| Previous Section | Index | Home Page |
27 Feb 2006 : Column 454W—continued
Heroin
Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many children have been treated for (a) heroin addiction and (b) heroin-related illnesses in each of the last five years, broken down by age. [51757]
Caroline Flint
[holding answer 14 February 2006]: We do not have information on how many children have been treated for heroin addiction or heroin-related illnesses for each of the last five years.
27 Feb 2006 : Column 455W
The number of young people, under 18 at mid-point in the financial year, who received treatment with heroin as their main drug of use is shown in the table.
| Date | Number |
|---|---|
| 2003–04 | 1,129 |
| 2004–05 | 1,171 |
| April 2005-December 2005(113) | 1,025 |
(113) Nine-month figure
Hillingdon Health Care
John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment she has made of the additional costs falling upon (a) Hillingdon Primary Care Trust and (b) Hillingdon Hospital Trust from Heathrow Airport. [47071]
Jane Kennedy: Hillingdon Primary Care Trust (PCT) receives £800,000 of revenue funding each year to take account of the additional costs of people passing through Heathrow who use services commissioned by Hillingdon PCT for local residents. PCTs commission services from national health service trusts and it is for Hillingdon PCT to determine how the funding is allocated locally.
HIV/AIDS
Mr. Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much her Department has allocated to fund research on HIV preventative technologies in each year since 1997; how this research has been co-ordinated; and if she will make a statement. [48475]
Jane Kennedy: 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 has since 1986 supported a research programme on sexual health and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). The annual amount contributed since 1997 is shown in the table. The programme is managed on its behalf by the MRC, with advice from the sexual health and HIV research strategy committee 1 . In this way, the MRC is able to co-ordinate the work of the programme with its broader portfolio of national and international research on sexual health and HIV.
The committee identifies research needs and priorities, stimulates new research, and advises on the value and relevance to the programme of proposals submitted to it for funding. Studies on prevention have been a focus of the programme. Currently, around three-quarters of the studies funded are concerned with HIV prevention technologies in their broadest sense, ranging from safer sex interventions for high risk groups, through cohort studies to follow-up children exposed to antiretroviral therapy in pregnancy, to uses of the internet to develop behaviour change interventions.
27 Feb 2006 : Column 456W
| Amount (£ million) | |
|---|---|
| 1997 | 1 |
| 1998 | 1 |
| 1999 | 1 |
| 2000 | 1.3 |
| 2001 | 0.8 |
| 2002 | 1 |
| 2003 | 1 |
| 2004 | 1 |
| 2005 | 1 |
Over 75 per cent. of the Department's total expenditure on health research is devolved to and managed by national health service organisations. Details of individual projects, including a number concerned with prevention of HIV, can be found on the national research register at www.dh.gov.uk/research.
1 This committee was established in 2002 when it replaced the Committee for the epidemiological study of AIDS.
Mr. Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to her answer of 24 November 2004, Official Report, column 2280W, on HIV/AIDS, for what reasons the funding was not increased between 2001–02 and 2005–06 in line with inflation; whether her Department plans to continue this funding; and if she will make a statement. [49867]
Caroline Flint: The AIDS support grant, one of a number of personal social services (PSS) grants, provides a contribution to local authority overall social care packages for people living with HIV/AIDS. Although the grant itself did not increase from 2001–02 to 2005–06, the overall level of PSS resources available to councils increased by 46.5 per cent. in this period.
The Department is responsible for establishing overall policy in respect of social care, leaving councils with a significant degree of flexibility in delivering their adults' social care commitments according to local priorities and the needs of the communities they represent. Local authorities are encouraged to access all PSS grants appropriate to enhancing the delivery of HIV/AIDS social care.
An allocation of £16.5 million for both 2006–07 and 2007–08 was announced in the local authority social services letter in December 2005.
Hospices
Mr. David Hamilton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health which hospices in England receive funding from the national health service. [53034]
Ms Rosie Winterton: Information is not collected centrally on which hospices receive funding from primary care trusts (PCTs), or the amount they receive. In England, it is for individual hospices to negotiate funding with their PCT.
Matters relating to Wales are the responsibility of the Welsh Assembly.
Hospital Building
Mr. Paul Murphy: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many hospitals have been built in England in each year since 1997. [44487]
27 Feb 2006 : Column 457W
Jane Kennedy: The table shows the number of major hospital capital schemes constructed and become operational since January 1997 with capital values of over £25 million. Detailed information is not held centrally for schemes with a capital value below this figure.
| Number of hospital schemes | |
|---|---|
| 1997 | 5 |
| 1998 | 4 |
| 1999 | 0 |
| 2000 | 3 |
| 2001 | 6 |
| 2002 | 9 |
| 2003 | 9 |
| 2004 | 3 |
| 2005 | 7 |
Hospital Deficits
Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will list all hospitals facing a deficit in this financial year, broken down by constituency; and what each hospital's month nine forecast is of the size of the deficit. [42667]
Jane Kennedy: The latest data for which financial information for national health service organisations is available is the forecast outturn position for 2005–06, as submitted by NHS organisations at the mid-year point (month six). This information has been placed in the Library.
Hospital Staff
Mr. Swire: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what steps her Department is taking to ensure hospitals have enough trained staff to operate specialist medical equipment in NHS hospitals; and if she will make a statement; [39685]
(2) whether her Department has made an estimate of the cost to the NHS of machines that cannot be used to their full capacity because of staff shortages. [39686]
Mr. Byrne: The Department does not collect the information requested centrally. In September 2004, over 1.3 million people were employed in the national health service, an increase of over 272,000 or 26 per cent. since 1997. It is for primary care trusts in partnership with strategic health authorities and other local stakeholders to plan, develop and improve services for local people and to ensure the efficient use of equipment and services.
ICAS Contract (West Midlands)
Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when the ICAS contract for the West Midlands will be announced; and if she will write to the Citizens Advice Bureau informing them of this date. [48735]
Mr. Byrne:
The Independent Complaints Advocacy Service (ICAS) contract for the West Midlands has been awarded and Citizens Advice were advised of the new incoming service provider on 24 January 2006. The new provider is POhWER, which has been providing ICAS
27 Feb 2006 : Column 458W
under contract to the Department since 1 September 2003, bringing a wealth of experience and expertise in general and specialist advocacy service delivery.
| Next Section | Index | Home Page |