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29 Oct 2003 : Column 239W—continued
HEALTH
Local Government Finance
Ms Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will list the transfers into and out of formula spending share for 2004–05, and grants which are due to cease at the end of 2003–04; and whether his Department plans consequently to adjust the baseline calculation for floors and ceilings. [127165]
Mr. Raynsford: I have been asked to reply.
The Secretary of State for Health intends to end three special grants in 2003–04: Deferred Payments (£40 million), Performance Fund (£96 million) and Care Direct (£2.2 million). No other transfers are planned at this stage, although the situation will not be finalised until the provisional local government financial settlement. In each case, the Government are considering whether to adjust authorities' baselines for Formula Grant and for Formula Spending Shares.
Social Care
Mr. Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the budget for social services in Lancashire was in each year since 1992. [134902]
Miss Melanie Johnson: The table shows the personal social services (PSS) budget figures for Lancashire county council, for each year since 1992–93. The figures include children's services.
| PSS budget | |
|---|---|
| 1992–93 | 132,406 |
| 1993–94 | 156,288 |
| 1994–95 | 182,308 |
| 1995–96 | 200,193 |
| 1996–97 | 216,873 |
| 1997–98 | 231,046 |
| 1998–99 | 191,062 |
| 1999–2000 | 199,798 |
| 2000–01 | 216,811 |
| 2001–02 | 231,741 |
| 2002–03 | 262,069 |
| 2003–04 | 289,932 |
Acetylcysteine
Mr. David Atkinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement on the availability of Acetylcysteine on the NHS. [133094]
Miss Melanie Johnson: Acetylcysteine is available on the national health service as a prescription only medicine.
Cancer Services
Mr. Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps are being taken to improve waiting times from referral by a GP to treatment for cancer services. [133892]
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Miss Melanie Johnson [holding answer 27 October 2003]: The NHS Cancer Plan sets out our strategy to reduce waiting times for cancer patients. A two-week outpatient waiting time standard was introduced in 2000 for all urgent general practitioner referrals of suspected cancer. In the last quarter—April to June 2003—98.5 per cent. of urgent GP referrals for suspected cancer were seen by a specialist within two weeks. By 2005, there will be targets of a maximum one month wait from diagnosis to treatment and a maximum two month wait from urgent GP referral to treatment for all cancers. Progress towards these targets is being achieved through increased investment, additional staffing levels, installing new radiotherapy and diagnostic facilities and streamlining care processes through the cancer services collaborative.
Cannabis
Mr. Brady: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the relationship between the incidence of psychosis and cannabis use. [134347]
Miss Melanie Johnson: The Department monitors research into the effects cannabis has on mental health on a continuous basis. The Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs (ACMD) published a report in March 2002—"The classification of cannabis under the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971"—in which it described the range of harms caused by cannabis, including its known effects on mental health. There has been a lot of debate about the use of cannabis and whether it can lead to mental illness, especially schizophrenia. No clear causal link has been proven for the latter, although recent epidemiological research has shown a stronger association than previously evident. Cannabis use can unquestionably worsen existing schizophrenia (and other mental illnesses) and lead to relapse in some patients.
In addition, on 29 September 2003, the Department published "Dangerousness of Drugs—a Guide to the Risks and Harms associated with Substance Misuse", which outlines the chronic and acute problems associated with a range of licit and illicit substances commonly used in the United Kingdom, including cannabis.
Chronic Diseases
Mr. Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what research his Department has commissioned into the proportion of health spending which will be needed for chronic diseases over the next 50 years. [133724]
Dr. Ladyman: The Department has not commissioned its own research into this. There is a growing body of research and evidence that highlights the increasing significance of chronic illness. The Department has work in progress looking at the future burden of diseases, including chronic illness, and exploring the implications for services and patients.
Community Health Councils
Mr. Colman: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what his most recent estimate is of the number of staff
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employed in community health councils in England at risk of redundancy; and what the potential liability for redundancy costs is. [134582]
Ms Rosie Winterton: We estimate that 380 staff of community health councils will be made redundant. The cost of redundancy is estimated at £12 million.
Dentistry
Mr. Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) how many dentists were accepting national health service patients in (a) Stroud, (b) Gloucestershire and (c) England in (i) 1990, (ii) 1997 and (iii) the last year for which figures are available; [131495]
- (2) how many dentists in (a) Stroud and (b) Gloucestershire accept (i) national health service patients and (ii) only children as NHS patients; and how many are registered as private practices. [131496]
Ms Rosie Winterton: The table shows the number of practices providing general dental services (GDS) in England, Gloucestershire and Cotswold and Vale Primary Care Trust, which covers Stroud, at August 1990, August 1997 and August 2003.
These figures exclude salaried dentists working in the general dental service, dentists working in community dental services, personal dental services and hospital dental services and dentists who do no national health service work. Information is not collected centrally on the number of dentists who practice solely privately but it is thought that the number of such dentists is around 2 per cent.
| Area | 1990 | (3)1997 | (4)2003 |
|---|---|---|---|
| England | 8,547 | 8,303 | 8,623 |
| — | — | — | |
| Family Health Service Authority | — | — | — |
| Gloucestershire | 97 | — | — |
| — | — | — | |
| Health Authority | — | — | — |
| Gloucestershire | — | 109 | — |
| — | — | — | |
| Primary Care Trust | — | — | — |
| South Gloucestershire | — | — | 30 |
| Cheltenham and Tewkesbury | — | — | 34 |
| West Gloucestershire | — | — | 31 |
| Cotswold and Vale | — | — | 36 |
(3) Following the move from family health service authority (FHSAs) to health authority (HAs) in 1996, results were published by HA rather than by FHSA.
(4) Following the move from health authority (HAs) to primary care trusts (PCTs) in 2001, results were published by strategic health authority (SHA) and PCT rather than by region and HA
Source:
Dental Practice Board
The number of practices accepting new NHS patients for registration at October 2003 is shown in the following table. The information is obtained from the www.nhs.uk website. This information is not available for earlier years.
Some people choose not to register with a GDS dentist and only visit the dentist when they require treatment on an occasional basis. Patients may also obtain treatment from other NHS dental services, including dental access centres.
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| Primary care trust | Registering charge exempt adults for NHS treatment | Registering charge paying adults for NHS treatment | Registering children aged 0 to 18 years for NHS treatment |
|---|---|---|---|
| England | 3,471 | 3,124 | 4,340 |
| Four Gloucestershire PCTs | 12 | 7 | 12 |
| Cotswold and Vale PCI | 4 | 1 | 3 |
Source:
http://www.nhs.uk
Diabetes
Judy Mallaber: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he is taking to ensure the continuity of supply of animal insulin for those diabetes sufferers who do not wish to use human insulin. [134245]
Ms Rosie Winterton: The Department is in regular contact with the companies supplying animal insulin in the United Kingdom. Both companies have confirmed that they will continue to supply animal insulin for the foreseeable future.
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