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4 Nov 2002 : Column 119W—continued
Food Labelling
Mr. Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement on his position towards Directive 2002/67/EC (OJ L191, vol 45, 19 July 2002) on the labelling of foodstuffs containing (a) quinine and (b) caffeine; how many products on sale in the UK will be affected; and what cost assessment his Department has made of the cost of change in packaging. [77248]
Ms Blears: These labelling changes will help consumers make informed choices about consumption of these products. Many manufacturers already indicate when caffeine or quinine has been added as an ingredient and most beverages containing high levels of caffeine already carry a warning to that effect. The new rules do not take full effect until 1 July 2004 and the legislation provides for products labelled before that date to continue to be sold while stocks last. This generous transitional period should allow any necessary changes to be incorporated as part of normal label redesign cycles and therefore ensure costs are kept to a minimum.
Cancer Care Action Group
Gregory Barker: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what representations his Department has received concerning the effectiveness of the Cancer Care Action Group in identifying and implementing improvements to the quality of care for patients; [75748]
- (2) if he will list the members of the Cancer Care Action Group and the organisations that they represent. [75747]
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Ms Blears: The Cancer Care Action Group was established in 1998 after the Caring for Cancer conference, which brought together statutory and voluntary organisations involved in caring for those with cancer. Following the publication of the NHS Cancer Plan, the group was replaced by a supportive and palliative care strategy co-ordinating group.
The Supportive and Palliative Care Strategy Group membership comprises representatives from the Department of Health, the national health service, the National Council for Hospices and specialist palliative care services, Macmillan Cancer Relief, CancerBACUP, National Cancer Alliance, Marie Curie Cancer Care and voluntary hospices.
Dr. Evan Harris: To ask the Secretary of State for Health through what mechanisms staff of the Commission for Patient and Public Involvement in Health, deployed to patient forums, will be accountable to those forums and their local communities. [77425]
Mr. Lammy: Staff will be provided by the Commission for Patient and Public Involvement in Health to primary care trust patients' forums to support the members of patients' forums in their work. The work programme of the staff will be set by the patients' forum members. Therefore, while staff will be employed by the Commission on a day to day basis, they will be accountable to the patients' forum to which they are attached. It is for the Commission to decide exactly how this dual accountability will be managed and ensured.
Advisory Committee on Resources Allocations
Mr Dave Watts: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will publish the Advisory Committee on Resources Allocations committee recommendations and options; if he will consult on the (a) options and recommendations and (b) weighting that will be given to any measures used to determine need; and what weighting he plans to give to (i) basic per capita allocations, (ii) deprivation, (iii) ethnicity, (iv) poor health indicators, (v) ACA, (vi) low birth weight, (vii) income, (viii) unemployment, (ix) premature death rates and (x) other measures. [78617]
Mr. Hutton: We are currently considering the recommendations of the advisory committee on resource allocation (ACRA) for a new National Health Service funding formula. Later this autumn when we announce the revenue allocations for the next three years we will explain changes to the formula. The team who carried out the research into the new formula plan to publish a full report of their findings.
ACRA is an expert body whose membership is made up of individuals with a wide range of relevant experience and expertise from within and outside the NHS. We do not consult on ACRA's recommendations.
Ambulance Personnel (Assaults)
Mr. Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many ambulance personnel by region have been (a) shot, (b) stabbed and (c) assaulted in each of the last five years for which figures are available. [78428]
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Mr. Lammy [holding answer 31 October 2002]: Information on the type of and levels of violent incidents by individual staff group is not collected centrally, but may be held at a local level by national health service employers. Data on violent incidents involving all staff in the NHS were not collected on a national basis prior to 1998.
The results of the 2000–01 survey of reported violent or abusive incidents, accidents involving staff and sickness absence in NHS trusts and health authorities, in England, have been placed in the Library, along with a report setting out the Government's proposed action in light of the findings. The survey found that there were an estimated 13 reported violent or abusive incidents per 1,000 staff per month in ambulance trusts, compared to an estimated 10 such incidents for all NHS trusts.
Ambulance Services (Private Functions)
Mr. Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent guidance he has issued to ambulance trusts on making crews and vehicles available for hire to cover private functions. [78375]
Mr. Lammy [holding reply issued on Thursday 31 October]: National Health Service Trusts may provide ambulance services to events such as sporting fixtures if there is no detriment to NHS services and the full cost is recovered.
