Family Courts

Kelvin Hopkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many guardians ad litem were employed by family courts in England and Wales in 2010. [65030]

Tim Loughton: The Department does not hold this information; this is an operational matter for which CAFCASS is responsible. CAFCASS’s chief executive, Anthony Douglas, has written to the hon. Member with this information. A copy of his reply has been placed in the House Libraries.

Letter from Anthony Douglas, dated 7 July 2011:

I am writing to you in response to the Parliamentary Question that you tabled recently: The response applies to England only.

The number of Family Court Advisers employed by Cafcass as at 31 December 2010 is as follows:

Family Courts Advisers—1,110

Self Employed Contractors—approximately 350.

11 July 2011 : Column 90W

It is important to note that the family courts are not the employers of those who work as guardians ad litem and that both employed Family Court Advisers and self-employed contractors are able to be appointed by the courts to fulfil the functions of a guardian ad litem.

Family Intervention

Yvette Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how much funding was allocated to family intervention projects in (a) 2007-08, (b) 2008-09, (c) 2009-10, (d) 2010-11 and (e) 2011-12. [65002]

Tim Loughton: The Government allocated £9,049,684 in 2007-08, £11,201,586 in 2008-09, £33,604,489 in 2009-10, £49,789,569 in 2010-11 and £46 million in 2011-12 for family intervention projects/services. The ring fence for this funding was removed in May 2010.

Free Schools

Mr Raab: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government on (a) any criteria to be applied in planning issues and (b) the process for determining planning issues in relation to the establishment of free schools. [64064]

Mr Gibb [holding answer 5 July 2011]: The Secretary of State for Education, my right hon. Friend the Member for Surrey Heath (Michael Gove), has had a number of discussions with the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, my right hon. Friend the Member for Brentwood and Ongar (Mr Pickles), on this issue. We will announce any further steps on improving the planning system in relation to free schools in due course.

Primary Education: Capital Investment

Gavin Williamson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what forecasts of the primary school population his Department prepared for the purposes of determining future levels of capital funding in the last five years. [64009]

Mr Gibb: It is the responsibility of each local authority to prepare their primary pupil forecasts. As part of the strategic management of their schools, we require authorities to produce a forecast of the number of pupils in their primary schools five years ahead and seven years ahead for secondary schools.

The Department collects pupil forecast information from each local authority through an annual survey and utilises the forecasts in order to calculate the capital funding allocations to local authorities to provide extra places for future growth in pupil numbers.

Primary Education: Registration

Mr Hollobone: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what identification documentation is required to register a child at a state primary school. [64654]

Mr Gibb: There are no national requirements placed on schools or parents to provide identifying documentation when registering a child at a school. However, in applying for a place at a state-funded primary school, parents

11 July 2011 : Column 91W

will be asked by the local authority to complete a common application form allowing them to state a minimum of three preferences. In completing that form parents must provide their name and address, and any documentary evidence in support, as well as the name, address and date of birth of the child. In some case, the local authority will need to ask for supplementary information in order to process applications. If they do so, they must only use supplementary information forms that request information that has a direct bearing on decisions about over-subscription criteria. Once a place has been offered, admission authorities may ask for proof of date of birth.

Education Provision

Mr Hollobone: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what statutory obligations local education authorities have to (a) identify school age children in their area and (b) ensure they are in receipt of appropriate education. [64653]

Mr Gibb: Section 436A of the Education Act 1996 (inserted by Section 4 of the Education and Inspections Act 2006) places a duty on local authorities to make arrangements to enable them to establish (so far as it is possible to do so) the identities of children residing in their area who are not receiving a suitable education. Revised statutory guidance was published in January 2009 to help local authorities effectively implement the duty.

The duty applies in relation to children of compulsory school age who are not on a school roll, and who are not receiving a suitable education otherwise than being at school (for example, at home, privately, or in alternative provision).

The statutory guidance sets out that local authorities should:

have a named individual responsible for identifying children missing education, whose role includes proactively tracking pupils; and

have a co-ordinated and centralised system in place for tracking children missing education. Local authorities are also expected to work, and share information, with other local authorities and agencies in order that children moving from one area to another can be tracked.

Pupils: Disadvantaged

Damian Collins: To ask the Secretary of State for Education pursuant to the answer of 22 June 2011, Official Report, column 353W, on pupils: disadvantaged, what consideration he has given to extending the pupil premium for children whose parents are serving in the armed forces to children whose parents have died in service in the armed forces; and if he will make a statement. [62787]

Mr Gibb [holding answer 28 June 2011]: The pupil premium was introduced in April 2011 and its key focus is providing additional funding to schools to support deprived children. Our priority for its introduction has been to make sure that funding for the premium is simple and transparent so that schools know how it is calculated and can work out how much they will receive. Mainstream schools with children whose parents are in the armed forces will benefit from the service premium

11 July 2011 : Column 92W

and will receive in 2011-12 £200 for every pupil recorded as a service child on the January 2011 school census. We will consider carefully whether the service premium could be extended to pupils whose parents have died in service in the armed forces.

Pupils: Truancy

Mr Hollobone: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many prosecutions of parents were brought by local education authorities for non-attendance at school of school age children in (a) England and (b) Northamptonshire in the last year for which figures are available; and how many of those prosecuted were from Traveller communities. [64651]

Mr Gibb: The number of people proceeded against at the magistrates courts for offences under section 444 of the Education Act 1996 in England and the Northamptonshire police force area in 2010 (latest available) are in the following table.

Information held centrally by the Ministry of Justice on the court proceedings database does not contain information about the circumstances behind each case, beyond the description provided in the statute under which proceedings are brought. It is not possible to identify from centrally held information whether a defendant is from a Traveller community.

Court proceedings data for 2011 will be available in the spring of 2012.

Number of persons proceeded against at the magistrates courts for offences under section 444 of the Education Act 1996 (1 ) in England and Northamptonshire police force area, 2010 (2,3)
Area Proceeded against

England

11,260

Of which:

 

Northamptonshire

104

(1) Offences under section 444 of the Education Act 1996: Parent's failure to secure child's regular attendance at school. Parent knowing that their child is failing to attend school regularly failing without reasonable justification to cause him or her to attend school. (2) The figures given in the table on court proceedings relate to persons for whom these offences were the principal offences for which they were dealt with. When a defendant has been found guilty of two or more offences it is the offence for which the heaviest penalty is imposed. Where the same disposal is imposed for two or more offences, the offence selected is the offence for which the statutory maximum penalty is the most severe. (3) Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems, generated by the courts and police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used. Source: Justice Statistics Analytical Services—Ministry of Justice.

School Meals

Zac Goldsmith: To ask the Secretary of State for Education if he will bring forward proposals to amend statutory school food standards to align them with Government buying standards for food and catering services. [64361]

Sarah Teather: The Government are not proposing to amend the statutory school food standards to align them with Government buying standards for food and catering services. The school food standards are already stricter than those included in the Government buying standards.

11 July 2011 : Column 93W

The Government buying standards only apply to central Government although schools and local authorities may wish to consider using them.

The Government support the procurement of locally produced, seasonal produce from sustainable sources and have been working with a number of organisations including Pro 5, a leading procurement organisation that works with local authorities, to establish framework contracts that will help schools and local authorities to procure quality goods efficiently.

