9 Dec 2004 : Column 651W
Written Answers to Questions
Thursday 9 December 2004
TREASURY
Alcohol-related Deaths
Tom Cox: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer for how many deaths within the Greater London area alcohol was found to be a primary cause in each of the last five years. [203617]
Mr. Timms: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician, who has been asked to reply.
Letter from Len Cook to Mr. Tom Cox, dated 9 December 2004:
As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your recent question asking for how many deaths within the Greater London area, alcohol was found to be a primary cause in each of the last five years. (203617)
The latest year for which figures are available is 2003. The attached table shows the numbers of deaths among residents of Greater London where the underlying cause of death indicated a condition directly related to alcohol use in the years 1999 to 2003.
| Year | Number of deaths |
|---|---|
| 1999 | 844 |
| 2000 | 827 |
| 2001 | 788 |
| 2002 | 817 |
| 2003 | 847 |
(1) For the years 1999–2000 the cause of death was defined using the International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision (ICD-9). The codes used by ONS to define alcohol-related deaths are listed below:
291—Alcoholic psychoses
303—Alcohol dependence syndrome
305.0—Non-dependent abuse of alcohol
425.5—Alcoholic cardiomyopathy
571—Chronic liver disease and cirrhosis
E860—Accidental poisoning by alcohol
For the years 2001–2003 the International Classification of Diseases, Tenth Revision (ICD-10) was used. To maintain comparability with earlier years the following codes were used:
F10—Mental and behavioural disorders due to use of alcohol
I42.6—Alcoholic cardiomyopathy
K70—Alcoholic liver disease
K73—Chronic hepatitis, not elsewhere classified
K74—Fibrosis and cirrhosis of liver
X45—Accidental poisoning by and exposure to alcohol
The selection of codes to define alcohol-related deaths is described in:
Baker A and Rooney C (2003). Recent trends in alcohol-related mortality, and the impact of ICD-10 on the monitoring of these deaths in England and Wales. Health Statistics Quarterly 17, pp 5–14.
(2) Usual residents of the London Government Office Region.
(3) Deaths occurring in each calendar year.
9 Dec 2004 : Column 652W
Automated Telling Machines
Mr. Weir: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what recent representations he has received on the use of ATM machines. [203423]
Mr. Timms: Treasury Ministers regularly receive representations and discuss a wide variety of issues concerning the financial services industry.
Budget (Special Reserve Provision)
Mr. Keith Simpson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to his statement of 1 December 2004, Official Report, column 650, if he will explain the difference between the figures given for the special reserve provision in that statement, in table C13 of the 2004 Budget (HC 701, 2003–04) and in table B18 of the pre-Budget report (CM 6408, 2004–05). [203655]
John Healey: The difference between the £0.3 billion special reserve in the 2004 Budget and the £0.7 billion published in the 2004 pre-Budget report comprises two elements: the increase in the special reserve announced in the pre-Budget report; and allocations made from it so far in 2004–05 related to the costs of the military conflict in Iraq and the Government's international obligations.
Child Support Agency
Mr. Todd: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he has reviewed the Gateway process following analysis of failures in the Child Support Agency system and process change programme; and if he will make a statement. [202902]
John Healey: There has been no re-examination of the OGC Gateway Review Process as a direct result of the Child Support Agency system and process change programme.
Commission for Africa
Mr. Alan Duncan: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what visits he has made to the African continent (a) as Chancellor of the Exchequer and (b) as part of his work as a member of the Commission for Africa; and what visits he plans to make to the African continent as part of his work as a member of the Commission for Africa. [199720]
Mr. Timms [holding answer 29 November 2004]: The Chancellor, when he attended the Commonwealth Finance Ministers meeting, visited South Africa in 1997, and meets regularly with his fellow Ministers engaged in the economic tranche of the Africa Commission's work, most recently in Ottawa in October and Berlin last month. The Chancellor is planning to visit Africa in January 2005 and this visit will include taking forward the work he is engaged in as a member of the Commission for Africa.
2005 will be a critical year for making progress on the UN's Millennium Development Goals. The Commission for Africa will take a fresh look at Africa's past and present, and the international community's role, in order to agree clear recommendations for the future.
9 Dec 2004 : Column 653W
Departmental Advertising
Mr. Weir: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) what criteria are used by his Department to determine (a) on which satellite television stations advertisements on behalf of his Department or its agencies are screened and (b) the frequency of screenings of advertisements; [201313]
(2) how many television advertisements his Department has commissioned on (a) terrestrial and (b) satellite television channels in the last 12 months; and what the cost was in each case. [201314]
Mr. Timms: I refer the hon. Gentleman to the answers given to the hon. Members for Wealden (Charles Hendry) and Rayleigh (Mr. Francois) on 16 November 2004, Official Report, column 1262W. The position remains unchanged in the last 12 months.
Departmental Expenditure
Mr. Bercow: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the total cost to his Department was for accountancy services in each of the last two years. [202487]
Mr. Timms: The Treasury's aggregate costs for services from the top 10 accountancy firms were £741,000 in 2002–03 and £304,000 in 2003–04, excluding VAT. These include charges for consultancy and secondees.
EU Funding
Mr. Hayes: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much EU funding to date has not been signed off by the Court of Auditors; and what the UK's share of this funding is. [204073]
Mr. Timms: The European Court of Auditors has always given a positive Statement of Assurance for all revenue, all commitments and—within the payments budget—for administrative payments. The other payments which did not gain a positive Statement of Assurance make up around 95 per cent. of the payments budget, comprising mainly agriculture and structural fund payments. The exception to this was 2002, when pre-accession aid also gained a positive Statement of Assurance, reducing the proportion of the budget which did not to 91 per cent. The UK contributes to the whole EC budget and not to individual spending policies. Details of the UK's contribution can be found in the annual Statement on the EC Budget, the most recent of which was Cm 6134, published in April 2004.
Life Expectancy
Tom Cox: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the life expectancy is of (a) men and (b) women living in the Greater London area; and if he will make a statement. [203630]
Mr. Timms: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician, who has been asked to reply.
Letter from Len Cook to Mr. Tom Cox, dated 9 December 2004:
As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your recent question asking what the life expectancy is of (a) men and (b) women living in the Greater London area. (203630)
The most recent available figures are for the three-year period, 2001–2003. Life expectancy at birth for residents of Greater London in that period was 76.0 years for males and 80.8 years for females.
Life expectancy at birth results for this and other Government Office Regions in England, for three-year moving averages from 1991–1993 to 2001–2003, have been published on the National Statistics website at: http://www.statistics.gov.uk/statbase/Productasp?vlnk=8841
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