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Diagnosis and Treatment Centres

Dr. Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much (a) has been and (b) is intended to be spent on capital costs in the new diagnosis and treatment centres. [134952]

Mr. Hutton: Independent sector treatment centres (IS-TCs) are being procured in accordance with strict Official Journal of the European Commission (OJEC) rules. The advertisements published in the OJEC in December 2002 were for the provision of health services

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only and not capital build. The IS-TC programme was design to ensure that additional capacity is available as soon as possible to treat National Health Service patients.

The 47 NHS treatment centre schemes have been allocated a total capital spend of over £370 million.

Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what the location will be of the diagnostics centre in Southend-on-Sea; and if he will make a statement. [139808]

Mr. Hutton: The proposed location of the treatment centre in Southend-on-Sea is expected to be at Fossetts Farm, on the outskirts of Southend-on-Sea. This is subject to receipt of planning permission.

Digital Hearing Aids

Mr. Ben Chapman : To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will make a statement on the availability of NHS digital hearing aids in Wirral South. [139546]

Miss Melanie Johnson: The Wirral Hospitals National Health Service Trust manages the provision of digital hearing aids across the Wirral, including Wirral South. Funding has been made available for the years 2003–04 and 2004–05 to ensure that a modernised service, providing digital hearing aids, will be available from all NHS hearing aids services in England by 2005.

Elective Admissions

Simon Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many patients have waited more than (a) three months, (b) six months and (c) 12 months for an elective finished in year admission in each of the last five years for which figures are available for each NHS Trust in London; and if he will make a statement. [135155]

Mr. Hutton: The information requested has been placed in the Library.

Epilepsy

Mr. Baron: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what the national misdiagnosis rates for epilepsy were in (a) adults and (b) children in the last year for which figures are available; [139786]

(2) what percentage of patients with epilepsy are seizure free. [139787]

Dr. Ladyman: We do not collect information on the misdiagnosis rates for epilepsy. However, recent reports from the Clinical Standards Advisory Group, "Services for patients with epilepsy (2000)", and the Chief Medical Officer, "On the State of the Public Health (2001)", showed that around 20 per cent. of people referred to epilepsy clinics may be misdiagnosed and receive inappropriate and unnecessary treatment. In May 2002, the National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE) made its report of the National Clinical Audit of Epilepsy Related Death available to local national health service clinicians and organisations to help them establish or review policies for the management of epilepsy and epilepsy-related death. NICE is also developing a clinical guideline for the diagnosis,

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management and treatment of epilepsy, which is currently due to be published in June 2004 and which will help address any shortfalls in current practice.

The new general medical services contract includes clinical quality standards for the management of epilepsy in primary care. Under the quality and outcomes framework being introduced from 1 April 2004 as part of the contract general practitioner practices will be rewarded for monitoring and managing people with epilepsy. This will include recording the percentage of patients aged 16 and over receiving drug treatment for epilepsy who have been seizure free for the last 12 months. The Joint Epilepsy Council's "National Statement of Good Practice" shows that around 70 per cent. of people with epilepsy have the potential to become seizure free.

Flu Vaccinations

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate the NHS has made of potential savings derived from sending only one copy of the influenza vaccination reminder letter to a household, even if more than one resident in the household is affected. [132774]

Miss Melanie Johnson: Although no official cost effectiveness assessment has been carried out, general practitioner practices usually ask their primary care trust to write to patients on their behalf. It is thought that this approach is quicker, more cost effective than individual practices writing out and preserves patient confidentiality.

Fluoridation

Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what peer presented research his Department has examined in assessing the potential benefit in the proposed addition of fluoride to drinking water; [136406]

(2) what other countries' drinking water supply systems were (a) investigated and (b) visited by his Department when preparing proposals to add fluoride to drinking water. [136407]

Miss Melanie Johnson: In 1999, the Department commissioned the University of York to carry out an up to date expert scientific review of fluoride and health. "A Systematic Review of Water Fluoridation" published in September 2000, reported that fluoridating water reduces the number of children with tooth decay by 15 per cent. The review identified 3,246 research studies from 30 different countries, but was critical of the quality of the research available. Accordingly, the Department asked the Medical Research Council (MRC) how the evidence base could be strengthened and the Chief Medical Officer and Chief Dental Officer are advising Ministers on the implementation of the MRCs recommendations. We have already commissioned a study on the absorption of fluoride, which has now been completed and is subject to peer review.

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Food Advertising

Mr. Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what discussions he has had with other Ministers on extending regulations on food advertising aimed at children. [139624]

Miss Melanie Johnson: The Government is concerned about the levels of childhood obesity and is taking and considering a number of actions to tackle the problem. The Food Standards Agency (FSA) has recently published a discussion paper on possible options for action on the promotion and advertising of foods that could improve children's diets and health, and is expected to advise Ministers of its analysis of these options early next year. It would not be appropriate to discuss specific options before receiving the FSA's advice.

Food Labelling

Mrs. Calton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps are being taken to ensure that recommended daily amounts for nutrients are carried on food labels. [139481]

Miss Melanie Johnson: There is no legislative requirement for guideline daily amounts of nutrients to be included on food labels. However, the Food Standards Agency recommends that this information should be given and a number of food manufacturers already include such information on their products. In the next few months, the European Commission is expected to make a proposal to amend the current nutrition labelling directive. The Government are pressing for mandatory nutrition labelling on all foods, and for the labelling to indicate whether the product is high, medium or low in key nutrients, that is fat, sugar and salt.

Food Supplements

Mr. Austin Mitchell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps he has taken to promote to other European Union member states the methodology for establishing safe levels of nutrient intake adopted by the Expert Advisory Group on vitamins and minerals; and what further plans he has for promoting his policies of case by case reviews of published literature on nutrient safety. [136626]

Miss Melanie Johnson: Article 5 of the Food Supplements Directive lays out a framework for the future setting of maximum permitted levels of vitamins and minerals in food supplements. The United Kingdom continues to press for European Union maximum permitted limits to be set on a safety basis, and in doing so, is using its influence in both scientific and political forums. I intend to raise this issue with Ministers in other Member States as and when appropriate. I am also seeking to arrange a meeting with Commissioner David Byrne at the earliest practicable opportunity.

Foundation Trusts

Mr. Gordon Prentice: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) when he expects to issue further advice to

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putative NHS foundation trusts on the use of existing databases of (a) patients and (b) staff names for the purposes of creating a membership register; [139715]

(2) when he expects to issue advice on the implications of the (a) Data Protection Act 1998 and (b) Freedom of Information Act 2000 on the (i) compilation and (ii) use of membership registers of NHS foundation trusts. [139716]

Mr. Hutton: Subject to Parliament, it is the Government's intention that national health service foundation trusts will be required to have a members register. Officials are working with the first wave of applicants and organisations with expertise in maintaining membership organisations with a view to developing practical advice to be incorporated into an updated edition of "NHS Foundation Trusts: A guide to the governance arrangements".

Mr. Gordon Prentice: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when he will issue advice to putative NHS foundation trusts on the nature of the questions they may ask prospective members concerning their (a) ethnicity, (b) faith and (c) disability. [139717]

Mr. Hutton: Department of Health officials are working with the first wave of applicants and organisations with expertise in maintaining membership organisations on the sorts of information that national health service foundation trusts would need to collect to ensure their membership is representative of those eligible for membership. The Department will develop practical advice on these matters to be incorporated into an updated edition of "NHS Foundation Trusts: A Guide to the Governance Arrangements".

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