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12 Oct 2009 : Column 732W—continued
Muscular Dystrophy
Mr. David Anderson:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will include in the forthcoming Health White Paper proposals for ring-fenced funding for
Duchenne muscular dystrophy research and clinical trials. [291768]
Gillian Merron: There are no plans to change the usual practice of the Department's National Institute for Health Research and of the Medical Research Council, not to ring-fence funds for expenditure on particular topics: research proposals in all areas compete for the funding available. Future levels of expenditure on Duchenne muscular dystrophy research will be determined by the success of relevant bids for funding.
Muscular Dystrophy: Continuing Care
Mr. David Anderson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans he has for the provision of continuing care for people with (a) Duchenne muscular dystrophy and (b) other single-gene disorders. [291767]
Phil Hope: A revised "National Framework for NHS Continuing Healthcare and NHS-funded Nursing Care" was published in August 2009. This framework covers those with Duchenne's muscular dystrophy and other single-gene disorders as the eligibility criteria for continuing care is not disease specific. A copy of the framework has been placed in the Library.
National School for Social Care Research
Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what research the National School for Social Care Research has (a) undertaken and (b) published since its establishment; and what research projects are ongoing at that school. [290391]
Gillian Merron: The National Institute of Health Research's School for Social Care Research became operational on 1 April 2009 and published its first call for research proposals in July. The school has begun a small number of preliminary studies, but none has reached the publication stage.
More information about the school and its research activities can be found on-line at:
NHS Litigation Authority
Mr. Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the largest (a) absolute and (b) percentage reduction in costs to the public purse was following successful taxation of claimant costs in cases involving the NHS Litigation Authority in each of the last five years; and which solicitor's firm was involved in each case. [289838]
Phil Hope: The information requested can only be provided at disproportionate cost, as it would involve the NHS Litigation Authority working through each and every claim received within the five-year period.
NHS: Complaints
David Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much funding his Department has provided to the Carers Federation to administer the Independent Complaints Advocacy Service in the East Midlands in each year since the service was launched in September 2003. [292390]
Phil Hope: The Department's current contract with The Carers Federation started in April 2006. A yearly breakdown of funding from the Department to the Carers Federation to administer the independent complaints advocacy service in the East Midlands from September 2003 is as follows:
| Financial year | Amount paid (£) |
NHS: Correspondence
Jim Dowd: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent estimate he has made of the annual cost to NHS hospitals of complying with his Department's copying letters policy; and what proportion of NHS patients chose to opt out of the policy. [290091]
Phil Hope: The Department does not collect information on the annual cost of copying letters to patients or on the numbers of patients that choose to opt out of receiving copies of their letters.
NHS: Cost Effectiveness
Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will place in the Library a copy of the report commissioned by his Department from McKinsey and Co. on NHS efficiency savings. [292108]
Mr. Mike O'Brien: The report McKinsey provided on how to deliver efficiency savings in the national health service was commissioned by officials in February 2009. Neither the Prime Minister or Ministers were informed of the commission or sighted on the advice. Ministers were informed following initial media inquires in September 2009. Ministers rejected the main proposals in the report. The information has been commissioned for internal NHS management consideration and is not intended for publication. It is therefore not appropriate for a copy of the report to be placed in the Library.
NHS: Costs
Peter Bottomley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health on what dates (a) he and (b) the Prime Minister were first informed of the commissioning by his Department of the study by McKinsey and Company into NHS costs, staffing and services; and when he plans to publish (i) the terms of reference of the study and (ii) its (A) interim and (B) final reports. [291490]
Mr. Mike O'Brien:
The information McKinsey provided on national health service productivity was commissioned by officials in February. Neither my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister, the Secretary of State for Health or his predecessor were informed of the commission or sighted on the advice. Ministers were informed following initial media inquiries in September. Ministers rejected the main proposal in the report. The
information had been commissioned for internal NHS management consideration and is not intended for publication.
