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15 May 2007 : Column 712W—continued

Theft: Dogs

Lady Hermon: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many dogs were reported as stolen in each police force area in England and Wales in (a) each of the last 12 months and (b) each of the previous three years, broken down by breed; how many of these dogs were recovered; how many people were prosecuted for the crime in the same period; and what sentence was imposed in each case where no legal proceedings are outstanding. [136794]

Mr. Coaker: From the information collected on recorded crime, it is not possible to separately identify those offences where a dog is stolen. Such offences are not specifically defined by statute and they would be included within the ‘other theft’ offence classification. Similarly information is not available for prosecutions and sentencing.

Vetting

Mr. Nicholas Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many applicants for Criminal Records Bureau clearance checks for working with children there were in the last year for which figures are available; and how many of these applications were paid for by (a) the public purse and (b) individuals. [135688]

Joan Ryan: For positions which involve working with children, the Criminal Records Bureau’s (CRB) Standard and Enhanced Disclosures will include a check against the Protection of Children Act list (POCA), where this is specifically requested by the employer or the registered body on the application form. In financial year 2006-07, the last period for which figures are available, there were 2,554,970 disclosures issued where a check against the POCA list had been requested.

It is for an employer to decide whether or not to bear the cost of a disclosure or to pass the cost on to an applicant. I am unable to confirm how many applications were paid for by the public purse or by the applicants themselves because such data are not collated by the CRB. Disclosures are processed free of charge for those who apply for voluntary positions.


15 May 2007 : Column 713W

Young Offender Institutions: Compensation

Mr. Willis: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many claims for compensation by inmates have been made against each HM young offender institution in England and Wales in each year from 2001-02 to 2006-07; how many have been successful; what amount of compensation was paid for each claim; and what the total cost was to the public purse. [132617]

Mr. Sutcliffe: I have been asked to reply.

The following table is based on figures collated centrally and indicates the number of prisoner claims
15 May 2007 : Column 714W
received at those public sector establishments holding only young offenders (18-21) between 2004-05 and 2006-07. For establishments holding a mix of YOs and juveniles, or YOs and adults it is not possible to separate out those claims made by YOs. The table also shows the number of successful claims during the same period and the amounts of compensation paid. Figures prior to 2004-05 were not recorded centrally.

The total cost to the public purse in dealing with young offender litigation can be obtained only at disproportionate costs.

Each case is dealt with on its own merits and any remedial action that is identified to minimise further successful claims is, where appropriate, implemented.

2004-05 2005-06
Establishment Received claims Successful claims Compensation Paid Received claims Successful claims Compensation paid

Aylesbury

0

0

0

0

0

0

Deerbolt

3

1

300

3

1

500

Glen Parva

1

1

97,500

3

0

0

Northallerton

2

0

0

1

1

575,000

Portland

3

0

0

4

0

0

Reading

0

0

0

1

0

0

Rochester

1

0

0

3

1

3,000

Total

10

2

97,800

15

3

578,500


2006-07
Establishment Received c laims Successful claims Compensation paid

Aylesbury

0

0

0

Deerbolt

1

1

2,500

Glen Parva

1

0

0

Northallerton

1

2

7,614

Portland

2

2

31,250

Reading

0

1

2,100

Rochester

0

1

2,250

Total

5

7

45,714

Note:
Litigation claims can take several years to complete. Therefore the number settled each may differ to the number received in the same period.

Health

Alcoholic Drinks: Misuse

Mr. Burrowes: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many local partnerships are involved in the Screening and Intervention Programme for Sensible Drinking trailblazers scheme. [134882]

Caroline Flint: There will be at least nine local partnerships involved in the Identification and Brief Advice Trailblazer Programme; four in the North East and five in London and the South East. Additional partnerships may be involved because a primary care site or criminal justice site may be recruited from a neighbouring partnership area.

