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16 Mar 2006 : Column 2495W—continued
Illiteracy
Sammy Wilson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what steps the Government are taking to tackle illiteracy in Northern Ireland. [58349]
Angela E. Smith: The Essential Skills Strategy, launched by the Department for Employment and Learning in October 2002, aims to support adults throughout Northern Ireland to improve their literacy and numeracy skills.
The Strategy is designed to increase awareness and encourage learners most in need to participate in provision, progress their skills and gain recognised qualifications. Learning takes place in a variety of contexts including, for example, in the workplace, the family and communities, to ensure it is flexible and meets the needs of the learner. Tutor education has also been supported to raise the quality of teaching across Essential Skills provision.
The Department has met, and exceeded, its interim target of supporting 25,000 Essential Skills learners by March 2005.
Sammy Wilson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what the illiteracy rate was in (a) Northern Ireland and (b) each constituency in Northern Ireland in the latest period for which figures are available. [58350]
Angela E. Smith: I refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave my hon. Friend the Member for Strangford (Mrs. Robinson) on 7 February 2006, Official Report, column 1144W.
Medicine Reviews
Dr. McCrea: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland (1) what assessment he has made of the potential impact on costs in Northern Ireland of ensuring (a) that patients comply with dosing regimens and (b) that effective medicine review processes are carried out; [58179]
(2) what estimate he has made of the cost impact on the NHS of the effective use of medicine reviews by pharmacists and GPs in Northern Ireland. [58175]
Mr. Woodward:
The Department of Health, Social Services and Public Safety and the Health and Personal Social Services are pursuing a number of integrated initiatives targeted at delivering savings in expenditure on pharmaceutical products amounting to £55 million by 2007–08. Some of these are designed to enable patients, supported where appropriate by professional
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advice, to use their medication more effectively and thereby improve their quality of care, and these are estimated to deliver savings in the order of £16 million by 2007–08.
NHS Dentistry
Dr. McCrea: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what the average cost was of a national health service dental check-up in Northern Ireland in each of the last five years. [58144]
Mr. Woodward: There are three levels of cost for a health service dental examination, depending on the intensity of the examination. The vast majority of examinations are at the lower level. Details of the cost to patients of each type of examination are set out in the following table.
| Clinical examination | Extensive clinical examination | Full case assessment | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2001–02 | 5.12 | 7.40 | 16.08 |
| 2002–03 | 5.32 | 7.96 | 16.64 |
| 2003–04 | 5.48 | 8.20 | 17.16 |
| 2004–05 | 5.64 | 8.44 | 17.64 |
| 2005–06 | 5.84 | 8.72 | 18.24 |
Older People
Dr. McCrea: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many primary care trusts in Northern Ireland have an integrated falls and osteoporosis service as required by the national service framework for older people in Northern Ireland. [58174]
Mr. Woodward: The national service framework for older people does not apply in Northern Ireland. However, the Department published a 'Home Accident Prevention Strategy' in November 2004, which includes a target to reduce by 25 per cent. the number of older people admitted to hospital as a result of falls by 2009.
The HSS trusts in Northern Ireland are working to develop integrated services to achieve the target and progress is being monitored by a multi-agency Home Accident Prevention Strategy Implementation Group which was established to oversee the implementation of the strategy and to report annually to the Ministerial Group on Public Health.
Osteoporosis
Dr. McCrea: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what assessment he has made of the potential impact of Our Health, Our Care, Our Say on (a) the management of osteoporosis, (b) patient choice and (c) the number of osteoporotic fractures in Northern Ireland. [58180]
Mr. Woodward:
The White Paper Our health, our care, our say: a new director for community services", sets out the Department of Health's policy for the development of primary, community and social care services in England.
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In Northern Ireland, the overall direction of travel for primary health and social care services over the next two decades was set out in the Department's primary care strategic framework, Caring for People Beyond Tomorrow", which was published in October 2005. The framework provides for greater patient choice and for the development of programmes for the better management of a range of chronic conditions. It also sets out a plan detailing actions to be taken over the next few years and development in England will be considered as the detailed implementation of the framework is taken forward.
Dr. McCrea: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will take steps to increase the information and support offered to osteoporosis sufferers in Northern Ireland. [58181]
Mr. Woodward: My Department is raising awareness of osteoporosis through a range of strategies and action plans designed to encourage regular exercise, a balanced diet, smoking prevention/cessation and a responsible approach to alcohol consumption.
The Health and Personal Social Services in Northern Ireland currently provide a wide range of information and support to people with osteoporosis. This includes lifestyle advice such as the need to sustain an adequate diet including calcium and vitamin D, information and advice about preventing falls, and the use of medicines both to treat osteoporosis or to prevent it. The forms of intervention and support used in connection with osteoporosis depend on a number of factors, including whether it is to prevent or treat osteoporosis, the risk factors involved, the age and gender of the individual patient, the propensity to fracture and the extent of co-existing disease.
Outdoor Events
Mr. Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what guidance he has issued to local councils in Northern Ireland on contracts offered to private firms in respect of large-scale outdoor events. [57676]
Angela E. Smith: The Department of the Environment has issued no specific guidance relating to contracts offered to private firms in respect of large-scale outdoor events. However, councils have access to guidance on public procurement policy on the Central Procurement Directorate website.
Pensions
David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what percentage of the workforce in Northern Ireland he estimates to be making (a) no provision for retirement pension and (b) insufficient provision for retirement pension. [57623]
Mr. Hanson:
Results from the Family Resources Survey 2004/05 show that 3.5 per cent. of the Northern Ireland workforce has no provision for state pension. 47.4 per cent. of the workforce has no provision for private pensions and 2.9 per cent. has no provision for, either, state pension or private pensions.
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Data are not available to enable an estimate to be made of the percentage of the workforce in Northern Ireland making insufficient provision for retirement pension.
1. Figures refer to persons from working age 20 to state pension age who are either full or part-time employed (whether employees or self-employed) and do not include those not working. 2. Estimates are taken from the Family Resources Survey 2004/05 which is the latest year for which data are available. 3. Members who are contributing to a private pension scheme include those who are building up rights within a salary related scheme, those who are currently contributing to a scheme or whose employer makes a contribution on their behalf. Private pension refers to an occupational, personal or stakeholder pension scheme. 4. Individuals who contribute to both occupational and personal schemes are counted only once in these estimates.
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