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17 Dec 2008 : Column 922W—continued
Skin Piercing
Meg Munn: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps his Department is taking to encourage local authorities to adopt the Local Government Act 2003 byelaws for cosmetic body piercing. [244112]
Dawn Primarolo: The Department has published guidance for local authorities (LAs) on the powers available in the Local Government (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1982 (as amended by the Local Government Act 2003) to regulate cosmetic piercing businesses in their area. A copy has been placed in the Library.
In response to feedback from LAs, the Department has also published a new single set of model byelaws covering tattooing, semi-permanent skin-colouring, cosmetic piercing, electrolysis and acupuncture. A copy has been placed in the Library.
Departmental officials provide advice to LAs on the introduction of byelaws regulating cosmetic piercing and have spoken on the subject at conferences run by the Chartered Institute of Environmental Health and the Institute of Licensing.
Smoking
Dr. Kumar: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people have ceased smoking as a result of NHS smoking cessation measures in (a) England, (b) the North East, (c) Tees Valley district and (d) Middlesbrough South and East Cleveland constituency in each of the last three years. [242381]
Dawn Primarolo: The information requested is not available in the exact format requested.
Figures for the UK and by constituency are not collected. Data for England and for North East Strategic Health Authority (SHA) and associated primary care trusts (PCTs) are available for the years 2005-06 to 2007-8.
Information for 2007-08 is available from the annual Statistics on NHS Stop Smoking Services in England, April 2007 to March 2008. This information can be found in table 3.5 on page 28. This publication has already been placed in the Library.
Information for 2006-07 is available for the old and new SHA and PCT breakdowns from the annual Statistics on NHS Stop Smoking Services in England, April 2006 to March 2007. This information can be found in table 2.12 (old breakdown) and table 5.4 (new breakdown) on pages 18 and 65 respectively. This publication has already been placed in the Library.
Information for 2005-06 is available on the old PCT and SHA breakdown from the annual Statistics on NHS Stop Smoking Services in England, April 2005 to March 2006. This information can be found in table 4.12 on page 37. This publication has already been placed in the Library.
Smoking: Hertfordshire
Mike Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people have ceased smoking following participation in NHS smoking cessation measures in (a) Hemel Hempstead and (b) Hertfordshire in each of the last three years. [243983]
Dawn Primarolo: Information is not available in the format requested. Smoking cessation data are available at primary care trust (PCT) level. West Hertfordshire and East and North Hertfordshire Primary Care Trusts were formed on 1 October 2006. Data for these PCTs and their predecessor organisations are available for the years 2005-06 to 2007-08.
Information on the number of successful quitters for 2007-08 is available from the annual Statistics on NHS Stop Smoking Services in England, April 2007 to March 2008. This information can be found in table 3.5 on pages 28-30. Information on the number of successful quitters for 2006-07 is available from the annual Statistics on NHS Stop Smoking Services in England, April 2006 to March 2007. This information can be found in table 2.12 and table 5.4 on pages 18-24 and 65-67 respectively. Information the number of successful quitters for 2005-06 is available from the annual Statistics on NHS Stop Smoking Services in England, April 2005 to March 2006. This information can be found in table 4.12 on page 37-43. These publications have already been placed in the Library.
Smoking: Young People
Mike Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate he has made of the number of people aged under 18 years who smoked in the most recent year for which figures are available. [242727]
Dawn Primarolo: The information requested is not available in the exact format requested.
The latest information on the prevalence of smoking among adults aged 16 to 19 in Great Britain in 2006 is available from the “General Household Survey 2006: Smoking and drinking among adults, 2006”. This information can be found in Table 1.1 on page 15. This publication is already available in the Library.
The latest information available on the prevalence of smoking in England among adults aged 16 to 19 can be found in the “Statistics on Smoking: England, 2008” publication. The prevalence of smoking in 2006 in England can be found in table 2.1 on page 14. This publication has been placed in the Library.
The latest information available on the prevalence of smoking among children aged 11 to 15 can be found in the “Drug Use, Smoking and Drinking among Young People in England in 2007” publication. The prevalence of smoking in 2007 in England can be found in table 3.1 on page 116. Equivalent estimates of the number of regular smokers in 2007 among those aged 11 to 15 can be found on page 149, section 5.3. This publication has been placed in the Library.
Tobacco: Young People
Mike Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what penalties may be imposed upon those convicted for purchasing tobacco on behalf of those aged under 18 years; [242728]
(2) what budget has been allocated by his Department for the prevention of the purchase of tobacco on behalf of those under 18 years of age for the next 12 months; [242729]
(3) what guidance his Department has issued to trading standards officers on preventing of tobacco being purchased on behalf of those under 18 years of age; [242730]
(4) what powers trading standards officers have as means to prevent the purchase of tobacco on behalf of those under 18 years of age; [242731]
(5) how many people have been convicted for purchasing tobacco on behalf of another person under the age of 18 since October 2007; [242790]
(6) how many people have (a) been cautioned and (b) received a fixed penalty notice for purchasing tobacco on behalf of another person under the age of 18 since October 2007. [242791]
Dawn Primarolo: There is no criminal offence of purchasing tobacco on behalf of someone under the age of 18.
WiFi: Health Hazards
Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what discussions he has had with the chairman of the Health Protection Agency on the possible health implications of the use of wireless technology; [243950]
(2) what research he has (a) commissioned and (b) evaluated on the potential effects on health of the use of wireless technology. [243951]
Dawn Primarolo: Exposure guidelines published by the International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection (ICNIRP), are based on a comprehensive review of health effects of electromagnetic fields from sources including WiFi, mobile telephones and any wireless technology that emits radio signals. All these wireless devices are expected to comply with the ICNIRP exposure guidelines following the recommendations of the Independent Expert Group on Mobile Phones, chaired by Professor Sir William Stewart who now holds the position of Chair of the Health Protection Agency (HPA).
The HPA issued the following advice in 2007:
“There is no consistent evidence to date that WiFi and WLANs adversely affect the health of the general population. The signals are very low power, typically 0.1 watt (100 milliwatts) in both the computer and the router (access point) and the results so far show exposures are well within internationally accepted (ICNIRP) guidelines. Based on current knowledge and experience, radio frequency (RF) exposures from WiFi are likely to be lower than those from mobile phones.”
The HPA is currently carrying out a systematic programme of exposure measurements from wireless local area networks (WLANs). Further information about this study and wireless technology more generally is available on the HPA website at:
www.hpa.org.uk/webw/HPAweb&;Page&HPAwebContentAreaLanding/Page/1153822623782
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