Mr. Burrowes: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) whether primary care trusts which do not spend the money allocated for the Screening and Intervention Programme for Sensible Drinking on the programme itself will receive the same money for alcohol work the following year; [134883]

(2) whether the budget allocated to primary care trusts for the Screening and Intervention Programme for Sensible Drinking will be ring-fenced. [134884]

Caroline Flint: The Department has commissioned an Interventions and Brief Advice Trailblazer programme. A consortium, headed by St. George’s Medical School and Newcastle university, is establishing a series of Interventions and Brief Advice demonstration projects in primary care and other health care settings, including accident and emergency, as well as criminal justice settings. This is an action research initiative, which is centrally funded. Payments are made in line with contracts made between the Department, the Consortium and with the individual providers. The funds are entirely separate from primary care trust allocations.

Ambulance Services

Chris Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many and what proportion of emergency calls the Ambulance Service responded to within eight minutes in (a) rural and (b) non-rural areas in the latest period for which figures are available; and if she will make a statement. [135489]


15 May 2007 : Column 715W

Andy Burnham: Details of category A (immediately life threatening) calls received in England during 2005-06, and details of those answered within eight minutes—split between rural and urban services—are shown in the following table:

Total category A calls Response within 8 minutes Response within 8 minutes ( Percentage )

England

1,641,230

1,235,769

75.3

Of which:

Rural services

855,612

651,812

76.2

Urban Services

785,618

583,957

74.3


Individual calls are not categorised as rural or urban. Until 1 April 2006, individual national health service ambulance trusts were classified as urban or rural. Details of which ambulance trust fell into which category can be found in the NHS publication “Ambulance Services, England: 2005-06”, which is available in the Library.

Audit findings have found reporting inconsistencies in some ambulance services, which means that the 75.3 per cent. figure for category A calls responded to within eight minutes ought to be treated with some caution, particularly when being used to compare performances against those in previous years. Again, more details can be found in “Ambulance Services, England: 2005-06”.

“Ambulance Services, England, 2006-07” is due to be released in June 2007.

Chris Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many Ambulance Service stations (a) closed and (b) opened in (i) rural and (ii) non-rural areas in each year since 1997; and if she will make a statement. [135509]

Andy Burnham: The information is not held centrally. The location and number of ambulance stations is a matter for individual national health service ambulance trusts to determine.

Arthritis: Drugs

Mrs. Dean: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what the evidential basis is for the statement made in the Musculoskeletal Service Framework that the year-on-year costs of TNF alpha inhibitors are likely to be offset by keeping patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) at work and reducing the need for them to claim incapacity benefits; what research her Department has funded on this topic; and what steps her Department is taking to enable people with RA (a) to remain in and (b) to return to work; [136377]

(2) what steps she has taken to ensure that the clinical assessment treatment services envisaged by the Musculoskeletal Service Framework include expertise in rheumatology to enable patients with rheumatoid arthritis to be diagnosed at the earliest opportunity. [136379]


15 May 2007 : Column 716W

Mr. Ivan Lewis: The evidence for the statement is contained in the Health Technology Assessment (HTA) report “The use of modelling to evaluate new drugs for patients with a chronic condition: the case of antibodies against tumour necrosis factor in rheumatoid arthritis”. A copy has been placed in the Library.

The National Co-ordinating Centre for Health Technology Assessment co-ordinates the HTA programme under contract from the Department.

The musculoskeletal services framework aims to enable people with rheumatoid arthritis to remain in, or return to, work by managing patient flows through primary and secondary care, shortening waiting times, and providing patients with better information to manage their condition.

It is the responsibility of local health bodies to ensure that the multidisciplinary clinical assessment treatment services contain the most appropriate mix of health professionals, including specialists in rheumatology.

Assaults on Staff

Mr. Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment she has made of the causes of physical assaults on hospital staff; and how many have been attributed to (a) drugs and (b) aggravated frustration with administrative procedures. [115717]

Ms Rosie Winterton: In April 2003 the National Health Service Security Management Service (NHS SMS) was created and assumed responsibility for the issue of tackling violence against NHS staff.

The NHS SMS has assessed research into the causes of violence, in particular the Royal College of Psychiatrists National Audit of Violence 2003-05.

This research has contributed to the development and provision of guidance for the NHS and the development of conflict resolution training packages for all NHS front line staff, with specific packages being developed for the ambulance and mental health and learning disability environments.

Figures on the amount of physical assaults on NHS hospital staff attributed to drugs or aggravated frustration with administrative procedures are not collated centrally.


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