Schools: Capital Investment

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Education if he will estimate in 2011 prices the cost of each school capital construction project (a) approved, (b) opened and (c) cancelled in each year since 1997. [63985]

Mr Gibb: Full information is not held centrally in the form requested. Since 1997 capital support has largely been allocated formulaically to local authorities and schools in order for them to decide their investment priorities in accordance with local asset management plans. However, there are data held centrally relating to the BSF and Academies programmes, and I will write to the hon. Member with this information, and place a copy of the letter in the House Libraries.

Schools: Closures

Mr Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education pursuant to the answer of 28 June 2011, Official Report, column 757W, on school closures (Thursday), what assessment he made of the use of the flexibilities at the disposal of schools to ensure that they stayed open on 30 June 2011. [64661]

Mr Gibb: To minimise the impact of industrial action, the Secretary of State for Education, my right hon. Friend the Member for Surrey Heath (Michael Gove), wrote to all local authorities on 23 June, to lay out the flexibilities at the disposal of schools to ensure that they stayed open.

In that letter he asked local authorities to share with the Department their best practice and examples of schools working innovatively and successfully to stay open. We will be reviewing these examples over the coming weeks, as they come in to us.

Steve Rotheram: To ask the Secretary of State for Education on how many days annually on average schools were closed due to strike action between (a) 1979 and 1997 and (b) 1997 and 2010; and what assessment he has made of likely trends in days lost to such action in the next four years. [64953]

11 July 2011 : Column 94W

Mr Gibb: While the Department for Education published information on school closures associated with the industrial action on 30 June, figures have not routinely been collected by this Department on the number of days that schools have closed due to industrial action between 1979 and 2010. It is not possible to predict the number of days on which schools might close in the event of future industrial action.

Schools: Cumbria

Tim Farron: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many schools were assessed by Ofsted as (a) outstanding, (b) good, (c) satisfactory and (d) inadequate in South Lakeland district council area in each of the last five years. [63905]

Mr Gibb [holding answer 5 July 2011]: This is a matter for Ofsted. John Goldup, National Director, Development and Strategy has written to my hon. Friend, on behalf of HM chief inspector. A copy of his reply has been placed in the House Libraries.

Letter from John Goldup, dated 4 July 2011:

Your recent parliamentary question has been passed to Her Majesty's Chief Inspector for response. Her Majesty's Chief Inspector is currently on leave, and I am replying on her behalf.

Since 2005, maintained school inspections have been carried out under section 5 of the Education Act 2005. Ofsted records all judgements made by inspectors in section 5 inspections/ including the judgement for overall effectiveness of the school.

Maintained schools inspected under section 5 include nursery, primary, secondary (including academies and city technology colleges), special schools and pupil referral units.

Tables A to E below show the number of maintained schools judged outstanding, good, satisfactory and inadequate for overall effectiveness at their section 5 inspection during the academic years 2005/06 to 2009/10 inclusive in South Lakeland District and England.

In September 2009, Ofsted implemented a policy of more proportionate inspection using risk assessment and deliberately set out to inspect a greater proportion of previously satisfactory or inadequate schools each year and a smaller proportion of previously good or outstanding schools. This led to a skew in the sample of schools inspected and means that comparisons between years should be treated with caution as some differences are due to the different sample of schools inspected during the different periods.

Statistics covering the outcomes of all inspections carried out in each academic year since 2005/06 can be found at:

http://www.ofsted.gov.uk/Ofsted-home/Publications-and-research/Browse-all-by/Documents-by-type/Statistics/Maintained-schools/Inspection-outcomes

The most recent official statistics release covering the outcomes of maintained school inspections carried out during the autumn and spring terms 2010/11 were released on 15 June 2011 and can be accessed at the same link.

A copy of this reply has been sent to Nick Gibb MP, Minister of State for Schools, and will be placed in the library of both Houses.

Tables A to E: Schools overall effectiveness judgment at their section 5 inspection in South Lakeland district in each of the last five academic years
2005/06
    Overall effectiveness judgment (proportion of schools)

Total inspected Outstanding Good Satisfactory Inadequate

South Lakeland district

15

13

47

33

7

England

6,128

11

48

34

8

11 July 2011 : Column 95W

11 July 2011 : Column 96W

2006/07
    Overall effectiveness judgment (proportion of schools)

Total inspected Outstanding Good Satisfactory Inadequate

South Lakeland district

30

3

70

17

10

England

8,323

14

47

34

6

2007/08
    Overall effectiveness judgment (proportion of schools)

Total inspected Outstanding Good Satisfactory Inadequate

South Lakeland district

26

15

58

19

8

England

7,866

15

49

32

5

2008/09
    Overall effectiveness judgment (proportion of schools)

Total inspected Outstanding Good Satisfactory Inadequate

South Lakeland district

16

6

88

6

0

England

7,065

19

50

28

4

2009/10
    Overall effectiveness judgment (proportion of schools)

Total inspected Outstanding Good Satisfactory Inadequate

South Lakeland district

20

25

55

10

10

England

6,171

13

43

37

8

Schools: Finance

Gavin Williamson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how much basic need funding was allocated to schools in each year since 1997. [64021]

Mr Gibb: Capital allocations to local authorities, since 1997-98, to support investment in schools relating to basic need, were as follows:


£ million

1997-98

359

1998-99

286

1999-2000

274

2000-01

357

2001-02

452

2002-03

401

2003-04

475

2004-05

566

2005-06

504

2006-07

445

2007-08

400

2008-09

423

2009-10

419

2010-11

666

2011-12 (provisional)

800

Schools: Translation Services

Mr Streeter: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what estimate he has made of the cost to schools of the provision of English translation services; and if he will make a statement. [63833]

Mr Gibb: The Department does not collect this information.

Youth Services: Finance

Karl Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what assessment he has made of the change in his Department's funding of youth services in (a) Kingston upon Hull East constituency and (b) England in 2011-12. [64616]

Tim Loughton: The Department's funding for youth services for 2011-12 and beyond is included in the early intervention grant (EIG). The EIG allocation for Kingston upon Hull local authority has changed from £16.59 million in 2010-11 to £14.52 million in 2011-12, a reduction of around 12.5%, and is reduced by 10.5% for England as a whole. Money for youth services is not ring fenced within the EIG and decisions on funding levels for youth services are for local authorities.

Health

Air Pollution: Death

Mr Bain: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people died as a result of conditions caused by air pollution in each of the last five years. [64388]

Anne Milton: Deaths from air pollution are not recorded as a specific cause. However, the Committee on the Medical Effects of Air Pollutants estimated(1) on the basis of 2008 data, that fine particulate air pollution (measured as PM2.5) had an effect on the mortality of the United Kingdom population equivalent to 29,000 deaths in 2008. However, the Committee considered it very unlikely that this represents the number of individuals affected. Instead it speculated that air pollution, acting together with other factors, may have made some smaller contribution to the earlier deaths of up to 200,000 people.

11 July 2011 : Column 97W

Estimates have not been made on a year-by-year basis. However, in years close to 2008 that are likely to be similar to 2008, in terms of both PM2.5 levels and population characteristics, the effect on mortality would be similar to that calculated for 2008.

