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9 Mar 2007 : Column 2291W—continued
Greg Mulholland: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) how many people had graduated from nursing courses and not completed a preceptorship one year after their graduation in each of the last three years; [125868]
(2) how many people are in their final year of training to become nurses; [125870]
(3) how many of those who graduated from nursing courses had not taken up NHS nursing posts one year after qualification in each of the last five years in (a) England and (b) Leeds. [125871]
Ms Rosie Winterton [holding answer 7 February 2007]: This information is not collected centrally.
Greg Mulholland: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much was spent by the Government on media advertisements and promotional activities seeking to attract people to nursing in each of the last three years. [125869]
Ms Rosie Winterton [holding answer 7 February 2007]: The Department has not undertaken any solely nursing recruitment advertising or promotion during the period requested. However, we have undertaken advertising and promotional activities for recruitment to the national health service as a whole, including nursing, and that spend covering the last three years can be provided.
The table sets out the cost of for NHS Careers recruitment publicity for years 2003-06.
| National health service including nurse recruitment | |
| £ million | |
Mr. Lancaster: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) how many consultant nurses there were in each (a) primary care trust and (b) hospital trust in each year since 1997; [126015]
(2) when the first consultant nurse was appointed; and where the appointment was made. [126016]
Ms Rosie Winterton [holding answer 8 March 2007]: Information on the number of consultant nurses has been collected since 2001. The number of consultant nurses in each primary care trust and hospital trust has been placed in the Library.
Information on when and where the first consultant nurse post was created is not collected centrally.
Primary Care Trusts: Durham
John Cummings: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the cost has been of redundancy packages to the Durham primary care trust (PCT) arising from the merger of PCTs in the county of Durham. [122953]
Ms Rosie Winterton: This information is not held centrally.
Primary Care Trusts: Greater London
Derek Conway: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will list the primary care trusts in London which have chairmen appointed on a temporary basis. [123591]
Ms Rosie Winterton: The appointment of national health service trust chairs has been delegated to the Appointments Commission by the Secretary of State. I have, therefore, asked the Commission to write to the hon. Gentleman with the detailed information he has requested.
Skin Cancer
Mr. Baron: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment she has made of the extent of the under-reporting of skin cancer cases; and what estimate she has made of the actual figure for such cases. [124257]
Ms Rosie Winterton: Just under 67,000 new cases of malignant melanoma of the skin and other malignant neoplasms of the skin were reported in England in 2004. We have not made an assessment of the under-reporting of skin cancer cases.
Mr. Baron: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate she has made of the potential annual cost of treating skin cancer by 2022. [124259]
Ms Rosie Winterton: We do not hold information centrally on levels of funding for specific cancer types, including skin cancer. However we estimate that a total of around £3.4 billion was spent on cancer services in 2003-04 and this increased by around 12 per cent. each year to £3.8 billion in 2004-05, and £4.3 billion in 2005-06.
National health service funding is allocated to primary care trusts to meet the health needs of their local population who, in partnership with strategic health authorities and other local stakeholders, determine how best to use their funds to meet national and local priorities for cancer services.
Defence
Armed Forces: Deployment
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what operations are being undertaken by British troops (a) in the UK and (b) overseas. [122487]
Mr. Ingram: UK military personnel are involved in a number of military operations including:
in the UK on Op Banner (Northern Ireland), Homeland security, including Quick Reaction Alert for both National and NATO operations and wider support under Military aid to Civil Authorities.
overseas on Op Telic (Iraq), Op Herrick (Afghanistan), Op Oculus (Bosnia and Kosovo) and the Falkland Islands to which operational elements of UK forces are also deployed. A small number of UK military personnel are involved with other operations, including UN operations in Cyprus, Democratic Republic of Congo, Georgia, Liberia, Nepal, Sierra Leone and Sudan.
In addition military personnel contribute to other discrete operations in the UK and overseas such as Search and Rescue or the provision of aircraft to the NATO Airborne Early Warning Force.
Armed Forces: Heatstroke
Mr. Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) what steps have been taken to minimise the number of heat-related casualties in the armed forces deployed on operations; [121500]
(2) what measures are taken to ensure that British service personnel are properly (a) trained and (b) equipped to operate in conditions of extreme (i) heat and (ii) cold; [121507]
(3) what training medical personnel in the armed forces receive on training and preventing heat-related casualties; [121518]
(4) how many heat-related (a) casualties and (b) deaths of British service personnel there have been in (i) Iraq and (ii) Afghanistan since the commencement of operations. [121521]
Derek Twigg: Military personnel operating in Iraq and Afghanistan are subjected to extreme temperatures, both in armoured vehicles and in their day-to-day duties, and commanders on the ground constantly review the necessity of the tasks they face in order to reduce the exposure of troops.
Various steps are taken to prevent heat related illnesses. Personnel undertake an acclimatisation programme as part of their reception, staging and onward integration (RSOI) training which commences at the beginning of an operational tour and generally lasts for five days. Commanders are provided with heat illness prevention instructions in order to monitor heat stress. Temperature and humidity levels are forecast daily as part of standard operating procedures (SOPs) thereby allowing commanders to schedule workloads accordingly. Wherever operationally feasible air conditioning is used in accommodation, business offices, facilities such as welfare and catering and medical facilities in the main camps in operational theatres, although clearly not possible in all operational areas. Canteen areas have large fridges which are stocked with a plentiful supply of cold water.
