Sports: Children

Mr Hepburn: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many children in (a) Jarrow constituency, (b) South Tyneside, (c) the North East and (d) the UK have taken part in at least one sporting activity each week in each of the last five years. [194334]

Mrs Grant: Taking Part Survey data are available for children who took part in sport within one week of the survey date. The percentage participation among children aged 5-15 in sport over the past five years for the UK was:

Telecommunications

Guy Opperman: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what steps she has taken to make it easier for people to switch between telephone and broadband suppliers. [195187]

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Mr Vaizey: Research by Ofcom shows that at present switching telephone and broadband suppliers usually goes smoothly for consumers, but we are in favour of it being as simple as possible. I recognise that switching processes work better for consumers when only one call needs to be made, to the company the consumer wishes to switch to, for the switch to happen and there is no need for consumers to contact their existing provider (so called ‘gaining-provider led' switching-GPL). Working with Ofcom, we will do everything we can to move towards a system of GPL switching across the board.

Health

Abortion

Mr Burrowes: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what guidance he has issued on reporting to the police registered medical practitioners who do not return complete HSA4 forms. [194427]

Jane Ellison: The chief medical officer (CMO) wrote to all medical practitioners in November 2013 reminding them of their duties under the Abortion Act and of the legal requirement to notify the CMO, through Form HSA4, of every completed abortion they have performed within 14 days of the procedure.

Mr Burrowes: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many HSA4 forms are pending completion since 2008, broken down by each month in which they were submitted. [194429]

Jane Ellison: The information is not available and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

Jim Dobbin: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many foetuses showed signs of life following an attempted termination in each year for which records are available; and how many such foetuses were registered as live births. [194840]

Jane Ellison: The Government do not collect this data.

Air Pollution: Halton

Derek Twigg: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate his Department has made of the number of deaths attributable to long-term exposure to particulate air pollution in Halton constituency in each of the last five years. [194954]

Jane Ellison: No estimates of the number of deaths attributable to long-term exposure to particulate air pollution in parliamentary constituencies have been made by the Department.

Estimates of the fraction of mortality in English local authority areas in 2010 and 2011 attributable to long-term exposure to particulate air pollution arising from human activities are published by Public Health England as one of the indicators in the Department’s Public Health Outcomes Framework. For Halton unitary authority, these figures are approximately 5.5% for 2010 and 4.9% for 2011.

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Breast Cancer

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make it his policy that radiotherapy should be routinely made available as a treatment to reduce female breast cancer. [194455]

Jane Ellison: Women who are diagnosed with breast cancer are routinely given radiotherapy as a form of treatment where this is deemed clinically appropriate. There are no plans to routinely provide radiotherapy to all women as a preventive measure to help reduce the incidence of breast cancer.

Cancer

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of reports that carrots can reduce cancer. [194456]

Jane Ellison: Public Health England is aware of a recently published study which reports that the consumption of carrots is associated with a reduced risk of prostate cancer. Government recommend people eat at least five portions of a variety of fruit and vegetables a day and carrots can be included as part of this. The variety message is important as different fruit and vegetables contain different nutrients and components and this variety is important for overall health and wellbeing.

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what guidance he issues on ensuring that cancer drugs are not withheld from elderly terminally ill patients aged over 65 years old. [194457]

Norman Lamb: In December 2012, the Department worked on a project with Macmillan Cancer Support and Age UK to improve uptake of treatment in older people. That project established key principles for the delivery of age-friendly cancer services. In December 2013, NHS England published Are Older People Receiving Cancer Drugs?¹, an analysis of chemotherapy uptake in older people, and that report reaffirmed these principles and set out new recommendations on improving the uptake of chemotherapy.

Alongside this report, NHS England's National Clinical Director for Cancer launched a ‘call for action' on treatment for older people. NHS England is now setting up an advisory group to identify where improvements in cancer services for older people can be made. It is also supporting an initiative to ensure that patients are better informed about the options available to them and that they are fully involved in decisions about their treatment.

¹Note:

www.england.nhs.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/12/old-people-rec-cancer-drugs.pdf

David Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what support his Department provides to local health trusts and clinical commissioning groups to enable them to promote cancer awareness education. [194538]

Jane Ellison: From April 2013, Be Clear on Cancer (BCOC) campaign work moved to Public Health England

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(PHE) and the work continues to be carried out in partnership with the Department, NHS England and other relevant stakeholders including charities.

