHS trust paid to the NHS Litigation Authority's clinical negligence scheme in (a) 1998-99 and (b) 1999-2000; what was each trust's total budget; what proportion the clinical negligence scheme payment was of each trust's total budget in each of those years; and what are the estimated figures for 2000-01. [113151]
Ms Stuart:
A table containing available information has been placed in the Library.
Mr. Norman:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health what standard his Department sets as the maximum acceptable travel time for an ambulance to reach the nearest accident and emergency department. [113264]
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Ms Stuart:
There are no standards set for travel time from incident to accident and emergency department. All ambulance services will be required to meet the response time targets set out in Health Service Circular 1999/091 "Modernisation of Ambulance Services" in 2001.
Mrs. Ann Winterton:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health what proportion of the prescriptions for emergency contraceptive drugs made during 1997-98 he estimates to have prevented unwanted pregnancies. [113164]
Yvette Cooper:
In 1997, 760,000 prescriptions were issued by general practitioners or family planning clinics for emergency contraception pills. Guidance issued in October 1999 by the Faculty of Family Planning states that the overall risk of pregnancy, after a single act of unprotected sex on any day in the menstrual cycle is 2-4 per cent. but can be as high as 20-30 per cent. in the days before and just after ovulation. These figures are for all ages and include older women whose fertility is declining. An accurate estimate of the number of pregnancies expected without treatment is not possible without the menstrual and coital histories of the women concerned.
(2) what is the stated recommended dose of the drug Epilim when administering it to (a) adults and (b) children. [107570]
(2) when his Department gave advice to the New Opportunities Fund over the provision of a MRI scanner in Walsall. [112759]
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