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11 Jul 2005 : Column 685W—continued
Gambia
Mr. Lancaster: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development whether it is Government policy to support an extension to the Hib disease vaccination programme in Gambia beyond 2007. [9901]
Mr. Thomas: The Government welcome the recent study, conducted by the World Health Organisation and the Medical Research Council, showing that the routine immunisation of young children against Hib disease, a major cause of meningitis and pneumonia in developing countries, has virtually eliminated the disease in The Gambia. We hope that these results will encourage other countries in sub-Saharan Africa to persevere with their own immunisation efforts.
Routine Hib vaccination was introduced in The Gambia in 1997 as part of the country's expanded programme of immunisation. No cases of invasive Hib have been detected since 2002. The programme is being supported by the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunisation (GAVI), to which DFID has contributed since its inception in 2000. The GAVI is providing $3,229,000 for the Hib and Hepatitis vaccination programme for the period 2002–06 and is currently considering a second phase of support from 2007, taking into account priorities, performance and results, in consultation with the countries concerned. DFID has presently pledged support to the GAVI up to 2007–08.
Special Advisers
Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if he will list (a) the special advisers in his Department, (b) their specific areas of expertise and (c) the total cost of employing them in the latest year for which figures are available. [8816]
Hilary Benn: I refer the hon. Member to the response given by the Prime Minister on 4 July 2005, Official Report, column 36W.
Tibet
Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if he will make a statement on the humanitarian situation in Tibet. [9920]
Mr. Thomas:
Tibet is one of the poorest provinces in China. DFID is providing £0.5 million per year through Save the Children to meet the costs of programmes on health, sanitation and basic education in Tibet. The FCO also financed several small projects in Tibetan areas of other Chinese provinces over the last year.
11 Jul 2005 : Column 686W
United Nations Population Fund
Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development (1) who the British representative is on the executive board of the United Nations Population Fund; [10563]
(2) whether the UK representative on the executive board of the United Nations Population Fund has connections to non-governmental organisations concerned with abortion related issues. [10891]
Mr. Thomas: The UK representatives on the executive board of the United Nations Population Fund do not have any connections to non-governmental organisations concerned with abortion related issues. The British representatives on the executive board of the United Nations Population Fund are DFID officials from its United Nations Commonwealth Department (UNCD) and Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) officials from the UK mission in New York.
TREASURY
Alcohol/Drugs-related Deaths
Mr. Amess: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many deaths in which the primary cause was (a) alcohol and (b) illegal drugs there were in (i)Southend and (ii) Essex in each of the last 10 years for which figures are available. [10557]
John Healey: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician, who has been asked to reply.
Letter from Colin Mowl to Mr. David Amess, dated 11 July 2005:
The National Statistician has been asked to reply to your recent question asking how many deaths in which the primary cause was (a) alcohol and (b) illegal drugs there were in (i) Southend and (ii) Essex in each of the last 10 years. I am replying in his absence. (10557)
The most recently available information is for deaths registered in 2004 and deaths occurring in 2003. Relevant figures are only readily available for deaths where the underlying cause was either related to drug poisoning or directly related to alcohol (alcohol abuse, dependence and poisoning, and diseases directly related to alcohol use). It is not possible to identify from death certificates which substance was the primary cause when more than one was involved.
Figures for alcohol-related deaths to usual residents of Southend and Essex registered in the years 1995 to 2004 are given in the attached table. ONS compiles a special database to analyse mortality from drug-related poisoning adding more detail than is available on routine annual extracts. This database is compiled using the annual occurrences extract of mortality data. Figures showing deaths related to drug poisoning involving controlled drugs occurring in the years 1994 to 2003, to usual residents of Southend and Essex, are given in the table below. Information on deaths involving illegal drugs is not available, as how the deceased obtained a particular drug is not recorded at death registration.
It should be noted that the figures on drug-related poisoning are not directly comparable to the figures on alcohol for the following reasons.
The figures on drugs do not include long-term effects of drug taking, whereas the figures on alcohol include cirrhosis of the liver.
Deaths from poisoning which involved both drugs and alcohol are coded as due to drug poisoning, in accordance with international rules for coding cause of death.
The figures on alcohol include only those where the underlying cause was alcohol-related. The figures on specific drugs include any mention of a substance on a death related to drug poisoning.
*Fewer than 5 deaths
(22)For the years 1995–2000 the cause of death was defined using the International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision (ICD-9). The codes selected 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 2001–04 the International Classification of Diseases, Tenth Revision (ICD-10) was used. To maintain comparability with earlier years the following codes were selected:
F10—Mental and behavioural disorders due to use of alcohol
142.6—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.
(23)Cause of death was defined using the International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision (ICD-9) codes 292, 304, 305.2–305.9, E850-E858, E950.0-E950.5, E962.0 and E980.0-E980.5for 1994 to 2000, and the International Classification of Diseases, Tenth Revision (ICD-10) codes F11-F16, F18-F19, X40-X44, X60-X64, X85 and Y10-YJ4 from 2001 onwards.
(24)Drugs mentioned on the death certificate of a death where the underlying cause was drug poisoning.
(25)Deaths of usual residents of:
(i)—Southend-on-Sea unitary authority
(ii)—County of Essex
Data for the county of Essex does not include deaths to residents of the unitary authorities of Southend-on-Sea or Thurrock.
(26)Data are for deaths registered in each calendar year for alcohol-related deaths and for deaths occurring in each calendar year for deaths related to drug poisoning.
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