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22 Feb 2010 : Column 154Wcontinued
Mr. Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what guidance his Department has issued to (a) primary care trusts and (b) regional procurement hubs in ensuring that commissioning arrangements for the provision of urology and stoma devices takes account of the outcomes of the most recent Part IX review consultation; [317934]
(2) what steps his Department is taking to ensure that the use of local tenders and product formularies for urology products does not affect the availability of Part IX products to patients who gain access to them through the prescription process; [317936]
(3) what mechanisms his Department plans to put in place to ensure consistency in the use of local tenders and product formularies for urology products and services in primary care, with particular reference to the outcomes of the most recent Part IX review consultation. [317935]
Dr. Ladyman: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what assessment has been made of the effects on levels of competition in the urology industry of the development of local primary care trust tenders for the provision of urology products and services; and if he will make a statement; [317340]
(2) what assessment has been made of the effects on patient choice of the increasing use of tenders and formularies in primary care for urology and stoma products and services; and if he will make a statement; [317341]
(3) what his Department is doing to ensure that the use of local primary care trust tenders and product formularies for urology products does not prevent patients being able to access their choice of Part IX products via the normal prescription process; and if he will make a statement. [317342]
Mr. Mike O'Brien: Any decisions to undertake local procurement activity rests with the national health service organisations that initiate them.
Following the review of the supply of certain appliances for primary care, as listed in part IX of the Drug Tariff, new arrangements were announced in April 2009 and the relevant amendment regulations were laid on 22 December 2009. These are accompanied by directions to provide for new advanced services. There will also be changes to the Drug Tariff from 1 April 2010 to take account of associated new fees and allowances and a reduction of reimbursement prices for some appliances.
The Department is in ongoing dialogue with industry, industry trade federations, collaborative procurement hubs and primary care trusts (PCTs) over the use of local tenders and product formularies for products and services covered by part IX of the Drug Tariff. The aim of this dialogue is to agree clear guidance for PCTs on this matter.
The Department is not aware of any ongoing local tenders for part IX products. Any local procurement or tenders do not override the clinical judgment of the GP, who is still free to prescribe products listed in part IX of the Drug Tariff to meet the specific needs of patients.
Mr. Hurd: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Peterborough (Mr. Jackson) of 27 October 2009, Official Report, column 251W, on 10 Downing Street, how purchase orders for expenditure on renovation and refurbishment are (a) authorised and (b) electronically held; how quotations are obtained in advance of work on renovation and refurbishment; and how the Total Facilities Management Provider is reimbursed for expenditure on renovation and refurbishment over and above routine maintenance. [315220]
Ms Butler: All expenditure incurred by the Cabinet Office is procured and authorised in accordance with published departmental guidance on financial procedures and propriety, based on principles set out in 'Managing Public Money' and the Treasury handbook on 'Regularity & Propriety'. The departmental guidance is available to all staff on the Cabinet Office intranet.
Only staff with the appropriate delegated financial authority may authorise Cabinet Office expenditure.
Mr. Hurd: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what the (a) title and (b) notional budget is of each advertising and marketing campaign co-ordinated through the Central Office of Information in 2009-10. [315203]
Angela E. Smith: I have asked the chief executive of the Central Office of Information to write to the hon. Member.
Letter from Mark Lund, dated 8 February 2010:
As Chief Executive of the Central Office of Information (COI), I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question [315203] regarding Government Campaigns co-ordinated through COI.
This information is not held centrally within COI and could only be made available at disproportionate cost.
Campaigns for the current year may not, at present, have the final title and release of such information may be misleading.
Budgets for campaigns are not held by COI but by the commissioning department.
Accurate information for the current financial year will only be published once the annual accounts have been fully audited.
Mr. Hurd: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office with reference to the Central Office of Information press release of 11 December 2009, on the merchandising and promotional items framework, how much the Central Office of Information has spent on promotional food and drink products in each of the last three years; what suppliers were used; and on behalf of which public bodies promotional food and drink was procured. [315223]
Angela E. Smith: I have asked the chief executive of the Central Office of Information to write to the hon. Member.
Letter from Mark Lund, dated 8 February 2010:
As Chief Executive of the Central Office of Information (COI), I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question [315223] regarding the Merchandising and Promotional Framework.
The only company used for promotional products included in the new framework, in each of the last 3 financial years, was Sweet Concepts ltd. This was prior to the start of the specific framework mentioned.
Promotional products were purchased on behalf of the following clients;
British Transport Police
Health and Safety Executive
Home Office
Learning and Skills Council
University for Industry
Royal Air Force
Dept of Health
Police Information Technology Organisation.
Total (£) | |
Mr. Gordon Prentice: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office if she will request the Charity Commission to require charities which have been found by the Commission to have raised money for a purpose outside their charitable objects to post information to this effect on their website and to indicate the steps they are taking to return such donations to the donors. [317183]
Angela E. Smith: The Charity Commission is an independent non-ministerial Government Department responsible for the support and supervision of charities in England and Wales under the Charities Acts 1993 and 2006. The Charity Commission is not subject to ministerial direction or control, and it would not be appropriate for me to make such a request. However, I have made the Charity Commission aware of your concerns.
A charity should take immediate action if it realises that it has made an appeal outside of its purposes. Where possible, it would be necessary for the charity
running the appeal to contact the donors to clarify the basis on which they made their donation. The next steps would depend on the circumstances of the appeal and should be taken in consultation with the Charity Commission.