(1) The Mortality Effects of Long Term Exposure to Particulate Air Pollution in the United Kingdom:

www.comeap.org.uk/documents/128-the-mortality-effects-of-long-term-exposure-to-particulate-air-pollution-in-the-uk.html

Public Health Strategy

Rosie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how (a) speech and language therapists and (b) allied health professionals will be involved in the development of his public health work force strategy. [65251]

Anne Milton: The Department will publish a consultation document on a public health work force strategy in the autumn. To inform this work a Public Health Workforce Strategy Working Group, chaired by a regional director of public health has been established. Members of the group include representatives from a range of health and local government organisations, including the co-chair of the National Allied Health Professional Advisory Board. Speech and language therapists are an integral part of the allied health professions.

Autism

Emma Reynolds: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what proportion of patients who requested an autistic spectrum disorder diagnostic test in (a) Wolverhampton Primary Care Trust and (b) England received such a test in the last 12 months. [64184]

Paul Burstow: This information is not held centrally.

Emma Reynolds: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans he has for future support for speech and language therapy for adults with autistic spectrum conditions in Wolverhampton. [64185]

Paul Burstow: The provision of NHS services, including speech and language therapy, is a matter for the national health service locally.

Cancer: Drugs

Pauline Latham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much the East Midlands Cancer Drugs Fund spent in (a) 2010-11 and (b) 2011-12 to date. [64247]

Mr Simon Burns: The Cancer Drugs Fund was launched on 1 April 2011 to help thousands of cancer patients access the drugs their clinicians believe will help them. We also made an additional £50 million available to strategic health authorities in 2010-11 which has already helped over 2,400 patients in England to access the cancer drugs their clinicians recommended.

The latest available information shows that NHS East Midlands spent £1.632 million on additional cancer drugs between 1 October 2010 and the end of March 2011. Information for 2011-12 is not yet available.

11 July 2011 : Column 98W

Pauline Latham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the likelihood of the East Midlands Cancer Drugs Fund producing an (a) overspend and (b) underspend in 2011-12. [64248]

Mr Simon Burns: We have made no assessment about the likelihood of an overspend or an underspend on the Cancer Drugs Fund allocation made to NHS East Midlands. This funding was allocated on a weighted capitation basis, following consultation on arrangements for the fund, and the Department will be monitoring spend during the current financial year.

Pauline Latham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much the East Midlands Cancer Drugs Fund spent on Avastin for (a) first line and (b) second line treatment for bowel cancer in (i) 2010-11 and (ii) 2011-12 to date. [64306]

Anne Milton: The Department does not collect information on the specific indications for which drugs have been funded through the cancer drugs funding arrangements for 2010-11 and 2011-12.

A breakdown of strategic health authority expenditure by drug for 2010-11 is not yet available. We will write to the hon. Member with this information when it is available. The Department is currently establishing monitoring arrangements for 2011-12.

Pauline Latham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health in which regions the Cancer Drugs Fund provides funding for (a) first line and (b) second line treatment for bowel cancer with Avastin; and how much each region has spent on Avastin in each case since the launch of the new fund. [64307]

Anne Milton: The Department does not collect information on the specific indications for which drugs have been funded through the Cancer Drugs Fund.

Decisions on which drugs to fund are a matter for each strategic health authority (SHA) clinical panel.

In its summary of clinically agreed drugs, East Midlands SHA has included Avastin (bevacizumab) for the first line treatment of metastatic colorectal cancer and first line treatment of renal cell carcinoma that is intolerant to pazopanib and sunitinib. Further information is available at:

www.eastmidlands.nhs.uk/cancer-drugs-fund/?locale=en

The Department is currently establishing monitoring arrangements for 2011-12. Information relating to individual cases will not be collected due to patient confidentiality.

Cervical Cancer: Screening

Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) by what means human papilloma virus testing for triage and test of cure will be introduced into the NHS Cervical Screening Programme; and when it will be available to all eligible women in each region; [64237]

(2) what the key steps will be to introduce human papilloma virus testing for triage and test of cure into the NHS Cervical Screening Programme in 2011-12; [64238]

11 July 2011 : Column 99W

(3) by what means human papilloma virus testing for triage and test of cure as part of the NHS Cervical Screening Programme will be funded (a) in its first year and (b) in subsequent years; [64239]

(4) how many human papilloma virus tests for triage and test of cure he expects will be undertaken as part of the NHS Cervical Screening Programme in (a) 2011-12 and (b) 2012-13; [64240]

(5) what plans he has for the future of cervical cancer screening in the NHS; [64241]

(6) what cost savings he estimates will accrue to the NHS Cervical Screening Programme following implementation of human papilloma virus testing for triage and test of cure; [64242]

(7) who will be responsible for commissioning human papilloma virus testing for triage and test of cure as part of the NHS Cervical Screening Programme; [64243]

(8) when he expects human papilloma virus testing for triage and test of cure as part of the NHS Cervical Screening Programme to be available to all women who are eligible for it; [64244]

(9) when he expects the results of the human papilloma virus Sentinel Site Implementation Project to be published. [64245]

Paul Burstow: “Improving Outcomes: A Strategy for Cancer”, published on 12 January, sets out how the Government will introduce human papilloma virus (HPV) testing as triage for women with mild or borderline cervical screening test results and HPV as a test of cure for treated women. The Operating Framework for the NHS in England 2011-12 states that commissioners should work with their local services and NHS Cancer Screening Programmes (NHS CSP) to implement HPV testing as triage for women with mild or borderline results, leading to a more patient-centred service and major cost savings.

The current intention is that, subject to meeting certain criteria, local cervical screening programmes will implement HPV triage in 2011-12 and HPV test of cure in 2012-13. Implementing both improvements in the same year would risk the quality and safety of the current programme and put an unnecessary burden on colposcopy services.

The Department is currently preparing advice to the national health service that will be issued shortly, alongside implementation guidance from NHS CSP. In autumn 2011, NHS Supply Chain will publish a framework agreement on the purchasing of the five HPV testing kits that are currently available. While services will not be able to implement HPV testing as triage until the framework agreement is published, they will be able to put all necessary plans in place so that, as soon as the agreement becomes available, they will be able to make decisions and place orders without delay.

It is not possible to state the exact number of tests that will take place in 2011-12 and 2012-13. As a guide, around 200,000 women a year have mild or borderline screening test results. There are currently around 500,000 women on annual 10-year follow-up following previous treatment, but this is expected to reduce to around 100,000 a year once these women have been subject to a test of cure in 2012-13.

11 July 2011 : Column 100W

Funding for implementation has been made available for 2011-12 and 2012-13 and will be managed by NHS CSP. We expect all women in England to be benefiting from HPV triage and test of cure from 2013-14, when we also expect savings of up to £16 million per year to be made from this new policy, as set out in the impact assessment we published alongside the new cancer strategy.

Subject to the consultation on “Healthy Lives, Healthy People”, Public Health England (PHE) will have responsibility for national elements of the cancer screening programmes. PHE will fund the NHS Commissioning Board annually to commission local elements of screening programmes on behalf of PHE.

The results of the HPV sentinel site implementation project will be published in due course, once associated papers have appeared in peer-reviewed journals.

Regarding the future of cervical screening, the independent Advisory Committee on Cervical Screening (ACCS) is advising on the introduction of HPV Testing as Primary Screening (HPVTaPS). Working groups have been established to take forward work in three areas:

work force requirements and supporting transition;

protocols and algorithms for testing; and

demonstrating the economies and benefits to women of HPVTaPS.

