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Written Answers to Questions
Thursday 8 November 2012
International Development
Afghanistan
Heidi Alexander: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what recent assessment she has made of the effectiveness of a cross-cutting thematic approach to improving the lives of women and girls in Afghanistan. [127048]
Justine Greening: We must ensure that girls and women in Afghanistan have a full role in society, in the economy and in politics. UK funding is already making a big difference in these areas—it has helped get over 2 million girls into school, and our £19.5 million Tawanmandi civil society programme (with additional funding from Norway, Sweden and Denmark) has to date provided over half its grants to Afghan women's organisations to help them hold the Afghan Government to account.
The UK Government continue to help improve the lives of women and girls in Afghanistan through the UK National Action Plan on United Nations Security Council Resolution 1325: Women, Peace and Security. Last month the UK Government published their second annual review of the plan which can be found at:
www.fco.gov.uk/en/global-issues/women-peace-security/national-action-plan
The section on Afghanistan is at pages 15 and 16.
Developing Countries: Primary Education
Ms Ritchie: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what progress the Prime Minister has made in his role as co-chair of the UN High Level Panel on Development towards the Millennium Development Goal of universal primary education by 2015. [127521]
Mr Duncan: The Prime Minister hosted the first substantive UN High Level Panel (HLP) meeting in London on 1 November.
The purpose of the High Level Panel is to agree recommendations for what should feature in a post 2015 development framework. While the panel's remit is to focus on the post 2015 development agenda, the Prime Minister has made it clear that achieving the Current Millennium Development Goals including universal primary education by 2015 should be a top priority.
At the London HLP meetings there was an emerging consensus that the new goals need to incentivise schools to provide high quality education for children in a post 2015 development framework.
Gambia
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much her Department has spent in combating child sex tourism in Gambia in each of the last seven years. [126876]
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Lynne Featherstone: The Department for International Development (DFID) has not directly funded programmes combating child sex tourism. However, the UK Government through the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and the Child Exploitation and Online Protection (CEOP) Centre does promote human rights issues and track offenders internationally.
Promoting and protecting the rights of the child is one of the UK's human rights priorities. We condemn all forms of sexual exploitation of children. Our high commission in Banjul has recently supported Gambia's Child Protection Alliance in bringing together community and religious leaders, members of the tourist industry and police and government officials to raise awareness of child protection issues and to protect children in the Gambia from sexual abuse and exploitation.
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what steps her Department has taken to promote human rights in Gambia. [126877]
Lynne Featherstone: The UK remains concerned about human rights in Gambia, particularly following the execution of nine prisoners on death row earlier this year. We have made our opposition to these executions—and the death penalty more generally—clear, both in London and in Banjul. We welcome the reintroduction of an effective moratorium on the death penalty but remain concerned at its non-binding nature. The UK also regularly raises concerns about freedom of expression and the protection of journalists. The sudden closures of Taranga FM Radio Station in August and, recently, of “The Daily News” and “The Standard” newspapers are worrying developments. At the September Human Rights Council meeting in Geneva, the UK supported a resolution on the safety of journalists worldwide.
Our high commissioner in Banjul regularly raises human rights issues with the Government of Gambia, both twice-yearly through formal European Union (EU) discussions and when specific incidents occur. Our human rights policy towards Gambia is guided by United Nations and EU guidelines. In 2011, the British high commission in Banjul, on behalf of the EU, formulated a local strategy based on the latter.
Under the EU/ACP Cotonou agreement with Gambia, the provision of development aid is dependent on progress on human rights which is reviewed in depth twice a year. The amount of funding from the European development fund was reduced in 2010 by 20% due to poor governance and Gambia's human rights record. It is unlikely that Gambia will qualify for future budgetary funding until measurable achievements are seen.
India
Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if she will raise with the Indian Government the issue of the rape of a 16 year old female and the merits of a reduction in the age of consent in order to reduce the number of such incidents. [127514]
Mr Duncan: While we do not take up individual cases with the Indian Government, our human rights and development dialogue emphasises the rights of women and girls. My officials are also monitoring legal developments of this case.
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Indian Subcontinent
Gavin Shuker: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much UK Aid has spent in (a) Pakistan, (b) India, (c) Pakistan occupied Kashmir, (d) Indian occupied Kashmir and (e) Chinese occupied Kashmir in each year from 2007 to date. [126898]
Mr Duncan: Information on the amount of UK bilateral aid provided to Pakistan and India over each of the past five years can be found in table 14.3:
http://www.dfid.gov.uk/About-us/How-we-measure-progress/Aid-Statistics/Statistics-on-International-Development-2012/SID-2012-Tables-Index/
UK aid to India and Pakistan supports national programmes that work in, and benefit, both Indian and Pakistan-administered Kashmir.
Mali
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many officials in her Department are currently stationed in Mali. [126872]
Lynne Featherstone: The Department for International Development has no staff based in Mali.
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much aid her Department has given to Mali in each of the last five years. [126873]
Lynne Featherstone: Information on the amount of UK aid provided to Mali over each of the past five years can be found in table 14.1 at
http://www.dfid.gov.uk/About-us/How-we-measure-progress/Aid-Statistics/Statistics-on-International-Development-2012/
Overseas Aid: Education
Dr Huppert: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what proportion of her departmental budget is spent on (a) primary, (b) secondary, (c) tertiary and (d) higher education delivered (i) outside and (ii) by services located in the UK. [127413]
Lynne Featherstone:
In 2011-12, the Department for International Development's (DFID) spend on education through bilateral programmes totalled just over £610 million, which is 7.9% of total departmental programme budget. Of this, 4.2% supported delivery of education
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systems (for example teacher training, facilities and administrative management) across all phases of education, with priority given to primary and lower secondary phases in line with the millennium development goals. Of the remaining 3.7%, the proportions of departmental spend attributable by phase of education were as follows:
(a)
primary: 2.9%;
(b)
secondary: 0.4%;
(c)
tertiary: 0.2%; and
(d)
higher: 0.2%.
