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11 Jul 2005 : Column 740W—continued
Organ Donation
Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps her Department is taking to increase public awareness of organ donor programmes. [10000]
Ms Rosie Winterton: Saving Lives, Valuing Donors—A Transplant Framework for England", sets out our key aims for transplantation including initiatives to encourage more people to donate organs and tissues. The Department has provided more than £10 million to UK Transplant to promote the organ donor register and support hospital-based initiatives. In 2005–06, we have provided over £100,000 of section 64 funding to charities promoting organ donation and supporting patient groups. The success of the various local and national campaigns has resulted in over 12.3 million people now registered on the organ donor register and in 2003–04 the highest number of organ transplants ever performed in the United Kingdom.
From 1 October 2005, NHS Blood and Transplant will look for further opportunities to raise the profile of organ donation.
Paddington Basin Health Campus
Mr. Lansley:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much public money has been spent on developing
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the Paddington basin health campus project, broken down by the date on which the costs were incurred; and if she will make a statement. [5591]
Mr. Byrne:
Expenditure by year for Paddington health campus project and forecast to 30 June 2005 is shown in the table. The money spent is committed
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proportionate to the size and complexity of the project involved. Details on the cost involved in this project have been released in London strategic health authority board papers and, at different stages in the lifetime of this project, through other channels—in most cases, answers to parliamentary questions. We shall draw on the experience of this project in taking forward alternative developments in north west London.
(44)Not charged to budgets—but payable by trusts on termination of project—additional commitment
Notes:
1.Carrying costs are chargeable on PUK direct and indirect costs—to be advised (and direct/indirect charges confirmed) by PUK.
2.Paddington Development Corporation Ltd is claiming costs totalling 257,000 following termination of the collaboration agreement. The trusts are taking legal advice in respect of the claim. They have provisioned for the claim in their 2004–05 accounts. The cost of the claim is excluded from the above.
3.WLPF—West London Partnership Forum (hosted by former Kensington, Chelsea and Westminster Health Authority.
4.PHC—Paddington health campus (St. Mary's NHS Trust as paymaster).
Patient Choice
David Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what research her Department has conducted into NHS patient choice in the provision of primary medical services; and if she will make a statement. [6920]
Mr. Byrne: The Department has recently commissioned a survey by MORI to explore the choices in primary care which people exercise or would like to exercise. In addition, we are able to draw upon the response to the consultation Choice, responsiveness and equity in the NHS and social care" which preceded publication of Building on the Best". Patient choice is also expected to be a theme of the forthcoming public consultation on out of hospital services, announced by the Secretary of State on 23 June 2005.
Patients' Forums
Dr. Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment she has made of the ability of new primary care trust-based patients' forums to monitor the London Ambulance Service as a pan-London body; and when she expects the current Patients' Form to cease operating. [8921]
Ms Rosie Winterton: Currently the makeup of the London Ambulance Service (LAS) patient forums does not adequately represent the perspective of the capital overall. With 12 members, there are large parts of the city that do not have patient experience representation.
It is the Government's intention to focus patient forum activity at the primary care trust (PCT) level but with arrangements in place to ensure the whole patients' journey is covered by forum activity. In the context of the LAS it is envisaged that all London PCT forums would work together to ensure that ambulance services are monitored and reviewed effectively from the patient perspective. It will be for the forums themselves to decide how best to achieve a comprehensive and robust arrangement, but one approach might be for each PCT forum to nominate one of its number to form a pan-London specialist ambulance review panel. Such an arrangement would mean that there was strong input from across the city with a membership of 29, with each London locality having a real chance to input into LAS at both strategic and operational levels.
It is envisaged that the reduction of forums to be based on PCT areas only will be during 2006.
Photodynamic Therapy
Mr. Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what representations she has received about the development of photodynamic therapy for the treatment of cancer in the NHS; when and from whom each was received; and if she will make a statement; [9951]
(2) what assessment she has made of the use of photodynamic therapy (PDT) in the NHS as a treatment for cancer; what plans she has to fund further research into the use of PDT; and if she will make a statement. [9952]
Ms Rosie Winterton [holding answer 5 July 2005]: The Department has received representations about photodynamic therapy (PDT) from several correspondents; a list of these correspondents is not collated centrally. David Longman, director of Killing Cancer", has made recent representations about PDT.
As part of its programme of work on interventional procedures, the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) is looking at the use of PDT in the treatment of several cancers. NICE has already issued
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guidance on the use of PDT in the treatment of Barrett's oesophagus and advanced bronchial carcinoma and is preparing guidance on the use of PDT in the treatment of bile duct cancer, skin tumours and advanced bronchial carcinoma.
