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27 Apr 2006 : Column 1300W—continued
Dentistry
Mr. Austin Mitchell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what proportion of dentists have signed the new NHS contract in each primary care trust in (a) Lincolnshire, (b) Doncaster, (c) Hull, (d) East Yorkshire, (e) Wakefield, (f) Rotherham, (g) Sheffield and (h) Leeds. [64997]
Mr. Byrne: Figures are not yet available at a primary care trust level. The following information shows the number of dental contracts that have been signed in the three strategic health authority (SHA) areas covering Yorkshire.
| SHA | Contracts signed | NHS service levels(35) (Percentage) | Contracts rejected |
|---|---|---|---|
| North and East Yorkshire and Northern Lincolnshire | 211 | 93.8 | 63 |
| South Yorkshire | 198 | 99.0 | 6 |
| West Yorkshire | 297 | 95.7 | 41 |
(35) Compared with rejected contract.
Disabled People
Tom Levitt: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will make a statement on her Department's progress in fulfilling its statutory obligation as a public body to promote the rights of disabled people. [65816]
Mr. Byrne: The Disability Discrimination Act 2005 placed new duties on public authorities to promote equality for disabled people, the disability equality duty.
The Department has agreed a comprehensive joint programme of work with the Disability Rights Commission (DRC) that is—among other things—designed to deliver compliance with the new statutory duty, both within the Department and across health and social care.
In addition, the Department and the DRC have jointly produced leaflets for front-line staff in both primary and secondary care. These leaflets are aimed at
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improving services for disabled people by giving practical examples of ways in which front-line staff can meet the access requirements of the Disability Discrimination Act 1995. First published in 2004, over 130,000 have so far been ordered, and they have recently been reprinted. To further ensure that all health and social care staff are properly aware of the needs of disabled people, the Department and DRC are producing a comprehensive education and learning programme for national health service and social care staff that will be available later this year.
Tom Levitt: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what progress her Department has made towards achieving its 2005 aim that each social services locality should be complemented by a local user-led organisation of disabled people modelled on existing centres for (a) independent and (b) inclusive living by 2010. [66007]
Mr. Byrne: The Department is currently considering how to take forward the recommendation in "Improving the Life Chances of Disabled People" about user-led organisations.
Elderly Care Costs
Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 20 December 2005, Official Report, column 2701W, on elderly care costs, whether the estimated cost of £1.7 billion for free personal care for 2005–06 excludes the saving in means-tested assistance with personal care costs. [64074]
Mr. Byrne: Making personal care free for everyone carries a very substantial and increasing cost, but would not raise the standard or range of services available. The cost for 2005–06, estimated by the Department, is £1.7 billion. This represents the increase in net expenditure on adult social services needed to deliver free personal care in all settings. The estimate covers implications for net social services expenditure. Savings on the Department for Work and Pensions disability benefits, however, that would result from making free personal care available are not subtracted.
Embryo Experimentation/Stem Cell Research
Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what treatments for (a) children and (b) adults with disabling conditions have been developed by use of (i) human embryo experimentation and (ii) stem cell research; and if she will make a statement. [65484]
Jane Kennedy: I refer the hon. Member to the replies given on 29 November 2005, Official Report, column 404W, and 14 December 2005, Official Report, column 2173W respectively.
General Practitioners
Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what increase in salary general practitioners have received in the last year. [63935]
Mr. Byrne:
This information is currently not available centrally.
27 Apr 2006 : Column 1302W
Mr. Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many pounds per point general practitioners earned from the quality and outcomes framework in (a) 2004–05 and (b) 2005–06; and how many pounds per point GPs can expect to earn from the framework in 2006–07. [66001]
Mr. Byrne: The Department does not collect centrally the pounds per point earned from the quality and outcomes framework by individual general practitioners. The pounds per point earned by the average practice, subject to adjustment by prevalence and practice list size, are:
| £ per point | |
|---|---|
| 2004–05 | 77.50 |
| 2005–06 | 124.60 |
| 2006–07 | 124.60 |
Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what average hours general practitioners worked per week in England in (a) 1995, (b) 2000 and (c) 2005. [62495]
Mr. Byrne: The information requested is not held centrally. General practitioners are self-employed contractors and therefore have direct control themselves of the number of hours a week they work. Regulations determine the hours during which services are available to patients, but individual working hours are a matter for each practice.
Health Professionals
Dr. Murrison: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate her Department has made of the requirement for education and training places for (a) nurses, (b) midwives, (c) physiotherapists, (d) podiatrists, (e) radiographers and (f) professions complementary to dentistry over the period 2006 to 2010. [60390]
Mr. Byrne: Workforce planning is a matter for local national health service organisations to deal with. They are best placed to assess the health needs of their local health community and will commission the required number of education and training places to meet those needs.
Hospitals
Mr. Ancram: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what (a) advice and (b) instructions she has issued to primary care trusts on the closure of community and cottage hospitals. [64900]
Mr. Byrne [holding answer 25 April 2006]: I refer the right hon. and learned Member to the reply given on 29 March 2006, Official Report, column 1064W.
Mr. Ancram: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) how many primary care trusts in England are proposing to close community or cottage hospitals within their jurisdiction; and if she will list them; [64902]
(2) if she will list the hospitals which are proposed for closure; and what the reason for closure is in each case; [64923]
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(3) what estimate she has made of the number of (a) cottage and (b) community hospitals in England which will close in 2006–07; and what proportion this number represents of the total number of community and cottage hospitals in England. [64924]
Mr. Byrne: Making decisions on local healthcare provision, including the closure of community or cottage hospitals, is a matter for primary care trusts (PCTs) and strategic health authorities (SHAs) in consultation with the local population.
The White Paper, "Our health, our care, our say: a new direction for community services", makes clear that any current proposals on the future of community hospitals in an area should follow the principles that it sets out. The Department wrote to SHAs on 16 February outlining how SHAs should test PCT community hospital proposals against these principles. A copy of this letter has been placed in the Library.
The Department has not made any recent assessment of the number of (a) cottage and (b) community hospitals in England which will close in 2006–07; and what proportion this number represents of the total number of community and cottage hospitals in England.
Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many (a) hospital doctors, (b) hospital doctors on training programmes and (c) other hospital staff work for free; and of these how many are non-British nationals. [65822]
Mr. Byrne [holding answer 25 April 2006]: All staff employed by the national health service are done so under a contract of employment and therefore receive a salary. Some international medical graduates have arranged clinical attachments in NHS United Kingdom hospitals in order to observe medicine. There is no information collected centrally regarding the number of these clinical attachments.
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