In addition to this, DFID delivers support for education through global programmes such as the Global Partnership for Education, Girls Education Challenge, Commonwealth Scholarships and through multilateral partners.
DFID's work is delivered in accordance with the International Development Act. We draw from the best suppliers worldwide to deliver value for money and results. Information about the location of service providers is not collected centrally.
Papua New Guinea
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what funding her Department has given to Papua New Guinea in each of the last five years. [127142]
Mr Duncan: DFID does not have a bilateral programme with Papua New Guinea. The UK does however provide assistance through our attributable contributions to multilateral development organisations and global programmes that benefit a number of countries. Information on the amount of UK aid provided to Papua New Guinea for each of the last five years can be found in table 14.5 of Statistics on International Development (SID):
http://www.dfid.gov.uk/Documents/publications1/sid2012/Table14.5-Pacific.xls
Sickness Absence
Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development for how many and what proportion of days, on average, staff of her Department at each pay grade were absent from work as a result of ill health in each of the last five years. [127176]
Mr Duncan: Details of the total days lost to sickness absence in DFID by Home Civil Service (HCS) staff; and the average working days lost (AWDL) to sickness absence per HCS employee; for the 12 month periods 1 April to 31 March in each of the last five years, are shown in the following table:
| Period | Total days lost to sickness absence | Average working days lost to sickness absence per employee |
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Scotland
Sickness Absence
Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland for how many and what proportion of days, on average, staff of his Department at each pay grade were absent from work as a result of ill health in each of the last five years. [127173]
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David Mundell: All Scotland Office staff are on secondment from other Government bodies, principally the Scottish Government and the Ministry of Justice which have their own absence management policies and record processes that apply to those of their staff working in this office. Since 2010, the Scotland Office has kept local records of sick absences. The following table shows the average number of days staff in each grade were absent through ill health since local records began in January 2010.
| Days | |||||
| Senior Civil Servant | Grade 6/7 | Senior Executive Officer/Higher Executive Officer/Fast Stream | Executive Officer | Admin. | |
Written Questions
Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland (1) how many written parliamentary questions to his Department received a substantive answer (a) within five working days, (b) between six and 10 working days and (c) after more than 10 working days in the last 12 months for which figures are available; [127281]
(2) how many and what proportion of written parliamentary questions to his Department received holding responses in the last 12 months for which figures are available. [127282]
David Mundell: For the period 1 November 2011 to 31 October 2012, the Scotland Office received 223 ordinary written parliamentary questions. All of these were answered substantively, and are broken down as follows:
(a) 217
(b) five
(c) one
For the same period, my Department received and answered 84 Named Day parliamentary questions, of which eight (10%) received a holding reply.
The Government have committed to providing the Procedure Committee with information relating to written parliamentary question performance on a sessional basis and will provide full information to the Committee at the end of the current session. Statistics relating to performance for the 2010-12 parliamentary session are available on the Parliament website as follows:
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http://www.parliament.uk/documents/commons-committees/procedure/P35_ Memorandum_Leader_of_the_House_Monitoring _PQs.pdf
Attorney-General
Police Custody: Death
Mr Umunna: To ask the Attorney-General how many criminal prosecutions took place related to the death of a person in the custody of the police in each calendar year (a) from 2001 to 2011 and (b) in 2012 to date. [127226]
The Solicitor-General: In 2012 to date, two prosecutions have been completed by the CPS, each relating to one person. A further case, relating to two persons, is currently ongoing.
Records kept by the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) for the period 2001 to 2011 are not comprehensive. However, the records available show that two people were prosecuted in 2001; three persons were prosecuted in 2003; 12 persons were prosecuted in 2005; six persons were prosecuted in 2006; the office of Commissioner of Police for the Metropolis was prosecuted in 2007; and one person was prosecuted in 2008.
Prisoners: Death
Mr Umunna: To ask the Attorney General how many criminal prosecutions have arisen relating to the death of a person in the custody of the Prison Service in each calendar year (a) from 2001 to 2011 and (b) in 2012 to date. [127223]
The Solicitor-General: Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) records kept for the period 2001 to 2011 are not comprehensive. However, they do show that in 2007 one prosecution took place involving four persons. To date, two persons have been prosecuted by the CPS in 2012.
Health
Cystic Fibrosis: Drugs
Kerry McCarthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will take steps to ensure that ivacaftor is available to patients with the G551D mutation of cystic fibrosis in every GP commissioning area. [127376]
Anna Soubry: The decision on whether or not to fund this new treatment is a matter for the four Specialised Commissioning Groups (SCGs).
To support their decision making process the SCGs have commissioned a Health Technology Assessment of ivacaftor to help evaluate its clinical and cost effectiveness, with the aim of providing consistent national advice on its use for patients with cystic fibrosis.
Diabetes
Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) how many cases of diabetic retinopathy have been identified in each year since 2000; [126978]
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(2) what guidelines his Department has given to the NHS commissioning board on diabetic retinopathy. [126979]
Anna Soubry: Data on the number of people identified with diabetic retinopathy is not held centrally. However, data on the number of patients with diabetes who. are offered and receive screening for the early detection of diabetic retinopathy is available on the Department's website at:
http://transparency.dh.gov.uk/?p=20253
From 1 April 2013 the National Health Service Commissioning Board will be responsible for commissioning all national screening programmes, including diabetic retinopathy, to UK National Screening Committee approved standards. Commissioning arrangements will be subject to agreements made between the Secretary of State for Health and the National Health Service Commissioning Board under section 7A of the National Health Service Act 2006 as amended by the Health and Social Care Act 2012. The 2013-14 agreement will be published shortly. The screening programme will be supported by funding from the public health ring-fence and by a detailed service specification.
Drugs: Babies
Nick de Bois: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) how many mothers gave birth to (a) one, (b) two and (c) three or more babies showing neo-natal withdrawal symptoms attributable to maternal use of illicit or therapeutic drugs in each of the last five years; [127524]
(2) what steps he has taken to reduce the number of babies born with neo-natal withdrawal symptoms attributable to maternal use of illicit or therapeutic drugs; and if he will make a statement. [127525]
Dr Poulter: The Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists Standards for Maternity Care (published in 2008) states that all women who have a significant drug and/or alcohol problem should receive their care from a specialist multi-agency team, which will include a specialist midwife and/or obstetrician involving social workers and health visitors.
