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7 Nov 2002 : Column 538W—continued

Vulnerable Adults

Mr. Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he is putting in place to ensure the protection of vulnerable adults following the postponement of Criminal Records Bureau checks for people who work with vulnerable adults. [80028]

Jacqui Smith: A criminal record disclosure forms one of many checks persons caring for vulnerable adults must have in order to work with this client group. Measures are already in place to ensure the protection of vulnerable adults from abuse. Persons caring for vulnerable adults continue to be subject to rigorous pre-employment checks, including confirming previous employment history and taking up references, to ensure their suitability for the position in question. All those

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occupations, which were subject to a criminal record check prior to the advent of the Criminal Records Bureau, will continue to be subject to such a check.

Mr. Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) how long he expects the postponement of the implementation of the protection of vulnerable adults lists provided for in the Care Standards Act 2000 to last as set out in the announcement on 1 November; [80021]

(2) for how long the implementation of the protection of vulnerable adults lists as part of the Care Standards Act 2000 have been postponed. [79812]

Jacqui Smith: We intend to implement the protection of vulnerable adults list when we are confident that the Criminal Records Bureau are able to cope with the demand.

Care Homes

Mr. Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to his answer of 15 October 2002, Official Report, column 810W, on care homes, which national providers he has written to regarding the failure to pass on free nursing care to residents. [80060]

Jacqui Smith: I refer the hon. Member to my reply of 15 October 2002, Official Report, column 810W, which set out the reasons why this information could not be disclosed.

Foundation Trusts

Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what representations he has received from hospital trusts or health bodies in the Camden and Islington area concerning the development of foundation hospitals; and if he will make a statement. [79642]

Mr. Hutton: The Department has not received any representations from hospital trusts or health bodies in the Camden and Islington area concerning the development of National Health Service foundation trusts.

Day Surgery

Michael Fabricant: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to his answer of 29 October 2002, Official Report, column 742 W. what steps he will take to ensure day surgery facilities remain in Lichfield following the proposed construction of a new hospital in the City of Lichfield. [79049]

Mr. Hutton: Following the South Staffordshire strategic review public consultation, it was decided that day surgery should be concentrated at Tamworth and Cannock, in order to provide the highest quality facilities for South Staffordshire patients in purpose-built environments, and to maximise the potential of day surgery usage in the county, by concentrating three sites onto two.

Day surgery at Lichfield ended in December 2001 and there are no plans to re-provide day surgery in the new hospital at Lichfield. It is, however, planned that the new hospital will benefit from, for example, an improved minor injuries unit, better x-ray services, more examining rooms in the outpatients department and modern facilities for the public.

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Correspondence

Sir John Stanley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when he will reply to the letters of 9 July and 16 September from the right hon. Member for Tonbridge and Malling regarding MRI scanning services in West Kent. [79909]

Ms Blears: A reply was sent to the right hon. Member on 6 November.

Mr. Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when he will reply to the letters from the hon. Member for the Isle of Wight (a) dated 23 November 2001, concerning lens solutions and (b) dated 22 February, and transferred from DEFRA on 11 April. [72599]

Ms Blears: Replies to the hon. Member's letters of 23 November and 22 February were sent on 29 July and 21 August.

Mr. John Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) if he will reply to the letter written to him on 18 January by the hon. Member for Solihull, on behalf of his constituent Mr. Colin Reynard, of which letter a reminder was sent to him on 9 April, joining the interest of another constituent of the hon. Member, Mr. Brian Clayton; [67583]

(2) if he will reply to the letter written to his minister of state on 30 May, by the hon. Member for Solihull on behalf of his constituent Mr. G. L. Cotton; [67584]

(3) if he will acknowledge the letter written to him by the hon. Member for Solihull dated 2nd October; and if he will cause substantive responses to be made to the cases of Graham Cotton and Brian Clayton both of Solihull (PO1013296 and PO1014870); [78759]

Mr. Hutton [holding answer 4 October 2002]: The hon. Member has been invited to attend a meeting with my hon. Friend the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Health, to discuss the issues that his constituents have raised in his correspondence.

Mr. Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when he will write to the hon. Member for Sutton and Cheam regarding his answer of 14 October 2002, Official Report, column 481W, concerning the number of key targets set by his Department. [80018]

Mr. Lammy: A response to the hon. Member for Sutton and Cheam has now been sent.

Smallpox Vaccine

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will list (a) the meetings between (i) ministers and (ii) officials in his Department with Powderject concerning the smallpox vaccine and (b) the names of those who attended those meetings; and if he will make a statement. [54660]

Mr. Hutton [holding answer 8 May 2002]: Ministers had no meetings with PowderJect concerning the placing of the smallpox vaccine contract. Officials from the Department and from the Ministry of Defence met with PowderJect on 22 January as part of the confidential discussions held with the five major pharmaceutical companies known to have smallpox vaccine manufacturing capability. The meeting was to

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inform the company of our requirements for smallpox vaccine and to find out whether the company was in a position to meet our requirements and, if so, to invite them to submit their written proposals for vaccine supply. Since the award of the contract to PowderJect on 11 April, there have been two ad hoc meetings between officials from the Department and the Ministry of Defence with PowderJect to resolve matters of detail concerning labelling and packaging of the vaccine. As all discussions with the company were confidential, the names of those present are not being revealed. This is in accordance with normal policy.

Overseas Nurses

Mr. Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health at what intervals nurse recruitment agencies which have signed up to the ethical foreign nurse recruitment campaign will be reviewed. [74320]

Mr. Hutton [holding answer 16 October 2002]: The list of agencies that have confirmed they adhere to the code of practice has been placed on the international recruitment website. The list is monitored on an ongoing basis.

Workforce development confederations will bring to the attention of the Department any agencies that are not recruiting in accordance with the code of practice.

National Clinical Director of Primary Care

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many GP surgeries have been visited by the GP tsar in that capacity since his appointment. [75511]

Mr. Hutton [holding answer 21 October 2002]: Professor David Colin-Thome is a part-time practising general practitioner (GP) as well as the current National Clinical Director of Primary Care, a position which he occupies on a two day per week basis. Since his appointment in May 2001, he has visited 14 GP surgeries. He has, however, met considerably more GPs and other primary care professionals through attending conferences, seminars and other events, which average at well over one per week.

Foundation Hospitals

Mr. Dobson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will list the organisations which have advised him on the development of foundation hospitals; and if he will list the fees incurred by his Department in obtaining advice on the development of foundation hospitals. [76811]

Mr. Hutton [holding answer 24 October 2002]: We have sought specialist advice from the New Economics Foundation, Pinsent Curtis Biddle and PricewaterhouseCoopers in developing proposals for the creation of National Health Service foundation trusts. To date, payments have been made to the New Economics Foundation and PricewaterhouseCoopers. Actual fees incurred are commercially confidential.

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