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17 Sep 2007 : Column 2206W—continued
Dental Services: Cornwall
Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many and what proportion of dentist surgeries offered NHS services in Cornwall in each of the last 10 years. [155559]
Mr. Bradshaw: The number of national health service dental surgeries in the primary care trusts (PCTs) within Cornwall are provided in the following table up to 31 March 2007. Information on the number of private dental surgeries is not collected centrally and therefore the proportion of dental surgeries offering NHS services cannot be calculated.
| Number of NHS dental surgeries in the primary care trusts within Cornwall as at the specified dates | |||||||||||
| 30 September | 31 March | ||||||||||
| 1997 | 1998 | 1999 | 2000 | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | |
| (1 )Not applicable. On 1 October 2006, West of Cornwall PCT, North and East Cornwall PCT and Central Cornwall PCT merged to become Cornwall and Isles of Scilly PCT. Notes: 1. The areas have been defined using practice postcodes within the PCT area. 2. The figures provide a snapshot of the number of addresses with open contracts at the specified time. 3. No account is taken to the amount of service, if any, that each dentist provides. Sources: The Information Centre for health and social care. NHS Business Services Authority. | |||||||||||
Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what proportion of (a) adults and (b) children were treated by NHS dentists in Cornwall, broken down by the smallest available areas for which data are available in each of the last five years. [155560]
Mr. Bradshaw: Information is not held centrally in the form requested. For the period up to 31 March 2006, information is available on the proportion of patients registered with a dental practice to receive national health service care and treatment.
The proportion of patients registered, by adult/child, as at 31 March 2001 to 31 March 2006 are available in Annex B of the “NHS Dental Activity and Workforce Report England: 31 March 2006”. Information is available at strategic health authority (SHA) and primary care trust (PCT) level in England.
This report is available in the Library and is also available at:
Since April 2006, patients no longer have to register with a dental practice to receive NHS care and treatment. Instead, data are collected on the number of patients receiving NHS dental services (patients seen) in a given area over a 24-month period. This is not directly comparable to the registration data for earlier years when patients registered for a 15-month period.
The number of patients seen, by adult/child, in the previous 24 months as a percentage of the population, ending 31 March 2006 and 31 March 2007 are available in Table C1 of Annex 3 of the “NHS Dental Statistics for England 2006-07” report. Information is available at SHA and PCT level in England.
This report is available in the Library and is also available at:
In both reports, data at PCT level are the smallest regional area for which information is available.
Departments: Departmental Coordination
Mrs. May: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what (a) ministerial committees and (b) permanent groups involving senior civil servants have been set up by his Department to liaise with the Ministers for Women. [155245]
Mr. Bradshaw [holding answer 12 September 2007]: As with all cross cutting issues, Ministers and officials in this Department liaise with the Ministers for Women as necessary. There are no specific ministerial committees or permanent groups involving senior civil servants set up to do this.
Dietary Supplements: EC Law
Mr. Brady: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what guidance his Department has issued on the addition of fluorosilicates to the public water supply in relation to the requirements of the EU Food Supplements Directive. [155453]
Ann Keen: We are aware that the European Commission has published an orientation paper on setting maximum and minimum amounts of vitamins and minerals in foodstuffs. The proposals seem compatible with the target concentration of 1 mg per litre used in fluoridation schemes in the United Kingdom, but we will monitor the progress of this consultation to see if any guidance is necessary.
Family Planning
Richard Ottaway: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what percentage of general practitioners have received formal training in the provision of family planning services. [155508]
Mr. Bradshaw: This information is not collected centrally.
Fluoride: Drinking Water
Mr. Brady: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what guidance his Department has issued on the making of medical claims by NHS employees in relation to the fluoridation of the public water supply. [155454]
Ann Keen: The Department has not issued any specific guidance, but we would welcome discussion of any evidence-based claims about the effects of the fluoridation of water.
Health Services: Foreigners
Mr. Wallace: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what funds the UK has sought from (a) Poland, (b) Romania, (c) Hungary and (d) Brazil for treatment of their citizens by the NHS in each of the last three years. [155470]
Mr. Bradshaw: Romania, Hungary and Poland are new member states so discussions are taking place with them to establish the arrangements for settling claims for health care made under the European Union regulations.