Mr. Gordon Prentice: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what steps the Charity Commission is taking to ensure that charities file their accounts with the Commission within the prescribed timescales. [317184]
Angela E. Smith: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the Charity Commission. I have asked the Commission to reply.
Letter from Andrew Hind, dated 11 February 2010:
As the Chief Executive of the Charity Commission, I have been asked to respond to your written Parliamentary Question on what steps the Charity Commission is taking to ensure that charities file their accounts with the Commission within the prescribed timescales (317184).
To ensure that charities file their accounts within the prescribed time limit the Commission:
issues reminders by letter or email three months and one month prior to the submission deadline;
makes telephone contact with charities with income in excess of £5 million if they do not respond to written reminders;
clearly highlights any failure to submit accounts on the online public Register of Charities.
These measures are supported by periodic press campaigns, most recently the Commission's File on Time campaign launched in February 2010.
Charities that fail to comply may be subject to enforcement action or may be removed from the Register if it appears that they are no longer operating.
The percentage of charities filing accounts on time has risen from 66% in 2006 to 81% in the year to January 2010. In 2008-9, 94% of the sector's income was accounted for in annual accounts filed within the ten month deadline.
I hope this is helpful.
Mr. Maude: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many people were employed by (a) local government, (b) central government, (c) public corporations and (d) the Civil Service in (i) 1996 and (ii) the latest period for which figures are available. [312186]
Angela E. Smith: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.
Letter from Dennis Roberts, dated January 2010:
The Director General for the Office for National Statistics has been asked to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question concerning how many people were employed by (a) local government, (b) central government, (c) public corporations and (d) the Civil Service in (i) 1996 and (ii) the latest period for which figures are available. I am replying in his absence. (312186)
Estimates of employment for the public sector are taken from the ONS release on Public Sector Employment at
Data for the Quarterly Public Sector Employment Survey (QPSES) is collected on a quarterly basis; the latest date for which information is available is September 2009 (Annex A).
Annex A: Employment in (a) local government, (b) central government, (c) public corporations and (d) the Civil Service in (i) 1996 and (ii) the latest period for which figures are available | ||||
United Kingdom; Headcount (thousands); Not seasonally adjusted | ||||
Local Government | Central Government( 1) | Public Corporations( 2) | Civil Service( 1) | |
(1) Home Civil Service (excludes Northern Ireland Civil Service which is included in Central Government). (2) Royal Bank of Scotland Group and Lloyds Banking Group classified to public sector from 13 October 2008. Source: Office for National Statistics |
Mr. Dismore: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office pursuant to the answer of 8 February 2010, Official Report, column 800W, on death: liver diseases, how many alcohol-related deaths there were in the latest year for which figures are available, excluding deaths with an underlying cause of chronic liver disease and cirrhosis that do not mention alcohol as a contributing factor. [317565]
Angela E. Smith: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
Letter from Stephen Penneck, dated February 2010:
As Director General for the Office for National Statistics, I have been asked to reply to your recent question pursuant to the Answer of 8 February 2010, Official Report, column 800W, on death: liver diseases, how many alcohol-related deaths there were in the latest year for which figures are available, excluding deaths with an underlying cause of chronic liver disease and cirrhosis that do not mention alcohol as a contributing factor. (317565)
Figures provided in the previous Answer were the number of deaths with an underlying cause of (a) chronic liver disease and (b) cirrhosis, and the number of cases where alcohol is also mentioned on the death certificate as a contributing factor, in England and Wales, in 2008 (the latest year available) (Table 1).
According to the National Statistics definition, there were 7,344 deaths with an alcohol-related underlying cause in England and Wales in 2008 (the latest year available).(1, 2, 3)
The causes of death included in the previous Answer for chronic liver disease are not all included within the National Statistics definition of alcohol-related deaths. The causes listed for cirrhosis are included both in the causes for chronic liver disease and in the National Statistics definition. The causes of death previously given for chronic liver disease and cirrhosis, conditions which mention alcohol and the National Statistics alcohol-related deaths definition are listed below in Box 1.
Of the 6,514 deaths where chronic liver disease was the underlying cause of death in England and Wales in 2008,(4, 2, 3) 6,320 are included within the National Statistics definition of alcohol-related deaths (Figure 1).(5) Of these, there were 4,781 deaths where alcohol was mentioned on the death certificate as a contributing factor, and 1,539 deaths where there was no explicit mention of alcohol (Figure 2).(6)
There were 5,805 deaths with an alcohol-related underlying cause, excluding deaths where the underlying cause was chronic liver disease (within the National Statistics definition) and alcohol was not mentioned on the death certificate as a contributing factor, in England and Wales, in 2008.(2, 3)
This figure was derived by subtracting the number of deaths where chronic liver disease (within the National Statistics definition) was the underlying cause of death and there was no mention of alcohol on the death certificate (1,539) from the total number of alcohol-related deaths (7,344).
Internationally accepted guidance from the World Health Organisation requires only those conditions that contributed directly to the death to be recorded on the death certificate. Medical practitioners and coroners are not supposed to record all of the diseases or conditions present at or before death, and whether a condition contributed is a matter for their clinical judgement. Lifestyle and behavioural factors, such as the deceased's alcohol consumption, are not recorded.
Although not all deaths coded to liver disease and cirrhosis include a mention of alcohol on the death certificate, most are included in the official definition of alcohol-related deaths on the assumption that many of them were caused by alcohol, even if this was not explicitly stated.
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