Arthritis
Sir Teddy Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many persons were suffering from arthritis in each of the last 10 years. [77537]
Jacqui Smith [holding answer 28 October 2002]: The information requested is not collected centrally. However, Arthritis Care estimates that there are more than 200 types of arthritis and rheumatic disease, and more than 8 million people in the United Kingdom have long-term health problems due to arthritis or a related condition.
Bed Blocking
Mr. Burns: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many beds in (a) Greater London and (b) Essex were occupied by delayed discharge patients (i) at the latest available date and (ii) in each of the last four quarters. [77148]
Mr. Lammy: Information on delayed discharges is collected centrally and is placed in the Library.
Before 1 April 2002 data were collected at the old health authority level. Health authorities were disbanded on 1 April 2002 and replaced with primary care trusts.
Health authority level data up to and including Q4 2001–02 (March 2002) are available.
For Quarter 1 2002–03 (up until the end of June 2002) primary care trust level data are available.
Care Homes (Closure)
Mr Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement on the closure of care homes. [77512]
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Jacqui Smith: Department figures show that between 1997 and 2001, the most recent figures available, the number of care homes in England reduced by only 640 or two per cent. My right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State announced, on 23 July, an extra #1 billion for social services by 2006. Some of this money can be used to boost capacity in the care home sector.
Child Prostitution
Dr. Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many children were identified as being involved in prostitution in each of the past five years. [78015]
Jacqui Smith: The information requested is not held centrally.
Child Protection
Dr Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how the Government intends to ensure that the safeguarding of vulnerable children takes place at a primary care level and that GPs participate to an extent which does not impinge upon them carrying out other clinical duties. [78021]
Jacqui Smith: From April 2002, responsibility for securing the provision of the health contribution to child protection services began to be devolved to primary care trusts (PCTs). The particular roles and responsibilities of health professionals for child protection are set out in the Government's core inter-agency child protection guidance Working Together to Safeguard Children. Although this is a new role for PCTs, they are not expected to assume this responsibility without support. Child protection will form a key competency task within the national primary and care trust development programme currently being developed.
The exercise of responsibility for child protection involves more than the specific clinical service; it necessitates PCTs exercising a public health responsibility for a whole population. It will require good partnership working with all stakeholders, in particular councils with social services responsibilities. Guidance on specific action required was issued to all chief executives of PCTs in January this year. This will be followed next year by supplementary child protection guidance for health professionals. In addition, the national primary and care trust development programme team are currently running child protection seminars for PCT directors with responsibility for children.
Dr Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what measures he plans to take to ensure that area child protection committees receive sufficient funding to discharge their responsibilities. [78022]
Jacqui Smith Area child protection committee (ACPC) expenditure and administrative and policy support is a matter for local agreement. As a multi-agency forum, the ACPC should be supported in its work by its main constituent agencies, reflecting the investment of each agency in activities which are of benefit to all, in particular inter-agency training.
The Joint Chief Inspectors' report Safeguarding Children, published on 14 October 2002, contains a recommendation that the Department of Health should
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review the current arrangements for ACPCs to determine whether they should be established on a statutory basis to ensure adequate accountability, authority and funding. The Government has welcomed the publication of this report. The Government recognises that there is still more to be done to ensure that the highest standards of child protection are applied in every case. That is why it commissioned the Joint Chief Inspector's report. It is also why my right hon. Friends, the Secretary of State for Health and the Home Secretary set up the statutory inquiry, chaired by Lord Laming, into the circumstances leading up to, and surrounding, the death of Victoria Climbie. The Government looks forward to receiving Lord Laming's report later this year. It will respond in full to both reports after it has had the opportunity to consider them fully.
Dr. Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many serious case reviews were carried out by each area child protection committee in each of the last five years. [78023]
Jacqui Smith: Complete statistical information is not held centrally on the numbers or types of serious case reviews that have been carried out in accordance with Chapter 8 of XWorking Together to Safeguard Children (1999)".
However, many findings from serious case reviews can serve as an important source of information to inform policy and practice at both national and local levels. In recognition of this, the Department is responsible for identifying and disseminating common themes and trends across review reports, and acting on lessons for policy and practice. We recently published an overview report, XLearning from Past Experience—A Review of Serious Case Reviews", drawing out the key findings of a selection of case reviews from the last two years, and their implications for policy and practice. At the same time, we have recently launched a new comprehensive database, which will in future hold information about all serious case reviews.
Dr. Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what proportion of accident and emergency departments do not have access to child protection registers. [78024]
Mr. Lammy: All accident and emergency departments have access to information contained in child protection registers held by local authority social services departments, subject to the normal safeguards. Access out of office hours is through out of office arrangements with local authority social services departments.
