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2 Jul 2003 : Column 349W—continued
Bridlington Hospital
Mr. Greg Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Health [pursuant to his answer of 19 June 2003, Official Report, column 425W], on Bridlington Hospital, if he will make it his policy to maintain the number of accredited senior house officer training posts at Bridlington Hospital for the foreseeable future. [122610]
Miss Melanie Johnson [holding answer 2 July 2003]: The number of training posts located at a specific hospital site is a matter for local decision.
Communicable Diseases
Mr. Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the cost was to the national health service of treating (a) TB, (b) hepatitis B and (c) HIV and AIDS in each of the last five years. [120433]
Miss Melanie Johnson: The information requested is not available centrally.
The sums allocated by the Department of Health to the national health service for HIV/AIDS treatment and care in England for the last five years for which funds were separately identified are shown in the table.
| HIV treatment allocation | |
|---|---|
| 1997–98 | 199.7 |
| 1998–99 | 228.2 |
| 1999–2000 | 234.0 |
| 2000–01(34) | 184.3 |
| 2001–02 | 223.5 |
(34) After expenditure of £50.4 million on genitourinary medicine is disaggregated.
From April 2002, the special allocation for HIV treatment and care was added to NHS baseline funding according to the target distribution of HIV across England, and is no longer separately identified.
Community Health Councils/Patients Forums
Miss McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether community health councils will continue to be fully funded until their closure; when
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their closure will take effect; and what the impact of the closure will be on (a) patients and (b) staff of community health councils. [120654]
Ms Rosie Winterton: Community health councils (CHCs) will be funded until they are abolished on 1 December 2003. From that date the Commission for Patient and Public Involvement in Health will have established the new patients' forums, one in each trust. Much of the new and improved system of patient and public involvement is already in place.
CHC staff are being supported to find alternative employment in the national health service and this support is based on a human resources framework (HRF) agreed with the trade unions. This provides staff with clearing houses, training and counselling support. The Department of Health continues to work with the trades unions on the delivery of the agreed HRF and this work will continue to the abolition date.
Cystic Fibrosis
Mr. Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement on Government support for projects to develop gene therapy relating to cystic fibrosis. [122193]
Miss Melanie Johnson: We have committed a total of £5.5 million to develop treatments for single gene disorders; £2.5 million of which is specifically earmarked for cystic fibrosis (CF) gene therapy clinical research. An investment of up to £4 million will also provide access to facilities for gene therapy vector production for National Health Service and other public sector researchers. The United Kingdom CF gene therapy research community will be eligible to benefit from this investment.
Drug Rehabilitation Centres
Mr. Wray: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many staff are employed in drug rehabilitation centres, how much they are paid; what percentage of staff are ex-drug addicts; and if he will make a statement on the role played by advice of ex-drug addicts. [121129]
Miss Melanie Johnson: This information is not available centrally.
Mr. Wray: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assistance is available to non-publicly run drug rehab centres; what coordination there is with other drug rehabilitation centres; and what assessment has been made of the success rate of non-Government run centres. [121130]
Miss Melanie Johnson: The National Treatment Agency oversees the pooled drug treatment budget which stands this year at £236 million, an increase of 23 per cent. on last year's allocation. This money is allocated to drug action teams, which make the decisions on how funding on statutory and non-Government centres is spent at a local level.
In addition, both statutory and non-Government centres also receive funds from mainstream primary care trust and social services funds. This is expenditure based on local needs and local decision making, so details are not available centrally.
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The National Treatment Outcomes Research Study (NTORS) looked at residential rehabilitation services, which are primarily run by non-Government centres. NTORS showed that clients entering residential rehabilitation and inpatient programmes made substantial improvements in terms of abstinence from, and reduction of, illicit drug misuse, criminal activity, levels of injecting and psychological health.
Electronic Prescribing
Dr. Stoate: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will extend the period of the pilot projects on electronic prescribing. [122622]
Ms Rosie Winterton: The electronic transmission of prescriptions pilots have demonstrated that prescriptions can be transmitted electronically in an accurate and secure manner, and now having served their intended purpose they will be formally closed with effect from the end of June 2003. In order to ensure that patients do not experience difficulties in obtaining their prescriptions and minimise inconvenience to healthcare professionals an appropriate timeframe for ceasing the processing of electronic prescriptions will be agreed with the remaining pilots.
