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HEALTH

Food Labelling

Alan Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what allocation of funds has been made for enforcing GM labelling requirements in the Food Labelling (Amendment) Regulations 1999 to each of the public bodies involved in the current financial year; [192234]

(2) if he will list the public bodies responsible for enforcement of the GM labelling requirements under the Food Labelling (Amendment) Regulations 1999. [192235]

Miss Melanie Johnson: Enforcement of genetically modified (GM) labelling requirements for food is now provided by the Genetically Modified Food (England) Regulations 2004. Previous legislation laying down rules for the labelling of GM food ingredients has been revoked.

Local authorities are responsible for enforcement of the GM labelling requirement. Depending on the authority, the responsibility may be passed to port health authorities and/or trading standards.

Mr. Gale: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps his Department has taken to ensure the correct and clear labelling of food products (a) sold by retail outlets and (b) used in processing food in restaurants; and if he will make a statement. [192805]

Miss Melanie Johnson: The Food Standards Agency (FSA) has responsibility for food labelling. Labelling legislation requires that the labelling on food sold at retail and to catering establishments is easy to understand, clearly legible, indelible, clearly visible and not misleading to the consumer. The FSA produces a range of non-statutory guidance on food labelling legislation, including that on clear labelling. Enforcement of food labelling law is the responsibility of local authorities.

School Fruit

Mr. Lidington: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he has taken to ensure that his
 
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Department's scheme to provide fresh fruit to children in primary school benefits local and regional fruit growers in England. [190672]

Miss Melanie Johnson: Procurement for the school fruit and vegetable scheme is undertaken under European Union guidance. EU trading rules are designed to ensure fair and open competition within the EU and specifying the country of origin within the EU is prohibited.

The scheme has been rolled out across successive regions of the country over a two year period. In each region our aim is to reach as wide a range of suppliers and distributors as possible, and we have held open briefing meetings to advise local suppliers how to be involved with the scheme. There has also been regular dialogue with the National Farmers Union, English Apples and Pears and the Fresh Produce Consortium.

Last season, English grown fruit accounted for 50 per cent. of the apples and pears bought by the school fruit and vegetable scheme for consumption during the United Kingdom season. Over the same period, an average of 35–40 per cent. of apples and pears bought by supermarkets were English grown.

Spanish Eggs (Salmonella)

Mr. Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what action is being taken following the announcement by the Health Protection Agency and Food Standards Agency that there continue to be significant numbers of salmonella outbreaks linked to imported Spanish eggs used in the catering trade. [192578]

Miss Melanie Johnson: The Food Standards Agency (FSA) has advised me that it is taking two courses of action to try to reduce the number of outbreaks of salmonella food poisoning. It is working with the Spanish authorities to try to reduce the number of contaminated eggs entering the United Kingdom to a minimum and will be meeting the Spanish authorities in Madrid later this week to discuss their action plan. It has also re-issued its advice to caterers that eggs are a raw product and should be treated carefully and properly cooked. This information was given in a joint FSA/Health Protection Agency press release on 14 October.

Antidepressant Drugs

Ann Clwyd: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the time taken by the Medicines and Health Care Products Regulatory Agency to identify the suicide risk posed by the selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor antidepressant drugs; and if he will make a statement. [190826]

Ms Rosie Winterton: The Committee on Safety of Medicines (CSM) has kept the safety of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) antidepressants under review since the time of licensing and has issued timely advice when new information has become available. Depressive illness is a debilitating condition, in which there is an increased risk of suicide and suicidal
 
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behaviour. The SSRI antidepressants are effective treatments that have benefited millions. They are increasingly being used for first-line treatment of depressive illness, particularly as they are more easily complied with.

It is general clinical experience that symptoms of depression, including suicidal behaviour, may increase in early treatment with any antidepressant and the patient information leaflets reflect this advice.

The question of a possible link between SSRIs and an increased risk of suicidal behaviour was first identified in the early 1990's following publication of case series involving fluoxetine by Teicher et al (1990) which stimulated scientific debate and intense media interest. The CSM reviewed the available data and concluded that there was little evidence to support the suggestion that fluoxetine induces suicidal or aggressive behaviour. This issue has been kept under close continuous review by the Medicines and Health Care products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) and the CSM and all new data has been carefully scrutinised as and when it becomes available.