The working groups are due to report to the ACCS at its meeting on 24 November 2011, where the piloting of HPVTaPS will be considered.

Departmental Responsibilities

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Health on how many occasions a request for a meeting by an hon. Member of each political party has been refused by (a) a Minister in his Department directly and (b) his Department on behalf of a Minister since May 2010. [64426]

Mr Simon Burns: The information requested could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Diabetes: Nurses

Gregg McClymont: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will consider measures to improve recruitment levels for diabetic specialist nurses in the NHS. [64763]

Mr Simon Burns: The Government consider that diabetes specialist nurses are an essential part of the diabetes specialist team and have a valuable part to play in supporting people with diabetes. It is local healthcare organisations, with their knowledge of the healthcare needs of their local populations, that are best placed to determine the workforce required to deliver safe patient care within their available resources.

Diabetes: Walsall

Valerie Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what consideration he has given to the role of community pharmacies in preventing and treating diabetes within the South Asian community in Walsall South constituency. [65502]

Paul Burstow: Community pharmacies have an important role in the prevention and management of diabetes.

11 July 2011 : Column 101W

The national NHS Health Check programme is a public health programme aimed at preventing diabetes, heart disease, stroke and kidney disease. It has been designed so that the risk assessment and management components of the check are suitable to be undertaken in a variety of settings, including pharmacies, community centres and other sites as well as general practitioner practices to make the programme as accessible as possible to people.

The NHS Health Check programme is for people in England aged between 40 and 74. It assesses people's risk of heart disease, stroke, kidney disease and diabetes and supports people to reduce or manage that risk through individually tailored lifestyle advice and support, and appropriate follow-up. In doing so, it will help ensure greater focus on public health and the prevention of cardiovascular disease, diabetes and kidney disease. This programme has the potential to prevent over 4,000 people a year from developing type 2 diabetes and detect at least 20,000 case of diabetes and kidney disease earlier.

Attendance at pharmacies also presents other opportunities for discussion about the efficacy and side effects of medicines and the technology needs of people with diabetes.

Drugs: Safety

Margot James: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) whether he plans to establish a common NHS policy for the management of unlicensed medicines; [64323]

(2) what information his Department holds on the number of primary care trusts which have established policies for the management of unlicensed medicines. [64324]

Mr Simon Burns: Information on primary care trust policies on the management of unlicensed medicines is not held centrally and we have no plans to establish a national policy for the management of unlicensed medicines in the national health service.

Clinicians should base their prescribing decisions on their assessment of their patients’ clinical need, involving

11 July 2011 : Column 102W

their patients in this process and taking into account the best available clinical evidence or guidance, including the General Medical Council’s “Good practice in prescribing medicines”.

Primary Care: Walsall South

Valerie Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the distribution of (a) GP surgeries and (b) community pharmacies in Walsall South constituency. [65501]

Mr Simon Burns: Any assessment of primary care services is a local matter. It is the responsibility of primary care trusts (PCTs) to ensure the adequate provision of national health service primary medical services in their areas.

All PCTs need to publish, by February 2012, their assessment of pharmaceutical needs.

NHS Walsall's “Pharmaceutical Needs Assessment” is available on the NHS Walsall website at:

www.walsall.nhs.uk/communications/Walsall_pharmacies_surveyed.asp

This document has also been placed in the Library.

Health Services: Foreign Nationals

Mr Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what amounts owed to each NHS trust for treatment of non-UK nationals have been (a) collected and (b) not collected in the most recent year for which figures are available. [65275]

Anne Milton: The total audited income from overseas visitors under non-reciprocal arrangements and total losses, bad debt and claims abandoned for overseas visitors by national health service trust for 2009-10 are shown in the following table. As well as non-UK nationals who are not ordinarily resident in the United Kingdom, these data include income from and written off debt for UK nationals who are not ordinarily resident here. Further, it does not include monies owed that hospitals are still in the process of attempting to recover.

£
  Non-reciprocal income received Bad debts and claims abandoned in respect of overseas patients

