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14 May 2009 : Column 977W—continued
Palestinians: Overseas Aid
Mr. Sharma: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what steps his Department has taken to alleviate the humanitarian conditions of people in Gaza in the last 12 months. [275057]
Mr. Michael Foster:
The Department for International Development (DFID) funds the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) to provide schooling for 200,000 children in Gaza, and health care for the 70 per
cent. of Gazans who are refugees. Our funding for the Palestinian Authority also helps support delivery of essential services in Gaza.
Since December 2008 DFID pledged close to £47 million to assist with humanitarian relief and early recovery activities. Of this, nearly £7 million has already been allocated to non-governmental organisations. A further £12.8 million has been allocated to United Nations agencies and the International Committee of the Red Cross. Throughout this period we have also consistently lobbied the Israeli Government on the need to improve access for humanitarian supplies and personnel into Gaza.
Mr. Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much (a) financial aid and (b) building material his Department has provided to Gaza since November 2008; and how much such building material has been delivered into Gaza to date. [275519]
Mr. Michael Foster: Following the Gaza conflict which started in December 2008, the Department for International Development (DFID) has pledged £46.8 million to assist with humanitarian relief and early recovery activities. £19.8 million has already, been allocated to United Nations (UN) agencies and non-governmental organisations. Since 2008, DFID has also funded the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) to provide schooling to 200,000 children in Gaza and healthcare to the 70 per cent. of Gazans who are refugees. DFID also provides funding to the Palestinian Authority (PA) to deliver essential services in Gaza.
DFID has not directly provided building materials in Gaza. However, a number of the projects we fund are helping to provide shelter, and rehabilitate schools and basic water infrastructure. Further details on these projects are available on the DFID website:
We do not know exactly how much building material has been allowed into Gaza to date. Severe restrictions remain on the import of water and sanitation materials, cement and other reconstruction materials. Meaningful recovery and reconstruction of houses and infrastructure will be very difficult while these remain in place.
St. Helena: Overseas Aid
Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what recent assessment he has made of the effect on the level of private funding for the island of St. Helena of the decision to delay the construction of an airport on the island. [274788]
Mr. Michael Foster: Our assessment of the effects on private sector investment following the pause in the negotiations on the St. Helena airport is that it is likely to be reduced in this financial year. This is because many current plans for investment by local businesses, which are modest in scale, have been put on hold pending a final decision following the consultation that is under way. In regard to foreign investment, the St. Helena Development Agency (SHDA) has received interest from five investors in a range of development projects, which are now on hold. The largest potential investor in the hotel resort sector has confirmed commitment to St. Helena while the prospect of air access remains.
Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development on what assumptions the reference to increased uncertainties in respect of funding for the proposed airport in St. Helena in the St. Helena Air Access Consultation document was based; and if he will make a statement. [274808]
Mr. Michael Foster: The St. Helena Air Access Consultation Document refers to uncertainties about the assumptions underlying the airport investment. Examples given in paragraph 36 are: uncertainties about the possibility of cost escalation, due to currency fluctuation for example; and uncertainty over the speed with which benefits can build up, for example the rate and level at which tourism projections would materialise. The document also refers to the worsening global economic conditions and uncertainty over predictions as to how long the current situation will last.
Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what assessment has he made of the change to the annual level of subsidy for the Island of St. Helena following the decision to defer a decision on the construction of an airport on the Island. [274809]
Mr. Michael Foster: The decision to pause negotiations on the St. Helena airport contract has not affected the level of DFID financial assistance for the island in the current planning cycle. The present three-year assistance package, which was negotiated with the Government of St. Helena (SHG) in 2007 remains unchanged. Our next assessment of the annual level of subsidy for St. Helena will be carried out jointly with SHG in early 2010. This will take into account the decision on the airport following the conclusion of the consultation now under way.
Sudan: Overseas Aid
Mrs. Ellman: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what humanitarian assistance the Government has given to Darfur in the last two years; and if he will make a statement. [275620]
Mr. Ivan Lewis: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer given to the hon. Member for Buckingham (John Bercow) on 25 March 2009, Official Report, column 401W, and to my hon. Friend the Member for Coventry, South (Mr. Cunningham) on 23 April 2009, Official Report, column 849W.
