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15 Dec 2009 : Column 1056W—continued
Smoking: Young People
Mr. Crausby: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what progress has been made in reducing the incidence of smoking in the 11 to 15-year-old age group over the last three years. [306562]
Gillian Merron: Information is not available in the format requested.
Information on the incidence of smoking among young people (defined as regular smokers, occasional smokers and current smokers) is contained within table 2.1 of 'Smoking, Drinking and Drug Use among Young People in England in 2008'. Information is provided by gender and includes the years 2006, 2007 and 2008.
This publication has been placed in the Library and is also available on the NHS Information Centre website at:
Social Security Benefits: Disabled
Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will publish the models his Department has produced on changing (a) disability benefits and (b) attendance allowance. [307693]
Phil Hope: We have not taken any decisions on whether some benefits for older people will be reformed in the new care and support system. If we do decide to integrate some benefits for older people into the new care and support system, we will provide further details in our White Paper next year.
We have been working with the personal social services research unit (PSSRU) to provide the modelling and analysis to underpin our policy development for the Green and White Papers. We were provided with an interim report from PSSRU in November but that was based on a view of the system when the Green Paper was published. Our core modelling assumptions have changed quite significantly since then as a result of our stakeholder engagement, responses to our consultation and developments such as the Prime Minister's announcement on free personal care. The report is therefore only part of the story and we have come to the conclusion that to publish it now could be unhelpful to the wider debate on the future of care and support.
The whole methodology of the interim report was published in July on the PSSRU's website at:
The top level costs and benefits are in the impact assessment published with the Green Paper and available on the big care debate website at:
PSSRU continue to model the costs and benefits of a new national care service based on revised assumptions.
Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the contributions of the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Work and Pensions on 8 December 2009, Official Report, column 154, whether the term (a) equivalent level of support and (b) no cash losers are equivalent. [307694]
Phil Hope: As we said in the Green Paper, if we do reform disability benefits for older people, anyone receiving an affected benefit at the time of reform would continue to receive an equivalent level of support and protection. We have confirmed that this means they would not experience a cash loss as a result of any such reforms.
Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what effect his policy of no cash losers has on the proposal for reform set out in the Government's social care Green Paper; [307722]
(2) what estimate he has made of the cost to the public purse of the policy of no cash losers. [307723]
Phil Hope: We think it is important to provide certainty to those people who will be in receipt of disability benefits for older people when we introduce the new National Care Service. If disability benefits for older people were reformed as part of the National Care Service, those receiving the affected benefits at the time of reform would continue to receive the same level of cash support. We will give more details about the National Care Service offer in our White Paper next year, and this will include information on the costs and benefits of a new care and support system.
Social Services
Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many representations he has received on paragraphs 5.18 and 5.19 of the impact assessment for the Personal Care at Home Bill. [305754]
Phil Hope: To date we have not received any representations on paragraphs 5.18 and 5.19 of the impact assessment of the Personal Care at Home Bill.
Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health with reference to paragraph 5.28 of the impact assessment for the Personal Care at Home Bill, what estimate he has made of the margin at which an individual may run down savings in order to qualify for free personal care; and what estimate he has made of the (a) maximum and (b) minimum numbers of people expected to apply for free personal care. [305973]
Phil Hope: Paragraph 5.28 of the impact assessment discusses the incentive to run down savings in order to qualify for free personal care as one of a range of benefits which may in principle result from the proposals. As reducing the savings disincentive is not a primary policy objective of the proposal, an assessment of its possible scale has not been made.
The expected number of people who will benefit from the Personal Care at Home Bill is shown in Table 2 of the impact assessment. These figures suggest that an estimated 110,000 older people and younger adults will become eligible to receive free personal care, above and beyond those approximately 170,000 people who already receive care for free or the 37,061 people who make a means-tested contribution. For the purposes of the impact assessment, it has been assumed that 100 per cent. of those estimated to become eligible will apply for free personal care, since it is likely that those individuals who do not choose to receive free care organised by their council may choose instead to receive the equivalent sum in the form of a personal health budget.
Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what funding streams he has identified for the reform of the social care system. [307724]
Phil Hope: In the Green Paper "Shaping the Future of Care and Support Together", we said that Government must make sure that the money it is spending on care and support is being used in the most effective way. However, as a society, we will have to spend more money on care and support to meet the needs and expectations of people who will need care and support in the future. The Green Paper sets out different ways that this could be achieved.
In addition, we said that there is a case for drawing some funding streams together to enable us to deliver the new and better care and support system we want to create. We think we should consider integrating some elements of disability benefits for older people, for example attendance allowance, to create a new offer for individuals with care needs.
We have ruled out any incorporation of disability living allowance for under-65s into the new National Care Service.
