| Previous Section | Index | Home Page |
Runway Capacity
Mr. David Stewart: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what plans his Department has to increase runway capacity at (a) Heathrow and (b) Gatwick. [13695]
9 Nov 2001 : Column: 468W
Mr. Jamieson: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer given by my right hon. Friend the Minister for Transport to my hon. Friend the Member for Crewe and Nantwich (Mrs. Dunwoody) on 29 October 2001, Official Report, column 476W.
9 Nov 2001 : Column: 469W
Mr. David Stewart: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what research his Department has (a) commissioned and (b) evaluated on the commercial use by regional air services of private and military airports in the London area with runways of at least 1,800 metres. [13692]
Mr. Jamieson: In 1998 my Department commissioned a three-part study of business aviation in the south-east. Part 1 (Demand and Capacity studies) was published in 1998 and Part 2 (The Economic impact of Business Aviation) in 1999. These reports cover a number of airports with runway lengths of at least 1,800 metres. Copies of both are available in the House Libraries.
Work on the final part of the study, Future Capacity for Business Aviation, has been subsumed into the on-going South East and East of England Regional Air Services Study (SERAS). The study will include an assessment of the contribution that smaller airports might make to short haul and domestic services.
Airport Slots (London-Inverness Route)
Mr. David Stewart: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what discussions his Department has had with the Scottish Executive about the use of a public service obligation on the Gatwick to Inverness air route. [13694]
Mr. Jamieson: The DTLR has received a proposal from the Scottish Executive outlining the case for the imposition of a public service obligation on the Inverness to London route. This proposal is being analysed by the DTLR, while taking European Regulation 2408/92 into account. Informal discussions at ministerial level about protection for this route have taken place. In addition, DTLR and Scottish Executive officials recently met to discuss the proposal.
Terminal 5
Mr. David Stewart: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions when his Department will determine the application for terminal 5 at Heathrow. [13696]
Ms Keeble: The Secretary of State will make and announce his decision once he has completed his full and careful consideration of all the issues. The applicants for planning permission and other interested parties will all be told of the decision in the usual way, and an oral statement will be made to inform Parliament.
Air Movement Restrictions
Mr. Whittingdale: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what restrictions on air movements in the vicinity of nuclear power stations are in force. [13475]
Mr. Jamieson: Restrictions on overflying are in place in the vicinity of all nuclear power stations.
9 Nov 2001 : Column: 470W
HEALTH
Care Standards (Young Adults)
Brian Cotter: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when the national care standards for younger adults will be introduced. [9499]
Jacqui Smith: The standards for younger adults will be introduced on 1 April 2002, when the National Care Standards Commission starts work. Some of the more challenging standards will not be implemented until some time after that for existing providers to be given realistic timescales in which to meet new standards.
Brian Cotter: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if the report findings from the consultation on national care standards for younger adults will be published. [9496]
Jacqui Smith: The Department has received 500 responses to the younger adult and adult placement standards and is in the process of reviewing the standards in the light of the comments that have been received. A summary of these findings will be made available in due course.
Haemophilia
Brian Cotter: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the impact of the recent decision by the High Court to award damages under the Consumer Protection Act 1988 to 114 people infected with hepatitis C through blood transfusion; and what implications this will have for haemophiliacs who have been infected by hepatitis C after receiving blood transfusions. [9501]
Jacqui Smith: The recent decision by the High Court has no implications for anyone infected with hepatitis C before the Consumer Protection Act came into force in March 1988. This includes the vast majority of haemophiliacs who were probably infected before that date.
Royal Prerogative
Mr. Gordon Prentice: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many ministerial decisions were made where authority for the same derived from the Royal Prerogative for the most recent calendar month for which information is available. [9374]
Ms Blears: Records are not kept of the individual occasions on which powers under the Royal Prerogative are exercised nor could it be practicable to do so.
Cancer Services
Mr. Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many women have been tested for cervical cancer in Leicestershire in the last 12 months. [10581]
Jacqui Smith: In 2000–01, 65,712 women underwent cervical screening in Leicestershire health authority.
Mr. Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) how many pilot areas there are in England for cervical screening; and what the time scale is for these pilots; [10582]
9 Nov 2001 : Column: 471W
(3) what representations he has received on increasing access to the thin prep pap test beyond the pilot areas. [10584]
Jacqui Smith: The pilot of liquid based cytology (LBC) and human papilloma virus testing as triage for women with mild or borderline abnormalities is taking place at three sites; Newcastle, Norfolk and Norwich, and North Bristol. The pilot began in April 2001. The LBC arm of the pilot is being evaluated from October 2001, and results of the evaluation are expected in 2002.
ThinPrep and AutoCyte Prep were the only liquid based slide preparation systems available at the time the pilot was developed. ThinPrep is being used at two of the sites, and AutoCyte prep at the third site. The evaluation of the pilot will gather data on the effectiveness of both systems.
The NHS cancer plan set out the commitment that if evaluation of the pilot is successful we will fund the introduction of LBC across the national health service.
We have had no representations on increasing ThinPrep beyond the pilot areas.
Mr. Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what is the average cost of the treatment of a cervical cancer patient. [10585]
Jacqui Smith: The cost of treating different patients varies by the type of treatment they receive. The elements of the total cost incurred depend upon the individual components and treatments within the care pathway for that patient. For cervical cancer, a hysterectomy might be performed (£1,861 average cost for elective in-patient in 1999–2000) and/or a course of radiotherapy undertaken, which would vary dependent on the type and classification of the type of cancer involved.
Mr. Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement on the funds allocated to the treatment of (a) breast cancer, (b) cervical cancer and (c) prostate cancer. [11867]
Jacqui Smith: The Department does not collect figures on the cost of national health service services in a way that enables an accurate figure to be calculated for the cost of or investment in a particular disease.
We made available an additional £280 million in 2001–02 for the development of cancer services. This will rise to £407 million in 2002–03 and £570 million in 2003–04. Local health authorities and primary care trusts, with cancer networks, are responsible for determining local priorities in implementing the NHS cancer plan.
Child Abuse
Mr. Hinchliffe: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many pieces of Government-funded research there have been on the subject of abuse of disabled children in the last five years. [11414]
Jacqui Smith: There have not been any Government-funded studies which look specifically at the abuse of disabled children.
However, the Department has recently commissioned a study to consider the symptoms of abuse in people who have severe learning disabilities. The study will examine the nature of the psychological harm caused to people with learning disabilities who are subject to physical
9 Nov 2001 : Column: 472W
and/or sexual abuse. Its aim is to improve the ability of staff and carers to identify and act on abuse, to identify the needs of the victims and to assist them in obtaining access to the judicial process.
We have identified three other current or recent studies from the National Research Register, which are considering or have considered the abuse of children with learning disabilities. Further details of all these studies have been placed in the Library.
There are a number of other studies that look more broadly at all children who are the victims of abuse which also encompass children with disability.
Mr. Hinchliffe: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much related training material has been funded by the Government since the publication of the ABCD Pack in 1992. [11412]
Jacqui Smith: The available United Kingdom evidence on the extent of abuse among disabled children suggests that disabled children are at increased risk of abuse, and that the presence of multiple disabilities appears to increase the risk of both abuse and neglect.
That is why the Department funded, in partnership with the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children, a second training resource pack entitled "Turning Points". It is also why in our "Working Together to Safeguard Children" child protection guidance and in the practice guidance and training pack underpinning the "Framework for the Assessment of Children in Need and their Families" we have been careful to refer to this evidence base and to the need for particular attention to be paid to promoting a high level of awareness of the risks to this group of children and to high standards of practice.
| Next Section | Index | Home Page |