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14 Oct 2009 : Column 898W—continued
Since the Constitutional Reform Act 2005, the Lord Chief Justice is responsible for the provision and sponsorship of judicial training, within the resources provided by the Lord Chancellor. Each year, the Judicial Studies Board publishes its own Annual Report and, on behalf of the Lord Chief Justice, a National Summary of individual Magistrates Area Training Committees'
annual reports, which includes the details and volume of the training provided in the area during the preceding year.
Ms Keeble: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what steps he is taking to ensure that all (a) magistrates sitting in adult magistrates' courts and (b) district judges receive (i) specific training in bail law and (ii) guidelines in relation to juvenile remands. [289380]
Bridget Prentice: Since the Constitutional Reform Act 2005, the Lord Chief Justice is responsible for the provision and sponsorship of judicial training, within the resources provided by the Lord Chancellor. The Lord Chief Justice exercises his executive responsibilities for oversight of the Judicial Studies Board through the Judicial Executive Board.
Each year, magistrates and district judges (magistrates court) receive training from both the Judicial Studies Board and local Magistrates Area Training Committees designed to assist in fulfilling their judicial roles and functions via courses on induction, continuation and bench chairmanship training which includes information and practising practical examples of court scenarios such as bail decisions, youths appearing in the adult court, youth remands. This is supplemented by both the Adult Court and Youth Court Bench Books which are available to courts in both hard copy and via the JSB website.
Ms Keeble: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what the names are of the chairs of the board of each youth magistrates' court. [289385]
Mr. Straw: The Ministry of Justice does not hold a central list of chairmen of youth panels for each magistrates court. Chairmen of these panels are elected annually and can service for a maximum of three years. The number of youth panel chairmen are held by the Justices' Clerks Society with names held locally at each bench. This information can be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
Youth Justice
Ms Keeble: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice (1) how many children have appeared before a magistrates' court on a Saturday in the latest year for which figures are available; [289383]
(2) how many youth courts have sat on a Saturday in the latest year for which figures are available. [289384]
Bridget Prentice: There are no figures available regarding how many children have appeared before a magistrates court on a Saturday. Data that is collected cannot be broken down into days of the week.
There are no figures available regarding whether any youth courts have sat on a Saturday. Youths appearing at court on a Saturday will appear before a magistrates court and be remanded or bailed to the relevant youth court.
Health
Blood: Contamination
Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 16 July 2009 to the hon. Member for Cardiff Central, Official Report, columns 656-57W, on blood: contamination, whether he has sought from the people whose personal information is in the seven withheld records permission to disclose those records. [290157]
Gillian Merron: No. I am advised that the documents contain personal information (exempt under section 40 of the Freedom of Information Act), some of which was provided in confidence (and so exempt under section 41 of the Freedom of Information Act). In view of the time that has elapsed, and the personal nature of the information, we do not believe that it would be appropriate for the Department to make such requests.
Drugs: Misuse
John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the annual cost to the public purse of drug action teams is; and how many staff are part of drug action teams. [292505]
Gillian Merron: Local drugs partnerships (such as Drug Action Teams) are responsible for delivering the Government's drug strategy at a local level. These combine representatives from key local bodies including local authorities, health, probation and the prison service. Because these partnerships operate at a local level, their structure differs from area to area, enabling them to best address the needs of their local populations.
Information about the structure and staffing of individual local drugs partnerships and their costs is not collected centrally.
Haemophilia
Mr. Charles Kennedy: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) how many tissue or blood samples taken from UK haemophiliacs in the last three years are held by the National Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease Surveillance Unit; [292343]
(2) how many tissue or blood samples taken from UK haemophiliacs who are deceased are held by the National Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease Surveillance Unit; [292344]
(3) how many tissue or blood samples taken from UK haemophiliacs and held by the National Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease Surveillance Unit have been tested to date. [292345]
Gillian Merron: In the past three years (January 2006 to date), as part of an ethically approved surveillance study, the National Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease Surveillance Unit (NCJDSU) has received and tested 252 tissue samples from 12 patients with haemophilia for the presence of disease-associated protein. Of these 15 tissue samples were from five living people, and 237 tissue samples from seven deceased people. All samples were tested, and all samples had consent prior to them being sent to the NCJDSU for testing. No blood samples were received or tested.