There is no agreement with Brazil and any Brazilian nationals requiring national health service treatment would be required to pay.
Health Services: Overseas Residence
Mr. Wallace: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what discussions he has had with (a) French and (b) Spanish governments on health care costs of UK citizens resident in each such country. [155469]
Mr. Bradshaw: There are regular discussions with these governments on the operating of the European economic area (EEA) regulations under which the United Kingdom is responsible for the cost of health care for those UK citizens in EEA countries who are in receipt of UK pension and are not entitled to a pension from the country in which they are resident.
Home Care Services
Mr. Bone: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what guidance is given to primary care trusts on the funding of the care of patients that are incapacitated and would rather stay at home and be cared for at home, but would cost less if they were moved to a residential home. [155438]
Mr. Bradshaw: No specific guidance has been issued to primary care trusts (PCTs). The White Paper, “Our health, our care, our say”, outlines the Government’s expectation that, wherever possible, PCTs and local authorities provide appropriate health and care services in the community to support people to live independently in their own homes for as long as possible.
Infant Foods: Fluoride
Mr. Brady: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what guidance his Department has issued on the use of fluoridated water to make infant formula milk. [155452]
Ann Keen: We are evaluating advice issued by the American Dental Association that fluoridated water should not be used to make up powdered infant formula because of the risk of dental fluorosis. We need to judge whether the advice is relevant to the United Kingdom where there is a lower limit on the concentration of fluoride permitted in water than in the United States of America. The Department’s advice to parents concerned about fluorosis is that breastfeeding is the best option. Where this is not possible, concerned parents could consider using ready-to-use infant formula which has a low fluoride content.
Infant Mortality: Incinerators
Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the correlation between the presence of a functioning incinerator and the incidence of infant mortality in that area. [155374]
Mr. Bradshaw: In November 2005 the Health Protection Agency issued advice on the public health impact of Municipal Solid Waste Incineration and this is available on their website at:
www.hpa.org.uk/chemicals/ippc/incineration_posn_ statement.pdf.
This information has also been placed in the Library.
Emissions from modern waste incinerators in the United Kingdom are subject to stringent health controls.
NHS Accountancy
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Health on which dates the annual accounts of the NHS were published in each of the last five years. [151515]
Mr. Bradshaw [pursuant to the reply, 26 July 2007, c. 1443-44W]: All national health service bodies are required to publish their accounts locally. The accounts must be presented at a public meeting held no later than 30 September following the end of the financial year (31 March).
The National Audit Office publish the NHS summarised accounts for strategic health authorities, primary care trusts and NHS trusts. The publication dates for the last five financial years were:
2001-02: 21 March 2003
2002-03: 28 April 2004
2003-04: 24 June 2005
2004-05: 7 June 2006
2005-06: 6 July 2007
NHS: Foreign Workers
Mr. Vara: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many nurses from overseas countries have (a) entered the UK to work in the NHS and (b) subsequently returned to their own country in each of the last 10 years, broken down by country of origin. [155572]
Mr. Bradshaw: This information is not collected centrally.
The Nursing and Midwifery Council collects data on the number of overseas nurses who register with them each year. It does not collect data on whether these nurses entered the United Kingdom, returned to their own country or worked in the national health service.
The data are available at: www.nmc-uk.org.
NHS: Labour Party
Peter Bottomley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health on how many of the 10 strategic health authority visits by Lord Darzi’s review group the NHS has agreed a filming opportunity for the Labour Party. [155524]
NHS: Public Participation
Mrs. Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether the operation of citizens’ juries on the NHS will (a) reflect and (b) affect the terms of the devolution settlement in Wales. [155192]
Alan Johnson [holding answer 12 September 2007]: Under the devolution settlement responsibility for health policy and healthcare delivery within Wales is devolved to the National Assembly for Wales (NAW). It is a matter for the NAW whether they wish to use citizens’ juries to consider issues affecting the national health service in Wales.
Prescriptions: Fees and Charges
Mr. Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what plans his Department has to consult with asthma sufferers as part of its review of prescription charges; [155473]
(2) what plans his Department has to review the cost of prescriptions for medication to treat asthma. [155474]
Mr. Bradshaw: I refer the hon. Member to the written ministerial statement given to the House on 23 July 2007, Official Report, column 44WS.
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