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Hospices

Mr. McNamara: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) how much money the NHS is spending in 2003–04 on hospice provision for (a) children and (b) adults; [141890]

(2) how many places in hospices are specifically designated for children. [141892]

Miss Melanie Johnson: Information on national health service expenditure on hospice provision is not held centrally.

Children's hospices are funded from general NHS funding. As with adult hospices, this is a matter for local discussion and agreement. In addition, a central budget of £50 million per annum has been set up to meet the commitment in the NHS Cancer Plan to increase NHS

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funding for specialist palliative care, including hospices, by £50 million by 2004. The central budget is for all specialist palliative care services, including voluntary hospices. The level of funding for hospices, both from local allocation from the additional £50 million and from local resources, is a matter for local discussion and agreement.

Children's hospices have also received support from within the New Opportunities Fund, which is funding over 130 projects in England, with £48 million over three years, in support of initiatives for children with life threatening illnesses.

Information on the number of places in hospices designated for children is not collected centrally.

Mr. McNamara: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the total current bed capacity is in hospices. [141891]

Miss Melanie Johnson: There are approximately 2,043 specialist palliative care beds in the voluntary sector and 480 beds in the national health service in England (January 2003). This statistical information relating to the number of NHS/voluntary beds has been taken from Hospice Information, an independent organisation who are a resource for hospice and palliative care services.

Hospital Amalgamation

Mr. Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent discussions he has had with senior executives of London health authorities concerning hospital amalgamation. [143315]

Mr. Hutton: My right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health, has had no recent discussions with senior executives of London strategic health authorities concerning hospital amalgamation.

Identity Cards

Mr. Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the implications for his Department of the introduction of compulsory identity cards. [142652]

Mr. Hutton: The introduction of such a scheme is a long-term undertaking and the Department will be involved in ongoing analysis of the benefits and costs. It is too early at present to assess fully the implications of the introduction of compulsory identity cards for the Department of Health.

Insulin

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health for how long he estimates insulin manufacturers will continue to supply animal insulin for those who rely upon it. [142149]

Ms Rosie Winterton: There are two companies supplying animal insulin in the United Kingdom. The Department of Health is in regular contact with these companies and both have confirmed that they will continue to supply animal insulin for the foreseeable future.

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Junior Doctors

Mr. Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the costing implications for the NHS of the Jaeger decision on working hours for junior doctors in the United Kingdom. [141577]

Mr. Hutton: The costs of implementing the Working Time Directive (WTD) are an integral part of modernising and improving national health services and of NHS planning. The NHS has been aware of the implications of implementing the WTD for doctors in training since 2000 and planning for it forms part of overall NHS planning. Strategic health authorities are currently ensuring that plans will achieve compliance by 2004.

Mr. Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement on the impact of the Jaeger decision on working hours for doctors on the ability of his Department to meet the deadline for implementation of the Working Time Directive by 2012; and what action his Department is taking to meet this deadline. [141578]

Mr. Hutton: The Jaeger judgment introduced unexpected case-law on compensatory rest. We are seeking legal advice on this issue and will issue guidance to the service shortly.

Implementation of the Working Time Directive (WTD) is an integral element of the national health service modernisation agenda. We have taken vigorous action to equip the NHS to meet the WTD deadline. NHS funding is expected to increase by an average of 7.4 per cent. in England over each of the next five years. This significant increase includes provision for the impact of the WTD. In addition, £46 million has been allocated over a three year period on top of baseline funding to cover costs associated with the set-up of new ways of working. The WTD pilot sites are testing solutions such as extended roles for non-medical staff, multi-disciplinary teams, networking between sites and consultants working differently. Lessons from the pilots are being disseminated through the WTD bulletin, "Calling Time". Priority is being given to hospitals facing WTD challenges when considering the allocation of 1,500 additional locally funded specialist registrar training opportunities available this year.

Legislation

Mr. Redwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many pages of (a) primary and (b) secondary legislation his Department put through Parliament in 2002–03. [141170]

Mr. Hutton: The Department of Health sponsored two Bills during the 2002–03 session, which made a total of 214 pages once enacted.

In the case of secondary legislation, the Department was responsible for the making of 208 General Statutory Instruments, which would have been considered by either the Joint Committee on Statutory Instruments or the Select Committee on Statutory Instruments. These instruments made a total of 1,402 pages.

Manager Suspensions

Mr. Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate he has made of the (a) number

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and (b) cost of suspensions of managers in the NHS in (i) England and (ii) each region in each of the last six years. [141107]

Mr. Hutton: No such data collection exercise is undertaken by the Department.

Maternity Services

Mr. Baron: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he would make a statement on the role midwives play in public health. [143419]

Dr. Ladyman [holding answer 11 December 2003]: Midwives play a key role in public health, as part of the multidisciplinary team providing pregnancy care. They are often the main pregnancy care provider and are in an ideal position to provide information and support in areas such as parenting, breastfeeding, smoking cessation and early detection and referral for women experiencing domestic violence or post natal depression.

Mr. Baron: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans he has to increase the number of midwife-led maternity units. [143420]

Dr. Ladyman [holding answer 11 December 2003]: The national health service provides a variety of types of care for women during pregnancy and childbirth including care in midwife-led units for low risk births. The Government expects this variety to continue and does not support any one single model of maternity service provision in preference to all others. We advocate local decision making in designing appropriate, effective services within available resources. It is inevitable that the requirements of women will vary in different parts of the country and this is why it is so important that decisions about service provision are made at a local level and informed by the ethos of woman-centred care.

Mr. Baron: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans he has to expand the community-based role of midwives. [143421]

Dr. Ladyman [holding answer 11 December 2003]: Midwives currently provide an integrated service across primary and acute care sectors. Next year we shall be publishing the children's national service framework (NSF) which includes maternity services. The NSF will outline our plans for maternity services for the next 10 years and will examine the healthcare professionals needed to ensure that women's individual needs are met.

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) how many midwives (a) took up and (b) resigned from posts in the NHS, in (i) England and (ii) each region in each year since 1997, broken down by strategic and area health authority; [142049]

(2) what proportion of midwife vacancies have remained vacant for more than three months in (a) England and (b) each region, in each year since 1997. [142051]

Mr. Hutton: Information on the number of midwives resigning from or taking up posts in the national health service is not collected centrally. The Department collects information on the number of midwives employed in the NHS as at 30 September each year. As at September 2002, there were 860 more midwives employed in the NHS than in 1997.

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Information on the number of midwives employed in the NHS since 1997 and the rate of vacancies for midwives lasting three months or more since 1999, the first year the data were collected, by strategic health authority and Government Office for the Region has been placed in the Library.

Mr. Baron: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will list departmental targets relating to midwives and midwifery. [143799]

Mr. Hutton: There are no specific departmental targets relating to midwives or midwifery. Midwives are included in the NHS Plan, manifesto and "Delivering the NHS Plan" targets for increasing the number of nurses, midwives and health visitors employed in the national health service and the number of nurses and midwives entering training each year. The targets are for 20,000 more nurses, midwives and health visitors by 2004 over 1999 levels, 20,000 more by 2005 over 2000 levels, and 35,000 more by 2008 over 2001 levels respectively, and for 5,500 more nurses and midwives entering training each year by 2004 over 1999 levels.

My right hon. Friend the Member for Darlington, speaking at the Royal College of Midwives conference in May 2001, stated that we expect there to be an extra 2,000 midwives employed in the NHS by 2006 over 2000 levels. As at September 2002, there were 680 more midwives employed in the NHS than in 2000.

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