5 Boroughs Partnership NHS Foundation Trust

0

0

Airedale NHS Trust

0

4,893

Ashford and St Peter's Hospitals NHS Trust

107,000

48,506

Avon and Wiltshire Mental Health Partnership NHS Trust

0

0

Barking, Havering and Redbridge University Hospitals NHS Trust

654,931

961,298

Barnet and Chase Farm Hospitals NHS Trust

297,000

185,351

Barnet, Enfield and Haringey Mental Health NHS Trust

0

0

Barts and The London NHS Trust

658,000

645,375

Bedford Hospital NHS Trust

79,000

931

Bedfordshire and Luton Mental Health and Social Care Partnership NHS Trust

0

0

Bradford District Care NHS Trust

0

0

Brighton and Sussex University Hospitals NHS Trust

187,000

0

Buckinghamshire Hospitals NHS Trust

472,000

23,998

Cornwall Partnership NHS Foundation Trust

0

0

Coventry and Warwickshire Partnership NHS Trust

0

0

Dartford and Gravesham NHS Trust

20,000

34,393

Derbyshire Mental Health Services NHS Trust

0

0

11 July 2011 : Column 103W

11 July 2011 : Column 104W

Devon Partnership NHS Trust

0

0

Dudley and Walsall Mental Health Partnership NHS Trust

0

0

Ealing Hospital NHS Trust

26,000

104,747

East and North Hertfordshire NHS Trust

239,000

141,491

East Cheshire NHS Trust

8,000

996

East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust

22,000

4,216

East Midlands Ambulance Service NHS Trust

0

0

East of England Ambulance Service NHS Trust

0

0

East Sussex Hospitals NHS Trust

37,000

3,202

Epsom and St Helier University Hospitals NHS Trust

122,000

78,813

George Eliot Hospital NHS Trust

11,000

108

Great Ormond Street Hospital NHS Trust

28,000

0

Great Western Ambulance Service NHS Trust

0

0

Hereford Hospitals NHS Trust

0

0

Hinchingbrooke Healthcare NHS Trust

34,000

0

Hull and East Yorkshire Hospitals NHS Trust

0

4,706

Humber NHS Foundation Trust

0

0

Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust

3,312,000

355,870

Ipswich Hospital NHS Trust

66,000

816

Kent and Medway NHS and Social Care Partnership NHS Trust

0

0

Kingston Hospital NHS Trust

137,000

20,088

Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust

1,355,000

0

Leicestershire Partnership NHS Trust

0

0

Liverpool Heart and Chest NHS Foundation Trust

6,000

0

London Ambulance Service NHS Trust

0

0

Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells NHS Trust

0

0

Manchester Mental Health and Social Care NHS Trust

0

0

Mayday Healthcare NHS Trust

340,000

10

Mersey Care NHS Trust

0

0

Mid Essex Hospital Services NHS Trust

11,000

0

Mid Yorkshire Hospitals NHS Trust

28,000

0

Newham University Hospital NHS Trust

499,000

645,732

NHS Direct NHS Trust

0

0

North Bristol NHS Trust

282,000

0

North Cumbria University Hospitals NHS Trust

15,000

1,223

North East Ambulance Service NHS Trust

0

0

North Middlesex University Hospital NHS Trust

288,000

239,148

North Staffordshire Combined Healthcare NHS Trust

0

0

North West Ambulance Service NHS Trust

0

0

North West London Hospitals NHS Trust

805,000

403,282

Northampton General Hospital NHS Trust

87,000

53,752

Northamptonshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust

0

0

Northern Devon Healthcare NHS Trust

0

0

Northumberland, Tyne and Wear NHS Foundation Trust

0

0

Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust

55,000

174,847

Nottinghamshire Healthcare NHS Trust

0

0

Nuffield Orthopaedic Centre NHS Trust

597,000

0

Oxford Learning Disability NHS Trust

0

0

Oxford Radcliffe Hospital NHS Trust

4,000

221,847

Pennine Acute Hospitals NHS Trust

351,000

181,152

Plymouth Hospitals NHS Trust

35,000

0

Portsmouth Hospitals NHS Trust

236,000

41,090

Princess Alexandra Hospital NHS Trust

92,000

0

Queen Elizabeth Hospital Kings Lynn NHS Trust

44,000

0

Robert Jones and Agnes Hunt Orthopaedic NHS Trust

0

188

Royal Brompton and Harefield NHS Foundation Trust

30,000

0

Royal Cornwall Hospitals NHS Trust

79,000

16,383

Royal Free Hampstead NHS Trust

777,000

651,455

Royal Liverpool Broadgreen Hospitals NHS Trust

7,000

25,180

Royal Surrey County NHS Foundation Trust

59,000

0

Royal United Hospital Bath NHS Trust

63,000

1,238

Royal Wolverhampton Hospital NHS Trust

20,000

29,156

Sandwell and West Birmingham Hospitals NHS Trust

52,000

87,242

11 July 2011 : Column 105W

11 July 2011 : Column 106W

Scarborough and North East Yorkshire NHS Trust

3,000

3,964

Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust

25,000

-163

South Central Ambulance Service NHS Trust

0

0

South Downs Health NHS Trust

0

0

South East Coast Ambulance Service NHS Trust

0

0

South London Healthcare NHS Trust

110,000

0

South Tees Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

13,000

0

South Warwickshire NHS Foundation Trust

22,000

10,790

South West Ambulance Service NHS Trust

0

0

South West London And St George's Mental Health NHS Trust

0

0

South West Yorkshire Partnership NHS Foundation Trust

0

0

Southampton University Hospitals NHS Trust

285,000

170,105

Southport and Ormskirk Hospital NHS Trust

0

0

St George's Healthcare NHS Trust

520,000

0

St Helens and Knowsley Hospitals NHS Trust

20,000

82

Suffolk Mental Health Partnership NHS Trust

0

0

Surrey and Sussex Healthcare NHS Trust

207,000

43,019

The Hillingdon Hospital NHS Trust

1,014,000

479,336

The Lewisham Hospital NHS Trust

238,000

0

The Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital NHS Trust

0

0

The Walton Centre NHS Foundation Trust

63,000

6,897

Trafford Healthcare NHS Trust

4,000

0

United Lincolnshire Hospitals NHS Trust

31,000

1,284

University Hospital of North Staffordshire Hospital NHS Trust

0

0

University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire NHS Trust

95,000

0

University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust

563,000

247,291

University Hospitals of Morecambe Bay NHS Trust

43,000

2,586

Walsall Hospitals NHS Trust

6,000

9,920

West Hertfordshire Hospitals NHS Trust

193,000

354,798

West London Mental Health NHS Trust

0

0

West Middlesex University NHS Trust

235,000

0

West Midlands Ambulance Service NHS Trust

0

0

West Suffolk Hospital NHS Trust

22,000

28,258

Western Sussex Hospitals NHS Trust

6,000

0

Weston Area Health NHS Trust

0

0

Whipps Cross University Hospital NHS Trust

355,000

198,656

Whittington Hospital NHS Trust

69,000

0

Winchester and Eastleigh Healthcare NHS Trust

160,000

17,714

Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust

0

0

Worcestershire Mental Health Partnership NHS Trust

0

0

Yorkshire Ambulance Service NHS Trust

0

0

Total

17,036,000

6,967,260

Note: We do not collect data from national health service foundation trusts so. figures exclude these sites. Source: National Health Service Trust Audited Summarisation Schedules.

Hospital Wards: Gender

Mr Hollobone: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what progress has been made in reducing mixed-sex accommodation in NHS hospitals in (a) Kettering, (b) Northamptonshire and (c) England. [65189]

Mr Simon Burns: Monthly reporting of progress with eliminating mixed-sex accommodation (MSA) guidance was introduced in December 2010. Before this, there were no accurate data on how many patients suffered the indignity of sharing with someone of the opposite sex. Now, hospitals providing national health service-funded care report all breaches of MSA sleeping guidance.

Progress has been excellent, with reported breaches nationally falling by 83% between December 2010 and May 2011.

Alongside the absolute number of breaches, an MSA breach rate is published to enable comparison between organisations. This is the number of breaches per 1,000 finished consultant episodes.

Kettering General Hospital NHS Foundation Trust
Month Number of breaches Breach rate

December 2010

212

30.8

January 2011

58

8.7

February 2011

9

1.4

March 2011

13

17

April 2011

0

0.0

May 2011

5

0.7

11 July 2011 : Column 107W

NHS providers located in Northamptonshire (1)
Month Number of breaches Breach rate

December 2010

(2)212

13.3

January 2011

58

3.8

February 2011

9

0.6

March 2011

13

0.7

April 2011

0

0.0

May 2011

5

0.3

England
Month Number of breaches Breach rate

December 2010

11,802

8.4

January 2011

8,708

6.4

February 2011

7,583

6.0

March 2011

5,466

3.6

April 2011

2,660

1.9

May 2011

2,011

1.4

(1) Data are not collected at county level. NHS providers located in Northamptonshire include Northamptonshire Teaching Primary Care Trust, Kettering General Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, Northamptonshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust and Northampton General Hospital NHS Trust. All except Kettering have reported zero breaches. Northamptonshire Healthcare did not report in December 2010. (2) Incomplete data.

Khat

Mark Lancaster: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many hospital admissions he estimates were linked to the use of khat in each of the last five years. [64752]

Anne Milton: This information is not collected centrally. In data returns on hospital admissions due to drug use, khat is not separately identified.

Mark Lancaster: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent assessment he has made of the impact of khat on the health of users. [64753]

Anne Milton: The Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs (ACMD) submitted advice on khat in December 2005. In October 2010 the Home Office published a research report on “Perceptions of the social harms caused by khat use” which included comments on perceived health harms.

The Government have asked the ACMD to update its assessment of khat and to convene the review at the next available opportunity within its work programme.

Leukaemia: Drugs

Mark Tami: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what discussions his Department has had with the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence on its Final Appraisal Determination meeting held on 9 June 2011 in respect of the recommendation on the use of dasatanib, nilotinib and high-dose imatinib. [65095]

Mr Simon Burns: We have had no such discussions. Ministers are clear that the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence is an independent body and must be free to develop its technology appraisal guidance based on the best available evidence.

11 July 2011 : Column 108W

Life Expectancy

Mr Bain: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will assess the effect on life expectancy of levels of air pollution in (a) London and (b) England. [64387]

Anne Milton: The Committee on the Medical Effects of Air Pollutants has estimated(1) the effect on life expectancy from birth of removing all man-made fine particulate matter (PM2.5), an important air pollutant, for inner London, and for England and Wales on the basis of 2008 data. Research has shown that for inner London, removing man-made PM2.5 would lead to an increase of life expectancy of about nine months and the corresponding assessment for England and Wales would be approximately six months. The difference is due to the higher concentration of man-made PM2.5 in inner London.