Data on the number of mothers giving birth to babies showing neonatal withdrawal symptoms are not available, as it is not possible to link birth records with delivery records. We are therefore unable to say whether a mother has had more than one delivery where the baby has neonatal withdrawal symptoms. However, data on the number of babies born with neonatal withdrawal symptoms from the Health and Social Care Information Centre, are provided in the following table.
| Count of finished admission birth episodes (FAEs) with a primary or secondary diagnosis of neonatal withdrawal symptoms from maternal use of drugs for the period 2006-07 to 2010-11 | |
| Birth FAEs | |
| Source: Hospital Episode Statistics (HES), The Health and Social Care Information Centre | |
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The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence issued guidance for medical and health care professionals on "Pregnancy and complex social factors" in September 2010. This guidance seeks to identify the service organisation and delivery that would best encourage access, contact and use of services by substance misusing women, describing what additional consultation and support is needed.
Drugs: Rehabilitation
Mr Buckland: To ask the Secretary of State for Health with reference to the National Treatment Agency for Substance Misuse's statistical report for 2011-12, (1) how many of the 29,855 people who successfully completed substance abuse treatment were free from dependence on the presenting drug but were using other drugs; [127079]
(2) how many of the 29,855 people who successfully completed substance abuse treatment left treatment free from dependence on all addictive drugs, including legal drugs such as alcohol, methadone and z-drugs such as benzodiazepine. [127081]
Anna Soubry: By recording a client as successfully completing drug treatment a clinician has determined that the individual, is free from dependency on any drug, no longer requires substitute prescribing or other structured drug treatment and no longer uses any heroin or crack cocaine. The National Treatment Agency for Substance Misuse advises local drug partnerships that people should not be coded as successfully completing drug misuse treatment if they are dependent on alcohol.
21,810 people who were recorded as successfully completing treatment for drug dependence in 2011-12 were judged to be using no illegal drug at all. 8,045 people who were recorded as successfully completing treatment for drug dependence in 2011-12 were identified as non-dependent users of drugs such as cannabis.
Mr Buckland: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how drug treatment leavers are independently tracked and validated in order to ensure that they remain free from dependency. [127080]
Anna Soubry: The report “Drug Treatment 2012” published by the National Treatment Agency for Substance Misuse in October analysed the unique identifiers of individual records on the National Drug Treatment Monitoring System to check if people come back into treatment after they leave. This found that of the 366,217 unique individuals who received treatment between 2005 and 2012, 104,879 completed treatment and did not return.
In their report published in July, the Recovery Orientated Drug Treatment Expert Group encouraged local treatment systems to provide recovery check-ups such as regular phone calls to people who have left treatment in order to help detect relapse, reduce the time to get back into treatment and improve long-term outcomes.
Throat Problems
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps his Department has taken to promote early diagnosis of throat problems. [126861]
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Anna Soubry: Clinical guidance on the early diagnosis and management of people presenting with symptoms relating to the throat or upper respiratory tract is available from a number of sources, including a guideline from the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence on the management of upper respiratory tract infection and "Professional Plus" articles from the website:
www.Patient.co.uk
which is often consulted by general practitioners. These guidelines emphasise the need for accurate differential diagnosis before deciding on treatment, in particular the need to exclude rare but potentially serious conditions such as throat cancer or acute inflammation of the epiglottis.
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people under the age of 25 have been admitted to hospital for throat problems since 2010. [126863]
Anna Soubry: Information on admissions to hospital, analysed according to the disease categories of the International Classification of Disease, is available for the financial years 2010-11 and 2011-12 from the NHS Information Centre at their website:
www.hesonline.nhs.uk/Ease/servlet/ContentServer?siteID=1937&categoryID=192
We are advised that the description "throat problems" is not specific enough to identity the particular conditions to which the question might refer.
HIV Infection
Simon Kirby: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what steps his Department is taking to ensure that people diagnosed with HIV/AIDS have access to anti-retroviral drugs; [126955]
(2) what steps his Department is taking to reduce the cost of anti-retroviral drugs in the UK. [126958]
Anna Soubry: All people diagnosed with HIV in the United Kingdom are offered appropriate anti-retroviral drugs (ARV) through the national health service when clinically needed. Prescriptions for ARVs are exempt from the prescription charges.
Measures to help the NHS to spend money efficiently on prescription medicines, including ARVs, while delivering good quality patient care include:
The Quality, Innovation, Productivity and Prevention medicines use and procurement work stream, which supports prescribers in reviewing and changing their practice, to ensure they are prescribing the most cost-effective, clinically appropriate drugs available in a treatment category.
The Department's Commercial Medicines Unit competitively tenders all ARVs on behalf of the NHS secondary care providers in England. Generic products (the minority of products) are tendered nationally, whereas patent-protected products are tendered at a regional level which allows for aggregation of spend appropriately to achieve value for money, reduce replication and assure a quality supply chain to the patient.
Simon Kirby: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps his Department is taking to promote the research and development of more effective and cheaper anti-retroviral drugs. [126956]
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Lynne Featherstone: I have been asked to reply on behalf of the Department for International Development.
The Department for International Development does not directly support the development of anti-retroviral drugs, but has supported two clinical trials (one for adults and one for children) investigating ways to reduce the cost of delivering existing anti-retroviral drugs, using fewer laboratory tests and allowing the savings made to be used to provide drugs to additional patients. Results of the trial in adults, published in 2009, showed that by reducing unnecessary laboratory tests up to one third more patients can be effectively treated for the same amount of money. The trial in children has recently been completed and the results will be published shortly. The researchers working on the trial for children are also working with a pharmaceutical company to develop new drug options for children.
