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NHS Pay

Mr. Wray: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what measures will be put in place to ensure that low-paid NHS workers (a) have a wage floor and (b) earn an adequate wage; and if he will make a statement on the support available. [112831]

Mr. Hutton: The Government is committed to tackling low pay in the National Health Service. As part of NHS pay awards for 2002–03, extra resources were targeted to give proportionally greater pay increases to the lowest paid National Health Service staff. From 1 April 2002, all non-medical staff groups received an increase of either 3.6 per cent., or 400 if greater. There was also a range of targeted action focused on the lower paid. This gave a new national minimum hourly rate for staff directly employed by the NHS of £4.47 from 1 April 2002.

The minimum national adult rate, excluding trainees, has increased since 1997 from £3.46 an hour to £4.47 an hour; an increase of 29 per cent. in cash terms for staff directly employed in the NHS.

A proposed agreement on pay modernisation for NHS non-medical staff, Agenda for Change, was published on 3 March.2003 Staff organisations are currently consulting their members on the proposed agreement. If ratified, the agreement will, when implemented, provide a new minimum wage for directly employed staff of £10,100 (at 2002–03 pay levels), equivalent to £5.16 an hour. This will represent an 11 per cent, increase in basic starting salary for the lowest paid. Subject to the outcome of consultation, the proposed agreement will be implemented in a number of 'early implementer' sites from June 2003 and nationally from October 2004. Under the proposed agreement, rates of pay will in addition be uplifted by 10 per cent, over the next three years, compared with the 2002–03 level set out above.

The information in this answer relates to England, although the Agenda for Change proposals apply across the United Kingdom. Pay for NHS staff in Scotland and Wales is a matter for the devolved administrations. Whilst the institutions in Northern Ireland are dissolved, responsibility rests with Ministers In the Northern Ireland Office.

NHS Trusts

Mrs. Mahon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the salary of the Chief Executive of each NHS trust in England is. [113079]

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Mr. Hutton: Information relating to the salaries of National Health Service trust chief executives is not collected centrally. Information on chief executives' salaries is included in the accounts for individual trusts, which are published locally.

Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Health in what circumstances the chair of a strategic health authority can be required to resign his or her post. [112789]

Mr. Hutton: There are no statutory procedures for requiring that a strategic health authority chair resigns his or her post. Resignation is a matter for the individual chair involved. Regulation 8(4) of the Health Authorities (Membership and Procedure) Regulation 1996 provides that:

"If the Secretary of State is of the opinion that:

(a) it is not in the interests of the health service in the area for which an Authority acts: or

(b) it is not conducive to the good management of an authority, for a person whom he has appointed as the chairman or a member of that Authority to continue to hold that office, the Secretary of State may forthwith terminate his tenure of office."

The Secretary of State has delegated his authority to terminate an appointment to the National Health Service Appointments Commission.

Nightingale Wards

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much of the modernisation programme announced on Wednesday 8 May 2002 has been spent; and how many Nightingale wards remain open. [110175]

Mr. Hutton: It was announced, in August 2001, that £120 million would be made available over a three-year period as part of a modernisation programme to eliminate Nightingale wards for older people. All funding has been allocated and refurbishment work is underway. When building works are complete, 319 Nightingale wards will have been eliminated, of which 236 are Nightingale wards for older people.

Data on how many Nightingale wards in total remain open is not collected centrally.

Nurse Practitioners

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many nurses are training to become nurse practitioners. [110950]

Mr. Hutton: This information is not collected centrally.

Oldchurch Hospital

Mr. Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what procedures should be followed if an anaesthetist disagrees with a consultant surgeon regarding the treatment of a patient under their care. [113466]

Mr. Hutton: Relationships between surgeons and anaesthetists are governed by guidance set out by the General Medical Council, on professional working between all clinicians. The guidance 'Good Medical Practice', Third Edition May 2001, outlines the procedures clinicians should follow if they feel another health care professional may be putting a patient at risk.

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Mr. Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans he has to investigate complaints made about procedures at Oldchurch hospital, following the resignation of a locum consultant surgeon at Oldchurch hospital in Romford; what discussions he has held with (a) the Barking, Havering and Redbridge NHS trusts and (b) the Clinical Director at Oldchurch hospital on the matter; and if he will make a statement. [113467]

Mr. Hutton: I have no plans to investigate these complaints. This is an internal matter for Barking, Havering and Redbridge hospitals national health service trust.

Mr. Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will ensure the speedy appointment of a new locum consultant surgeon at Oldchurch hospital in Romford. [113470]

Mr. Hutton: This is an internal matter for Barking, Havering and Redbridge hospitals national health service trust.

Primary Care Trusts

Mr. Watts: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how long he expects it will take for each primary care trust to reach its target funding levels. [114585]

Mr. Hutton: We consider our allocations policy for each round of allocations in the light of all the circumstances at that time.

We are committed to bringing primary care trusts to their target allocations as soon as is practicable, consistent with all primary care trusts having sufficient extra funding to enable them to deliver on national and local priorities.

Protective Equipment

Dr. Murrison: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to his answer of 14 April, Official Report, column 621W, on protective equipment, if he will make a statement on the mid-March review and assessment of readiness by NHS trusts for responding to incidents. [111370]

Mr. Hutton: The Department of Health has recently completed its comprehensive review of National Health Service major incident plans. This review took into consideration conclusions reached by the National Audit Office in Facing the Challenge: NHS Emergency Planning in England. Preliminary analysis from this review has shown that all NHS bodies have addressed the concerns that caused them to assess themselves as not "well prepared"; they now all assess themselves as at least "prepared".

The outcome from the review will be used to develop a programme of work to further enhance NHS preparedness.

All NHS trusts with accident and emergency (A and E) departments and ambulance services are "prepared" to respond to chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear incidents. A programme to replace faulty personal protective equipment is well underway and all appropriate trusts have received at least 50 per cent. of

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their modified suits. A further batch of suits have been purchased which will provide each A and E department with additional supplies.

Radiographers

Mr. Blizzard: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) how many radiographers there are in the NHS; how many posts are vacant; and how many radiographers worked in the NHS in 1997; [114119]

(2) what plans he has to increase the number of radiographers in the NHS. [114120]

Mr. Hutton: The Government is committed to increasing the number of radiographers employed in the National Health Service. The NHS Plan states that, by 2004, there will be an extra 6,500 more therapists and other health professionals employed in the NHS over 1999 levels, including radiographers. Between September 1997 and 2001, the number of diagnostic radiographers increased by 800, or 8 per cent., from 10,360 to 11,160 and therapeutic radiographers increased by 130, or 9 per cent., from 1,410 to 1,540.

To further increase the future radiography workforce, we are substantially increasing the numbers of training places. Since 1997, there has been an overall 63 per cent. increase in radiography training commissions from 582 to 948 and these will be increased further as part of the NHS Plan commitment for an extra 4,450 more training places for therapists and other key professional staff by 2004.

The Department of Health collects information on the number of vacancies that have lasted for three months or more in the NHS workforce vacancies survey. In March 2002, there were 530 diagnostic radiographer posts and 130 therapeutic radiographer posts vacant for three months or more.

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