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5 Nov 2008 : Column 511W—continued
Zimbabwe: Bank Services
Mr. Keith Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what safeguards are in place to ensure that foreign exchange deposited in the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe by non-governmental organisations is not misappropriated; and if he will make a statement. [232119]
Mr. Ivan Lewis: The Department for International Development (DFID) holds all aid funds for Zimbabwe in offshore accounts and we encourage our partners to do the same to prevent pilfering by the Reserve Bank. Under current regulatory rules established by the Reserve Bank, NGOs lodge their funds with commercial banks and not with the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ). We aim to deliver DFID programmes using as little Zimbabwe currency as possible. Increasingly, as the economy declines, the use of foreign currency in Zimbabwe has become easier. Most of our procurement is done in foreign currency in accordance with EC rules and outside Zimbabwe. Goods are imported with tax and customs exemptions.
Where funds have to be expended in local currency, money is transferred to local commercial banks for exchange at the best available rate and in small amounts at a time in order to preserve value. Similarly, some foreign currency payments need to be made from local bank accounts. DFID holds regular discussions with NGOs and other implementing partners to ensure that they are able to operate without interference. No DFID funds are transferred to the Government of Zimbabwe and no payments are made through the Reserve Bank.
Health
Abuse
Mr. Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if his Department will place in the Library its most recent assessment of serious case reviews in respect of abuse of vulnerable adults. [232567]
Phil Hope: The Department commissioned and funded Kings college London to undertake research on serious case reviews in England and Wales. This has been received and is currently being considered by the Department. A report is expected to be published this winter.
Alcoholic Drinks: Health Education
Mike Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what contracts were awarded to carry out his Department's recent consultation on the alcohol strategy; and at what cost. [228981]
Dawn Primarolo: Four contracts have been awarded to carry out the Government's recent public consultation on alcohol:
1. The Central Office of Information (COI) was awarded a £42,071 contract to produce the consultation documents;
2. COI was awarded a £7,091 contract to produce consultation postcards;
3. The Royal Mail Freepost service is used for returning the postcards, the cost of this service so far is £214.40; and
4. COI was awarded a contract to run regional engagement workshops, at a provisional cost of £208,000.
Breast Cancer
Dr. Alasdair McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what percentage of (a) women and (b) men diagnosed with breast cancer recovered fully in the latest period for which figures are available. [231208]
Kevin Brennan: I have been asked to reply.
The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
Letter from Karen Dunnell, dated 31 October 2008:
As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question asking what percentage of (a) women and (b) men diagnosed with breast cancer recovered fully in the latest period for which figures are available. [231208]
It cannot be stated definitively whether a patient with breast cancer has ‘recovered fully’ after treatment. For most cancer, but not breast, five-year survival rates are often taken to be ‘cure’ rates.
The five-year relative survival rate for (a) women patients diagnosed with breast cancer during 1999-2003 in England was 81%. Table 1 shows the predicted long-term relative survival rates for women diagnosed with breast cancer in 2001-2003 (the most recent period for which data are available).
ONS does not produce survival rates for (b) men diagnosed with breast cancer because of the relatively small number of men diagnosed. Male breast cancer accounts for less than one per cent of all breast cancer cases.
| Table 1: Predicted long-term relative survival( 1) from breast cancer for female patients aged 15 to 99, England and Wales, 2001-03( 2) | |
| Duration of survival | Relative survival (Percentage) |
| (1) Relative survival takes into account that some cancer patients will die from causes other than their cancer. (2) Based on all women diagnosed with breast cancer between 1981 and 2001, who were alive for at least part of the period 2001-03. Source: Office for National Statistics. Available on the ONS website at: http://www.statistics.gov.uk/statbase/Product.asp?vlnk=14172 | |
Care Homes: Hertfordshire
Mike Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many nursing homes inspected by the Commission for Social Care Inspection in (a) Hemel Hempstead and (b) Hertfordshire received a (i) 0 star rating (poor), (ii) 1 star rating (adequate), (iii) 2 star rating (good) and (iv) 3 star rating (excellent) in each year since 2000. [232692]
Phil Hope: I am informed by the Commission for Social Care Inspection (CSCI) that CSCI can only provide the information requested from May 2008, when the star rating system was launched. This is shown in the following tables.