To date, in total the NCJDSU holds 372 tissue, and no blood, samples from a total of 12 deceased patients with haemophilia.
All samples received by the NCJDSU have been tested.
Mr. Charles Kennedy: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether tissue or blood samples taken from UK haemophiliacs, and held as library samples, have been tested for the presence of the PA virus in the last three years. [292347]
Gillian Merron: There have been no known such tests.
Mr. Charles Kennedy: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent advice his Department has sought on individual haemophiliacs' unique experience of multiple virus exposure, and its consequences for their health and treatment. [292348]
Gillian Merron: In the past year departmental officials have met with officials of the Haemophilia Society and, separately, with representatives of the UK Haemophilia Centre Doctors' Organisation. Haemophilia patients' experience of multiple virus exposure was discussed at some of these meetings.
Hospitals: Parking
Mr. Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) how much he expects his proposals to provide free parking for hospital in-patients to cost in each financial year; from which budgets he expects the money to be taken; and whether he expects the budgets of any other programmes to be reduced consequent on the implementation of those proposals; [292538]
(2) what estimate he has made of the percentage of income from hospital parking charges accounted for by charges paid by (a) outpatients and (b) staff; and whether these groups will have access to free parking at hospital sites under his policy for free parking for hospital in-patients. [292539]
Mr. Mike O'Brien: Over the next three years, as it can be afforded, car parking charges for in-patients will be phased out. Out-patients will benefit from improved Concession guidance that will be launched next year. Staff car parking is decided locally by national health service organisations and is not changed by the policy of phasing out of car parking charges for inpatients.
The cost per annum for phasing out car parking for in-patients and their visitors has been estimated at £141 million. Funding of these costs will be provided by reducing back office costs without affecting clinically related budgets.
The information requested on the assessment of parking charges is not available in the format requested. Data provided by the NHS in 2007-08 indicated that £27.9 million was received from staff car parking and £83.6 million from inpatients, outpatients and visitors. Parking charges relating specifically to outpatients was not collected separately. This information is as provided by the NHS and has not been amended separately. It was collected on a voluntary basis and therefore is not likely to be complete.
Mr. Burns: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans his Department has to ensure that all staff at NHS hospitals in England do not have to pay car parking charges; and if he will make a statement. [292936]
Mr. Mike O'Brien: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State recently announced plans to phase out car parking charges for in-patients. The Department has no plans to extend this to staff. It is the responsibility of each national health service organisation to set a policy on staff car parking that is appropriate to its local situation.
Midwives
Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many agency midwives were employed by each primary care trust (PCT) in each of the last five years; and how much each PCT spent on the employment of agency midwives in each such year. [292681]
Ann Keen: This information is not collected centrally.
The midwifery agency spend is collected within the financial return as part of agency nursing, midwifery and health visiting staff costs. Agency midwifery spend is not identified separately.
Midwives: Training
Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much each strategic health authority has spent on (a) three-year and (b) 18-month midwifery courses in each of the last five years. [292676]
Ann Keen: Information on how much each strategic health authority has spent on three-year and 18-month midwifery courses in each of the last five years is not held centrally.
NHS: Employment Agencies
Mr. Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will bring forward proposals to increase the number of regionally-based recruitment agencies used to supply staff to the NHS. [293007]
Ann Keen: The recently awarded nursing framework has given agencies the opportunity to tender on both a regional and national basis and the framework has been awarded regionally i.e. aligned to strategic health authority boundaries.