Simon Kirby: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps his Department is taking to raise awareness of early detection for HIV/AIDS in the UK. [126957]
Anna Soubry:
The Department funds the Terrence Higgins Trust and their partner organisations for a national programme of targeted HIV prevention which highlights the importance of regular testing and early
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diagnosis of HIV. The Department has also funded the Medical Foundation for AIDS and Sexual Health for information resources to support all health care professionals in primary and secondary care services in the early detection of HIV by offering an HIV test.
The Department's new Sexual Health Policy Document, planned for later this year, will highlight the importance of early diagnosis and detection of HIV.
The Public Health Outcomes Framework, published in January 2012, includes an outcome indicator to reduce the proportion of people presenting with HIV at a late stage of infection.
HIV Infection: Brighton and Hove
Simon Kirby: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people were diagnosed with HIV/AIDS in (a) Brighton and Hove and (b) Brighton, Kemptown constituency in each of the last three years. [126954]
Anna Soubry: Information relating to constituency boundaries is not collected. The numbers of individuals newly diagnosed with HIV in Brighton and Hove local authority (which includes Brighton, Kemptown constituency) are set out in the following table:
| Year of HIV diagnosis | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 |
| Notes: 1. Diagnoses are from reports received to end June 2012. Numbers will rise as further reports are received. 2. Geography reflects the location of the reporting clinic (or laboratory where clinic is not known) where diagnosis was made, rather than residence of the individual. 3. Patients may live with HIV for many years before they are diagnosed. Therefore new diagnosis data do not necessarily reflect recently acquired infections. | |||
The Health Protection Agency publishes annual data on new HIV diagnoses. A copy of ‘United Kingdom New HIV Diagnoses to End June 2012’ has been placed in the Library.
The numbers of diagnosed HIV-infected individuals (all ages) living in Brighton and Hove local authority (which includes Brighton, Kemptown constituency) by year, 2009-11, are:
| Year of seen for care | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 |
| Notes: 1. These data are from SOPHID (Survey of Prevalent HIV Infections Diagnosed) which monitors the number of HIV diagnosed individuals seen for HIV care in the UK. 2. Individuals living in Brighton and Hove local authority may be seen for HIV care in other areas. Between 2009 and 2011, of 4,355 individuals living in Brighton and Hove local authority, 3,823 (88%) were also seen for HIV care in Brighton and Hove local authority. 3. Primary care trust and local authority data exclude people who are living with an undiagnosed HIV infection and people diagnosed but not accessing HIV-related care. | |||
The Health Protection Agency publishes various data on people living with HIV.
Low Birthweight
Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what international comparisons he has made of the proportion of children born with a low birthweight in each of the last five years. [127074]
Dr Poulter: The Office for National Statistics recently published “Measuring National Well-being—Children's Well-being”, 2012 which includes information on the percentage of children born with a low birth weight for selected Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development countries in 2011. We are also aware that the World Health Organisation has published data on the ‘European health for all' database at:
http://data.euro.who.int/hfadb/
which includes data on the percentage of live births with low birth weight for European countries over the period 2006-10.
NHS: Drugs
Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what estimate he has made of the cost to the NHS of unused medication in each financial year since 2005; [127069]
(2) what estimate he has made of the amount of unnecessary medication distributed by the NHS each year; [127070]
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(3) when he plans to publish the findings of the Steering Group to Improve the Use of Medicines. [127071]
Norman Lamb: Information is not held centrally on the annual cost or amount of unused or unnecessary medicines in the national health service. The Department commissioned the York Health Economics Consortium and the School of Pharmacy at the university of London to carry out research to determine the scale, causes and costs of waste medicines in England. The report, “Evaluation of the Scale, Causes and Costs of Waste Medicines”, was published on 23 November 2010. This found that the gross cost of unused prescription medicines in primary and community care in the NHS in England in 2009 was £300 million a year and that up to £150 million of this was avoidable.
The report and action plan of the Steering Group to Improve the Use of Medicines is expected to be published shortly.
NHS: Redundancy
Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the cost to the public purse of NHS staff redundancies in the north-west has been since 2010. [127565]
Dr Poulter: Information on redundancy costs is not available in the format requested. Such information as is available is in the following table:
| Compulsory redundancies and other departures within the North West Strategic Health Authority (SHA) economy for the financial years 2010-11 and 2011-12 | ||
| £000 | ||
| Category | 2010-11 | 2011-12 |
| Notes: 1. “Other departures” include early retirements (except those due to ill health), voluntary redundancies, mutually agreed resignation scheme, pay in lieu of notice etc. 2. Voluntary redundancies are not separately identifiable from other departures; therefore, an overall figure for redundancies is not available. | ||
The figures reported in the accounts are for a full financial year (i.e. between 1 April and 31 March). As such, we are unable to provide a breakdown of the cost associated with exit packages solely since May 2010.
The data are taken from the audited summarisation schedules of national health service organisations within the North West SHA economy, which are used to prepare the NHS elements of the Department's Annual Report and Accounts. The figures reported represent the total resource cost of compulsory redundancies and other departures for staff leaving their organisation during the year. The expense associated with these departures may have been recognised in part or in full in a previous period.
The Department does not collect data from NHS foundation trusts. Where an NHS trust obtains foundation trust status part way through any year, the data provided are only for the part of the year the organisation operated as an NHS trust.
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Phenytoin
Andrew Stunell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what estimate he has made of the additional cost to the NHS of the repricing of the epanutin form of phenytoin consequent upon its distribution being transferred from Pfizer to Flynn Pharma; and if he will make a statement; [126974]
(2) what representations he has received on the decision by Pfizer to transfer the marketing and distribution of the epanutin form of phenytoin to Flynn Pharma; and if he will make a statement. [126975]
Norman Lamb: The Department has estimated the additional cost to the national health service, from the repricing of the Epanutin form of phenytoin, to be around £44 million per annum.
We have received a number of representations from hon. Members and colleagues in the NHS about the recent increase in the price of phenytoin capsules, following the acquisition of the marketing authorisation by Flynn Pharma Ltd from Pfizer and the effects on NHS budgets.