NHS Improving Quality, as part of NHS England, works with strategic clinical networks (SCNs) to cascade information to local health systems about forthcoming BCOC campaigns and to help ensure that the national health service is prepared for campaigns. In 2013-14, NHS England made £2.3 million available to SCNs to support early diagnosis of cancer, including supporting the BCOC campaigns.

The Department and PHE work with Cancer Research UK to develop briefing sheets for health care professionals including general practitioners (GPs); nurses; practice managers, NHS trusts, and pharmacists.

Briefing sheets, advice on the use of the BCOC brand and collateral to support local promotion of campaigns are available from the Be Clear on Cancer website at:

www.cancerresearchuk.org/cancer-info/spotcancerearly/naedi/beclearoncancer/current-campaigns/

PHE develops campaign materials including leaflets and posters to support the preparation and delivery of the campaigns. These can be ordered from the Health and Social Care Publications Orderline through their website at:

www.orderline.dh.gov.uk/ecom_dh/public/home.jsf

or by calling 0300 123 1002.

An on-line learning tool for GPs supported by the Department and developed by British Medical Journal (BMJ) Learning was launched in 2012 with four modules on tackling late diagnosis; risk assessment tools; cancer pathway and the role of primary care; and diagnosing osteosarcoma and brain tumours, in children. The tool offers accredited professional development and is one of a number of such resources available for GPs. The tool can be accessed via the BMJ Learning website at:

www.learning.bmj.com/learning/home.html

Finally, information regarding the campaigns and links to resources including on line learning tools and decision support tools are placed on NHS Choices at:

www.nhs.uk/nhsengland/nsf/pages/naedi.aspx

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps his Department is taking to reduce the number of late diagnoses of cancer. [194772]

Jane Ellison: ‘Improving Outcomes: A Strategy for Cancer’, published in January 2011, committed more than £450 million over the four years up to 2014-15 to achieve earlier diagnosis of cancer, including funding to support direct general practitioner (GP) access to four key diagnostic tests to support the diagnosis of brain tumours, bowel, lung and ovarian cancers and to cover additional testing and treatment costs in secondary care. GPs are able to access these tests directly in cases where the two-week urgent referral pathway is not appropriate but a patient's symptoms require further investigation. The intention is that more people presenting with relevant symptoms will be tested and at an earlier stage. NHS England monitors the use of these diagnostic tests through the Diagnostic Imaging Dataset.

The earlier diagnosis money also included central funding for Be Clear on Cancer (BCOC) campaigns, which aim to raise awareness of the symptoms of cancer

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and get symptomatic patients to present earlier. In partnership with the Department and NHS England (including NHS Improving Quality), Public Health England (PHE) has taken on the running of the BCOC campaigns.

To increase awareness of cancer among GPs, in 2012 an online learning tool for GPs supported by the Department and developed by British Medical Journal (BMJ) Learning was launched with four modules on tackling late diagnosis: risk assessment tools; cancer pathway and the role of primary care; and diagnosing osteosarcoma and brain tumours in children. The tool offers accredited professional development and is one of a number of such resources available for GPs. The tool can be accessed via the BMJ Learning website at:

www.learning.bmj.com/learning/home.html

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence is in the process of updating the ‘Referral Guidelines for Suspected Cancer’ (2005) to ensure that it reflects latest evidence and can continue to support GPs to identify patients with the symptoms of suspected cancer and urgently refer them as appropriate.

Cancer screening is also an important way to detect asymptomatic cancer early. We have committed more than £170 million over this spending review period to expand and improve our cancer screening programmes, including £60 million to roll-out Bowel Scope Screening as part of the NHS Bowel Cancer Screening Programme for men and women aged 55. Bowel Scope Screening is estimated to save 3,000 lives a year when fully rolled out in 2016.

Finally, the NHS Outcomes Framework (2014-15), Public Health Outcomes Framework (2013-16) and the Clinical Commissioning Group Outcomes Indicator Set (2014-15) include cancer indicators to help the NHS England and PHE improve outcomes and assess progress in tackling early diagnosis.

Nic Dakin: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps his Department has taken to ensure that the views and experiences of cancer patients are used to inform the ratings of the Care Quality Commission’s hospital inspection programme. [195008]

Norman Lamb: The Care Quality Commission (CQC) is the independent regulator of health and adult social care providers in England. Under the Health and Social Care Act 2008 all providers of regulated activities have to register with CQC and meet a set of requirements for safety and quality.

