| Previous Section | Index | Home Page |
7 Jun 2004 : Column 150W—continued
Doctors' Language Tests
Dr. Starkey: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what language tests are required for doctors employed by the NHS who were trained in other EU member states. [177456]
Mr. Hutton: Doctors who are nationals of European Economic Area states do not have to undertake English language tests in order to register with the General Medical Council. It is the responsibility of employers to ensure that all staff have the necessary language skills to carry out their duties safely, regardless of which country they come from.
Drug Testing
Llew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will take steps to provide the National Institute for Clinical Excellence with additional powers to ensure negative test results by pharmaceutical companies are published; and what mechanisms are in place to ensure that health regulators assessing the safety of drugs for general release are able to make judgments based on unbiased data sets. [175780]
Ms Rosie Winterton: Regarding the National Institute for Clinical Excellence, I refer my hon. Friend to the reply I gave on 18 May 2004, Official Report, column 995W, to my hon. Friend the Member for West Bromwich, East (Mr. Watson) and the reply given on 19 May 2004, Official Report, column 1027W, by the Under-Secretary of State for Health, the hon. Member for Welwyn Hatfield (Miss Johnson) to the hon. Member for Portsmouth, South (Mr. Hancock).
Mechanisms are in place to ensure that health regulators assessing the safety of drugs for general release are able to make judgments based on unbiased data sets. Pharmaceutical legislation specifically requires that all information which is relevant to the evaluation of the medicinal product concerned shall be included in the application, whether favourable or unfavourable to the product.
Dyspepsia
John Austin: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what assessment he has made of the cost of NHS prescribed medicines for dyspepsia in each year from 2000; [174346]
(2) what estimate he made of the change in NHS spending on dyspepsia arising from the National Institute for Clinical Excellence guidance published in 2000; [174347]
(3) what estimate he has made of the spending on drugs for treatment of dyspepsia as a percentage of (a) the total expenditure on drugs for gastro-intestinal conditions and (b) the total primary care drugs budget in the last year for which figures are available; and if he will make a statement. [174348]
Ms Rosie Winterton:
The net ingredient cost of drugs prescribed for the treatment of dyspepsia and dispensed in the community in England is shown in the table.
7 Jun 2004 : Column 151W
| Net ingredient cost (£000) | |
|---|---|
| 2000 | 580,277.5 |
| 2001 | 584,264.0 |
| 2002 | 621,525.6 |
| 2003 | 636,766.9 |
These figures include medicines listed in sections 1.1.1, 1.1.2, 1.3.1 and 1.3.5 of the British National Formulary.
The figure shown in the table for 2003 represents approximately 76 per cent. of the total expenditure on drugs for gastro-intestinal conditions, and 6.5 per cent. of the cost of all prescription items dispensed in the community.
A number of factors are believed to have influenced spending on medicines for dyspepsia. We have made no estimate of the effect of the National Institute for Clinical Excellence guidance compared with other factors.
Elderly Care Services
Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many care homes for the elderly are registered as catering for people with dementia; and if he will make a statement. [175922]
Dr. Ladyman: There are currently 3,687 care homes for elderly people registered as catering for people with dementia.
Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate he has made of the number of people aged 65 years and over who have dementia; and if he will make a statement. [175923]
Dr. Ladyman: There is no routine collection of information on the number of people living with dementia. The research quoted by the older people's national service framework in 2001 estimated that approximately 600,000 people in the United Kingdom have dementia, of whom about 583,000 are aged 65 years and above. The prevalence and incidence of dementia increases with age. It is estimated that about five per cent, of people over 65 have dementia, rising to about 20 per cent. in the population over 80. Alzheimer's disease causes up to 60 per cent. of cases of dementia.
Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate he has made of the number of people aged 65 years or over who have learning difficulties; and if he will make a statement. [175925]
Dr. Ladyman:
The White Paper, "Valuing People: A New Strategy for Learning Disability for the 21st Century" (March 2001), estimated that there were around 25,000 older people, out of a total of around 210,000 people, with severe and profound learning disabilities. In the case of people with mild/moderate learning disabilities, the White Paper stated that estimates suggest a prevalence rate of around 25 per 100,000 population (all ages)—some 1.2 million people in England.
7 Jun 2004 : Column 152W
Foundation Hospitals
Mrs. Calton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what formula has been used to decide how much of the money allocated to smooth the transition of hospitals to foundation status each Foundation Trust receives; and what amount has been given to each Foundation Trust hospital. [175452]
Mr. Hutton: National Health Service foundation trust applicants in wave one were allocated £250,000 in financial support to assist them in their preparations for their application and establishment as a NHS foundation trust. The amount was agreed through discussion with applicants. Financial support for wave one A and future waves is being agreed in a similar way.
General Practitioners
Mr. Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will estimate how many general practitioners will retire in each of the next three years; and if he will make a statement. [175688]
Mr. Hutton: The Department does not collect information on the number of general practitioners who will retire in each of the next three years.
GM Food
Mr. Meacher: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) which laboratory facilities will be available to test for GM presence in the labelling of (a) food and (b) feed, as required by EU Directive 2001/18 in Regulation (EC) 1829/2003; [175569]
(2) what system has been set up to check the reliability of labelling for the presence of GM in food to meet the requirements to label set down by EU Directive 2001/18 from April; [175570]
(3) what provision he is putting in place to implement labelling of (a) GM animal feed and (b) the meat derived from animals fed on GM feed in accordance with EU Directive 2001/18 and Regulation (EC) 1829/2003. [175571]
Miss Melanie Johnson [holding answer 26 May 2004]: Regulation (EC) 1829/2003, genetically modified (GM) food and feed lays down rules for the labelling of all GM food and feed products derived from genetically modified organisms (GMOs), regardless of the presence or absence of GM material in the final food or feed product. Products from animals fed GM animal feed are exempt from the labelling requirements. Regulation (EC) 1830/2003 on traceability and labelling of GM organisms (GMOs) provides a European Union-wide system for identifying GM products throughout the food and feed supply chain.
The Food Standards Agency (FSA) and the Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) are currently carrying out a joint consultation on the draft domestic legislation, which will implement these EC regulations. The consultation ends on 25 June.
7 Jun 2004 : Column 153W
Enforcement of Regulation 1829/2003 is the responsibility of local authorities. FSA officials have provided information to local authorities and met with local authority co-ordination of regulatory services officials and trading standards officers to discuss the requirements of these regulations.
There are five United Kingdom Accreditation Service accredited public analyst laboratories in the UK, which can carry out testing for GM ingredients. Testing can only be carried out where GM material (DNA or protein) is present. For products derived from GMOs, and where no GM material is present, labelling will need to be verified by a paper audit trail.
7 Jun 2004 : Column 154W
| Next Section | Index | Home Page |