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National NHS Database

Dr. Murrison: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what provision will be made for NHS patients wishing not to have their data recorded on the proposed national NHS database. [7379]

Mr. Byrne: For national health service patients wishing not to have their data recorded electronically within the NHS care records service (CRS), provision will be made to exercise their rights as provided by section 10 of the Data Protection Act 1998. This requires NHS data controllers to cease processing data, where the processing is causing or is likely to cause substantial damage or distress", where that damage or distress would be unwarranted, the processing is not necessary for compliance with legal obligations and is not necessary to protect the vital interests of the data subject.

Procedures to give effect to these rights in respect of records held electronically within the CRS are being developed by the Department, in consultation with organisations representing the interests of patients and health professionals.

New Hospital (Maldon)

Mr. Francois: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether a site has been identified for the construction of the new hospital in Maldon, Essex; and what the latest date is on which she expects the hospital to open. [9314]

 
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Jane Kennedy [holding answer 6 July 2005]: A potential site has been identified, but technical legal issues are delaying the purchase and at present it is not possible to say when it will be completed. A wide range of factors can affect the speed of progress of a new hospital build, but experience from other similarly sized schemes indicated that it will take about 48 months to complete the hospital from when the initial approval in principle to proceed is given. In this case, initial approval cannot be given until the site is in the ownership of the national health service.

NHS Direct

Mr. Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether the study into the most appropriate organisational form for NHS Direct outlined in the Department's Implementation Framework for Reconfiguring the DH Arm's Length Bodies, published on 30 November 2004, is complete; and if she will make a statement. [7478]

Mr. Byrne: The further appraisal into the most appropriate organisational form for NHS Direct is expected to be completed this summer.

NHS Finance

Tony Baldry: To ask the Secretary of State for Health within what period she expects an NHS trust which is in deficit to bring its budget into balance. [6802]

Mr. Byrne: National health service trusts have a responsibility to break even each and every year. It is the responsibility of strategic health authorities (SHAs) to deliver both overall financial balance for their local health communities and to ensure each and every body achieves financial balance. As long as SHAs can deliver overall financial balance across their organisations, they can agree a plan for individual organisations that phases the recovery of deficits over several years.

Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what funds have been allocated to hospitals in Southend in each year since 1997. [9924]

Ms Rosie Winterton: National health service trusts do not receive funding as such as services are commissioned by primary care trusts. However, the income figures for Southend hospital NHS Trust are shown in the following table.
Southend hospital NHS Trust total income £000

	Amount
1997–98	84,509
1998–99	93,139
1999–2000	107,598
2000–01	112,589
2001–02	125,771
2002–03	137,778
2003–04	150,235

Note:
NHS trusts do not normally receive funding direct from the Department, but receive income for service provision largely from health authorities and primary care trusts. Figures above show the total income of the trust, including all income from activities and all other operating income.
Sources:
Audited summarisation schedules of the Southend hospital NHS Trust 1997–98 to 2003–04.




 
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Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the health expenditure per head of population in Southend, West constituency has been in each year since 1997. [9930]

Ms Rosie Winterton: It is not possible to provide expenditure on individual constituencies. The expenditure per head on health in South Essex health authority (HA), 1997–99, and the Essex strategic health authority (SHA), 1999–2004, geographical areas, of which Southend, West constituency is a part, is shown in the following table.
£ per head

	South Essex HA area	Essex SHA area
1997–98	568.75	n/a
1998–99	636.27	n/a
1999–2000	722.78	n/a
2000–01	806.50	n/a
2001–02	832.87	n/a
2002–03	n/a	850.90
2003–04	n/a	1,034.95

Notes:
1.Expenditure is taken from audited health authority summarisation forms and primary care trust (PCT) summarisation schedules, which are prepared on a resource basis and therefore differ from cash allocations in the year. The figures have not been adjusted for inflation.
2.Allocations per weighted head of population provide a much more reliable measure to identify differences between funding of HAs and PCTs.
3.Figures for 1997–98 to 2001–02 have been prepared using gross expenditure figures. Figures for 2002–03 and 2003–04 have been adjusted to eliminate expenditure which would be double counted where an authority acts as a lead in commissioning healthcare or other services.
4.In many HAs, there are factors which distort the expenditure. These include:
the HA acting in a lead capacity to commission healthcare or fund training on behalf of other health bodies; and
asset revaluations in national health service trusts being funded through HAs or PCTs.
5.The majority of general dental services expenditure is separately accounted for by the Dental Practice Board. An element of pharmaceutical services expenditure is accounted for by the Prescription Pricing Authority. Total expenditure on these items by the Dental Practice Board and the Prescription Pricing Authority cannot be allocated to individual health bodies. Therefore, the total expenditure in the answer by HA does not capture all NHS expenditure within the area.
6.For these reasons expenditure cannot be compared reliably between health authorities or between different years.
Sources:
1.South Essex HA audited accounts 1997–98 and 1998–99.
2.South Essex HA audited summarisation forms 1999–2000 to 2001–02.
3.Essex SHA audited summarisation forms 2002–03 and 2003–04.
4.PCT audited summarisation schedules 2001–02 and 2003–04 for bodies within the above HA areas' weighted population figures.

Mr. Yeo: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what guidance her Department has given (a) the West Suffolk Hospitals Trust and (b) the Suffolk West primary care trust about how to deal with its financial deficit. [9336]

Ms Rosie Winterton: National health service organisations are expected to plan for and achieve financial balance each and every year. Any deficits of
 
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NHS trusts need to be matched by underspends by other NHS bodies each year. In the next year NHS trusts which overspend should make a surplus in order to ensure that other organisations can utilise the underspends from the previous year.

It is the responsibility of strategic health authorities (SHAs) to deliver both overall financial balance for their local health communities and to ensure each and every body achieves financial balance. However, there is a degree of flexibility in how this is managed at a local level. In circumstances where a surplus cannot be generated in the following year, SHAs can agree a recovery plan which phases the recovery of deficits over a number of years. This would require other NHS organisations within the health economy to underspend over the same period. Clearly, any such arrangements would have to be subject to the agreement of local providers, commissioners and the managing SHA.

Frank Dobson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 29 June 2005, Official Report, column 1610W, what the latest available information in her Department is on NHS Trust deficits in (a) 2004–05 and (b) the current financial year. [10011]

Mr. Byrne [holding answer 5 July 2005]: The latest year for which audited data on the financial position of national health service organisations is available is 2003–04.

For 2004–05 and 2005–06, audited information in respect of the financial position of all strategic health authorities, primary care trusts and NHS trusts will be published in their individual annual accounts. For 2004–05, this information will be available centrally in autumn 2005. For 2005–06, it will be available in the following autumn.

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