Dr. Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) for what reason the Child Protection Register contains those children who are on social services department client index as a consequence of being regarded as at risk; [78027]
- (2) what the main criteria is for placing a vulnerable child who has been a client of a social services department on a child protection register. [78031]
Jacqui Smith: As XWorking Together to Safeguard Children", the Government's child protection guidance, makes clear, the sole criteria for consideration by an initial child protection conference, when determining
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whether to register a child's name on the child protection register, is whether a child is at risk of significant harm.
The test should be that either: the child can be shown to have suffered ill-treatment or impairment of health or development as a result of physical, emotional or sexual abuse or neglect and professional judgement is that further ill-treatment or impairment are likely; or professional judgement, substantiated by the findings of enquiries in this individual case or by research evidence, is that the child is likely to suffer ill-treatment or the impairment of health or development as a result of physical, emotional or sexual abuse or neglect.
The decision whether or not to register a child's name on the child protection register should not be taken on the grounds that the child is already known to social services.
Dr. Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the role of child and adolescent mental health services is with regard to safeguarding vulnerable children. [78036]
Jacqui Smith: Guidance on this is given in XWorking Together to Safeguard Children: A guide to inter-agency working to safeguard and promote the welfare of children", published by the Department of Health, the Home Office and the then Department for Education and Employment in 1999. A copy is in the Library. Paragraphs 3.39–3.41 of the guide relate to all mental health services and 3.42–3.44 to child and adolescent mental health services. The latter includes the role of relevant professional staff in cases where abuse and/or neglect is identified or suspected and the provision, where appropriate, of a range of assessment and treatment services for children with mental health disorders and their families.
Dr. Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans he has to establish area child protection committees on a statutory basis. [78037]
Jacqui Smith: The Joint Chief Inspectors' report XSafeguarding Children", published on 14 October 2002, contains a recommendation that the Department should review the current arrangements for area child protection committees to determine whether they should be established on a statutory basis to ensure adequate accountability, authority and funding.
The Government have welcomed the publication of this report. The Government recognise that there is still more to be done to ensure that the highest standards of child protection are applied in every case. That is why it commissioned the Joint Chief Inspectors' report. It is also why my right hon. Friends the Secretary of State for Health and the Home Secretary set up the statutory inquiry, chaired by Lord Laming, into the circumstances leading up to and surrounding the death of Victoria Climbie. The Government looks forward to receiving Lord Laming's report later this year. It will respond in full to both reports after it has had the opportunity to consider them fully.
Dr. Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Health to what use child protection registers are put; and how he expects this to change in the next three years. [78038]
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Jacqui Smith: A central child protection register should be maintained in each area covered by a social services department. The register should list all the children resident in the area (including those who have been placed there by another local authority or agency) who are considered to be at continuing risk of significant harm, and for whom there is a child protection plan. The principal purpose of the register is to make agencies and professionals aware of those children who are judged to be at continuing risk of significant harm and in need of active safeguarding.
The Joint Chief Inspectors' report XSafeguarding Children", published on 14 October 2002, contains a recommendation that the Department should review the purpose of child protection registers and issue guidance to local authorities.
The Government have welcomed the publication of this report. The Government recognise that there is still more to be done to ensure that the highest standards of child protection are applied in every case. That is why it commissioned the Joint Chief Inspectors' report. It is also why my right hon. Friends, the Secretary of State for Health and the Home Secretary set up the statutory inquiry, chaired by Lord Laming, into the circumstances leading up to, and surrounding, the death of Victoria Climbie. The Government look forward to receiving Lord Laming's report later this year. It will respond in full to both reports after it has had the opportunity to consider them fully.
Dr. Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many area child protection committees do not have representatives from youth offending teams; and if he will set a deadline for all area child protection committees to include representatives from youth offending teams. [78039]
Jacqui Smith: The information requested is not held centrally.
The Joint Chief Inspectors' report, XSafeguarding Children", published on 14 October 2002, contains a recommendation that the Lord Chancellor's Department, the Home Office and the Department of Health should issue immediate guidance to ensure that local youth offending teams and the Crown Prosecution Service are invited to become full members of all area child protection committees.
Dr Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many children in each of the last five years have left local authority care and within five years (a) committed suicide and (b) attempted suicide. [78051]
Jacqui Smith: The Department does not collect statistical information on committed or attempted suicide for children and young people that have left local authority care.
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