The CQC has made a commitment to listen better to the views and experiences of people who use services. It has introduced new inspection teams which are significantly bigger and include professional and clinical staff and other experts, including trained members of the public who CQC call Experts by Experience.

The treatment of cancer patients forms part of several of the main service areas which CQC focuses on when rating a hospital, and their views and experiences will contribute to ratings. In addition, results from the national cancer patient survey contribute to the assessment of care within a trust. Information from a number of peer review and accreditation programmes, including the national cancer peer review programme, will also be taken into account in determining future ratings.

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Nic Dakin: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 8 July 2013, Official Report, column 86W, on cancer, what the (a) timescales and (b) terms of reference are of the review on the National Cancer Patient Experience Survey. [195024]

Jane Ellison: The questionnaire for the latest Cancer Patient Experience Survey (CPES) is currently out with patients and NHS England will publish the results later in the year.

NHS England is planning to undertake a comprehensive review of its programme of insight and feedback to ensure that it meets the insight needs of the national health service as effectively as possible and ensure that it captures the best information on patient experience.

The scope of the review is not confined to surveys, and extends to how it can most effectively exploit the full range of insight methodologies and techniques, including:

surveys;

the Friends and Family Test;

patient stories;

focus groups and in-depth interviews;

engagement and consultations;

social media;

observational work; and

peer research.

NHS England is in the process of establishing the terms of reference and steering group for the review.

The development of the CPES is overseen by the Cancer Patient Experience Advisory Group, which is run by NHS England, and has members from across a range of cancer services, charities and experts.

Care Bill (HL)

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to the answer of 19 March 2014, Official Report, column 611W, on the Care Bill, when that committee first met; and if he will place in the Library a copy of the agenda and supporting papers of each meeting of that committee. [194695]

Jane Ellison: We are in discussion with the right hon. Member for Sutton and Cheam (Paul Burstow) to discuss the terms of reference for the committee and expect that further information will be available in due course.

Congenital Abnormalities

Mr Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he is taking to reduce the number of pregnancies affected by neural tube defects; and what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of mandatory fortification of wheat flour with folic acid for this purpose. [194410]

Jane Ellison: Since the 1990s, the Department has advised women who can become pregnant to take folic acid supplements before conception and for the first 12 weeks of pregnancy and to increase their intake of folate rich foods. This advice is promoted as strongly as possible through all the channels we use to communicate with women and health professionals. National Institute

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for Health and Care Excellence guidance ensures health professionals are equipped with comprehensive advice on folic acid and action to take with women who may become pregnant.

The Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition assessed the risks and benefits of mandatory fortification of flour in 2006 and 2009. In the light of this and more recent evidence, we will be making a decision on how to proceed by Easter and will communicate it as soon as possible thereafter.

Contraceptives: Young People

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will take steps to ensure that parents have some say in whether their teenage children are taking the morning-after pill. [194634]

Jane Ellison: Following a Court judgment in 1985, health care professionals are able to supply all forms of contraception, including emergency contraception, to young people under the age of 16 without their parents’ knowledge or consent if they are satisfied that the young person fully understands the treatment and its risks and benefits. However, health care professionals must always try to persuade the young person to involve their parents.

Dental Services

Andrew Percy: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will collect data by constituency on the number of people registered with a dentist. [194607]

Dr Poulter: 1.4 million more people have seen a dentist since May 2010, with nearly 30 million people seeing a dentist in a two-year period in the national health service.

Information is not available on the number of patients registered with an NHS dentist. Since the new contractual system started in 2006, patients do not register with an NHS dentist to receive NHS care. The closest equivalent measure to ‘registration’ is the number of patients receiving NHS dental services (patients seen) over a 24-month period. This information is available at regional, area team, clinical commissioning group and local authority levels for England. There are no plans to make this data available by constituency.

The number of patients seen in the 24-month periods ending 31 December 2013 and the numbers expressed as a percentage of the population are available in annex 2 of the “NHS Dental Statistics for England, 2013-14, quarter 2” report.

