Ministerial Corrections
Tuesday 15 January 2008
Health
Consent to Medical Treatment
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps (a) he has taken and (b) he is planning to take to ensure that healthcare professionals comply with a patient’s advance decision to refuse treatment in certain circumstances; and if he will make a statement. [165447]
[Official Report, 20 November 2007; Vol. 467, c. 820W.]
An error has been identified in the written answer given to Mike Hancock, MP (Portsmouth, South), on 20 November 2007. The correct answer should have been:
Mr. Ivan Lewis: The Mental Capacity Act (MCA), which applies in England and Wales, came fully into force in October 2007 and puts advance decisions to refuse treatment onto a statutory footing. The MCA Code of Practice, issued in April 2007, gives details of the Act’s provisions on advance decisions and sets out health professionals’ responsibilities. The Code and the training materials we have issued make clear that healthcare professionals must follow an advance decision to refuse treatment if it is valid and applies to particular circumstances. If they do not, they could face civil liability or criminal prosecution.
It is for individual trusts to put in place procedures for implementing the MCA locally. The Act requires the Public Guardian to produce an annual report, which we expect will include information on the implementation of the MCA.
Treasury
VAT
Mr. Gauke: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) how many and what proportion of VAT registration applications were processed within the target time in each of the last three calendar months; [162849]
(2) how many and what proportion of VAT registration applications received in 2007 were not processed within (a) 40, (b) 50 and (c) 60 days; [162850]
(3) what the average processing time for VAT registration applications has been for each VAT registration unit since 31 July. [162834]
[Official Report, 12 November 2007; Vol. 467, c. 23W.]
An error has been identified in the table in the written answer given to the hon. Member for South-West Hertfordshire (Mr. Gauke), on 12 November 2007, col. 23W. The correct figures should have been:
| Month | Number processed within target time | Percentage processed within target time |
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