The first table shows star ratings for nursing homes in Hertfordshire published in May and the second table shows the latest data available. All figures are inclusive of Hemel Hempstead. CSCI does not collect data for Hemel Hempstead separately because it is not a council with adult social services responsibility.
| Distribution of star ratings of nursing homes in Hertfordshire council area at 7 May 2008 | |
| Number | |
| Distribution of star ratings of nursing homes in Hertfordshire council area at 30 October 2008 | |
| Number | |
| Source: CSQ database | |
Care Homes: Inspections
Mr. Stewart Jackson:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many nursing homes inspected by the Commission for Social Care Inspection in (a)
Peterborough and (b) Cambridgeshire received a (i) 0 star rating (poor), (ii) 1 star rating (adequate), (iii) 2 star rating (good) and (iv) 3 star rating (excellent) in each year since 2000. [232363]
Phil Hope: I am informed by the Commission for Social Care Inspection (CSCI) that the information can be provided only from May 2008, when the star rating system began. This is shown in the following tables.
The first table shows star ratings for nursing homes in Cambridgeshire and Peterborough published in May 2008 and the second table shows the latest data available.
| Distribution of star ratings of nursing homes in Peterborough and Cambridgeshire council areas at 7 May 2008 | ||||||
| 0 Stars (Poor) | 1 Star (Adequate) | 2 Stars (Good) | 3 Stars (Excellent) | Not yet rated | Total | |
| Distribution of star ratings of nursing homes in Peterborough and Cambridgeshire council areas at 30 October 2008 | ||||||
| 0 Stars (Poor) | 1 Star (Adequate) | 2 Stars (Good) | 3 Stars (Excellent) | Not yet rated | Total | |
| Source: CSCI database | ||||||
Carter Review of Pathology Services
Dr. Gibson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when he plans to publish the Carter Review of Pathology Services. [232167]
Dawn Primarolo: The final report of the Independent Review of NHS Pathology Services in England, chaired by Lord Carter of Coles, is scheduled for publication by early December 2008.
Chronic Fatigue Syndrome: Hertfordshire
Mike Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what provision (a) South West Herts Acute Hospital Trust and (b) South West Herts Primary Care Trust have made for chronic fatigue syndrome or myalgic encephalomyelitis services; what specific funding they receive to deliver these services; and if he will make a statement. [231879]
Ann Keen: The provision and funding of services for chronic fatigue syndrome/myalgic encephalomyelitis is a matter for the local NHS. From 2008-09, funding has been added to primary care trust baseline allocations.
Community Care
Mr. Stephen O'Brien:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for South Cambridgeshire of 30 June 2008, Official
Report, column 615W, on community care, how much the NHS spent on NHS-funded nursing care in each year; and what projections he has made of (a) number receiving such care and (b) cost of the care in each of the next 20 years. [231980]
Mr. Bradshaw: Information on the cost of providing national health service-funded nursing care is not collected centrally.
The Department commissioned the Personal Social Services Research Unit (PSSRU) at the London School of Economics to produce projections of long-term care for older people and associated expenditure. Their latest projections are published in PSSRU Discussion Paper 2514 of March 2008 (Wittenberg et al, 2008), a copy of which has been placed in the Library.
Community Care: Disabled
Dr. Kumar: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he is taking to ensure that disabled people living (a) with their families and (b) in residential homes are integrated into the wider community. [232707]
Phil Hope: The Government’s five-year Independent Living Strategy aims to ensure disabled people have greater access to housing, transport, health, employment, education and leisure opportunities and to participation in family and community life.
The Government wants every locality to have a single community-based support system, which focuses on all aspects of what people need to maximise their health and well-being and to participate in family and community life. The right of the individual disabled person to determine the kinds of services and support that they need will be at the heart of this reformed system.
National minimum standards for care homes require that arrangements be made to enable residents to engage in local, social and community activities and to visit, or maintain contact or communicate with their families and friends.
Dental Services: Hertfordshire
Mike Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what proportion of dental patients in the West Hertfordshire Primary Care Trust area were treated (a) by the NHS and (b) privately in each year from 1997 to 2007. [231934]
Ann Keen: Information is not available in the format requested. Information on patients treated privately is not collected.
The number of patients registered with an NHS dentist as a proportion of the population, in England, as at 31 March, 1997 to 2006 is available in Annex B of the NHS Dental Activity and Workforce Report, England: 31 March 2006. Information is provided by primary care trust (PCT) and by strategic health authority (SHA) where appropriate.
This information is based on the old contractual arrangements which were in place up to and including 31 March 2006. This report, published on 23 August 2006, has already been placed in the Library and is also available on the NHS Information Centre website at:
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