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12 Jul 2005 : Column 969W—continued
Social Landlords
Mr. Austin Mitchell: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister if he will list the local authorities whose council homes were transferred to a registered social landlord and which have since been the subject of a further change in landlords; what the name of the (a) initial and (b) subsequent registered social landlords was in each case; and how many homes were affected in each case. [11158]
Yvette Cooper: On 18 May 2005 my right hon. Friend the Deputy Prime Minister, the First Secretary of State gave his consent under section 133 of the Housing Act 1988, after consulting the Housing Corporation, to the transfer of 2,553 dwellings from Hart Housing Association Ltd. to Oakfern Housing Association Ltd., both of which are members of Sentinel Housing Group Ltd. Residents of Hart Housing Association Ltd. and Oakfern Housing Association Ltd. were consulted about the proposals prior to consent being given.
The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister has received no other request by a registered social landlord to transfer the ownership of its housing stock to another registered social landlord.
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Special Constables
Shona McIsaac: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister if he will list the local authorities which offer a reduction in council tax for special constables. [11366]
Mr. Woolas: The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister does not hold this information centrally and it could only be obtained at disproportionate cost
UK Accreditation Service
Mr. Neil Turner: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister which certificates produced by the British Board of Agre"ment are audited and accredited by the UK Accreditation Service. [10498]
Yvette Cooper: A number of documents produced by the British Board of Agre"ment (BBA) solely as a result of testing against technical specifications are audited and accredited by the UK Accreditation Service.
Details of these are not held in the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister but are available from BBA.
Mr. Neil Turner: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what processes the UK Accreditation Service uses to accredit (a) BRE Certification, (b) BM TRADA and (c) the British Board of Agreement. [10499]
Yvette Cooper: UKAS assesses and accredits these organisations against the criteria in the following internationally recognised standards:
The UK Accreditation Service publishes the full scope of accreditation against each of these standards on its website;
(http://www.ukasxom/about_accreditation/accredited_ bodies/certification_body_schedules.asp).
HEALTH
Electronic Data
5. Mr. Pelling: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether all NHS patients will be able to opt out of having their data held electronically under Connecting for Health. [11244]
Mr. Byrne: Doctors have a professional duty to keep accurate records and patients do not have the right to choose whether or how this is done. However, patients not wishing to have their data held electronically within the new NHS Care Records Service will have that choice.
Patients' Needs (Lichfield)
13. Michael Fabricant: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will visit Lichfield to meet stakeholders to discuss the future needs of patients using the hospital under construction in the city. [11252]
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Ms Rosie Winterton: Either I, or one of my ministerial colleagues, would be delighted to visit the new hospital in Lichfield at an appropriate time.
The future needs of patients using the new hospital are a matter for Burntwood, Lichfield and Tamworth primary care trust and other local stakeholders.
Dentistry
14. Mr. Gordon Prentice: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what grants are available to help NHS dentists set up surgeries in residential areas. [11253]
Ms Rosie Winterton: No specific grants have been made available to help national health service dentists set up surgeries in residential areas, but the £50 million made available in 2004–05 to boost local NHS capacity could be used in residential areas.
Primary care trusts may use their own budget to support the development of dental access in residential areas.
16. Mrs. Villiers: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the trends in NHS dentistry registration rates have been since 1997. [11255]
Ms Rosie Winterton: Some 24.3 million patients in England were registered with a national health service dentist in May 2005, compared with 26.4 million in 1997.
However, courses of dental treatment have increased by 6 per cent. from 31.3 million in 1997–98 to 33 million in 2004–05. This is a result of both the establishment of 53 dental access centres and the availability of dental access sessions offering NHS dentistry to patients who are not registered.
Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment she has made of the percentage of dental practices that are registering (a) children and (b) all adults in the (i) Eastleigh and Test Valley South, (ii) Southampton and (iii) Mid Hants primary care trust areas. [9794]
Ms Rosie Winterton: Information about dental practices registering patients is not centrally collected. However, information can be obtained from local primary care trusts or NHS Direct.
Junior Doctors (Working Time Directive)
15. Dr. Richard Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will make a statement on the effects of the European working time directive on continuity of patient care and junior doctor training in the NHS. [11254]
Jane Kennedy:
Junior doctors' working patterns should strike a sensible balance between services designed around patients and services which support doctors working lives and their training. The modernising medical careers initiative will assist implementation of the working time directive and help make the best use of training opportunities for junior doctors.
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Myeloma
17. Mr. McGovern: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will make a statement on the treatment of myeloma. [11256]
Ms Rosie Winterton: In 2003, the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) published Improving Outcomes in Haematological Cancers. This guidance makes recommendations on treatment services for patients with haematological cancers, including myeloma. NICE recently updated the general practitioner referral guidelines which are designed to help GPs detect early signs of cancer, including myeloma.
Cervical Smear Tests
18. Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps she is taking to ensure that women receive the results of cervical smear tests within a reasonable time. [11257]
Ms Rosie Winterton: We are committed to reducing waiting times for the results of cervical screening tests. We have consulted experts on how best to achieve this, and have commissioned a formal options appraisal from the university of Sheffield. This is due to report in December.
Primary Care Trusts
19. Dr. Pugh: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans the Government have to change the role and structure of primary care trusts. [11258]
Jane Kennedy: As we implement the next stage of the national health service reforms, including practice based commissioning and streamlining NHS management, primary care trusts will need to change and develop. These changes need to reflect local circumstances and form part of a structured programme for the NHS as a whole.
Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the responsibilities are of primary care trusts; and if she will make a statement. [9015]
Mr. Byrne: The responsibilities of primary care trusts (PCTs) are:
To assess the health needs of their population and to commission primary care and hospital based services to meet those needs;
As we implement the next stage of the national health service reforms, including practice based commissioning and streamlining NHS management, PCTs will need to change and develop.
Peter Luff: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 30 June 2005, Official Report, column 1766W, on primary care trusts, what the average per capita funding for all primary care trusts in England was in 2004–05; and what the average per capita funding budgeted for 2005–06 is. [10805]
12 Jul 2005 : Column 973W
Mr. Byrne [holding answer 11 July 2005]: The average per capita funding for all primary care trusts in England in 2004–05 was £1,003. The average per capita funding allocated for 2005–06 is £1,097.
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