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7 Jun 2004 : Column 147W—continued
Communications Consultants
Mr. Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what procurement and tendering systems are used by NHS bodies in the appointment of communications consultants, with particular reference to the appointment by the Shaping Health Services Project Board of Clear Communications; [176240]
(2) what the total cost to date is to the (a) Thames Valley Strategic Health Authority, (b) Chiltern and South Bucks Primary Care Trust, (c) Vale of Aylesbury Primary Care Trust, (d) Wycombe Primary Care Trust, (e) Buckinghamshire Hospitals NHS Trust, (f) Buckinghamshire Mental Health NHS Trust and (g) Two Shires Ambulance Trust of employing Clear Communications as communications consultants in relation to the Shaping Health Services proposals for health service provision in Buckinghamshire; [176243]
(3) when the (a) Thames Valley Strategic Health Authority, (b) Chiltern and South Bucks Primary Care Trust, (c) Vale of Aylesbury Primary Care Trust, (d) Wycombe Primary Care Trust, (e) Buckinghamshire Hospitals NHS Trust, (f) Buckinghamshire Mental Health NHS Trust and (g) Two Shires Ambulance Trust agreed to accept a share in the cost of employing Clear Communications as communications consultants in relation to the Shaping Health Services proposals for health service provision in Buckinghamshire; [176241]
(4) how many NHS bodies in England and Wales are employing Clear Communications as communications consultants; [176242]
(5) what the total cost to NHS bodies in England has been of payments to Clear Communications in (a) 2003, (b) 2002 and (c) 2001. [176244]
Mr. Hutton [holding answer 27 May 2004]: The Department does not hold this information.
Computer File Formats
Mr. Allan: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what his Department's policy is in respect of the computer file formats used for the (a) distribution and (b) archiving of publicly available documents. [173353]
Ms Rosie Winterton: The Department uses a number of file formats in addition to HTML on its website. All major publications are made available in Adobe portable document format (PDF). Other formats used include rich text format (RTF), Microsoft Word, plain text, comma separated value (CSV), Microsoft Excel, Microsoft PowerPoint, audio and video file formats.
The use of the above formats depends on the specific information and the use to which it will be put. For example, statistical publications such as statistical bulletins are normally available in PDF with the associated data available as Excel spreadsheets; online forms that health and social care professionals are required to complete or wish to re-use are made available in Word and RTF; presentations are usually made available in PDF and Microsoft PowerPoint format.
In archiving electronic documents, the Department aims to preserve documents in these formats.
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Dentistry
Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many dental practices in Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly (a) have NHS registered patients, (b) are accepting new NHS patients and (c) have no NHS registrations. [175359]
Ms Rosie Winterton: There are 92 dental practice addresses in Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly for the general dental service (GDS) and personal dental service (PDS) of the national health service. 84 practice addresses have registered patients. Eight practice addresses have no registrations, of which four are for emergency only. Two are PDS practices which do not have patient registrations and one GDS practice does orthodontic work only.
The available information on practices accepting new patients is on the NHS.UK website at www.nhs.uk. There are three primary care trusts (PCTs) in the Cornwall area: Central Cornwall PCT; North and East Cornwall PCT and West of Cornwall PCT. The table shows the number of practices in each PCT accepting new patients by type of patient on 24 May.
| PCT | Registering children aged 0 to 18 years for NHS treatment | Charge paying adults | Charge exempt adults | Occasional non-registered patients |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Central Cornwall | 8 | 3 | 3 | 1 |
| North and East Cornwall | 5 | 2 | 2 | — |
| West of Cornwall | 3 | 2 | 2 | 3 |
| Total | 16 | 7 | 7 | 4 |
Virginia Bottomley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement on the availability of NHS dentistry in (a) South West Surrey constituency and (b) Surrey. [177270]
Ms Rosie Winterton: The proposals in the Health and Social Care (Community Health and Standards) Act 2003 in relation to primary dental services represent the most radical reform of national health service dentistry since 1948. They will give a better deal for patients, for dentists and for the NHS. Under these proposals, primary care trusts (PCTs) will have a duty to secure the provision of primary dental services.
Nationally, we have provided new investment totalling £90 million over the last year. £59 million will support access, and strategic health authorities (SHAs) have been advised of their shares and are working with their PCTs to address access issues. £30 million is to support information technology and the balance of £1 million will support organisational development locally.
The PCTs in Surrey are working closely with their SHA (Surrey and Sussex) supported by the shadow special health authority (dentistry) to improve local dental access using their share of the access funds: some £1.69 million in 2004–05.
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Departmental Staff
Mr. Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people have left employment in his Department because of (a) anxiety, (b) stress, (c) depression and (d) other mental health reasons in each year since 1997. [175668]
Ms Rosie Winterton: The Department does not keep a record of the number of staff who have left the Department because of anxiety, stress, depression or mental health reasons.
The Department is committed to its legal obligation to provide a safe working environment for employees and to reducing the number of working days lost to work-related injuries and illness.
Dermatology
Mrs. Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans he has to include skin diseases in the Department of Health's range of recognised chronic conditions. [173925]
Mr. Hutton: The Department is working with the national health service to develop a strategy on chronic disease, the aim of which will be to help people with such conditions healthy. The strategy will not aim to give official recognition to particular conditions as being chronic, but will focus initially on providing case management for people with complex needs and on developing care support to help people take control of their own conditions.
Dietary Sodium Intake
Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what his policy is on levels of dietary sodium intake; and if he will make a statement. [167846]
Miss Melanie Johnson: The NHS Plan (2000) highlighted the Government's commitment to reducing the level of salt in the diet. The Government endorses the Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition (SACN) recommendation that reducing current salt consumption would have significant public health benefits by reducing average population blood pressure levels. The report also makes recommendations for children for the first time.
As 75 per cent. of salt in the diet is from processed foods, the Government, working with the Food Standards Agency (FSA), has made a commitment to initiatives with the food industry—including manufacturers and caterers—to improve the overall balance of diet including salt, fat and sugar in food.
In November last year, I asked industry for plans for action on reducing salt in food. The plans I received earlier this year showed that industry is taking some steps in reducing salt in food, but that there is still a long way to go. Further discussions with industry will take place to look at identifying greater year-on-year progress and ways of monitoring progress.
The FSA has also set salt targets—to reduce average salt intake by 10 per cent., or approximately 1g. per day, by 2005–06 and, in the long term, to reduce the average population intake by a third over the next five years—bringing intakes down to the recommended 6g. per day. The Department supports these targets.
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