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31 Jan 2005 : Column 754W—continued

Paddington Health Campus

Mr. Wilkinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the (a) cost and (b) terms of the leasehold acquisition of land by his Department from the Paddington Development Corporation Ltd. for the Paddington Health Campus are. [210775]

Mr. Hutton: Ahead of formal signature, the costs and terms of the proposed leasehold acquisition of land owned by Paddington Development Corporation Limited for the Paddington Health Campus are commercially sensitive. Details are in the outline business case, which is awaiting approval. Once approved, that information not subject to confidentiality restrictions will be publicly available within one month of that date.
 
31 Jan 2005 : Column 755W
 

Patient and Public Involvement Forums

Mr. Wyatt: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans he has to abolish Patient and Public Involvement Forums of primary care trusts. [211768]

Ms Rosie Winterton: The Department has no plans to abolish the patients' forums of primary care trusts.

Primary Care Trusts

Mr. Simmonds: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much funding has been made available to each primary care trust in each year since 2000; and what the average level of funding was in each year. [211090]

Mr. Hutton: Revenue allocations to 304 primary care trusts (PCTs) for 2003–04 to 2005–06 were announced on 11 December 2002. This was the first time revenue allocations were made directly from the Department to PCTs. Prior to this, allocations were made to health authorities and health authorities allocated funding to local PCTs.

Information on revenue allocations to each PCT for 2003–04 to 2005–06 has been placed in the Library.

Prime Service Providers

David Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many prime service providers are employed by the NHS. [209249]

Mr. Hutton: There are 155 prime service providers involved with Departmental programmes and the National Health Service Purchasing and Supply Agency national framework agreements. These national framework agreements are not mandatory; therefore, some NHS trusts buy services and equipment from other sources.

Private Sector NHS Operations

Mr. Gordon Prentice: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what percentage of NHS surgery he expects to be carried out by the private sector by 2007–08; and if he will make a statement. [210673]

Mr. Hutton: The NHS Improvement Plan set the aim that independent sector providers will increase their contribution to the care of national health service patients. The plan said:

We anticipate that, by 2008, the independent sector will carry out up to 15 per cent. of procedures per annum for NHS patients, paid for by the NHS."

Private Sector Treatment Units

Mr. Austin Mitchell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether the new private sector treatment units are paid for (a) the number of operations contracted for and (b) the number of operations carried out; and what the costs of the same operations in foundation hospitals is. [211088]

Mr. Hutton: Wave 1 independent sector treatment centres (ISTCs) are paid according to the contracted payment mechanism based on a price per procedure. The National Health Service is obliged to ensure they make the number of contracted referrals and providers
 
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are paid on a per completed procedure basis. Payment mechanisms for future waves of ISTCs are yet to be determined.

In 2003–04, it is estimated that procedures purchased under the IS-TC programme cost 9 per cent. more than the NHS equivalent cost, using NHS tariff as the base. However, this analysis makes no reference to the commercial terms achieved and additional costs faced by independent sector providers such as the costs of complying with the additionality policy, requiring them to recruit staff in addition to existing NHS staff.

Under payment by results, foundation trusts will receive the national tariff price based on average cost of a healthcare resource group. In addition, they will receive an allocation in respect of market forces factors.

Psychiatric Hostels (Killings)

Tom Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for Healthhow many members of staff have been killed by patients in psychiatric hostels in each of the last three years. [209922]

Ms Rosie Winterton: The Health and Safety Executive collects information on work-related deaths and injuries under the Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations, 1995. In the past three years, there has been one death of a national health service member of staff at a psychiatric hospital.

The NHS Security Management Service, a special health authority with a remit including tackling violence against NHS staff and professionals, has introduced a range of measures to deal with violence, including a national reporting system for physical assaults against NHS staff and professionals. From summer 2005, information on physical assaults and deaths of NHS staff will therefore be collected within the NHS.

Saneline

Sir Nicholas Winterton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what his Department's funding for Saneline has been in each year since its inception. [208491]

Ms Winterton: The Department has provided £3,629,050 in funding to Saneline and its projects since it began in 1991. The funding to Saneline, broken down by years, is:

	£
Paid over 1991–92 to 1993–94	150,000
Paid in 1993–94	75,000
Paid over 1994–95 to 1998–99	575,000
Paid over 1998–99 to 2000–01	88,050
Paid over 1999–2000 to 2001–02	120,000
Paid in 1999–2000	300,000
Paid in 2001–02	250,000
Paid over 2001–02 to 2002–03	71,000
Paid in 2003–04	1,000,000
Paid in 2004–05	250,000
Currently being processed in 2004–05	750,000

Small/Medium-sized Enterprises

Mrs. Anne Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many contracts were awarded by (a) the
 
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Department and (b) agencies for which the Department is responsible to small and medium-sized enterprises in each year since 2001–02; and what the total value of those contracts was in each year. [207009]

Mr. Hutton: The Department does not hold centrally a record of individual contracts, nor does it have similar details for its agencies. Such details could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.

The National Health Service Purchasing and Supply Agency, (NHS PASA), an executive agency of the Department, carries out national contracts on behalf of the NHS in England. The number and value of the contracts awarded to small and medium enterprises since 2001–02 are shown in the following table. These contracts are not mandatory and some NHS trusts buy from other sources not included in these figures.

	Number of contracts	Total value (£)
2001–02	559	254,824,767
2002–03	413	156,961,430
2003–04	1,365	4,143,741,018

Trans Fats

Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will (a) ban the use of partially hydrogenated oils (trans fats) in foodstuffs and (b) seek to legislate to ensure that all food products containing trans fats are clearly labelled with the content. [210428]

Miss Melanie Johnson: Consumption of trans-unsaturated fatty acids (TFAs) has declined in the
 
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United Kingdom and is now below levels that have been shown to be associated with cardiovascular disease.

Nevertheless, the Government will identify opportunities to further reduce TFAs levels as part of the commitment made in the White Paper, Choosing Health", to work with industry to reduce fat levels in food.

The Government are pressing for the labelling of TFAs in foods at European Union level.

Vacancy Statistics

Mr. Bellingham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much his Department spent on advertising staff vacancies in (a) 2002 and (b) 2003. [209579]

Ms Rosie Winterton: The Department spent £345,229 in 2002–03 and an estimated £146,331 in 2003–04 on advertising vacant posts.

These figures do not include the Department's agencies.

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