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3 Nov 2003 : Column 526W—continued
Midwifery
Mrs. Mahon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many student nurses and midwives who left their courses in each year since 2000 as a result of pregnancy did not return after maternity absence. [133013]
Mr. Hutton: The information requested is not available centrally.
Mrs. Mahon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what would be the annual cost nationally of (a) continuing the bursary for student midwives who have babies during their studies, (b) paying statutory maternity pay to these students and (c) paying maternity allowance to them. [133014]
Mr. Hutton: The Department does not collect information on the number of student midwives who suspend their training as a result of pregnancy. It is not, therefore, possible to assess the cost of continuing to pay bursaries to such students. Similarly, and although students in general are not eligible for either statutory
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maternity pay or maternity allowance (these being dependent on a woman satisfying qualifying conditions based on employment and earnings), it is not possible to estimate the notional cost of paying either of these to any group of national health service-funded students.
Mrs. Mahon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many student midwives and nurses enrolled on diploma and degree courses between 2000 and 2003; how many student midwives and nurses took maternity leave within that period; and how many diploma students, who took maternity absence, were required to repay part of their bursary. [133015]
Mr. Hutton: During the period 2000–01 to 2002–03 the national health service commissioned a total of 67,020 nursing and midwifery training places, including post-registration places for those qualified nurses training in midwifery as a second professional registration.
The Department does not collect information on the number of student nurses and midwives who withdraw from or suspend their training as a result of pregnancy.
Mrs. Dean: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what estimate he has made of the number of midwives needed per 100,000 of the population to provide proper safety for mothers and their babies; [133088]
- (2) how many midwives per 100,000 of the population there are in (a) the East Staffordshire Primary Care Trust area and (b) England. [133089]
Mr. Hutton: The Government has not made any assessment of the number of midwives needed per 100,000 population. The Government expects there to be 2,000 more midwives being employed in the National Health Service in 2006 than there were in 2000. Since 2000, there has already been an increase of 680 midwives in the NHS. As at September 2002, there were 23,249 midwives.
Information on staff in post figures for primary care trust areas is not available. Information on the number of midwives per 100,000 population in England and Shropshire and Staffordshire Strategic Health Authority is shown in the table.
| Headcount | Whole-time equivalents | |
|---|---|---|
| England | 47 | 37 |
| Shropshire and Staffordshire SHA | 44 | 34 |
The Department funded the Royal College of Midwives to produce Birthrate Plus, a tool for assessing workforce requirements in maternity units. It is for individual units and trusts to decide whether to use it.
Mrs. Dean: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many places are available for midwifery training; and if he will make a statement. [133090]
Mr. Hutton: In 2002–03, there were 1,433 pre-registration training places for midwifery; a further 677 nurses entered training for a second qualification as a midwife. The Government is committed to increasing the number of training places for midwifery; the NHS Plan pledged that, by 2004, there would be 5,500 more students entering training for a first qualification to
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become a nurse or midwife than in 1999. Since 1999–2000, there has been an overall increase of 4,249 towards the target, including 418, or 41 per cent., more midwifery training places.
National Staff Survey
Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when he will publish the results of the national staff survey. [133929]
Ms Rosie Winterton: The Commission for Health Improvement is expected to publish the results of the national survey in February 2004.
NHS Estate
Mr. Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to his answer of 14 October 2003, Official Report, column 52W, on the NHS Estate and health and safety, how many (a) beds and (b) patients are normally accommodated within the floor area concerned. [134067]
Mr. Hutton [holding answer 27 October 2003]: This information is not collected in the format requested.
NHS Senior Management
Mr. Norman: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many NHS trust chief executives there are in England and Wales, broken down by (a) sex, (b) background in medicine, (c) background in nursing, (d) background in a profession allied to medicine, (e) ethnic minority and (f) disability. [133514]
Mr. Hutton: There are currently 619 national health service trust chief executives in England, of whom 393 are male and 226 are female. Chief executives are not obligated to supply information on their ethnic group, nor on their background. The available information is shown in the tables. The Department does not hold information on disability of NHS trust chief executives.
Information for Wales is a matter for the devolved administration.
| Headcount | |
|---|---|
| Total | 619 |
| White UK | 348 |
| White other | 9 |
| Asian | 2 |
| Not given | 260 |
| Headcount | |
|---|---|
| Total | 619 |
| Medical | 10 |
| Nursing | 24 |
| Clinical other | 11 |
| Previous NHS managerial | 134 |
| Public sector | 34 |
| Private sector | 18 |
| Voluntary sector | 5 |
| Finance | 21 |
| Not given | 362 |
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NHS Spending Limits
Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what total capital spending limits are set for the NHS in the next three years. [133184]
Mr. Hutton: The table shows the net national health service capital expenditure plans for 2004–05 to 2006–07 (England).
| Capital expenditure | |
|---|---|
| 2004–05 | (46)3.4 |
| 2005–06 | (46)4.4 |
| 2006–07 | (46)5.2 |
(45) Plans as announced by the Chancellor in the Budget, 2002.
(46) Plan.
NHS University
Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what assessment he has made of the impact on the recruitment and retention of NHS staff which would occur if the NHS University were to require its students to pay tuition fees; [133887]
- (2) for which courses the NHS University is considering charging tuition fees; and what the expected level of such fees is; [133888]
(3) what discussions his Department has held with (a) NHS human resources managers and (b) trade unions about the impact which charging tuition fees for NHS University courses would have on workforce development; and if he will make a statement. [133889]
Mr. Hutton [holding answer 27 October 2003] : The National Health Service University (NHSU) will provide additional high quality learning opportunities at all levels for people working in health and social care. It will not generally levy charges on students for the learning opportunities offered in its initial roll-out phase. The NHSU is currently working with local employers and commissioners, through strategic health authorities, to develop its longer-term business model, and expects to attract income from a wide range of public and private sources. Any decision to levy charges on NHS staff will take account of the need to increase and widen access to education and training within health and social care. There will be appropriate consultation on these matters with all the relevant stakeholders, including employers in the sector and trades unions.
NHS Waiting Lists
Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people have been removed from NHS waiting lists in each of the past three years because (a) they have died and (b) they have been admitted as an emergency for the same condition. [133247]
Mr. Hutton: I refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave him on Thursday 22 May 2003, Official Report, column 971W.
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