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Foundation Trusts

Mr. Gordon Prentice: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what role he envisages for political parties in the elections to the governing boards of foundation hospital trusts. [138514]

Mr. Hutton: None. The Health and Social Care (Community Health and Standards) Bill, as amended at Lords Report, includes a power that regulations may make provision as to the conduct of elections for

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membership of the board of governors of a national health service foundation trust. The regulations may include the obligations on nominees to declare their interests.

Mr. Gordon Prentice: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether limits to candidates' expenditure are to be imposed in the elections to the governing boards of foundation hospital trusts. [138520]

Mr. Hutton: The Health and Social Care (Community Health and Standards) Bill, as amended at Lords Report, includes a power that regulations may make provision as to the conduct of elections for membership of the board of governors of a national health service foundation trust. The regulations may cover election expenses and publicity.

Mr. Gordon Prentice: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what representations he has received from (a) NHS trusts and (b) others concerning the electoral systems which may be used in elections to the board of governors of NHS foundation trusts. [139116]

Ms Rosie Winterton [holding answer 18 November 2003]: None. The Health and Social Care (Community Health and Standards) Bill now requires regulations to set out procedures for elections. While officials are in dialogue with national health service foundation trust applicants and expert bodies about how the secondary legislation might allow for elections to take place, we have not received any representations from NHS trusts or others suggesting electoral systems which may be used to elect members of an NHS foundation trust to its board of governors.

Mr. Gordon Prentice: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether the proposed public register of members of an NHS foundation trust will allow for members to be listed as patients or carers. [139118]

Ms Rosie Winterton [holding answer 18 November 2003]: Subject to Parliament, it is the Government's intention that a national health service foundation trust would be allowed, but not required, to distinguish between members who are patients and those who are carers in the register of members.

General Practitioners

Mr. Gardiner: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether it is his policy that the same value of minimum practice income guarantee should be offered to GPs if the number of patients on their rolls falls below the 2002–03 figures. [138586]

Mr. Hutton: The minimum practice income guarantee will ensure that any gap between the global sum and the practice's previous income for global sum equivalent items will be met for as long as is necessary. Practices that have a lower global sum allocation than their previous income from global sum equivalent items will receive a correction factor to the value of this difference. The correction factor will be determined and fixed at the first quarter of 2004–05 and will continue to be paid on top of the global sum allocation for as long as is needed. It will be uplifted along with the uplifts in the global sum.

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A practice that has a falling list will continue to receive the correction factor as determined in the first quarter of 2004–05, but its calculated global sum allocation will fall as a result of the falling list size. This avoids the situation where a practice may be providing services to a small list, but is receiving income protection based on earnings received for providing services to a much larger list.

Mr. Gardiner: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make it his policy to ensure that the new GP funding formula will not result in less money than the previous formula being offered for general practitioners, with particular reference to GPs in Brent. [138587]

Mr. Hutton: The new minimum practice income guarantee will ensure that practices do not lose out on their global sum allocation formula compared with their previous global sum equivalent income. This arrangement will remain in place for as long as is needed.

Practices' global sum equivalent income will be calculated in the first quarter of 2004–05 and compared with the global sum allocation. If the global sum equivalent is higher than the global sum the practice will receive a correction factor to make good this difference. This correction factor will be paid monthly to practices for as long as is necessary.

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what plans he has to ensure that access to high-quality sexual health services is (a) made a priority and (b) resourced as part of the new general practitioner contract; [139467]

(2) what steps he is taking to ensure that general practitioners will meet the Level 1 and 2 service provision set out in the National Strategy for Sexual Health and HIV as part of the new general practitioner contract. [139468]

Miss Melanie Johnson [holding answer 18 November 2003]: "The National Strategy for Sexual Health and HIV" set out an increasing role for primary care services, recognising that general practice plays a crucial role in the delivery of sexual health services. The new general medical services contract includes a new patient services guarantee to ensure patients have access to at least the range of services they currently enjoy, with a guarantee that will see investment in primary care increase by one-third by 2005–06.

All practices will provide essential services. Contraceptive services will be delivered as an additional service which practices have a preferential right to provide, and will normally do so.

Patients will not only continue to receive a family planning service, including screening for sexually transmitted infections where necessary, but primary care trusts will also be able to commission more specialised sexual health services that conform with the National Strategy for Sexual Health and HIV.

Mr. Gardiner: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make it his policy to ensure that the new GP contract does not act as a financial disincentive for GPs to take on new patients. [138601]

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Mr. Hutton: The new general medical services contract aims to ensure that resources reflect more accurately a contractor's workload and the costs of delivering high quality care to the local population. Those general practitioners who choose to take on new patients will be properly rewarded for doing so.

Geriatricians

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many (a) consultant geriatricians and (b) geriatricians below the level of consultant were employed in each NHS hospital trust in each year since 1997. [138154]

Mr. Hutton: Information on consultants in geriatric medicine and geriatricians below the level of consultant who were employed in each national health service hospital trust in each year since 1997 has been placed in the Library.

The number of consultants in geriatrics has increased by 25 per cent, between September 1997 and June 2003.

Health and Safety

Mr. Liddell-Grainger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what help he is giving to local hospitals to achieve health and safety standards. [139048]

Mr. Hutton: Compliance with health and safety legislation is the responsibility of National Health Service Trust Chief Executives and Boards.

The Department of Health publishes health and safety guidance to aid NHS trusts in complying with current legislation. The Department will be publishing comprehensive new guidance in February 2004 and is currently consulting on the first national NHS occupational health and safety strategy.

Health Tourism

Mr. Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what research his Department has commissioned into the (a) extent and (b) cost of health tourism in England; and if he will make a statement. [139579]

Mr. Hutton: Officials in the Department of Health have been conducting a review of the operation of the National Health Service hospital charging arrangements for overseas visitors for some time, and a consultation exercise on proposed amendments to the NHS (Charges to Overseas Visitors) Regulations 1989 ended on 31 October. No specific external research was been commissioned as part of this review.

NHS trusts are not required to submit data on the costs of providing treatment for overseas visitors, many of whom may well be entitled to free treatment under the provisions of the charging regulations.

Health Visitors

Mr. Gardiner: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment his Department has made of the effects on the efficiency of health visitor services of health visitors serving (a) general practitioner surgeries and (b) geographical areas independent of GP surgeries. [138606]

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Mr. Hutton: It is for local organisations and health visiting teams to determine how they should best be deployed to meet local needs and circumstances. As primary care trusts have reviewed their services in the light of the national health visitor development programme and the primary care nursing framework, "Liberating the Talents", different models have emerged as most appropriate to the local situation. In some areas, health visitors have found that geographical working enables them to focus more readily on health determinants within the community and work with a range of partners to address these.

Geographical working may be particularly appropriate in some inner city areas where a number of general practices serve the same geographical population. In other places, where the general practitioner practice population corresponds more readily to a geographical area, health visiting teams have valued the close relationship with other primary health care team members that attachment or alignment with general practice can bring.

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