(1) The Mortality Effects of Long Term Exposure to Particulate Air Pollution in the United Kingdom:

www.comeap.org.uk/documents/128-the-mortality-effects-of-long-term-exposure-to-particulate-air-pollution-in-the-uk.html

Lung Cancer: Screening

Mrs Ellman: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he is taking to improve the detection of lung cancer symptoms in primary care; and if he will make a statement. [64833]

Paul Burstow: To support earlier detection of cancer the Government have committed more than £450 million over the next four years. This money will give general practitioner (GPs) improved access to a range of diagnostic tests, including chest X-ray to support the diagnosis of lung cancer, and will fund campaign activity that aims to raise public awareness of the signs and symptoms of cancer and to encourage people to visit their GP when they have symptoms.

Building on the success of our cancer awareness activity to date, which includes 59 local projects on lung, bowel and breast cancer and regional pilots for a national bowel cancer campaign, plans are now being developed for the next round of initiatives. These may include lung cancer symptom campaigns.

NHS Commissioning Board

Grahame M. Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when he intends to publish information on the number of staff to be employed by the NHS Commissioning Board. [64797]

Mr Simon Burns: Sir David Nicholson, chief designate of the NHS Commissioning Board, published “Developing the NHS Commissioning Board” on 8 July 2011. This document sets out further details about the design and operating model of the NHS Commissioning Board, including an estimate of expected staff numbers.

This document has been placed in the Library.

11 July 2011 : Column 109W

NHS Future Forum

Grahame M. Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to his answer of 29 June 2011, Official Report, column 871W, on NHS Future Forum, (1) whether (a) he or (b) Ministers in his Department played a role in selecting (i) Professor Field and (ii) members of the NHS Future Forum; and if he will make a statement; [65015]

(2) what steps he took to ensure the independence of the NHS Future Forum when appointing senior members to it. [65016]

Mr Simon Burns: I refer the hon. Member to the written answer I gave him on 29 June 2011, Official Report, column 871W, that the guiding principle for membership was to ensure that there was a wide range of stakeholders represented from different professional groups, the national health service and local government, the third sector and patient organisations. The Secretary of State for Health and other departmental Ministers were involved in selecting and confirming the appointment of the chair and other members of the NHS Future Forum.

There were no restrictions placed on the NHS Future Forum as to whom it spoke to and met with or to the advice and recommendations it was able to make.

NHS: Conditions of Employment

Grahame M. Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 29 June 2011, Official Report, column 872W, on NHS: conditions of employment, what estimate he has made of the proportion of NHS staff that will see changes to their (a) pay and (b) terms and conditions in each of the next five years. [65017]

Mr Simon Burns: No estimate has been made of the number of staff that will see changes to their pay and terms and conditions in each of the next five years.

The Government have indicated that decisions on pay will be made by health care employers rather than decided by the Government. In future, all individual employers will have the right, as foundation trusts have now, to determine pay for their own staff. However, the Government believe that many providers will want to continue to use the existing national contracts as a basis for local terms and conditions.

Staff moving to new organisations may have their current terms and conditions protected under Transfer of Undertakings (Protection of Employment) Regulations and any changes to terms and conditions must comply with employment law.

NHS: Drugs

Dr Huppert: To ask the Secretary of State for Health by what means levels of compensation are determined for specific medicines distributed by NHS pharmacists on a medicine-by-medicine basis; and whether this system takes into account price differences across chemically similar medicines. [64886]

11 July 2011 : Column 110W

Mr Simon Burns: Payment for drugs and appliances provided by community pharmacies operating under the community pharmacy contractual framework is a Secretary of State determination and is set out each month in the Drug Tariff.

The prices listed in part VIII of the Drug Tariff indicate what dispensers will be paid for dispensing prescriptions written generically. Dispensers can fulfil the prescription with whichever product they want or is available to them (brand or generic), but regardless of which product they supply, if there is a price in part VIII, they will only be paid this price. Prices in part VIII are established according to which category the price is in. Those in category M are set using sales and volume information from manufacturers, while also taking into account the findings of a pharmacy medicines margins survey, which monitors the amount of margin pharmacies earn on the medicines they dispense. Those in category C are set on the national health service list price of a specific named product.

The reimbursement price of branded products is the NHS list price established under the 2009 Pharmaceutical Price Regulation Scheme, which is a voluntary agreement, agreed between the Department and the Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry, or where not covered by the voluntary agreement, there is statutory scheme.

Any price differences across chemically similar medicines are determined by these two schemes.

Older People: Preventive Medicine

Penny Mordaunt: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what consideration he has given to Frontier Economic's findings on Social Return on Investment that investment in the WRVS services in preventive care for older people saves money for the NHS and local authorities; and if he will make a statement. [64576]

Paul Burstow: The report was commissioned by the WRVS and has not been formally submitted to the Department.

However, the Department recognises that investment in integrated preventive services by the national health service and local authorities can lead to better outcomes for individuals including helping people to live independently for longer, and can also realise efficiencies for both the NHS and local authorities. That is why we have invested £150 million in the NHS this year to support re-ablement, which will help people recover their independence after a spell in hospital.

Patients: Transport

Annette Brooke: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what representations he has received on criteria used for the provision of transport for non-urgent cases to hospital; and if he will revise the current guidance issued by his Department in this respect. [64887]

Mr Simon Burns: There has been one parliamentary question raised since the start of this Administration's term in government, posed by my hon. Friend the Member for Morecambe and Lunesdale (David Morris),

11 July 2011 : Column 111W

who asked what steps the Government are taking to prevent misuse of hospital transport by those who do not have a valid medical reason to use the service.

In 2005, the White Paper “Our Health, Our Care, Our Say”, made a commitment to extend eligibility for non-emergency patient transport services (PTS) to procedures that were traditionally provided in hospital, but are now available in a community setting. It also committed the Department to updating existing eligibility guidance (“Ambulance and other Patient Transport Services: Operation, Use and Performance Standards”) published in 1991 and finance guidance documents (“Chapter 20 of the NHS Finance Manual Finance Arrangements for Ambulance Services”).

Following a 13-week consultation in 2007, Ministers in response to these commitments approved changes to PTS eligibility.

There are no current plans to revise the guidance further.

Primary Care Trusts: Expenditure

Chris Skidmore: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much was spent by primary care trusts on (a) management costs and (b) in total on mental health disorders in (i) 1997-98 and (ii) 2009-10. [64708]

Mr Simon Burns: Information on expenditure on managers and senior managers for 1997-98 and 2009-10 and expenditure on secondary health care relating to mental illness for 1997-98 and 2009-10 is in the following table.

£000
  2009-10 1997-98

Managers and senior managers

1,041,803

189,922

Mental illness

8,076,983

2,767,036

Primary care trusts did not exist in 1997-98. The figures for 1997-98 relate to spend by health authorities.

Psychotherapy

Mr Buckland: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he has taken to ensure that the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence guidelines on psychotherapy are an adequate expression of informed opinion in the field. [64526]

Paul Burstow: As an independent body, the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) is responsible for the way in which it develops its guidance. NICE consults widely during the development of individual pieces of guidance, and also consults periodically on the methods and processes it uses to carry out its work.

