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19 Feb 2007 : Column 48W—continued


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In Vitro Fertilisation

Dr. Gibson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what guidelines her Department issues on the (a) drugs and (b) hormones used in in vitro fertilisation; and if she will regulate to reduce the dosages which may be used. [111301]

Caroline Flint: No guidelines have been issued by the Department or the national regulator for in vitro fertilisation (IVF) treatment, the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority, nor are there any plans to do so.

Prescribing of drugs for IVF treatment is a matter for the treating clinician’s professional judgment, taking account of guidance from the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence’s clinical guideline on assessment and treatment for people with fertility problems and other professional guidance.

Influenza Vaccination

Mr. Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment she has made of the impact of the decision to immunise poultry workers against seasonal influenza on the availability of seasonal influenza vaccines for other at-risk groups in the 2006-07 winter. [115017]

Caroline Flint: The implementation of the poultry workers policy was made in January, by which time 14.7 million doses of flu vaccine had been distributed to the field. This was more vaccine than used in the seasonal flu vaccination campaign of 2005-06.

The Department announced the poultry workers campaign in January, and purchased seasonal flu vaccine for this purpose. Therefore the routine seasonal influenza vaccination programme was not adversely affected by the decision to immunise poultry workers.

Mr. Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what contingency plans she has in place to assist the NHS in responding to an epidemic of seasonal influenza. [116852]

Caroline Flint: The seasonal flu vaccination programme offers protection to vulnerable groups. In addition, antiviral drugs can be used to treat people when flu is circulating in the community.

The national health service is expected each winter, with local authority and other local agencies, to ensure that plans are in place to ensure it copes effectively with additional seasonal pressures on services. The winter report 2005-06 sets out the NHS achievement over last winter. A similar report will be published this year.

Mr. Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 22 November 2006, Official Report, column 139W, on influenza, what progress she is making towards 75 per cent. seasonal influenza vaccination coverage in at-risk groups, not including those aged 65 years and over. [106110]

Caroline Flint: In 2004-05, vaccine uptake in those under 65 years of age in a clinical risk group was 40 per cent. In 2005-06, vaccine uptake has increased to 48 per cent. in these risk groups.


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We do not yet have comparable final data for 2006-07. Provisional data collected by end of December 2006 indicated that 40 per cent. of people under 65 years of age in clinical risk groups had been vaccinated.

Mr. Crausby: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people in Bolton are entitled to a free influenza injection in 2006-07; and how many have taken up that entitlement. [110606]

Caroline Flint: The number of people aged 65 years and over in Bolton Primary Care Trust entitled to a free influenza injection in 2006-07 is approximately 39,500. Of this figure, 70.9 per cent. had taken up this entitlement by the end of December 2006. The number of people under 65 years who are in a medical risk group and who are entitled to a free influenza injection is approximately 21,000 and 45.2 per cent. had taken up this entitlement by the end of December 2006.

These figures are based on national vaccine uptake data for people registered with a general practitioner practice and are collected by the Health Protection Agency.

Influenza: Disease Control

Mr. Spellar: To ask the Secretary of State for Health which Government Departments and other public sector bodies will be involved in Operation Winter Willow. [118111]

Ms Rosie Winterton: Winter Willow part one took place on 30 January 2007 and the following organisations were involved:

Winter Willow part two will take place between 16 and 21 February 2007 and the following organisations will be involved.

Inter-authority Transfers

Mr. Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health who in her Department has power to authorise inter-authority transfers under section 97 of the NHS Act 1977. [114997]

Andy Burnham: Under Section 97 of the National Health Service Act 1977 as amended, the Secretary of
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State may make allotments to strategic health authorities, special health authorities or primary care trusts increasing or reducing the allotments previously so made to them.

The allotments are made on the Secretary of State’s behalf by officers within the Department who are members of the Senior Civil Service.