Press: Subscriptions
Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Health which magazine, journal and newspaper subscriptions held by his Department have been cancelled since May 2010. [127084]
Dr Poulter: The following list shows magazine, journal and newspaper titles where annual subscriptions for at least one print copy have been cancelled or allowed to lapse since May 2010 (an estimated cost saving of £119,842.) The list includes titles cancelled this year where the current subscription has not yet expired. These details are for centrally funded subscriptions taken by the Department's Knowledge Centre.
Net
Access Journal
Accountancy
Addiction Today
Administrative Science Quarterly
Aids and Hepatitis Digest
Alcohol and Alcoholism
Ambulance UK
American Heart Journal
American Journal of Nursing
Architects Journal including AJ Specification & AJ Buildings Library
Architectural Review
BCIS Quarterly Review of Building Prices Building Costs Information Service
BMA News
BMJ British Medical Journal Clinical Research Edition
BMJ British Medical Journal General Practice Edition
BMJ British Medical Journal International Edition
BMJ British Medical Journal Quality and Safety
Bookseller & Bookseller Buyer's Guide & Children's Buyer's Guide
British Dental Journal
British Journal of Community Nursing
British Journal of General Practice Journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners
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British Journal of Healthcare Management
British Journal of Hospital Medicine
British Journal of Midwifery
British Journal of Nursing
British Journal of Occupational Therapy
British Journal of Psychiatry
British Journal of Psychology
British Journal of Social Work
British Medical Bulletin
Building
Cambridge Quarterly of Healthcare Ethics
Canadian Journal of Public Health
Caring Times
Chemist and Druggist & Generics List & Price List & Over the Counter
Child and Adolescent Mental Health
CIPFA Financial Information Service
Civil Service World
Clinica Medtech Intelligence
Clinical Medicine Journal of the Royal College of Physicians of London
Clinical Risk
Colour of Health
Community Care
Community Dental Health
Computing
Consumer Safety Bulletin
Current Medical Research and Opinion
Current Problems in Cancer
Dentistry
Disability Now
Diverse Minds Magazine
ElSharp
Economics Package
Economist
Editors Media Directories Volume 1 & 2 & 3 & 4 & 5 & 6
ENDS Report
Environmental Health News
Estates Gazette & Directory
Eurohealth
European Journal of Health Economics HEPAC
European Voice
Evaluation
Evidence Based Medicine
Evidence Based Mental Health
Evidence Based Nursing
Expert Review of Vaccines
Family Practice
Fire Protection Association Library of Fire Safety
Fiscal Studies
Fluoride
Freedom of Information Journal
Global Health Promotion
Government Computing
GP
Green Futures
Harvard Business Review
Health and Fitness
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Health and Safety Monitor
Health Business
Health Care Analysis
Health Care Management Science
Health Care Management Science
Health Care Risk Report
Health Economics
Health Education Journal
Health Education Research
Health Estate Journal
Health Informatics Journal
Health Policy
Health Promotion International
Health Service Journal
Health Services Management Research
Healthcare Market News
Healthy
Heart London
House Magazine & Blue Pages E-Mail
Human Resource Management Journal
IDS Pay Report
Independent Nurse
Infection Control and Hospital Epidemiology
Influenza and Other Respiratory Viruses
Information Management and Technology
Information World Review
Inquiry Journal of Health Care Organization Provision and Financing
Inside Housing
Inside Knowledge
Intensive and Critical Care Nursing
International Dental Journal
International Fire Professional
International Fire Protection Magazine
International Journal for Quality in Health Care
International Journal of Epidemiology
International Journal of Mental Health Promotion
International Journal of Technology Assessment in Health Care
International Social Science Journal
JAMA Journal of the American Medical Association
JCH Journal of Communication in Healthcare
Joint Commission Journal on Quality and Patient Safety
Journal Nursing Administration & Healthcare Law Ethics Regulations
Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health
Journal of Family Planning and Reproductive Health Care
Journal of Health Economics
Journal of Health Politics Policy and Law
Journal of Health Services Research and Policy
Journal of Human Nutrition and Dietetics
Journal of Infection
Journal of Infectious Diseases
Journal of Medical Genetics Print
Journal of Mental Health Law
Journal of Mental Health Training Education and Practice
Journal of Political Economy
Journal of Psychiatric and Mental Health Nursing
Journal of Public Health
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Journal of Public Health Policy
Journal of Public Mental Health
Journal of Public policy
Journal of Telemedicine and Telecare
Lancet
Lancet Oncology
Legal Action Legal Action Group
Management Today & Professional Manager
Maternal and Child Nutrition
Medical Care
Medical Journal of Australia
Medical Woman
Mental Health Practice
Mental Health Review Journal
Mental Health Today
Midwifery
MIMS Monthly Index of Medical Specialities
NB Magazine Print
New Bulletin
New England Journal of Medicine
New Literature on Old Age
NFPA Membership—National Fire Protection Assoc. including Journal & News
NHS Boardroom Pay Report
Nurse Education Today & Nurse Education in Practice
Nurse Researcher
Nursing Management Royal College of Nursing
Nursing Older People
Nursing Standard
Nutrition and Health
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Salmonella
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many confirmed cases of salmonella have been reported in adults in each of the last five years. [127141]
Anna Soubry: The data on confirmed cases of salmonella reported in adults over the last five years can be found in the following table and have been a supplied by the Health Protection Agency. The figures reported are for England and Wales only. It is not possible to separate out indigenous and travel associated cases.
| Laboratory-confirmed cases of Salmonella in adults (16 years and over) | |
| England and Wales(1) | |
| (1) This includes data for both indigenous and travel associated cases. Typhoidal cases are also included. | |
School Milk
Mrs Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much funding his Department has claimed from the EU for school milk in each of the last 10 financial years. [125483]
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Mr Heath: I have been asked to reply on behalf of the Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.