NHS: Crimes of Violence
Anne Milton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 15 July 2009, Official Report, column 532W, on health visitors: crimes of violence, what figures his Department holds on incidents of harassment, bullying or abuse of (a) heath visitors and (b) other national health service staff by (i) patients and service users and (ii) managers. [291451]
Phil Hope: Information on the number of incidents of bullying, harassment or abuse against national health service staff is not collected centrally. This could be collected only at disproportionate cost. However, the 2008 survey of national health service staff undertaken by the Healthcare Commission provided information on staff views about working in the national health service, including experience of harassment, bullying or abuse. The relevant findings are presented in the following table.
| Percentage staff experiencing harassment, bullying or abuse from patients/relatives in last 12 months | Percentage staff experiencing harassment, bullying or abuse from staff in last 12 months | |
NHS: Drugs
Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 15 July 2009, Official Report, column 524W, on risk assessment of automatic generic drug substitution, what plans he has to undertake (a) a full risk benefit analysis and (b) other impact assessment evaluation in respect of each specific proposal; and if he will make a statement. [290156]
Mr. Touhig: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) when he expects his Department to publish proposals for the implementation of generic substitution; [291537]
(2) when he plans to launch his consultation on the implementation of generic substitution. [291538]
Mr. Mike O'Brien: The Department is currently refining its proposals for the implementation of generic substitution and plans to formally consult in the autumn. An impact assessment will be published alongside the consultation document.
Mr. Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent assessment he has made of the effects on levels of availability of pharmaceuticals in the UK of increases in exports of such pharmaceuticals consequent on the value of sterling. [291782]
Mr. Mike O'Brien:
We have had reports from pharmaceutical manufacturers, wholesalers and pharmacy contractors of problems with the supply of medicines
attributed to increased exports of medicines with the decline in value of the sterling. The Department is watching the situation with care.
NHS: Finance
Chris Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate he has made of the savings which have accrued to the NHS arising from the introduction of NHS charging for those refused asylum in the UK in each year since 2004. [291808]
Phil Hope: Although total income received from chargeable overseas patients is recorded, national health service trusts do not routinely record the immigration status of patients that are treated either free or on a chargeable basis. Hence, no estimate is available of the savings accrued to the NHS from charging those refused asylum in the United Kingdom.
NHS: Negligence
Mr. Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many claims were made under the Clinical Negligence Scheme for Trusts in each financial year since 1997-98 for which figures are available; what the combined monetary value of such claims was in each year; and what proportion of such claims (a) were for the recovery of the claimant's legal and other costs and (b) related to each clinical area in each year. [291501]
Phil Hope: The information requested was provided by the NHS Litigation Authority and a copy has been placed in the Library.
Mr. Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the highest ratio of claimant costs to legal costs in cases involving the NHS litigation authority in respect of which legal proceedings have been completed was in each of the last five years; and how much was spent on (a) claimant costs and (b) damages in total in relation to such cases in which claimant costs exceeded damages in each of those years. [291711]
Phil Hope: The NHS Litigation Authority does not record data specifically on legal costs, but records global costs paid by defendants and claimants, which will include legal costs, medical expert witnesses and other disbursements. To provide data specifically on legal costs would be at disproportionate cost.
The NHS Litigation Authority has provided data in the following tables that cover overall claimant costs and damages as an alternative to the information requested.
| Table 1: Top highest claimant costs to damages ratio for clinical negligence claims in each of the last five years where legal proceedings were completed in those years | |||
| Year of closure | Damages paid (£) | Claimant costs paid (£) | Proportion of costs to damages (percentage) |
| Table 2: Damages and claimant costs paid on all closed clinical negligence claims where the claimant costs exceeded the damages by year of closure | ||
| Year of closure | Damages paid (£) | Claimant costs paid (£) |
NHS: Pay
Mike Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 6 July 2009, Official Report, column 583-84W, on staff pay, how many staff received a salary of more than £100,000 in current prices in each year; and how many staff were receiving a salary of more than £100,000 on 1 April 2009. [290286]
Phil Hope: The number of the Department's staff receiving a salary of more than £100,000 in each year, expressed in prices as at 1 April 2009, is presented in the following table.
| In post date as at 1 April each year | Number of staff |
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