This report has been placed in the Library and is also available online at:

www.hscic.gov.uk/catalogue/PUB13531

Diabetes

Mr Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment his Department has made of the relationship between eating disorders and type 1 diabetes. [194573]

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Norman Lamb: The Department has not undertaken a specific assessment of the relationship between eating disorders and type 1 diabetes, however, we are aware of the increased risk of eating disorders for people with diabetes and this is something that the NHS England's Eating Disorders Clinical Reference Group (CRG) will consider.

NHS England has a CRG specific to specialised services for eating disorders. The CRG has developed a national service specification which covers intensive treatments (inpatient and intensive day-patients) and some outreach/outpatient work for adults with very severe and intractable eating disorders. It does not cover community eating disorder services commissioned by clinical commissioning groups. The aims of the service are to:

limit the physical and psychiatric morbidity, social disability and mortality levels caused by eating disorders;

effectively treat people with very complex eating disorders and/or severe morbidity; and

minimise the length of time between referral and admission to the inpatient service.

Diabetes: Dementia

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what research he has (a) commissioned and (b) evaluated on the potential connection between diabetes and dementia. [194454]

Dr Poulter: There are significant clinical and causative links between diabetes and dementia. The Department has not commissioned specific research on these links, but the Department's National Institute for Health Research has funded research infrastructure that has contributed to evidence in this area, for example findings on the risk of developing dementia in people with diabetes and mild cognitive impairment published in The British Journal of Psychiatry in 2010.

The rate of dementia in people with diabetes is at least twice the national average. Evidence shows that risk factors that increase the chance of developing vascular diseases like diabetes-such as obesity, smoking, drinking and inactivity-also increase the chance of developing dementia.

Public Health England (PHE) has published a leaflet to accompany the NHS Health Check that identifies actions that may help reduce the risk of dementia. This was developed jointly with NHS England, Alzheimer's Society, and a range of partners. The leaflet is available at:

www.healthcheck.nhs.uk/commissioners_and_healthcare_ professionals/national_resources/dementia_resources/

Building on this in January, PHE hosted an event jointly with the UK Health Forum: “Promoting Brain Health: Developing a prevention agenda linking dementia and non-communicable diseases”. The event brought together a range of leading academic and medical professionals with the aim of developing an integrated agenda for the prevention of dementia and non-communicable diseases. The importance of healthy lifestyle behaviours was a strong focus of the discussion. A resulting consensus statement will be published shortly, making recommendations for strengthening policy and research in this area.

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Epilepsy

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what representations his Department received before the removal of pre-conception counselling for women taking anti-epilepsy medications from the Quality Outcomes Framework; [194769]

(2) what assessment his Department has made of the risks of removing pre-conception counselling for women taking anti-epilepsy medications from the Quality Outcomes Framework. [194770]

Dr Poulter: Senior NHS England clinicians and representatives of the British Medical Association reviewed and agreed all the proposed changes to the Quality and Outcomes Framework (QOF) taking into account the views of the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) and Public Health England.

The removal of QOF indicators will not mean that general practitioners (GPs) will no longer tackle important health issues such as pre-conception counselling for women taking anti-epilepsy medication. Rather, the aim is that reducing QOF will help free up time to enable GPs to spend more time on providing more proactive co-ordinated and individual care for their patients, based on their clinical judgment.

Since 1 January 2014, Ministers have not had any meetings to specifically discuss the removal of pre-conception counselling for women taking anti-epilepsy medications from the QOF.

Exercise

Mr Hepburn: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) how many children in (a) Jarrow constituency, (b) South Tyneside, (c) the North East and (d) the UK exercised for at least 30 minutes a week in each of the last five years; [194330]

(2) how many adults in (a) Jarrow constituency, (b) South Tyneside, (c) the North East and (d) the UK exercised for at least 30 minutes a week in each of the last five years; [194331]

(3) how many people aged between 16 to 25 years old who live in (a) Jarrow constituency, (b) South Tyneside, (c) the North East and (d) the UK exercised for at least 30 minutes a week in each of the last five years; [194332]

(4) how many people in (a) Jarrow constituency, (b) South Tyneside, (c) the North East and (d) the UK exercised for at least 30 minutes a week in each of the last five years. [194333]

Jane Ellison: Public Health England is only able to supply data for the period January 2012 to January 2013. Data are not available by constituency. The data presented in table 1 are for selected local authority (LA) areas in the North East Region.

The data presented in table 2 are for England only. Data are not available for children and data on specific age groups are only available at a national level.

