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Public Trustee Office

Mr. George Howarth: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department how many trusteeships the Public Trustee Office holds; and under what categories. [33296]

Ms Rosie Winterton: The Public Trustee holds 1,472 trusteeships divided into the following categories:


In addition, the Public Trustee is conducting 105 Executorships and 24 Pension and Institutional Funds.

Family Court Casework

Matthew Green: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what plans she has to ensure that magistrates courts continue to carry out the function of family courts. [32999]

Ms Rosie Winterton: The Government are considering the future work of the magistrates courts, including family work, in the light of the recommendations in Sir Robin Auld's Report of his Review of the Criminal Courts of England and Wales. The Government will announce their conclusions on the report by way of a White Paper in the spring.

Departmental Retirement Ages

Mr. Webb: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department if he will list the retirement ages that apply to the employees of the Lord Chancellor's Department and its agencies, including how many and which categories of employees are affected by each; and if he will make a statement on his Department's policy on flexible retirement. [32819]

Ms Rosie Winterton: The normal retirement ages for the Lord Chancellor's Department and its executive agencies are as follows.

6 Feb 2002 : Column 1029W

Retirement age
HEO equivalent and above(22)60
EO equivalent62
AO equivalent and below65

(22) Including Senior Civil Service


However, staff can stay on above the normal retirement ages at management discretion, subject to business needs.

The table shows the numbers of staff affected.

Age of retirement
Business area656260Grand total
Court service6,7742,0831,59110,448
LCD HQ2482637591,270
Public G'ship Office 16550107322
Grand total7,1872,3962,45712,040

Flexible retirement policy

Our Corporate Board will shortly be considering proposals to create greater flexibility in our retirement policy, in line with the recommendations set out in the Performance and Innovation report entitled "Winning the Generation Game". The new retirement policy will allow the retention of staff who are performing to the required

6 Feb 2002 : Column 1030W

standard who want to stay beyond 60; have the flexibility to keep staff on for key posts and open up choices for staff about the ages at which they may retire.

Private Medical Insurance

Mr. Laws: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department how many employees in (a) her Department and (b) her Department's agencies and non-departmental public bodies have had private medical insurance provided for them in each year since 1997–98; what the total cost is; and if she will make a statement. [32323]

Ms Rosie Winterton: In accordance with paragraph 7.17 of the Civil Service Management Code, the Lord Chancellor's Department, including its agencies and non-departmental public bodies, does not provide private medical insurance to any of its staff.

Legal Services Ombudsman

Mr. George Howarth: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department how many cases the Legal Services Ombudsman has (a) found in favour of, (b) declined to investigate and (c) rejected after investigation in each year since his office was established. [32579]

Ms Rosie Winterton: The information requested is provided in the table.

19911992199319941995199619971998–991999–20002000–01
Reports issued by the LSO containing recommendations/orders/ criticisms(23)54226241260260399464542557659
Number of complaints which the LSO has declined to investigate(24)12210610715713515611715710777
Number of cases where the LSO was satisfied with the professional body's investigation1165353395797819891,0551,1169651,019

(23) Reports may contain more than one recommendation

(24) Figures relate to complaints received where the professional body has completed its investigation

HEALTH


Private Health Care

Mr. Cousins: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how (a) the extra accident and emergency nurses and (b) the elective operations to be placed in the private sector will be distributed, broken down by health authority. [10927]

Mr. Hutton: We have set out a strategy for reducing long waits in accident and emergency departments. £40 million of a £118 million investment will be used to fund an additional 600 or more nursing posts in accident and emergency. Allocations for each accident and emergency department, of the distribution by health authority are set out in the table.