World Bank: Health
Mr. Sharma: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what assessment his Department has made of the effectiveness of the World Bank in delivering successful outcomes through its health programmes since 1997. [275004]
Mr. Ivan Lewis: The World Bank has a key role to play in supporting countries develop and sustain strong health systems. The World Bank's role in health was recently evaluated by the bank's Independent Evaluation Group (IEG). We took a close interest in the evaluation and participated actively in discussions of the group's findings at the bank's board.
The bank is committed to improving its performance in health. We believe that the bank's Health, Nutrition and Population Strategy, which was launched in 2007, sets the right direction and is already helping to address several of the weaknesses identified by IEG's evaluation. The bank recognises that it needs to improve performance and to ensure that it has the capacity it needs to play an effective role, especially in Africa.
Health
Accident and Emergency Departments: Mentally Ill
Simon Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether his Department has issued guidance to NHS trusts on the treatment of mentally ill patients who attend accident and emergency departments in hospitals; and if he will make a statement. [275429]
Phil Hope: On 30 April 2004, a new checklist, “Improving the management of patients with mental ill health in emergency care settings”, was published by the Department. A copy has been placed in the Library. The checklist is for accident and emergency staff to help them with their patients with mental health problems. The checklist outlines areas for action and includes examples of the ways in which some services are addressing some of these challenges.
Cancer
Mr. Mark Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many cancer patients with each type of cancer there have been in each primary care trust area in each year since 1997. [274406]
Ann Keen: Information on the numbers of patients living with cancer in each primary care trust (prevalence) is not held centrally. However, the number of new cases of cancer diagnosed in each year (incidence) since 1997 by Government Office Region can be viewed on the Office for National Statistics' website at:
Cancer: Health Services
Mr. Mark Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much each primary care trust spent on cancer services for each type of cancer in each year since 1997. [274403]
Ann Keen: The information is not available in the format requested. The following table shows an estimate of the gross expenditure on cancers and tumours by the national health service in England for all cancer and tumour types, for the last four available financial years. This information was first collected in 2003-04 and is not available for any previous years.
| Estimated gross expenditure on cancer and tumours (all types) from 2003-04 to 2006-07 | |
| Gross expenditure on cancers and tumours—all types (£) | |
| Source: Department of Health Resource Accounts | |
A table showing the gross expenditure on cancer and tumours at sub-level for 2006-07, the first year that this data was collected at sub-category level for a number of cancer and tumour types, by each primary care trust (PCT), has been placed in the Library. This table shows expenditure on each PCT's own local population. The figures include primary prescribing but exclude general medical services and personal medical services expenditure and any prevention-related expenditure, such as screening.
Cardiovascular System: Medical Treatments
Ms Hewitt: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what research his Department has (a) commissioned and (b) evaluated on the effects of the use of polypills combining statins and other medicines on levels of circulatory disease-related (i) deaths and (ii) disability in people over the age of 55 years; [R] [274092]
(2) whether his Department plans to make available to people over the age of 55 years a polypill combining statins with other medicines to reduce the risk of circulatory diseases. [R] [274093]
Ann Keen: The Department has not commissioned and evaluated the effects of the use of polypills. However, there are at least three phase I or II studies under way:
At Imperial, Neil Poulter and Simone Thorn are already involved in a primary prevention trial of a Polypill (simvastatin 20 mg, hydrochlorothiazide 12.5 mg, lisinopril 10 mg, aspirin 75mg) cost ~ 1 dollar/month. The collaboration is being led by Anthony Rodgers in Auckland and includes centres in Brazil, United States of America, the Netherlands, India, Australia, United Kingdom (our centre here at St. Mary’s-Imperial) and New Zealand. The pill has been made by Dr. Reddy’s which is a big generic pharmaceutical company in India. The project is supported by the Wellcome Trust, the New Zealand medical research council and by other local organisations in the participating countries (for us—the British Heart Foundation). The pilot phase has started-the first patient was evaluated here in London last week—this is a 12-week pilot to test tolerability, safety and efficacy. Towards the end of next year they hope to proceed to the main morbidity and mortality trial that will include five-7,000 patients over three-five years. The project is quite well summarised in a recent Guardian article:
Dr. Rodgers has been working with Dr. Reddy since about 2000 and the technical problems of Galenic formulation for a four component cardiovascular Polypill (the Red Heart Pill) have been solved. This Polypill has been approved by several regulatory authorities (including the UK and the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency)—hence the primary prevention trial described above.