Table 1 presents data from the Active People Survey (APS). The data were collected between January 2012 to January 2013, ie APS6 Quarter 2 to APS7 Quarter 1.

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In that period 151,912 adults were surveyed. The APS measures the proportion of adults (aged 16 and over) participating in sport and/or undertaking some form of physical activity at moderate intensity (or higher).

The figures provided are row percentages. The row percentages show the percentage of people in a category and is weighted by: age by gender, ethnicity, household size, working status within gender and National Statistics Socio-Economic Classification (NS-SEC). The row percentages are weighted to adjust the results so that they are representative of the whole population at LA, County Sport Partnership, regional and national level.

South Tyneside has a lower proportion of people aged 16 and over participating in sport and/or undertaking some, form of physical activity at moderate intensity (or higher), than the percentage for the North East and nationally.

Table 2 relating to exercise in age bands are only available at a national level in the age band presented in the table.

Additional information on other indicators relating to participation in sport are available from

http://activepeople.sportengland.org/

General Practitioners: North West

Derek Twigg: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the ratio of GPs to patients is in each clinical commissioning group area in (a) Halton constituency and (b) Merseyside. [194940]

Dr Poulter: Data are not available in the format requested. Data on the number of patients per general practitioner (GP) are available at clinical commissioning group (CCG) level.

The following table shows GP registered patients per headcount GP (excluding registrars and retainers) in Merseyside as at 30 September 2013.

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Haematological Cancer

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when Bruton's tyrosine kinase inhibitor will be available on the NHS for the treatment of lymphoma blood cancer. [194453]

Norman Lamb: We understand that a marketing authorisation application for the Bruton's tyrosine kinase inhibitor Imbruvica (ibrutinib) was submitted to the European Medicines Agency (EMA) for review in November 2013. The standard timeline for assessment of an application by EMA is a maximum of 210 days, not including any time required by the company to respond to questions raised during the procedure. Following the EMA's opinion on the marketing authorisation application, the European Commission will issue a decision on whether the application is approved. If approved, it would be for the manufacturer to determine whether and when to launch the product in the United Kingdom.

A hospital doctor can arrange for the supply of any drug or other substance, even one not normally available on national health service prescription, provided the patient's commissioner agrees to supply it at NHS expense. The doctor would, in those circumstances, have to retain clinical responsibility for the patient while prescribing the drug in question.

Health and Social Care Act 2012

Mr Godsiff: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment was made of the compliance of the Health and Social Care Act 2012 with human rights legislation. [194536]

Norman Lamb: Detailed analysis of the impact on Human Rights was outlined in paragraphs 1532 to 1598 of the Explanatory Notes which accompanied the 2012 Act when it went to the Lords. There was also engagement with the Joint Committee on Human Rights.

The document is available in the Library. Details can be found at the following link:

www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/bills/lbill/2010-2012/0092/en/12092en.pdf

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Heart Diseases

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many keyhole surgery operations for heart surgery there were in each of the last three years in each (a) region and (b) constituent part of the UK. [194460]

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Jane Ellison: The following table sets out data on the number of finished consultant episodes with a main or secondary procedure performed on the heart using a minimal access approach or performed percutaneous transluminally using image control by strategic health authority of treatment for the years 2010-11 to 2012-13.

Data are held for England only.

In Vitro Fertilisation

Fiona Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) which of the mitochondrial replacement techniques under consideration that have been developed in the UK have been shown to work safely and efficiently in monkeys; [194585]

(2) what assessment has been made of the risks of (a) chromosomal abnormalities and (b) abnormal embryo development in embryos created through Maternal Spindle Transfer and Pronuclear Transfer; [194586]

(3) with reference to the debate of 12 March 2014, Official Report, column 171WH, on Mitochondrial Transfer (Three Parent Children), if he will reassess his Department's statement that there is no genomic DNA in mitochondria. [194588]

Jane Ellison: The Expert Panel reviewing the safety and efficacy of methods to avoid mitochondrial disease through assisted conception, convened by the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA), most recently reported on the safety and effectiveness of the maternal spindle transfer and pronuclear transfer mitochondrial donation techniques in March 2013. Its report, ‘Scientific review of the safety and efficacy of methods to avoid mitochondrial disease through assisted conception: update’, also outlined the work performed, including the work performed in animal models as well as normal and abnormal human eggs and early embryos. The report and the minutes of the panel's meetings are available on the HFEA's website at:

www.hfea.gov.uk/6372.html

On the basis of the available evidence, that genomic DNA is only found in the cell nucleus, the Department continues to consider that no nuclear DNA from the egg or embryo donors will be inherited by a child born as a result of the mitochondrial donation treatment techniques covered by the draft regulations currently out for public consultation.

