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HEALTH
School Fruit Scheme
Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what percentage of fruit supplied to schools under the National School Fruit Scheme is sourced from (a) suppliers within 25 miles of the school supplied, (b) national suppliers and (c) overseas suppliers; [194273]
(2) what percentage of fruit supplied to schools under the National School Fruit Scheme is sourced according to seasonal variations in local and national availability. [194274]
Miss Melanie Johnson: From the period September 2003 to September 2004, 38 per cent., of the fruit and vegetables supplied under the School Fruit and Vegetable Scheme were of United Kingdom origin, with 62 per cent., coming from overseas.
Source according to produce type for the year September 2003-September 2004
| UK origin percentage | Non-UK origin percentage | |
|---|---|---|
| Apples | 47.95 | 52.05 |
| Pears | 10.82 | 89.18 |
| Soft Citrus | — | 100 |
| Tomatoes | 7 | 93 |
| Strawberries | 100 | — |
| Banana | — | 100 |
| Carrots | 100 | — |
There are currently 14 School Fruit and Vegetable Scheme suppliers supplying seven different types of fruit and vegetables across the country. All suppliers are UK based.
We do not hold information centrally about the distance of School Fruit and Vegetable Scheme suppliers in relation to the schools they supply.
We have designed the school consumption calendar to reflect any seasonality for produce on a national and international level. Listed in the following table are the primary sources of produce for any given period in time.
Although some fruit, such as satsumas and bananas, cannot be grown in the UK and other types of fruit including apples and pears may only be available in certain areas at certain times of the year, we are keen to explore ways of maximising locally grown produce. We
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believe that children should have access to the same quality and variety of fruit and vegetables wherever they are in the country.
Wherever possible we encourage local and national UK growers to participate in the scheme.
Antibiotics
Mr. Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what mechanisms there are in NHS hospitals to (a) oversee and (b) regulate the use of antibiotics in order to limit the development of antimicrobial resistance. [193405]
Miss Melanie Johnson: Each national health service trust should already have a nominated lead clinical pharmacist to ensure that appropriate antimicrobial prescribing policies are in place, monitored and updated as appropriate. Prudent prescribing is a key component of "Winning Ways Working together to Reduce Healthcare Associated Infection in England" and multi-disciplinary teams will be addressing this issue locally with the help of additional funding provided by the Department.
NHS microbiology departments monitor antibiotic resistance patterns in clinical units and the data is used by medical microbiologists to advise on the treatment of individual patients and on the development of local policies for antibiotic use.
Mr. Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans he has to commission the National Institute for Clinical Excellence to publish guidelines on using antibiotics in such a way as to limit the development of antimicrobial resistance. [193406]
Miss Melanie Johnson: As the need for appropriate prescribing is well established we have no plans to commission generic guidance on the use of antibiotics from the National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE). However, NICE guidelines do include antibiotic guidance as part of specific disease management recommendations. Guidance from NICE and other sources will be used with local antibiotic susceptibility data to inform local decisions on antibiotic choice.
Care Homes
Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he is taking to improve the dental health of residents of care homes for older mentally ill people. [197999]
Ms Rosie Winterton: The national service framework for older people, which we published in 2001, identified the challenges to be addressed in helping residents of care homes maintain good oral health. Within this framework, it is for primary care trusts to develop primary care dental services to meet the needs of residents of homes in their areas.
Choose and Book System
Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate has been made of the likely take-up of the Choose and Book system by general practitioners. [197976]
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Mr. Hutton: The Choose and Book service has been developed in consultation with clinical stakeholders and representative groups.
The decision when to implement the Choose and Book service locally will be based on organisational readiness and system compliance. Returns from the national health service are currently being assessed to determine the state of readiness. However, given the benefits that the Choose and Book service will offer patients and the potential it has to reduce general practitioner and practice staff workload, take-up of the Choose and Book service is expected to be very high.
Cleanyourhands Campaign
Mr. Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the cost of the cleanyourhands campaign has been since June 2003; and what the estimated cost of the campaign is for each of the next two years. [195037]
Miss Melanie Johnson: The total cost of the national cleanyourhands campaign, including the development and production of a range of materials for every acute trust in England and Wales is £490,000.
The campaign is being centrally funded for its first year. Subsequently the costs will be met by commercial companies which supply the national health service contract for hand rubs.
Costs for the disinfectant hand rubs will be met by trusts.
Mr. Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what research he (a) has commissioned and (b) intends to commission on the cleanyourhands campaign. [195038]
Miss Melanie Johnson: The Department has commissioned the "National Observational Study of the Effectiveness of the cleanyourhands campaign and cluster randomised controlled trial of the effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of feedback in intensive care units and acute general medical wards".
Contaminated Land Development
Mrs. Calton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent discussions he has had with the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs about the development of contaminated land. [198606]
Miss Melanie Johnson: Departmental officials have worked closely with the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) and the Environment Agency (EA) on the production of the series of reports, Contaminants in soil: collation of toxicological data and intake values for humans and Soil Guideline Values and related reports, which are published by DEFRA and EA and are available at http://www.environment-agency.gov.uk/subjects/landquality/113813/672771/?version=1&lang=.e#
The Department was represented on the Cabinet Office soil guideline value task force, the other members of which include DEFRA, EA, the Food Standards Agency and the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister.
On 1 November 2004, these continuing scientific advisory functions were transferred from the Department to the Health Protection Agency.
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Data Protection
Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) under what circumstances members of the NHS Counter Fraud and Security Management Service will be able to procure patient records from general practitioners without consent; [198002]
(2) what penalties may be used against general practitioners who refuse to release patient records to members of the NHS Counter Fraud and Security Management Service. [198003]
Mr. Hutton: The national health service Counter Fraud and Security Management Service (CFSMS) does not have any specific powers to require general practitioners to produce patient records or to impose penalties where records are not produced. The remit of the CFSMS is to bring fraud and corruption in the NHS down to an absolute minimum. Its primary interest is not, therefore, in patient records. On some occasions, however, records may be requested where they are needed for the thorough investigation of allegations of fraud or corruption.
On 21 October my noble Friend the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Health (Lord Warner) launched a consultation on proposals to introduce new powers which would allow NHS counter fraud specialists access to relevant documents, records and data where investigations require this. Such access would be strictly controlled and on the occasions where access is needed, we are seeking views on whether such records should be viewed by a clinical specialist who would accompany the NHS counter fraud specialist.
The consultation on these proposals finishes on 21 January 2005 and we welcome all views on this issue. It is too early to say what shape any future measures may take but they will be informed by the outcome of the consultation exercise.
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