Skin Cancer

Sir Paul Beresford: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what proportion of patients were first diagnosed with (1) skin cancer as an emergency aged (a) 49 years and under, (b) 50 to 59 years, (c) 60 to 69 years, (d) 70 to 79 years and (e) over 80 years in each year since 1997; [65422]

11 July 2011 : Column 112W

(2) metastatic melanoma as an emergency aged (a) 49 years and under, (b) 50 to 59 years, (c) 60 to 69 years, (d) 70 to 79 years and (e) over 80 years in each year since 1997. [65425]

Paul Burstow: This information is not held centrally.

The National Cancer Intelligence Network (NCIN) produced an analysis of cancer diagnosis, including for patients diagnosed as an emergency presentation, for all patients diagnosed with cancer, including melanoma, during 2007. A copy of the NCIN report “Route to diagnosis” has been placed in the Library, and it can also be found at:

www.ncin.org.uk/publications/data_briefings/routes_to_diagnosis.aspx

The findings of the NCIN report were considered in the development of “Improving Outcomes: A Strategy for Cancer”, published on 12 January 2011, which sets out our intention to move forward on a new data collection which would allow routine assessment of the proportion of cancers diagnosed through emergency routes. Work is now under way to examine the feasibility of this.

Sir Paul Beresford: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people received any active treatment for skin cancer aged (a) 49 years and under, (b) 50 to 59 years, (c) 60 to 69 years, (d) 70 to 79 years and (e) over 80 years in each (i) cancer network and (ii) primary care trust area in each year since 1997. [65424]

Anne Milton: Information concerning the number of finished consultant episodes (FCEs) with a primary diagnosis of skin cancer for the age groups 49 years and under, 50 to 59 years, 60 to 69 years, 70 to 79 years and over 80 years in each primary care trust area in each year since 1997 has been placed in the Library. This information is not available at cancer network level.

FCEs are a continuous period of admitted patient care under one consultant within one health care provider. FCEs are not the same as a count of people as a person may have more than one FCE in a given year. It should also be noted that, in the data provided, the treatment received during the FCE might not be directly related to the treatment of skin cancer.

Social Care: Reform

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) pursuant to the statement of 4 July 2011, Official Report, columns 1232-34, on reform of social care, how he intends to assess whether a (a) viable insurance market and (b) more diverse and responsive care market might be established as a result of the Dilnot Commission proposals; [64445]

(2) if he will meet insurance companies to discuss (a) whether and (b) how a viable insurance market might be established as a result of the Dilnot Commission proposals on social care; [64446]

(3) whether he plans to meet the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions to discuss how a viable insurance market might be established as a result of the Dilnot Commission proposals on social care. [64447]

11 July 2011 : Column 113W

Paul Burstow: The Government will consult with stakeholders over the autumn on the Commission proposals and wider reform of social care. This will include engagement with the sector on whether a viable insurance market and a more diverse and responsible care market would be established as a result of the proposals.

We will set out our plans for engagement in more detail shortly.

Social Services: Fees and Charges

Claire Perry: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether he plans to review his allocation of social care funding following the increase in the number of delayed discharges from hospital in May 2011. [64251]

Paul Burstow: No one should be made to stay in hospital longer than is necessary. The national health service and social care must work together to ensure people have the support they need on leaving hospital. Some patients need particular support after a spell in hospital to settle back into their homes, recover their strength and regain their independence. The coalition Government have recently increased the level of investment made available to local health and care services to spend on front-line services and helping people return to their homes after a spell in hospital.

The spending review recognised the importance of social care in protecting the most vulnerable in society. In recognition of the pressures on the social care system in a challenging local government settlement, the coalition Government have allocated an additional £2 billion by 2014-15 to support the delivery of social care. This means, with an ambitious programme of efficiency, that there is enough funding available both to protect people's access to services and deliver new approaches to improve quality and outcomes.

As part of this funding, this year funding of £150 million has been made available for re-ablement and £648 million for social care spend that benefits the NHS which could help to reduce the level of delayed discharges. The re-ablement money will help people to leave hospital more quickly, get settled back at home with the support they need, and to prevent unnecessary admissions to hospital.

Local authorities are responsible for decisions on how to allocate their resources.

Speech Therapy

Paul Maynard: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the levels of support which will be required by commissioners to commission speech and language therapy services under his proposals for NHS reorganisation. [64332]

Mr Simon Burns: Subject to the passage of the Health and Social Care Bill, clinical commissioning groups will in future commission the majority of NHS services. The Government's response to the NHS Future Forum Report makes clear that it will strengthen existing duties on clinical commissioning groups to secure professional

11 July 2011 : Column 114W

advice and ensure this advice is from a full range of health professionals where relevant. In addition, clinical commissioning groups will receive expert support and advice from clinical networks and senates on the design and delivery of services.

The NHS Commissioning Board will support clinical commissioning groups and hold them to account. The Board will develop commissioning guidance to support effective commissioning, and promote consistent national quality standards produced by the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence to ensure all patients, including those with speech and language therapy needs, receive high quality services.

Paul Maynard: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the potential effects of the introduction of (a) clinical commissioning groups and (b) health and wellbeing boards on services for those with speech, language and communication needs. [64333]

Mr Simon Burns: Subject to the passage of the Health and Social Care Bill, general practitioners (GPs) will be given real responsibility to ensure that commissioning decisions are underpinned by clinical insight and knowledge of local healthcare needs. GPs, in partnership with other local healthcare professionals such as therapists and community nurses, are best placed to understand the speech, language and communication health needs of local populations and how to work with their local populations to design services that meet those needs.

Clinical commissioning groups will work with elected councillors, local authority commissioners and representatives of patients and the public through health and wellbeing boards to develop a comprehensive analysis of health and social care needs in each local area, and to translate these into action through the joint health and wellbeing strategy and their own commissioning plans. Health and wellbeing boards will promote joined- up commissioning that will support integrated provision of services across health and social care. This should mean that groups such as users of speech, language and communication services experience health and care services that are better joined up and better meet their needs as individuals.

Paul Maynard: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he plans to take to ensure that NHS commissioners have adequate skills to commission services for children with special educational needs and/or speech, language and communication needs under his proposals for NHS reorganisation. [64334]

Mr Simon Burns: Subject to the passage of the Health and Social Care Bill, clinical commissioning groups will in future commission the majority of NHS services. The Government's response to the NHS Future Forum Report makes clear that they will strengthen existing duties on clinical commissioning groups to secure professional advice and ensure this advice is from a full range of health professionals where relevant In addition, clinical commissioning groups will receive expert support and advice from clinical networks and senates on the design and delivery of services.

11 July 2011 : Column 115W

The NHS Commissioning Board will support clinical commissioning groups and hold them to account. The board will develop commissioning guidance to support effective commissioning, and promote consistent national quality standards produced by the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence to ensure all patients, including children with special educational needs and/or speech, language and communication needs, receive high quality services.

In addition, we will ensure there is a particular emphasis within the emerging clinical commissioning group pathfinder programme of testing ways of ensuring that groups quickly develop knowledge and expertise in relation to more complex or specialist services.

St George’s Healthcare NHS Trust

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate he has made of the number of stroke patients admitted to the accident and emergency department of St George’s Healthcare NHS Trust in each month since January 2009. [64188]

Mr Simon Burns: This information is not collected in the format requested.