Fiona Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what estimate his Department has made of the number of lives saved annually by the new in-vitro-fertilisation techniques of Maternal Spindle Transfer and Pronuclear Transfer; [194587]

(2) with reference to his Department's press release, Innovative genetic treatment to prevent mitochondrial disease, of 28 June 2013, which of the two fertilised embryos used in pronuclear transfer his Department considers saved as a result of the process. [194589]

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Jane Ellison: The scientists and clinicians at Newcastle university, who have been involved in developing the mitochondrial donation techniques, initially made a conservative estimate that allowing the techniques to be used in clinical practice would enable around 10 children to be born each year free of the serious mitochondrial disease that they would otherwise have. They have recently reconsidered this and estimate it may initially now be up to 20 children per year, moving towards 80 once the techniques are established in treatment across the United Kingdom. This is based on the number of women who have mitochondrial DNA mutations of child-bearing age and the assumption that they might wish to have two children.

The purpose of these techniques is to allow a child to be born free of a serious mitochondrial disease. In the case of mitochondrial donation, the Department does not categorise one of the embryos used in the technique as having been “saved”.

The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 1990 (as amended) does not, however, provide for or recognise a direct correlation between those human embryos that are transferred to a woman and those that are not and, consequently, perish. It would be inappropriate, therefore, to attempt to draw a direct correlation between children born free of serious mitochondrial disease as a result of mitochondrial donation and the embryos that are created to achieve that purpose but are not transferred to the patient.

Medical Records: Databases

Mr Godsiff: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to the answer of 24 March 2014, Official Report, column 125W, on medical records: databases, whether private companies will be permitted to tender for involvement in extracting patient information as part of care.data. [194508]

Dr Poulter: There is no care.data contract or tender process. Any procurements would have to comply with all applicable EU/UK law especially public sector procurement and competition law.

Mr Godsiff: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to the answer of 28 February 2014, Official Report, column 582W, on medical records: databases, if he will provide more information on the range of uses beyond direct care to which data collected under care.data will be put; who will be responsible for deciding what use of the data is acceptable and by whom; and what auditing procedures will be in place to monitor such use. [194509]

Dr Poulter: The data will be used for a range of purposes that will improve the quality, safety, efficiency, and equity of care. For example, commissioners will use the data to:

ensure the highest standards of care and clinical safety are consistently met throughout the national health service and provide alerts where standards drop, allowing prompt action to take place;

help to understand what happens to people, especially those with long term conditions, who are cared for away from hospital, and to ensure their needs are met; and

provide the information needed to design and plan new treatments, clinics, and other health services.

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Currently, the General Practice Extraction Service Independent Advisory Group that includes members of the public and representatives from General Practice has given consideration to the care.data proposals to extract information and has recommended that the information extracted should be used to support commissioning purposes. The Independent Advisory Group will consider any proposals about widening access to the data extracted from general practitioner practices under care.data and make their recommendations if such an application is received in the future.

New legislation currently being considered by Parliament will provide for external scrutiny by an expert advisory committee for decisions to release data which could potentially be used to identify individuals.

Mr Godsiff: To ask the Secretary of State for Health for what reasons his Department has planned the start of the care.data extraction of patient data to begin before the results of the Health and Social Care Information Centre cyber security review become available in October 2014. [194516]

Dr Poulter: NHS England is currently engaging with a range of people including the Health and Social Care Information Centre (HSCIC) to understand issues and concerns around care.data. This will last for approximately six months and will inform the final process to allow the HSCIC to begin extracting data for the care.data programme. The ongoing work being undertaken by the HSCIC will inform any future cyber security reviews and also NHS England's engagement work for the care.data programme.