It is also important that air conditioning does not hinder acclimatisation. Research conducted by the Institute of Naval Medicine (INM), which has been reflected in permanent joint headquarters (PJHQ) SOPs, recommends that acclimatisation will be achieved and maintained if personnel are exposed to two hours of heat per day, undertaking some physical activity sufficient to cause sweating.
Advice given to officers, soldiers, trainers and medics on the treatment of heat and cold injury is contained within JSP 539 (“Climatic Injuries in the Armed Forces: Prevention and Treatment”). Additionally, PJHQ issues advice relevant to individual theatres of operation. A copy of the JSP 539 is in the House Library.
Since 2003, coroners’ inquests to date have found that one reservist private, one regular army corporal and one RAF senior aircraftsman have died as a result of heat-related conditions while serving in Iraq.
In Iraq during the 34 month period from September 2004 to July 2006, 284 service personnel were recorded with a complaint of climatic injury—all heat related—of whom 80 needed to be admitted to a field hospital or otherwise bedded down. In Iraq, the temperature and humidity can change very quickly, increasing the likelihood of sudden increased instances of heat illness. In Afghanistan during the four month period from April to July 2006, PJHQ recorded 33 cases of climatic injury—all likely to be heat related, of whom 16 needed to be bedded down.
Armed Forces: Housing
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how much his Department has received from Annington Homes, under the profit-sharing scheme, from the proceeds of sales of former Ministry of Defence (a) housing and (b) land in each (i) district and (ii) unitary authority in Hampshire in each year since the scheme began; what estimate he has made of revenues in each of the next two years; and if he will make a statement. [124206]
Derek Twigg: The information is not held in the format requested, and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
The Ministry of Defence (MOD) does not benefit directly from the Profit Share Agreement (PSA) with Annington Homes Ltd. (AHL). The proceeds from the PSA go directly to the Treasury. Since the sale and leaseback of Service Families Accommodation to AHL in 1996 some 13,500 quarters have been returned to AHL under the terms of the agreement. Following the subsequent sale by AHL of most of these properties, some £140 million has been paid to the Treasury under the PSA mechanism.
No estimate of revenues can be made for forthcoming years as the MOD are not part of the AHL decision making process regarding the sale or retention by them of properties returned under the terms of the Sale Agreement.
Armed Forces: Recruitment
Mr. Harper:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will list the television recruitment campaigns for (a) regulars and (b) reserves in all
services which his Department has produced since January 2006. [124494]
Derek Twigg [holding answer 5 March 2007]: The armed forces’ television recruitment campaigns since January 2006 were as follows:
| 2006 | 2007 | |
|
Campaign January-March on C4, C5 (excl. London) and Satellite TV. | ||
|
Campaign 16 January-12 March on ITV, C4, C5 and Satellite TV. |
Campaign 15 Jauary-12 March on ITV, C4, C5 and Satellite TV. | |
Armed Forces: Security
Mr. Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the answer of 19 February 2007, Official Report, column 314W, on Armed Forces: Security, if he will place in the Library a copy of the latest briefing. [124528]
Mr. Ingram: I am withholding the information as it would, or would be likely to, prejudice the capability, effectiveness or security of our armed forces.
Committees: Ministerial Attendance
Mr. Wallace: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence on what occasions (a) he and (b) departmental Ministers have been requested to appear before committees of (i) devolved institutions and (ii) the European Parliament since 2004; on what topic in each case; how many and what proportion of such requests were accepted; and if he will make a statement. [111539]
Derek Twigg:
Defence Ministers do not regularly attend committees of the devolved institutions of Wales and Scotland or the European Parliament and it
is not possible to provide the detailed information requested on the number of invitations received without incurring disproportionate cost. However, at the invitation of the Committee, the then Secretary of State for Defence made an address to the European Parliament Committee for Foreign Affairs on 22 November 2005 and addressed the Scottish Parliament on 25 October 2005.
Departments: Freedom of Information
Mr. Wills: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what estimate he has made of the cost to his Department of monitoring the time spent processing requests for information under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 for the purposes of the proposed fees regulations. [121726]
Derek Twigg: The Department does not routinely monitor the time spent processing requests for information (RFI) under the Freedom of Information (FOI) Act 2000, and therefore no estimates have been made of the cost of such a process. However, as part of a review co-ordinated by the Department for Constitutional Affairs, a one-off assessment was made of the time spent (and actual costs incurred) in answering all RFI received in a one week period in early 2006. The costs of this monitoring exercise were borne within existing budgets and no estimate of the total cost of the monitoring exercise has been made.
Departments: Nurseries
Annette Brooke: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what (a) nursery and crèche places and (b) other facilities are provided for the children of employees of his Department in London. [126560]
Derek Twigg: The Ministry of Defence has two work place nurseries in London: the Acorn nursery in main building which provides 35 full day care places and Hyde Park barracks nursery which provides 24 full day care places.
MOD employees also have access to the interdepartmental Westminster holiday play scheme which operates on four sites in central London during school holidays for children from four years nine months to 12 years old.
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