The following table provides the number of finished admission episodes, in which there was an emergency admission via accident and emergency (A&E) with a primary diagnosis of stroke, by month from January 2009.

A count of the finished admission episodes (1) where the primary diagnosis (2 ) was stroke (3) in which there was an emergency admission via A&E (4) at St George's Healthcare NHS Trust; January 2009 to February 2011 (5, 6)
Activity in English NHS hospitals and English NHS commissioned activity in the independent sector
Final/provisional data Episode end month Finished admission episodes

Final year data

January 2009

60

 

February 2009

68

 

March 2009

66

 

April 2009

72

 

May 2009

57

 

June 2009

64

 

July 2009

64

 

August 2009

53

 

September 2009

65

 

October 2009

62

 

November 2009

64

 

December 2009

74

 

January 2010

80

 

February 2010

72

 

March 2010

59

     

Provisional data

April 2010

67

 

May 2010

60

 

June 2010

69

 

July 2010

75

 

August 2010

105

 

September 2010

117

 

October 2010

119

 

November 2010

103

 

December 2010

117

11 July 2011 : Column 116W

 

January 2011

95

 

February 2011

94

(1) Finished admission episodes A finished admission episode (FAE) is the first period of inpatient care under one consultant within one healthcare provider. FAEs are counted against the year in which the admission episode finishes. Admissions do not represent the number of inpatients, as a person may have more than one admission within the year. (2) Primary diagnosis The primary diagnosis is the first of up to 20 (14 from 2002-03 to 2006-07 and seven prior to 2002-03) diagnosis fields in the Hospital Episode Statistics (HES) data set and provides the main reason why the patient was admitted to hospital. (3) Stroke It should be noted that the ICD-10 codes for Stroke are: I60 Subarachnoid haemorrhage I61 Intracerebral haemorrhage I62 Other nontraumatic intracranial haemorrhage I63 Cerebral infarction I64 Stroke not specified as haemorrhage or infarction (4) Emergency admission via A&E The method of admission code identifies how the patient was admitted to hospital. The following admission methods were used to classify an admission as being an emergency via A&E: 21 = Emergency: via A&E services, including the casualty department of the provider 28 = Emergency: other means, including patients who arrive via the A&E department of another healthcare provider). Data to be based on in-patients rather than A&E universe (5) Provisional data The data are provisional and may be incomplete or contain errors for which no adjustments have yet been made. Counts produced from provisional data are likely to be lower than those generated for the same period in the final dataset. This shortfall will be most pronounced in the final month of the latest period, ie November from the (month 9) April to November extract. It is also probable that clinical data are not complete, which may in particular affect the last two months of any given period. There may also be errors due to coding inconsistencies that have not yet been investigated and corrected. (6) Assessing growth through time HES figures are available from 1989-90 onwards. Changes to the figures over time need to be interpreted in the context of improvements in data quality and coverage (particularly in earlier years), improvements in coverage of independent sector activity (particularly from 2006-07) and changes in NHS practice. For example, apparent reductions in activity may be due to a number of procedures which may now be undertaken in out-patient settings and so no longer include in admitted patient HES data. Note: Data quality HES are compiled from data sent by more than 300 NHS trusts and primary care trusts in England and from some independent sector organisations for activity commissioned by the English NHS. The NHS Information Centre for health and social care liaises closely with these organisations to encourage submission of complete and valid data and seeks to minimise inaccuracies. While this brings about improvement over time, some shortcomings remain. Source: Hospital Episode Statistics (HES); Outpatients, The NHS Information Centre for health and social care

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether he has undertaken an impact assessment of his proposed reform of the NHS on (a) patient care and (b) resources at St George's Healthcare NHS Trust; and if he will publish the result of any such assessment. [64189]

Mr Simon Burns: The impact assessment, published alongside the Health and Social Care Bill, discussed the anticipated effects of the modernisation on patient care and the resources used. This was at a national level. A local breakdown of these effects is not available.

A revised impact assessment will be published when the Bill is introduced into the House of Lords. This is in line with parliamentary protocol.

11 July 2011 : Column 117W

Tobacco Advertising and Promotion (Display) Regulations 2010

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what assessment he has made of the effects on bulk tobacconists of implementation of the Tobacco Advertising and Promotion (Display) Regulations 2010; [64312]

(2) how much hand-rolling tobacco was sold by bulk tobacconists in pre-packed quantities with a weight of 250 grams or more in the latest period for which figures are available; [64313]

(3) how many businesses supplying hand-rolling tobacco meet the definition of bulk tobacconist in the Tobacco Advertising and Promotion (Display) (England) Regulations 2010; [64315]

(4) what plans he has to review regulations relating to the supply of bulk tobacco. [64317]

Anne Milton: The legislation relating to the display of tobacco products does not apply to businesses in which tobacco products are only on display for the purposes of the tobacco trade and to people engaged in, or employed by that trade.

The Tobacco Advertising and Promotion (Display) Regulations 2010 (“the regulations”) provide an exemption for retail stores that only sell bulk quantities of tobacco. No assessment has been made of the impact of the legislation on these businesses, because provisions for tobacco display will not come into effect for such businesses

11 July 2011 : Column 118W

until April 2015. Before the regulations were made, following public consultation on the initial draft, the definition of bulk tobacconists in the regulations was amended to more accurately reflect the nature of bulk tobacco sales, based on the feedback received.

The Department does not routinely collect data on sales of bulk tobacco. The Department does not hold precise figures on the number of businesses that will meet the definition of bulk tobacconist in the regulations but these types of stores will include both cash and carry type stores and duty free stores.

The Government have committed to amend legislation on tobacco displays to delay implementation and make it less burdensome for retailers, as set out in the written ministerial statement made by the Secretary of State for Health, my right hon. Friend the Member for South Cambridgeshire (Mr Lansley), on 9 March 2011, Official Report, columns 66-67WS. The amending regulations will include statutory duty to undertake a review, five years after the regulations have come fully into force.

Tuberculosis

Mr Hollobone: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many (a) children and (b) adults were diagnosed with tuberculosis in (i) Northamptonshire and (ii) England in (A) each of the last five years, (B) 2001, (C) 1996 and (D) 1991. [65204]

Anne Milton: The information requested is shown in the following table.

Children and adults diagnosed with tuberculosis, Northamptonshire and England, 2005-09
  Northamptonshire England
  Children 0-14 Adults 15+ All cases Children 0-14 Adults 15+ All cases

1991

<5

38

38

449

4,805

5,436

1996

<5

39

43

369

5,151

5,654

2001

10

58

68

421

5,845

6,270

2005

9

70

79

424

7,265

7,691

2006

<5

66

68

367

7,352

7,720

2007

<5

64

66

463

7,163

7,626

2008

<5

63

66

458

7,484

7,942

2009

<5

80

83

403

7,883

8,286

Notes: 1. Northamptonshire has been defined by the following local authorities; Corby, Daventry, East Northamptonshire, Kettering, Northampton, South Northamptonshire and Wellingborough. 2. Data for 1990-98 were collected through notifications of infectious diseases (NOIDs), while data from 1999 onwards were collected from enhanced TB surveillance (ETS). 3. All cases include those with an unknown age, so numbers in adults and children may not add up to the total. 4. Where there are less than five cases, the exact value has not been given to avoid the risk of deductive disclosure of a patient's identity. Source: Health Protection Agency