Barbara Keeley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to the answer of 31 March 2014, Official Report, column 400W, on Medical Records: Databases, if he will publish and place in the Library a copy of that report at the same time as its release to the board; and if he will ensure that the report contains a complete list of the holders of commercial re-use licences and for each such licence for what purpose the use of Health and Social Care Information Centre data was approved. [194606]

Dr Poulter: The Health and Social Care Information Centre (HSCIC) is committed to openness and transparency around the use of health data. The report covering the data approved and released by HSCIC post 31 March 2013 includes the purpose of the data release. The report was published on 3 April 2014 and the HSCIC would welcome feedback on its contents and format. A copy of the report has been placed in the Library and is also available on the HSCIC website:

www.hscic.gov.uk/media/13787/Register-of-approved-data-releases/pdf/Published_Version_Data_Releases _Register_v1.O.pdf

Medicine: Research

George Freeman: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much was spent on medical research by the (a) National Institute for Health Research and (b) Medical Research Council, broken down by category in each case in the latest period for which figures are available. [194301] [194301]

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Dr Poulter: Spend on research funded directly by the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) is categorised by Health Research Classification System (HRCS) health categories. NIHR expenditure on research infrastructure and systems where spend cannot be attributed to health categories is excluded. The following table shows NIHR spend in health categories in 2012-13.

The Medical Research Council (MRC) is funded by the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills. MRC expenditure in 2011-12 by HRCS health categories and HRCS research categories is shown in the following tables.

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Members: Correspondence

Mr Iain Wright: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will request NHS England to inform him when the hon. Member for Hartlepool can expect to receive a reply to his letter dated 17 December 2013, on the subject of availability and funding of cosmetic surgery for people born with cleft lip and palate. [194279]

Jane Ellison: Officials at NHS England have advised that a response to the hon. Member's letter was sent on 30 January 2014. The Office of the Chief Executive at NHS England will re-send the letter to the hon. Member.

Mental Health Services: Ethnic Groups

Paul Uppal: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what consideration he has given to improving the monitoring of black, Asian and minority ethnic patients accessing mental health services through a referral from the criminal justice system; [194512]

(2) what assessment his Department has made of the level of black, Asian and minority ethnic patients accessing mental health services through a referral from the criminal justice system; [194513]

(3) what consideration he has given to making compulsory the recording of the ethnicity of a patient when constraint and control measures are used within the NHS; [194514]

(4) what assessment his Department has made of the use of community treatment orders in relation to black, Asian and minority ethnic patients. [194515]

Norman Lamb: The Government are testing a new standard service specification for liaison and diversion services in England, to identify and assess the health issues of all offenders, including those from black, Asian and minority ethnic backgrounds when they first enter the criminal justice system. Liaison and diversion assessments will help magistrates and judges ensure that offenders are diverted to the most appropriate place of treatment when sentenced, including those referred for treatment by mental health services.

The service specification being piloted by NHS England requires providers to collect data on a range of demographic factors, including ethnicity. All trial schemes are expected to collect this data, which is passed to mental health service providers. In many cases, the service users-and

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therefore their ethnicities-are known to local mental health services. Later this year it will be possible to link data from Liaison and- Diversion Services to data which are already published on ethnicity of mental health service users.

Under the Mental Health Act 1983 (the Act) the Care Quality Commission (CQC) has a duty to monitor how health services in England exercise their powers and discharge their duties in relation to patients detained in hospital under the Act, or subject to community treatment orders (CTOs) or guardianship. In monitoring health services, the CQC continues to use data collected by the Health and Social Care Information Centre for the Mental Health Minimum Data Set, which records the ethnicity of service users in respect of services provided in hospitals, outpatient clinics and in the community.

The CQC publishes an annual report on monitoring the use of the Mental Health Act 1983. This report for 2012-13 stated that people from all black and minority ethnic groups can be overrepresented within inpatient mental health services and higher rates of people from black and minority ethnic groups are subject to the Mental Health Act 1983, particularly from some groups. This is also true of the use of CTOs.

The reasons for such over representation remain contentious. A recent study from Warwick Medical School, “Ethnicity as a predictor of detention under the Mental Health Act”, has used data from an earlier Department-funded AMEND study (Assessing the Impact of the Mental Health Act 2007). The Warwick study concluded that, once other variables have been allowed for, the ethnicity of a patient had no impact on their likelihood of detention under the 1983 Act. A copy of the Warwick study has been placed in the Library.

Mental Illness

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the reasons for the increase in probable psychological disturbance reported in Understanding Society from 18.0 per cent in 2009-10 to 18.6 per cent in 2011-12. [194398]

Norman Lamb: No such assessment has been made.