The pilots have been independently evaluated and this information is being used by the National Programme for National Health Service Information Technology to develop a sustainable, national prescription service.
Euro Roadshow
Mr. Flight: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will list the events he plans to attend as part of the Government's euro roadshow. [121390]
Ms Rosie Winterton: I refer the hon. Member to the response given by my right hon. Friend, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, on 20 June 2003, Official Report, columns 459–60W.
Food Supplements
Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent representations he has received from (a) right hon. and (b) hon. Members about safe nutrients missing from (i) the lists of permitted nutrients set out in Annex 1 and Annex 2 of the Food Supplements Directive and (ii) the schedules to the Food Supplements (England) Regulations; and if he will make a statement. [120082]
Miss Melanie Johnson: There have been many recent representations relating to the Food Supplements Directive and the Food Supplements (England) Regulations 2003, which express concern over the lists of permitted nutrients in the Annexes to the Directive and the Schedules to the Regulations. These representations have taken the form of correspondence, parliamentary questions, early day motions and the tabling of prayers against the Regulations.
The Government are concerned about this issue and are pressing for urgent, substantive discussions with the European Food Safety Authority on dossier requirements for additions to the permitted lists.
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Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what resources are being allocated by his Department and the Food Standards Agency to delivering his policy objectives for missing nutrients and maximum permitted levels for nutrients within the provision of the Food Supplements Directive; and if he will make a statement [120434]
Miss Melanie Johnson: The issues of missing nutrients and maximum permitted levels for nutrients within the provisions of the Food Supplements Directive are just two of a number of policy issues being addressed by the food labelling and standards (FLS) division of the Food Standards Agency. The FLS division has a budget for 2003–04 of £3.187 million and a complement of 37 full-time equivalent staff. The FLS divisional business plan lists work on food supplements as high priority.
Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent representations he has received from Holland and Barrett retail in relation to the provisions of the Food Supplements Directive and the Food Supplements (England) Regulations; and what response he has made to those representations. [120436]
Miss Melanie Johnson: Holland and Barrett retail wrote to the then Secretary of State for Health, my right hon. Friend the Member for Darlington (Mr. Milburn) recently, expressing concern over the impact of the Directive and the implementing Regulations.
The then Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Health my hon. Friend the Member for Salford (Ms Blears), responded, explaining that the Government recognised those concerns, that they were doing everything they could to facilitate submission of dossiers supporting additions to the lists of permitted vitamins and minerals in the Directive and that they continued strongly to make the case for a safety-based approach to be taken in proposals on maximum limits.
Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement on Early-Day Motion 1398 (Food Supplements Regulations). [120438]
Miss Melanie Johnson: The Government are firmly committed to the view that, in the interests of consumer choice, the law should allow food supplements that are safe and properly labelled to be freely marketed.
The lists of permitted nutrients and nutrient sources in the Food Supplements (England) Regulations 2003 can be extended if additions are made to the permitted lists in the annexes to the Food Supplements Directive 2002/46/EC on which the Regulations are based. These annexes remain open pending safety assessment of additional substances. Industry is currently working to compile safety dossiers for some of the substances currently omitted from the Annexes.
The Food Standards Agency, in recognition of the difficulties associated with dossier production, and the timescale for dossier submission, is pressing the European Food Safety Authority for an urgent, substantive meeting with relevant parties to discuss dossier requirements. This has the support of the European Commission.
Further, the Government's view is that maximum limits for nutrients in food supplements should be based on thorough risk assessments and set at levels which
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protect public health, but which neither unnecessarily limit consumer choice nor unduly restrict trade. The Government continue to take every opportunity to press this view strongly in Brussels and bilaterally with representatives of other European Union member states.
The Government recognise concerns expressed in various quarters over the impact of the Directive on consumer choice and the United Kingdom food supplements industry. However, the UK is obliged to fulfil its obligations, under the EC treaty, to implement the Directive. Not to do so would be a serious breach of those obligations and would result in infraction
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proceedings against the UK and the likelihood of heavy fines. Ultimately, the UK would be forced to implement.
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