Mr. Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many inter-authority transfers took place in 2006-07 under section 97 of the National Health Service Act 1977; who the (a) transferer and (b) transferee was in each case; and what the value of the transfer was in each case. [114998]

Andy Burnham: Inter authority transfers (IATs) are transfers of resource and/or cash limits between two national health service organisations. These transfers represent internal transfers of funding and do not affect the overall national limits for the NHS.

In the current financial year 3,201 IATs have been processed up to the end of December. The information requested on these transfers has been placed in the Library.

Local Authority Children’s Services

Annette Brooke: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate she has made of the annual cost to local authority children’s services of support to children with no recourse to public funds following the implementation of section 54 of and schedule 3 to the Nationality, Immigration and Asylum Act 2002 and section 9 of the Asylum and Immigration Act 2004; and if she will make a statement. [108866]

Mr. Byrne [holding answer 12 December 2006]: I have been asked to reply.

Local authorities participating in the section nine pilot were informed of the arrangements for the reimbursement of costs relating to the assessment and provision of services to children affected by a withdrawal of asylum support under the pilot in April 2005.

Malnutrition

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many (a) children and (b) adults were admitted to hospital in east Sussex as a result of malnutrition in each year since 1997. [111522]


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Caroline Flint: The information requested is not collected centrally.

Medical Examinations

Mr. Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what progress she has made in developing an NHS life check. [118149]

Caroline Flint: We are making good progress with the development of NHS Life Checks for the following target audiences—early years, adolescents and mid-life.

Early years

The early years Life Check is being developed as an integral part of the child health promotion programme. It will focus on the health and development needs of the child during their first year of life, but will also encompass parental health issues that could affect the well-being of the child. The current work programme is focused on scoping and agreeing the core content of the early years assessment, in consultation with key stakeholders and experts.

Mid-life

We are also defining and scoping the core content of the mid-life Life Check. We have initiated a user consultation programme to ascertain the views of a wide range of users on the Life Check’s content and format. We are continuing to review the evidence base, gather examples of best practice and obtain input from key stakeholders and experts to determine the precise content of the assessment.

We anticipate piloting and evaluating these two life checks in the second half of 2007.

Adolescence

We will be launching the adolescent Life Check pilots in February 2007. Teen Life Check is an online interactive tool, which will be hosted on the Department for Education and Skills Need2Know website for the duration of the six-month pilot. Teen Life Check will be promoted and evaluated in the four adolescent health demonstration sites, in Bolton, Hackney, Northumberland and Portsmouth, and on the Teenage Health Freak website.

Mental Health

Mr. Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what total spending on mental health was in each year since 1997; and what proportion of total health spending this represented. [114357]

Ms Rosie Winterton: The information is shown in the table.


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19 Feb 2007 : Column 54W
Gross expenditure
£000 (cash terms)
Mental illness (MI) Total secondary health care commissioned MI as percentage of secondary health care Total net NHS spend MI as percentage of NHS spend

1996-97

2,648,191

18,947,018

13.98

32,997,000

8.03

1997-98

2,767,036

19,725,339

14.03

34,664,000

7.98

1998-99

2,925,934

21,426,832

13.66

36,608,000

7.99

1999-2000

3,445,341

26,863,847

12.83

40,201,000

8.57

2000-01

3,951,618

28,924,886

13.66

43,932,000

8.99

2001-02

4,381,312

33,018,655

13.27

49,021,000

8.94

2002-03

4,573,703

36,220,778

12.63

54,042,000

8.46

2003-04

5,179,510

40,377,162

12.83

63,001,000

8.22

2004-05

5,623,977

45,826,279

12.27

69,706,000

8.07

2005-06

6,422,017

46,399,008

13.84

76,387,000

8.41

Note:
This information does not include expenditure for people with mental health problems who are seen in primary care or expenditure on such people by local authorities.
Sources:
1. Audited accounts of health authorities 1996-97 to 1998-99.
2. Audited summarisation schedules of health authorities 1999-2000 to 2001-02.
3. Audited summarisation schedules of strategic health authorities 2002-03.
4. Audited summarisation schedules of primary care trusts 2000-01 to 2005-06.
5. Net NHS expenditure 1996-97 to 2005-06.

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