The University of Birmingham and Tehran University of Medical Sciences have completed a randomised controlled trial of a four component polypill in approximately 500 men aged 50 to 79 and women aged 55 to 79. This is a pilot study, with the aim of starting a fully powered clinical trial if this is successful. The Polypill consists of aspirin, a statin, an angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitor, and a thiazide diuretic. The aim is essentially to look at compliance and determine the effects of treatment on blood pressure and lipid concentrations. Recruitment began in 2006 in Golestan (northeast Iran), and follow-up was completed earlier this year. They proposed to submit for publication soon. This is led by Tom Marshall, senior lecturer in public health University of Birmingham, on behalf of Fatemeh Malekzadeh Akram Pourshams, Mina Gharravi, Afshin Aslani, Alireza Nateghi, Mansoor Rastegarpanah, Masoud Khoshnia, G. Neil Thomas, Bagher Larijani, Reza Malekzadeh, K. K. Cheng.
Trial in Madrid, Spain—Secondary Prevention study—a three-component polypill, which comprises aspirin, a statin and an angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitor (which helps lower blood pressure), for secondary prevention in patients who have already suffered an acute myocardial infarction. The project is a private-public venture with Ferrer-Internacional, which is a Spanish pharmaceutical company based in Barcelona with experience in the development and launching of international projects. The new formulation will be available in 2010.
The Department has met the original Polypill authors on a number of occasions. The initial conclusions were that this type of approach would be more suitable in developing countries rather than in more sophisticated healthcare systems such as ours where tailored therapy is more the norm.
The Department is currently exploring how to reassess this issue in the light of fresh interest in the topic.
Care Homes
Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many care homes have transferred from local authority operation to private ownership in each of the last three years. [273694]
Phil Hope: We are informed by the Care Quality Commission that the information requested is not collected.
Cervical Cancer: Screening
Mr. Mark Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) when all colposcopy patients will be able to choose between local and general anaesthesia for their treatments; [274401]
(2) which NHS hospitals have sufficient facilities to treat all colposcopy patients receiving (a) punch biopsy, (b) large-loop excision of the transformation zone and (c) other cervical treatments under local or general anaesthetic; and which such hospitals advertise both forms of anaesthesia in their patient literature. [274402]
Ann Keen: Data on the number and type of facilities within national health service hospitals providing colposcopy punch biopsy, large-loop excision of the transformation zone and other cervical treatments under local and general anaesthetic are not held centrally.
The choice between the most appropriate types of anaesthesia to use for such procedures is a clinical one and should be reached following discussion between the patient and the clinician, taking into account the patient's wishes and which is the most clinically appropriate type of anaesthesia for the individual patient.
Departmental Mobile Phones
Mr. Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many (a) BlackBerry devices and (b) mobile telephones have been lost by (i) Ministers, (ii) special advisers and (iii) civil servants in his Department in each year since 2005. [274467]
Mr. Bradshaw: The Department does not breakdown losses by the type of owner. While the BlackBerry is now the only supported personal digital assistant (PDA) the figures for PDAs, particularly in the early years include other makes like, Ipaq, Palm pilot, Psion etc.
| PDA (including BlackBerry) and mobile phone losses April 2005 to March 2009 | ||
| Personal digital assistants | Mobile phones | |
Information contained on BlackBerry devices is protected by a strong password and can be remotely wiped once the loss has been reported. Mobile phones lost will contain contact details but are unlikely to contain more sensitive information.
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