DEFRA has claimed and paid out to approved claimants the following amount of EU school milk aid in each of the last 10 financial years:
| £ | ||
| Net amounts paid | ||
| Financial year | GB | England |
| Source: Rural Payments Agency | ||
This scheme is driven entirely by consumption rates at schools. The amount of aid claimed and paid out by DEFRA will vary according to whether education authorities, schools or parents decide that more or fewer children should take part in the scheme.
Smoking: Young People
Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what proportion of (a) boys, (b) girls and (c) children aged 15 years old smoked in each of the last 30 years. [127152]
Anna Soubry: Table 3.3a of ‘Smoking, drinking and drug use among young people in England in 2011’ shows the proportion of pupils aged 11 to 15 who were regular smokers by sex and age for the period 1982 to 2000. Table 3.3b shows the same information for the period 2001 to 2011.
Tables 3.1a and 3.1b of the same report show smoking behaviour among young people aged 11 to 15 by sex for the period 1982 t o2011.
This publication has been placed in the Library and is available from the following link:
www.ic.nhs.uk/pubs/sdd11fullreport
Tonsillitis
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the cost to the NHS was of tonsillitis operations in 2011. [126862]
Anna Soubry: The information requested is not available because the cost of tonsillitis operations is not reported separately to the Department.
However, through the annual reference cost collection, national health service trusts and foundation trusts are required to report costs against the following four health care resource groups (HRG's):
| Tonsillitis operations | |
|
Tonsillectomy 18 years and under with complications and comorbidities | |
|
Tonsillectomy 18 years and under without complications and comorbidities |
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Using these reported costs, the estimated total cost to the NHS of tonsillectomies in 2011-12 was £78.3 million.
Women and Equalities
Homosexuality
Diana Johnson: To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities what her policy is on conversion and reparative therapies offered to homosexual people by counsellors and psychotherapists. [127067]
Norman Lamb: I have been asked to reply on behalf of the Department of Health.
The Department of Health does not condone the concept of therapists offering 'cures' for homosexuality. There is no evidence that this sort of treatment is beneficial and indeed it may well cause significant harm, to some patients. It is incumbent on professionals working in the national health service to ensure that treatment and care, including therapy, is provided to every patient without any form of discrimination.
If someone is suffering a mental health problem, clinicians will try to help patients with whatever is causing them distress. This could involve helping someone come to terms with their sexuality, family arguments over their sexuality, or hostility from other people.
We know from research that the incidence of depression, anxiety and suicide within the gay community is significantly higher than within the heterosexual community and this is why “No health without mental health” identifies lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people as a specific group for whom a tailored approach to their mental health is necessary.
Education
Children
Annette Brooke: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what assessment he has carried out on the potential effect on disabled children in need of his proposals to amend the Framework for the Assessment of Children in Need and their Families guidance; and what steps he has taken to mitigate any such risks. [126706]
Mr Timpson
[holding answer 5 November 2012]:Our proposals to reform the assessment of children in need and their families are the result of a wide-ranging and independent review by Professor Eileen Munro of the London School of Economics (“the Munro Review”). Professor Munro looked at how the system could be reformed to keep a focus on the child's journey from
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needing to receiving help, covering both section 17 of the Children Act 1989 (children in need) and section 47 of that Act (children at risk of significant harm). Under section 17 of the Children Act 1989, all disabled children fall within the definition of a child in need. The legislative framework for safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children in need (including children at risk of significant harm) remains in place.
The policy intention on which we consulted—to put the needs of individual children at the heart of assessment—seeks to improve the quality of assessments and ultimately the outcomes for all children. The consultation impact assessment set out that we believe the proposed guidance is likely to have a positive impact on any particular vulnerable child, whether or not disabled, under both section 17 and section 47. Further evidence on this issue is being provided through analysis of the consultation responses and ongoing evidence provided from the eight trial authorities who are testing a more flexible approach to assessment. This is why the Government are committed to undertaking further analysis of the impact on equalities, including disability, post-consultation.
We are still considering the responses received to the consultation—we are determined to get the revised statutory guidance right so that it will be the catalyst for change and put the needs of all individual children and young people back at the heart of assessment.
Children in Care
Andrew Selous: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many children were taken into care in England in the last full year for which figures were available; and how many of those children were from (a) single parent families and (b) families where the parents were married. [127018]
Mr Timpson [holding answer 6 November 2012]: There were 10,100 children who were taken into care(1) during the 12 months to 31 March 2012. The Department does not collect information on whether those children are from a single parent family or a married couple.
The information for children taken into care in the last 12 months is also published in table LAC1 of the Department's Statistical First Release, “Children Looked After by Local Authorities in England (including adoption and care leavers)—year ending 31 March 2012”. This publication can be found at:
http://www.education.gov.uk/researchandstatistics/statistics/allstatistics/a00213762/children-looked-after-las-england
(1) Children taken into care are children who started to be looked after under a care order, police protection, emergency protection order or child assessment order.
Alex Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Education if he will consider giving all children in care a statutory right to independent advocacy as part of care reviews and placement planning. [127235]
Mr Timpson:
The current statutory framework requires local authorities to ensure that all looked after children have access to independent advocacy. Statutory guidance in the Independent Reviewing Officers Handbook (2010) requires that children should be provided with support
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from an advocate whenever they wish to make representations about the services they receive.
Local authorities are also expected to publicise their arrangements for the provision of advocacy services and to provide information about children's rights. This should be age appropriate and wide-ranging to reflect the various needs of all children and young people.
Children: Corporal Punishment
Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what his policy is on implementing the recommendations of Sir Roger Singleton in his March 2010 report entitled Physical punishment: improving consistency and protection, on extending the existing ban on physical punishment in schools to (a) madrassas and (b) other unregulated care and learning settings. [127024]
Mr Timpson [holding answer 6 November 2012]: The Government are considering the recommendations made in Sir Roger Singleton's report.
We are absolutely clear that no child should be subjected to violence or abuse. All the settings referred to in the question are subject to the law which protects children from violence and abuse. Child protection agencies and the police treat allegations of abuse very seriously, investigating and taking appropriate action, including prosecution where there is sufficient evidence.