Social Services: Public Consultation
Mr. Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many Big Care Debate events have been held since the publication of the Green Paper on shaping the future of care together, in July 2009; in which Parliamentary constituencies these events have been held; and which hon. and right hon. Members have been (a) invited to attend these events and (b) are recorded as having attended these events. [307204]
Phil Hope: During the Green Paper consultation period, the Department organised 80 roadshows for the public, and 37 events for stakeholders. They were held in the following constituencies: Ashford; Basingstoke; Bath; Bedford; Bethnal Green and Bow; Birmingham, Ladywood; Blackpool South; Bognor Regis and Littlehampton; Bournemouth East; Bournemouth West; Brecon and Radnorshire; Brighton, Pavilion; Bristol East; Carlisle; Cities of London and Westminster; City of York; Crawley; Croydon Central; Darlington; Dartford; Derby South; Dudley South; Ealing, Acton and Shepherd's Bush; Exeter; Harborough; Kingston upon Hull West and Hessle; Lancaster and Wyre; Leeds Central; Leicester South; Leicester West; Lincoln; Liverpool, Riverside; Manchester Central; Morley and Rothwell; Newcastle upon Tyne Central; North East Milton Keynes; North Swindon; North West Durham; Northampton South; Norwich North; Norwich South; Nottingham South; Nuneaton; Oxford West and Abingdon; Peterborough; Poplar and Canning Town; Reading East; Rugby and Kenilworth; Sheffield Central; Sheffield, Attercliffe; Southampton, Itchen; Stoke-on-Trent Central; Stretford and Urmston; Taunton; Telford; Tunbridge Wells; Tyne Bridge; Vauxhall; and Wolverhampton South West.
The following hon. and right hon. Members were invited to attend Big Care Debate stakeholder events located in the Government Office Region for which they were responsible as Regional Ministers: the hon. Member for Dudley, North (Mr. Austin); the right hon. Member for Newcastle upon Tyne, East and Wallsend (Mr. Brown); the hon. Member for Stevenage (Barbara Follett); the right hon. Member for Dulwich and West Norwood (Tessa Jowell); the right hon. Member for South Dorset (Jim Knight); the hon. Member for Chatham and Aylesford
(Jonathan Shaw); the right hon. Member for Doncaster, Central (Ms Winterton); and the hon. Member for Oldham, East and Saddleworth (Mr. Woolas).
We have on record that the Secretary of State for Health, the Minister of State for Care Services and the Regional Minister for Yorkshire and Humber each attended one or more Big Care Debate events.
Sunbeds: Research
Mark Simmonds: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent research his Department has (a) commissioned and (b) evaluated on the use of ultraviolet tanning equipment by minors; and if he will make a statement. [306483]
Gillian Merron: The Department has recently commissioned, through Cancer Research UK, two large face-to-face surveys of sunbed use in over 9,000 children aged 11 to 17 in England. The first of these established that 6 per cent. of 11 to 17-year-olds had used a sunbed. A letter detailing some of the findings was published in the British Medical Journal on 13 November 2009. Further information on sunbed use by children and young people can be found at:
Swine Flu: Disease Control
Mrs. Lait: To ask the Secretary of State for Health for what reasons general practitioners are required to provide monthly returns to his Department on swine influenza injections giving the (a) date of birth, (b) diagnostic code and (c) date of injection of each patient; and to what use this information is required. [306330]
Gillian Merron: Monthly data on swine influenza (H1N1) vaccinations are collected from all general practitioners in order that the number of people in the priority and age groups for vaccination that have been vaccinated can be determined and followed through time.
These data are important to collect as they allow the progress of the vaccination programme to be monitored and they inform the management of the programme and planning of any extension to it.
Swine Flu: Telephone Services
John Battle: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many telephone calls have been dealt with by the swine influenza hotline in each month since it came into operation. [306936]
Gillian Merron: The Department collects data on telephone calls to both the Swine Flu Information Line and the National Pandemic Flu Service (NPFS). The monthly data for each are provided as follows.
| Swine Flu Information Line | |
| Number | |
| National Pandemic Flu Service | |||
| Contact type | |||
| Telephone | Web | Total | |
We cannot provide a breakdown of the calls made to the NPFS before 16 August as the system in place, prior to that time, could not do this.
Tourette Syndrome
Mr. Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what provision is made in the training of general practitioners to enable them to recognise and support people with Tourette syndrome; and if he will make a statement. [306532]
Ann Keen: The content of curriculum and quality and standard of training for general practitioners is not the responsibility of the Department but the responsibility of the appropriate professional regulatory body.
However, the Department is committed to working with the professional regulatory bodies, royal colleges and others to promote high standards of education and training to ensure that doctors are equipped with the up-to-date knowledge, skills and attitudes essential for professional practice.
Children, Schools and Families
Academies: National Curriculum Tests
Mr. Keetch: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families for what reasons academies at which pupils do not take standard assessment tests are included in the statistics for these tests; and if he will make a statement. [306512]
Mr. Coaker [holding answer 14 December 2009]: Academies, like maintained schools, have a responsibility to administer National Curriculum tests at Key Stage 2 as part of their Funding Agreement. It is a requirement that the results of all schools are published in the Key Stage 2 tables.
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