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Midwives
Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) if he will make it his policy to ensure the separate registration of midwives under the new Nursing and Midwifery Council; and if he will make a statement; [138874]
- (2) what steps he is taking to ensure that the new Nursing and Midwifery Council will maintain midwifery as a distinct profession. [138873]
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Yvette Cooper: We propose that midwives should be separately registered and represented, and that existing provisions concerning the practice of their profession should continue.
Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he is taking to ensure that health authorities involve users in the planning, development and auditing of midwifery services. [138875]
Yvette Cooper: Every health authority has a maternity services liaison committee (MSLC) where commissioners, providers and users of maternity services develop services in partnership. MSLCs enable users to influence their own care as well as the development of local and national standards and policy, in line with the patient focus of the NHS Plan.
Podiatry Council
Mr. Pickthall: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what discussions he has had with the British Chiropody and Podiatry Association on proposals for a Podiatry Council; and if he will make a statement. [138932]
Mr. Denham: None, however the Association has had the opportunity to comment our proposals for a new Health Professions Council.
LORD CHANCELLOR'S DEPARTMENT
Spath Holme Ltd.
Mr. Dismore: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department when he expects the House of Lords to deliver its judgment in the case of Spath Holme Ltd. [138768]
Mr. Lock: It is expected that the judgment will be delivered before the Christmas recess.
Court Dress
Mr. Dismore: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what discussions he had with the senior judiciary on 14 November concerning the issue of court dress; and if he will make a statement. [138770]
Mr. Lock: Reform of court dress was raised by the Lord Chancellor at his meeting with the higher judiciary on 14 November. Given the many important reforms to the justice system which the Department is carrying forward, reform of court dress has no immediate priority.
Mr. Dismore: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department if he will review his policy concerning court dress when presiding in parliamentary debates. [139615]
Mr. Lock: As my hon. Friend knows, the traditions, procedural rules and views of the House of Lords regarding the wearing of formal dress for its Speaker are different from those in the House of Commons. The Lord Chancellor took the initiative in making a number of changes to his formal dress in 1998, having consulted the relevant Committee of the House. The Lord Chancellor would consult in a similar manner if he has any proposals for change in the future, but has no present plans to put forward any such proposals.
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Meetings (Judiciary)
Mr. Dismore: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department if he will publish the minutes of his meeting with the judiciary on 14 November; and if he will make a statement. [138769]
Mr. Lock: No. It is important for the Lord Chancellor and the senior judiciary to be able to discuss matters candidly and frankly and that such notes of any discussions should be protected. The minutes of that meeting will, therefore, be witheld under Exemption 2 of Part II of the Code of Practice on Access to Government Information.
Probate Registries
Mr. Gapes: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what steps he will take to ensure that the telephone number and address of local probate registries are listed in telephone directories in England and Wales. [138896]
Jane Kennedy: A list of the phone numbers and addresses of all District and Sub-Probate Registries was sent to British Telecom on 21 May 1999 for inclusion in the next update of the directories. In July 1999, an additional request was sent to British Telecom to include the national number in all phone books in England and Wales.
Judges' Lodgings
Mr. Baker: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what the total cost was of the judges' lodgings at Telscombe, East Sussex for (a) each of the last three years, (b) in 1990 and (c) in 1980 at 2000 prices. [139034]
Jane Kennedy [holding answer 20 November 2000]: The total cost of running the lodgings at Telscombe for the last three years is set out as follows on three bases:
| £ per annum | |
|---|---|
| 1997-98 | 206,799.53 |
| 1998-99 | 169,467.27 |
| 1999-2000 | 14,912.21 |
Total cost of ownership less the Treasury capital charge:
The premises are leased and there is no capital charge. The annual cost is therefore as stated.
| Year | £ per annum |
|---|---|
| 1997-98 | 80,527.30 |
| 1998-99 | 76,095.70 |
| 1999-2000 | 43,978.80 |
The records from which to calculate comparable figures for 1980 and 1990 no longer exist.
Wartime Internment
Mr. Cohen: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department which Government Departments are authorised to hold records relating to the wartime internment of the Duke of Buccleuch. [138890]
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Mr. Lock: The Public Record Office has a duty under the Public Records Acts to provide custody for those Government records that have been selected for permanent preservation. Under section 3.4 of the Public Records Act 1958, Government Departments and agencies may apply for the Lord Chancellor's permission to retain records over-30-years old. Under section 5.6 of the Act, Departments and agencies can apply for extended closure of records.
The Public Record Office is now aware of any records in its custody or held in other departments relating to the wartime internment of the Duke of Buccleuch. There are no files on this subject listed in its catalogue. There may be information in files on other subjects, but this could be discovered only at disproportionate cost.
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Ministerial Directions
Mr. Matthew Taylor: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department, pursuant to the answer of 23 October 2000, Official Report, columns 73-76W, on ministerial directions, if he will place in the Library the text of, and supporting documentation relating to, the directions made by Ministers in his Department in 1998; and if he will make a statement. [138862]
Mr. Lock [holding answer 20 November 2000]: Have considered this request under the terms of the Code of Practice on Access to Government Information and concluded that providing this information would harm the frankness and candour of internal discussion within Government. The request, therefore, falls within the terms of exemption 2 of the Code of Practice.