NHS: Renewable Energy
John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many NHS buildings use heat generated by (a) solar panels and (b) ground source heat pumps. [292014]
Mr. Mike O'Brien: The Department does not collect data centrally on the number of national health services buildings in England that use heat generated by solar panels and ground source heat pumps.
NHS organisations are legally autonomous and are best placed to make their own decisions locally about specific items of equipment, such as solar panels and ground source heat pumps, to ensure they are appropriate to meet their needs, circumstances and strategies.
The Department is committed to supporting the NHS to meet the requirements of the Climate Change Act 2008, such as carbon budgets and the forthcoming carbon reduction commitment. It is recognised that this will only be achieved by greater take-up by the NHS of renewable energy sources and better, more holistic energy efficiency measures. Provision by the Department of a £100 million energy and sustainability capital fund, encouraged the take-up of renewable energy forms of heat and power such as biomass boilers, solar panels and heat pumps.
The Department is actively supporting the NHS Sustainable Development Unit (NHS SDU), which has produced the NHS Carbon Reduction Strategy. In addition, the Department, in partnership with the Carbon Trust, is working with individual NHS organisations to identify appropriate investment strategies. The Carbon Trust along with the NHS SDU is also raising management awareness and providing implementation advice to NHS organisations.
The Department provides guidance to assist the NHS and their partners in meeting the criteria in the document Health Technical Memorandum 07-02 "Encode-making energy work in healthcare", a copy of which has been placed in the Library. This guidance provides general energy efficiency standards within healthcare facilities and covers new build and refurbishment projects as well as the energy management of existing facilities.
Prescriptions: Fees and Charges
Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what expenditure his Department has incurred on the NHS business authority administering pre-paid prescription certificates in the last 12 months; and what estimate he has made of the income forgone in exemptions to prescription charges in the same period. [291575]
Mr. Mike O'Brien: The administering of pre-payment prescription certificates (PPCs), medical exemption certificates and maternity exemption certificates is a single process. It is not possible to provide a cost for administering PPCs.
The total costs for England, including overheads, for the 12-month period August 2008 to July 2009 for administering PPCs, medical exemption certificates and maternity exemption certificates for residents of England was £4.418 million.
The estimate of income forgone in England from exemptions to prescription charges in the most recent 12 months for which data are available (August 2008 to July 2009) is £5.6 billion. The estimate assumes no deterrent effect, and no substitution of charged prescriptions with Over the Counter Medicines. This is likely to mean that this is an over-estimate.
Quality and Outcomes Framework
Sandra Gidley:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health when he expects the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence to publish on its website
a timetable for its review of Quality and Outcomes Framework indicators. [292934]
Mr. Mike O'Brien: The independent Advisory Committee met in July and agreed principles for its review of Quality and Outcomes Framework indicators. Details of these discussions have been published on the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence website and a copy placed in the Library.
Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the remit of the Quality and Outcomes indicator pilots for the Quality and Outcomes Framework will be. [292935]
Mr. Mike O'Brien: Details of the Quality and Outcomes Framework (QOF) indicator pilots are set out in the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence's (NICE'S) interim process guide for the development of QOF indicators. This guide has been published on the NICE website and a copy placed in the Library.
Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health for which diseases pilot indicator studies will be conducted for inclusion in the 2011-12 Quality and Outcomes Framework . [292949]
Mr. Mike O'Brien: The National Institute of Health and Clinical Excellence have published details of indicators currently in development and for further review on their website. A copy has been placed in the Library.
Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what mechanism exists for stakeholders to (a) contribute ideas for the expansion of or an amendment to Quality and Outcomes Framework indicators and (b) suggest new areas for pilot indicator development. [292960]
Mr. Mike O'Brien: The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence opened an online suggestions facility on 15 September to enable any stakeholder to propose new a topic-or changes to an existing topic-for Quality and Outcomes Framework. The cut-off date for the current round of submissions was 13 October. After this date, there will be a further opportunity to suggest topics in spring 2010.
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