Parents and those working within communities also have a responsibility to ensure that children are protected and that allegations are reported to the relevant authorities. Barriers to doing so must be broken down within communities and with the engagement of community leaders, supported by local agencies including Local Safeguarding Children Boards.
Children: Poverty
Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what proportion of children lived in poverty in each of the last 30 years; and what projections he has made for each of the next five years. [127043]
Mr Laws: Estimates of the number and proportion of children living in income poverty in the United Kingdom are published in the Households Below Average Income (HBAI) and Low Income Dynamics (LID) series.
The Child Poverty Act 2010 sets four income-based UK-wide targets to be met by 2020. The targets are based on the proportion of children living in households with relative low income, combined low income and material deprivation, absolute low income and persistent poverty (all before housing costs have been taken into account).
The Government have not produced forecasts of the number of children living in income poverty for the next five years. The number of children in poverty is dependent on a number of factors which cannot be reliably predicted, including the median income.
Relative low income and absolute low income figures which cover the period of 30 years and combined low income and material deprivation for the last seven years for the UK can be found in table 1.
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| Table 1: Child poverty statistics: Percentage of children falling below various thresholds, 1981 to 2010/11 | |||
| Percentage | |||
| Relative low income (BHC) | Absolute low income (BHC) | Combined low income and material deprivation | |
| Notes: 1. These statistics are based on the 2010/11 Households Below Average Income (HBAI) publication, which uses disposable household income, adjusted using modified OECD equivalisation factors for household size and composition, as an income measure as a proxy for standard of living and is available at: http://research.dwp.gov.uk/asd/index.php?page=hbai_arc 2. The statistics from 1981 to 1995/96 and 1996/97 are sourced from the Financial Expenditure Survey (FES) and are for the United Kingdom. These are single calendar years for 1981 and 1987; two combined calendar years from 1988 and 1993 and two financial years from 1993/94 to 1996/97. 3. The statistics from 1994/95 onwards are sourced from the Family Resources Survey (FRS) and are for Great Britain only up to 1997/98 and are for the United Kingdom from 1998/99 onwards. 4. The relative low income child poverty measure captures the number of children who live in a household with an equivalised income below 60% of contemporary median income, Before Housing Costs (BHC). 5. The absolute low income child poverty measure captures the number of children who live in a household with an equivalised income below 60% of 1998/99 median household income held constant in real terms. 6. The combined low income and material deprivation measure captures the number of children who live in a household with an equivalised income below 70% of contemporary median income and have a material deprivation score of 25 or more. A suite of questions designed to capture the material deprivation experienced by families have only been captured since 2004/05 and are therefore only available from this year onwards. 7. All estimates are based on survey data and are therefore subject to a degree of uncertainty. Small differences should be treated with caution as these will be affected by sampling error and variability in non-response. 8. Percentages of children in low-income households have been rounded to the nearest percentage point. Source: Households Below Average Income (HBAI) 2010/11 | |||
Figures for persistent poverty are published in a separate statistical release called Low Income Dynamics (LID) and are only available from 1991-94 onwards, they can be found in table 2:
| Table 2: Persistent child poverty statistics 1991/94 to 2005/08 | |
| Percentage | |
| Persistent poverty (BHC) | |
| Notes: 1. These statistics are based on the Low Income Dynamics (LID) data sourced from the British Households Panel Survey (BHPS) and is available at: http://research.dwp.gov.uk/asd/hbai/low_income/low_income_dynamics_1991-2008.pdf 2. The persistent child poverty measure captures the number of children who have lived in a household with an equivalised income of less than 60% of contemporary median income for at least three of the last four years, BHC. 3. All estimates are based on survey data and are therefore subject to a degree of uncertainty. Small differences should be treated with caution as these will be affected by sampling error and variability in non-response. 4. Percentages of children in low-income households have been rounded to the nearest percentage point. Source: Low Income Dynamics (LID) | |
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Figures for the period of 2011/12 for the first three measures are due to be reported in the next HBAI publication which will be available from the DWP website from May/June 2013:
http://statistics.dwp.gov.uk/asd/index.php?page=hbai
Data covering 2005-08 are the latest available data for the persistent poverty measure. These data were previously sourced from the British Household Panel Survey (BHPS) which has been subsumed into the larger Understanding Society survey from the start of 2009. Due to the time of data delivery of the BHPS element of the Understanding Society survey it is not possible to produce a Low Income Dynamics report this year; instead this period will be used to look into options on how to continue measuring the persistence of low income.
Income matters but considering this in isolation fails to properly reflect the reality of child poverty in the UK today. We are very interested in developing better measurements of child poverty which include income but provide a more accurate picture of the reality of child poverty and will be seeking a wide range of views in the autumn as part of a consultation on how best to measure child poverty.
English Baccalaureate
Mr Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what steps he is taking to ensure that teachers being trained through Teaching Schools will have the skills, confidence and commitment in outdoor learning to teach high-quality fieldwork in (a) science, (b) geography and (c) other English Baccalaureate subjects. [126901]
Mr Laws: The Secretary of State does not set the content of initial teacher training courses. It is for training providers to decide what trainees should be taught to enable them to achieve the Teachers' Standards. Trainees must know and understand the relevant settings and context applicable to the subject they wish to teach.
Free School Meals
Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Education which streams of funding allocated by his Department are contingent on the proportion of pupils claiming free school meals. [127149]
Mr Laws: The funding streams allocated by the Department for Education which are currently or are planned to be contingent on the proportion of pupils claiming free school meals (FSM) are:
The pupil premium, as it applies to economically disadvantaged children;
The Summer Schools programme, to help disadvantaged children make a successful transition from primary to secondary schools;
A one-off capital allocation of £100 million for 2012-13 for the provision of extra places for disadvantaged two-year-olds;
The funding formula for free schools, which does include reference to the number of children eligible for FSM as a measure of deprivation; and
Funding to be paid to local authorities in 2013-14 to provide additional early years places for disadvantaged two-years-olds.
