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26 Nov 2008 : Column 2059W—continued
Departmental Debts
Mr. Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much his Department has written off in bad debts in each of the last five financial years; and what the reason for each write-off was. [238893]
Mr. Bradshaw: The following amounts have been written off as bad debts.
| Period | £ |
The reasons for the write-offs were:
29 minor claims were abandoned on value for money grounds.
41 minor claims were abandoned on value for money grounds.
Over 320 organisations participated in the NHS Live events and were invoiced for their contributions. Twenty-four cases valuing £27,876.25 were successfully challenged by the organisations and the outstanding amount was written off by the Department.
The value of capital charges made to individuals around the country that became uncollectible as a result of doubt over the validity of the charges was £9,561.56 . These invoices were subsequently found to have been raised in error.
The value of service charges made to health centres around the country which became uncollectible as a result of re-organisations and doubt over the validity of the charges were £70,678.36.
19 minor claims were abandoned on value for money grounds amounting to £9,501.90
29 minor claims were abandoned on value for money grounds.
Three minor claims were abandoned on value for money grounds.
Departmental Electronic Equipment
Mr. Philip Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much his Department and its agencies have spent on (a) flat screen televisions, (b) DVD players and (c) stereo equipment in each of the last three years. [237430]
Mr. Bradshaw: Not all of the information requested over the last three years is held centrally. Information that is available centrally is as follows:
| £ | |||
| Flat screen televisions | DVD players | Stereo equipment | |
| (1) Not known. | |||
Departmental Finance
Mr. Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will place in the Library a copy of his Department's workforce planning assumptions used to inform the 2007 Comprehensive Spending Review. [238894]
Mr. Bradshaw: We do not publish planning assumptions relating to the comprehensive spending review.
Departmental Manpower
Mr. Jeremy Browne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many (a) special advisers and (b) press officers have been employed by his Department in each year since 1997-98; and at what cost in each year. [239078]
Mr. Bradshaw: The information is as follows.
| Number of press officers, 1997-98 to 2007-08 | |
| Number of staff | |
| Costs for Department of Health media centre staff, 1997-98 to 2006-07 | |
| Cost (£ million) | |
| Note: Figures exclude social security and pension costs. | |
In regard to the number of special advisers I refer the hon. Member to the written answer I gave the hon. Member for Broxbourne (Mr. Walker) on 22 February 2008, Official Report, column 1068W.
Departmental Marketing
Mr. Philip Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many staff in his Department are responsible for branding activity; and what the cost of employing such staff was in 2007-08. [237474]
Mr. Bradshaw: At the beginning of the 2007-08 budget year the branding team consisted of four members of staff. By the end of the year, following a restructure, the team had reduced to three.
The cost of employing branding staff during this period was £148,293.
Departmental NDPBs
Mike Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 3 November 2008, Official Report, column 79W, on departmental NDPBs, (1) for what reasons Independent Reconfiguration Panel expenditure is not separately identified within departmental costs; [235295]
(2) if he will (a) calculate and (b) publish the cost to the public purse of the Independent Reconfiguration Panel. [235888]
Mr. Bradshaw: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given on 3 November 2008, Official Report, column 79W, Independent Reconfiguration Panel (IRP) expenditure is not separately identified within departmental costs.
The Department does not set an annual budget with the IRP.
Since its inception in 2003, IRP expenditure has been authorised by the Department for annual costs to reflect expenditure reasonably incurred to address ad hoc and irregular requests from my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Health to the panel for authoritative advice on contested service changes, referred to him by local Overview and Scrutiny Committees in line with the panel’s terms of reference.
Expenditure on IRP functions has not to date been separately identified and reported on from other departmental costs.
Mr. Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what budget was allocated for the work of (a) the Advisory Committee on Clinical Excellence Awards, (b) the Advisory Committee on Dangerous Pathogens and (c) the Health Protection Agency in each of the last five years. [238896]
Dawn Primarolo: The budget allocation for the Advisory Committee on Clinical Excellence Awards (ACEA) is as follows:
There is no central budget for the Advisory Committee on Dangerous Pathogens. Members of the committee receive travel and subsistence expenses for meetings they attend and the costs are shared between the three sponsoring departments: Health and Safety Executive, Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, and Department of Health.
The total revenue Government grant in aid to the Health Protection Agency (HPA) for each of the last five years ending 31 March 2008 was as follows:
| £ | |
| (1) From 1 April 2005 the HPA became a UK-wide body and took on the functions of the National Radiological Protection Board. | |
Mr. Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many paid officials worked for (a) the Advisory Committee on Clinical Excellence Awards, (b) the Advisory Committee on Dangerous Pathogens and (c) the Health Protection Agency in each of the last five years. [238897]
Dawn Primarolo: There are no departmental officials employed by any of these bodies.
The Advisory Committee on Clinical Excellence Awards is provided with administrative support by the Department of Health.
The Advisory Committee on Dangerous Pathogens is provided with a secretariat jointly by the Health and Safety Executive, the Department of Health, and the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. The Department of Health's contribution to the secretariat is currently provided by the Health Protection Agency.
The Health Protection Agency is an independent arm’s length body which employs its own staff. For each of the last five years ending 31 March 2008 their staff numbers, as whole time equivalents were:
| Number | |
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