The CSM conducted a further comprehensive review of the available study data in 2000 and concluded that these data do not suggest an increased risk of suicidal behaviour associated with in adults but an effect in a small sub-population could not be ruled out. This issue was also considered at a European level in 2000 and all EU member states endorsed the conclusions of the United Kingdom assessment.

The CSM considered this issue again in December 2001. This review confirmed the previous advice that the evidence was not sufficient to confirm a causal association between SSRIs and suicidal behaviour, although an effect in a small high-risk population could not be ruled out.

In June 2003, the MHRA and CSM published advice not to use paroxetine in patients under the age of 18 years with major depressive disorder because of clinical trial data which showed a lack of efficacy in this population and an increased risk of suicidal thoughts and behaviour. The advice was published within two weeks of the data being made available to the MHRA. Comprehensive advice on the safety and efficacy in children and adolescents of the remaining medicines included in the review of the expert working group was published in December 2003.

The possible association between SSRIs and suicidal behaviour in adults is being further reviewed by the CSM expert working group on SSRIs, which is expected to report later this year.

Bed Provision (Essex)

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will take steps to block further cuts in beds in (a) Basildon and (b) Southend hospitals. [192346]

Dr. Ladyman: The provision of acute services, including beds, is a matter for the local national health service, working in partnership with its stakeholders and
 
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the local community. It is for NHS organisations to plan and develop services based on their specific local knowledge and expertise.

Care Plans

Mr. Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 23 September 2004, Official Report, column 1983W, on carers, what monitoring has been undertaken on the implementation of standard six of the national service framework on mental health to ensure that all carers are receiving care plans. [191777]

Ms Rosie Winterton: Implementation of the national service framework for mental health standard six is being monitored through the annual autumn self assessment of mental health services.
 
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Trusts' performance in meeting the target to put in place 700 more staff to support carers of people with mental illness are being monitored through local delivery plan returns produced by strategic health authorities.

Carers

Hugh Bayley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many (a) carers and (b) young carers of school age there are in the City of York; what support is given to carers and young carers of school age; and if he will make a statement. [192402]

Dr. Ladyman: The number of carers of all ages in the City of York as recorded in the 2001 Census are shown in the table.
Number of carers of all ages in the City of York

	Total	Provides no care	Provides care: 1 to 19 hours	Provides care: 20 to 49 hours	Provides care: 50 or more hours
All people	174,888	158,055	1 2,334	1,508	2,991
0 to 4	9,341	9,341	—	—	—
5 to 7	5,750	5,735	12	3	—
8 to 9	4,020	4,000	14	—	6
10 to 11	4,278	4,237	38	—	3
12 to 14	6,211	6,096	105	7	3
15	2,002	1,948	48	6	-
16 to 17	3,990	3,850	127	7	6
18to 19	4,201	4,071	112	11	7
20 to 24	12,571	12,141	346	42	42
25 to 34	25,315	23,845	1,057	146	267
35 to 44	25,845	23,092	2,077	245	431
45 to 49	11,031	9,131	1,547	156	197
50 to 54	12,530	10,029	1,995	220	286
55 to 59	9,888	7,766	1,637	200	285
60 to 64	8,846	7,194	1,218	136	298
65 to 74	15,621	13,358	1,450	191	622
75 to 84	10,536	9,468	500	120	448
85 to 89	2,072	1,943	36	12	81
90 and over	840	810	15	6	9

Source:
2001 census (Office for National Statistics)
Table S025—Sex and age by general health and provision of unpaid care.
Table population : All people in households
Geographical level: York Unitary Authority

This Government is the first ever to recognise the contribution and concerns of carers formally and has introduced a range of support initiatives.

It developed the national carers strategy in 1999 with carers and the organisations that represent them. The carers grant was also introduced in 1999 to support councils in providing breaks and services for carers in England. The grant has been increased annually and has provided an extra £325 million over the past five years. It is worth £125 million this year, 2004–05, and will continue at least until 20O5–06, by which time it will be £185 million.

The Carers (Equal Opportunities) Act received Royal Assent on 22 July 2004. The Act will ensure that carers are able to take up opportunities which those without caring responsibilities take for granted.

The Department for Education and Skills supports the young carers initiative through a grant to the Children's Society. The initiative supports over 250 projects or groups working with young carers, which are funded through a range of sources including statutory agencies, the voluntary sector and lottery funds. Each project in turn supports between thirty and fifty young carers. In addition, the young carers initiative supports an annual festival, which attracted approximately 1,350 young people in 2004.

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