Health authorityExtra A&E nurses
Bradford4
Calderdale and Kirklees6
County Durham20
East Riding2
Gateshead and South Tyneside4
Leeds16
Newcastle and North Tyneside2
North Cumbria4
North Yorkshire8
Northumberland4
Sunderland2
Tees6
Wakefield2
Barnsley2
Doncaster6
Leicestershire8
Lincolnshire6
North Derbyshire2
North Nottinghamshire2
Nottingham8
Rotherham2
Sheffield2
South Derbyshire8
South Humber4
Birmingham20
Coventry2
Dudley2
Herefordshire2
North Staffordshire2
Sandwell2
Shropshire4
South Staffordshire4
Walsall2
Warwickshire4
Wolverhampton2
Worcestershire4
Bury and Rochdale10
East Lancashire4
Liverpool8
Manchester12
Morecambe Bay4
North Cheshire2
North West Lancashire10
Salford and Trafford4
Sefton10
South Cheshire6
South Lancashire2
St. Helens and Knowsley8
Stockport2
West Pennine4
Wigan and Bolton4
Wirral2
Bedfordshire10
Cambridgeshire6
Hertfordshire32
Norfolk6
North Essex12
South Essex10
Suffolk4
Barking and Havering16
Barnet, Enfield and Haringey24
Bexley, Bromley and Greenwich24
Brent and Harrow16
Camden and Islington6
Croydon2
Ealing, Hammersmith and Hounslow26
East London and The City24
Hillingdon8
Kensington, Chelsea and Westminster4
Kingston and Richmond8
Lambeth, Southwark and Lewisham24
Merton, Sutton and Wandsworth18
Redbridge and Waltham Forest8
Berkshire4
Buckinghamshire12
East Kent6
East Surrey16
East Sussex, Brighton and Hove18
Isle of Wight, Portsmouth and South East Hampshire4
North and Mid Hampshire4
Northamptonshire10
Oxfordshire16
Southampton and South West Hampshire8
West Kent14
West Surrey26
West Sussex6
Avon22
Cornwall and Isles of Scilly2
Dorset6
Gloucestershire4
North and East Devon4
Somerset4
South and West Devon4
Wiltshire4

6 Feb 2002 : Column 1031W

£40 million has been allocated to buy additional elective cases in the private sector this year. It has been targeted on those health authorities most in need of short term support.

The funding will be used to free up NHS capacity but the exact number of cases purchased is not yet known. This will depend on the final details of contracts negotiated with the private sector. We will make the final

6 Feb 2002 : Column 1032W

figures available after the end of the financial year. However, the allocations by health authority are shown in the table.

Health authority£000
Avon2,650
Barking and Havering534
Barnet, Enfield and Haringey989
Bedford669
Berkshire235
Birmingham1,607
Brent and Harrow586
Bromley, Bexley and Greenwich577
Buckinghamshire1,150
Calderdale and Kirklees310
Cambridge460
Camden and Islington424
Coventry300
Croydon197
Dudley320
Durham and Darlington285
East London and City245
Ealing, Hammersmith and Hounslow850
East Kent1,590
East Surrey488
East Sussex, Brighton and Hove1,245
Herefordshire144
Hertfordshire600
Hillingdon282
Isle of Wight, Portsmouth, South East Hampshire816
Kensington, Chelsea and Westminster894
Kingston and Richmond207
Lambeth, Southwark and Lewisham1,010
Leeds500
Leicestershire219
Lincolnshire420
Liverpool2,040
Manchester1,958
Merton, Sutton and Wandsworth604
Morecambe Bay400
Newcastle and North Tyne500
Norfolk265
North and Mid Hampshire438
North Cheshire525
North Cumbria228
North Derbyshire150
North Essex562
North Staffordshire1,516
North Yorkshire350
Northamptonshire74
Nottingham800
Oxfordshire1,425
Redbridge and Waltham Forest520
Salford and Trafford300
Sheffield882
Shropshire42
Solihull50
South and West Devon250
South Cheshire270
South Essex573
South Humber90
South Staffordshire460
Southampton and South West Hampshire672
Suffolk164
Tees261
Wakefield300
Walsall250
Warwickshire180
West Kent372
West Surrey1,470
West Sussex579
Wirral300
Worcestershire1,200

6 Feb 2002 : Column 1033W

Dr. Richard Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans he has to increase the number of NHS patients treated privately by allowing consenting patients to contribute a part of the cost; and if he will make a statement. [33532]

Mr. Hutton: There are no plans to increase the number of national health service patients treated privately by allowing consenting patients to contribute a part of the cost of treatment.


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