In addition, the General Annual Grant paid to academies, which is linked to the local funding formula for each academy's local authority, can include reference to the
8 Nov 2012 : Column 692W
number of children eligible for FSM if included in the local formula. There is, however, no central requirement to link FSM eligibility to academy funding.
All of the above funding information relates to England only. The funding arrangements for the Department's funding streams may change over time.
Free Schools: Special Educational Needs
Stuart Andrew: To ask the Secretary of State for Education whether he proposes that Ofsted inspectors will receive specialised training on visiting free schools for children with special educational needs; and who will provide such training. [126929]
Mr Laws [holding answer 6 November 2012]:This question is a matter for Ofsted. HM Chief Inspector, Sir Michael Wilshaw, has written to the hon. Member, and a copy of his response has been placed in the House Libraries.
Letter from Sir Michael Wilshaw, dated 5 November 2012:
Your recent parliamentary question has been passed to me, as Her Majesty's Chief Inspector, for reply.
Inspections of free schools are carried out using the same inspection framework as for all maintained schools and academies. These inspections are undertaken under section 5 of the Education Act (2005). The judgements made by inspectors during these inspections are explained in detail in Ofsted's published evaluation schedule. The provision made for pupils with special educational needs and disabilities—and their outcomes—are strongly represented in the grade descriptors inspectors use to make these judgements. The most recent version of the evaluation schedule was first published as part of the draft school inspection handbook in June 2012, for use in inspections commencing during the autumn term 2012.
The introduction of this revised evaluation schedule was accompanied by extensive training both of all Her Majesty's Inspectors directly employed by Ofsted, and all of the Additional Inspectors who are employed by inspection service providers and who carry out section 5 inspections. The training material was provided by Ofsted and included the inspection of provision for disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs. Her Majesty's Inspectors were present at each of the training events for Additional Inspectors, undertaken by the inspection service providers, to ensure the material was delivered as intended and to answer any questions that arose.
In addition to training provided by Ofsted when a new framework is introduced, Ofsted makes arrangements for inspectors' annual refresher training on the inspection of provision for disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs. This element of training fulfils Ofsted's commitment to provide an annual update for all section 5 inspectors on this very important aspect of schools' work.
Ofsted also trains specialist inspectors who lead inspections in specialist provision for disabled pupils and those who have special educational needs (this includes specialist resource bases, special schools—including special free schools—and pupil referral units). These specialist inspectors have particular expertise in this aspect of education. They are required to undertake enhanced training before they are able to inspect such provision, and annually thereafter. Again, the training materials provided by Her Majesty's inspectors.
As well as making provision for training, Ofsted requires the inspection service providers to ensure that inspection teams include an inspector who, as far as is possible, has expertise to match the aspects of disability and special educational needs of the school.
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Outdoor Education
Mr Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what assessment he has made of the effect of closure of outdoor education centres on the level of uptake of residential experiences by students from areas with multiple deprivation; and if he will make a statement. [126902]
Mr Timpson: The Government believe that schools should have the maximum freedom to design a curriculum that meets their pupils' needs, including through activities outside the classroom. We know that many schools value education outside the classroom and may choose to use outdoor education centres. However, we do not collect data on the number or location of these centres.
Primary Education: Teachers
Andrew Griffiths: To ask the Secretary of State for Education which primary schools had (a) fewer than 10 per cent, (b) fewer than 5 per cent and (c) zero qualified full-time male teachers in each local authority area in the most recent year for which figures are available. [126100]
Mr Laws [holding answer 1 November 2012]: The information requested has been placed in the House Libraries.
The data show there were 5,812 primary schools (35.5% of all primary schools) where fewer than 10% of their full-time qualified teachers were male. This includes 4,483 primary schools (27.4% of all primary schools) where they had no full-time qualified male teachers. There were also a further 38 schools (0.2%) where the proportion of full-time qualified teachers were male ranged between 0 and 5% and a further 1,291 schools (7.9%) where the proportion of full-time qualified male teachers ranged between 5% and 10%.
Teachers: Pensions
Alex Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what the cost was of renegotiating the contract with Capita Hartshead for the administration of the Teachers Pension Scheme (England and Wales). [127056]
Mr Laws: Capita secured the Teachers' Pension Scheme administration contract following an open procurement exercise, which was managed by the Department. The contract was let on 23 March 2011, and commenced service on 1 October 2011. There were costs of £705,000 associated with the use of specialist consultants and hiring a neutral venue in which to hold procurement meetings. It was approved by the Cabinet Office.
Young People: Employment Schemes
Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Education for what reason young people aged 16 to 17 years with one GCSE are excluded from participation in the Youth Contract. [125515]
Mr Laws
[holding answer 29 October 2012]: We have designed the Youth Contract programme to support the most disengaged young people, those who would not
8 Nov 2012 : Column 694W
participate in education or training without this additional help. These are the young people who are likely to be at greatest risk of being not in education, employment or training (NEET) for longest, which in turn gives an increased risk of future long-term unemployment and low wages.
Attainment at age 16 is the most important factor in determining later participation. Those without qualifications at that age are more likely to be NEET and spend a longer time NEET than those with qualifications. This is why we have set the clear and stretching eligibility criteria for the programme to focus on those with low levels of attainment.
However, in order to ensure that programme is focused on engaging those in greatest need of support we will keep the eligibility criteria under review.
Business, Innovation and Skills
Business: Government Assistance
Mr Umunna: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills by what date he expects the GrowthAccelerator programme to provide help to 26,000 businesses; and what benchmarks and targets he or his officials have set for the programme. [127072]
Michael Fallon: GrowthAccelerator (GA) will support up to 26,000 small and medium-sized enterprises (Sees) over the period 2011/12 to 2014/15. The programme is expected to deliver growth of £2.2 billion and to create 55,000 new jobs.
Robert Flello: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change on investment in green manufacturing jobs. [127318]
Vince Cable: I regularly meet my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change to discuss energy and climate change policies, including investment in green manufacturing jobs. We are seeking to exploit opportunities for growth through green technologies and I have recently announced that the UK Green Investment Bank is operational which will support investment in green manufacturing.