The main agency through which the Government supports medical and clinical research is the Medical Research Council (MRC). The MRC is an independent body funded by the Department of Trade and Industry via the Office of Science and Technology.
The Department is not directly funding research on photodynamic therapy for cancer, but is providing national health service support through the national cancer research network for two trials of photodynamic therapy for biliary tract cancers.
Over 75 per cent. of the Department's total expenditure on health research is devolved to and managed by NHS organisations. Details of individual projects, including a number concerned with photodynamic therapy, can be found on the national research register at www.dh.gov.uk/research.
Prescription Charging
Mr. Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether she plans to conduct a review of the cost-effectiveness of prescription charging. [9292]
Jane Kennedy: I have no plans to review the cost effectiveness of the prescription charging arrangements.
Primary Care Trusts
Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what legislation would be required to enable mergers of existing primary care trusts; and if she will make a statement. [9792]
Mr. Byrne:
Primary care trusts (PCTs) are established by orders made by the Secretary of State under the National Health Service Act 1977. Each PCT is established for a specified area of England. Mergers can be effected by the Secretary of State dissolving or amending the area of an existing PCT or establishing a new PCT. Under the legislation, consultation is required on proposals to make such changes.
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Mr. Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) how many primary care trusts in England did not meet their enhanced services floor (ESF) in 2004–05; what reasons have been reported to the Department for underspending on enhanced services; and what steps she is taking to ensure primary care trusts achieve their ESF in 2005–06; [7452]
(2) what sanctions can be imposed on primary care trusts which underspend against their enhanced services floor. [7453]
Mr. Byrne: Spend on enhanced services is monitored locally by strategic health authorities (SHAs) and nationally by the technical steering committee; a United Kingdom-wide committee incorporating representatives from all UK health Departments, NHS Employers and the British Medical Association (BMA). This indicates that overall investment in enhanced services by primary care trusts (PCTs) in 2004–05 is expected to be greater than the planned investment of £601 million, although a minority of PCTs planned to under-spend against their enhanced services floor. Slippage and slow uptake on enhanced services schemes appear to be the main reasons behind the forecast underspends.
As a consequence of this reported underspend, it has been agreed with the general practitioners' committee of the BMA that any underspends by PCTs in 2004–05 will be re-invested in 2005–06.
SHAs have the power to intervene if they believe PCTs are not delivering the necessary level of investment to provide good quality service for patients.
Mr. Maude: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the per capita funding for primary care trusts in (a) West Sussex, (b) Kent, (c) Durham and (d) the East Riding of Yorkshire was in each of the last five years; what the average for England was for each year; and what estimate has been made of allocations for the next five years. [7910]
Mr. Byrne: The table shows the per capita funding for 2000–01 to 2007–08, as well as the England average. Allocations to primary care trusts (PCTs) are based on the population weighted for a number of factors.
The 2003–04 to 2005–06 revenue allocations to PCTs increased by an average of 30.8 per cent.
The PCT revenue allocations for 2006–07 and 2007–08 increased by an average of 19.5 per cent. Revenue allocations to PCTs for 2008–09 onwards have not yet been determined.
Notes:
There are several reasons why comparisons between allocations rounds cannot be made. For example:
1.1999–2000 was the first year that unified allocations were made to HAs to cover hospital and community health services (HCHS), prescribing and general medical services cash limited;
2.2003–04 was the first year revenue allocations were made direct to PCTs for three years. Prior to 2003–04, revenue allocations were made to HAs oh an annual basis. Prior to 2003–04, the table has assumed the same allocation per head across the strategic health authority area;
3.2006–07 is the first year that primary medical services were incorporated into revenue allocations.
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Mr. Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans she has to merge primary care trusts; and what (a) discussions she has had and (b) representations she has received on this issue. [7454]
Mr. Byrne: Primary care trusts (PCTs) are central to improving the health of their population by commissioning high quality care.
Creating a patient-led NHS" sets out the next stages of system reform and makes clear that the impact of the creation of foundation trusts, the new financial regime including payment by results, free choice in elective, the delegation of commissioning to general practitioner practices and the bringing together of contract management and administration into shared services means that PCTs will need to change and develop.
The Department has set in train the preparation of guidance on the process and timescale for developing PCTs to ensure a broad consistency of approach across the country. This will be issued as soon as it is ready.
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