Motor Neurone Disease

Mrs Main: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the special neurological coordinator post within Herts Valley Clinical Commissioning Group in supporting people living with motor neurone disease. [194383]

Norman Lamb: The Department has not made any assessment of the effectiveness of the special neurological coordinator post within Herts Valleys Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG). CCGs are responsible for commissioning local services and ensuring they meet the needs of their populations, in conjunction with national health service partners and other stakeholders. The hon. Member may wish to take this matter up with Herts Valleys CCG directly.

Mrs Main: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people are affected by motor neurone disease in (a) St Albans, (b) Hertfordshire, (c) the East of

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England and

(d)

the UK; and what funds his Department has spent on tackling that disease in (i) St Albans, (ii) Hertfordshire, (iii) the East of England and (iv) the UK in each of the last three years. [194384]

Norman Lamb: Data on the number of people affected by motor neurone disease (MND) are not collected. However, it is estimated that there are about 5,000 people living with MND in the United Kingdom. On funding, while programme budgeting data provide figures for annual national health service spend on neurological services in England, spend on individual neurological conditions, such as MND, is not available as part of this.

NHS: Insolvency

Mr Jamie Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the contribution of the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Health of 11 March 2014, Official Report, column 267, (1) regarding the setting up of a committee to advise on guidance to the Trust Special Administrator process, when he expects to publish (a) the committee’s terms of reference, (b) details of the committee’s membership and (c) details of the committee's secretariat; [194928]

(2) regarding the setting up of a committee to advise on guidance to the Trust Special Administrator, at which meetings between the hon. Member for Sutton and Cheam and the (a) Minister for Care and Support and (b) Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Health the Trust Special Administrator or the Care Bill [Lords] was discussed. [194929]

Jane Ellison: The Under-Secretary of State for Health, my hon. Friend the Member for Central Suffolk and North Ipswich (Dr Poulter), and the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, my noble Friend (Earl Howe), met the right hon. Member for Sutton and Cheam (Paul Burstow), on 2 April to discuss the terms of reference for the committee. We expect that further information about the committee will be available in due course.

NHS: Re-employment

John Woodcock: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many staff have been made redundant and subsequently re-employed by NHS organisations in Cumbria since May 2010. [194803]

Dr Poulter: Based on available electronic staff record (ESR) data, the number of national health service staff made redundant by NHS organisations in Cumbria since May 2010 and subsequently re-employed in the NHS, up to December 2013, is estimated to be 20.

Of these, it is estimated 15 were re-employed by an NHS organisation within Cumbria. This is a tiny proportion of the total Cumbria NHS workforce of approximately 17,400.

Note:

The ESR Data Warehouse is a monthly snap shot of the live ESR system. This is the Human Resources and payroll system that covers all NHS employees other than those working in general practice, two NHS foundation trusts that have chosen not to use the system, and organisations to which functions have been transferred, such as local authorities. The ESR data used in this reply are not centrally validated and their reliability is subject to

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local coding practice. Redundancies are identified by staff records with a reason for leaving coded as either voluntary or compulsory redundancy.

NHS: Standards

Nic Dakin: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) how NHS England proposes to champion the use of National Institute for Health and Care Excellence quality standards with providers and commissioners; [194903]

(2) what guidance he has given to NHS commissioners and providers on their National Institute for Health and Care Excellence quality standards in planning and delivering services; and how compliance with this requirement will be monitored. [194904]

Jane Ellison: The Health and Social Care Act 2012 places a duty on NHS England to have regard to National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) Quality Standards.

The Department expects providers and commissioners to take into account any relevant NICE Quality Standards in commissioning, planning and delivering high quality care to meet the needs of patients.

NHS England formally endorses Quality Standards and its National Clinical Directors actively promote them.

Achievement of Quality Standards can be monitored through a range of mechanisms depending on the specific Quality Standard; for example, the Clinical Commissioning Group Outcome Indicator Set, the 30 national clinical audits funded by NHS England, the Best Practice Tariff, and Commissioning for Quality Improvement Initiatives arrangements. These levers are designed to drive quality improvement in the national health service using Quality Standards where appropriate.

NHS: Surveys

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps his Department has taken to ensure that the results of the NHS Staff Survey 2013 are used to drive improvements on staff experience and patient experience. [194933]

Dr Poulter: The NHS Staff Survey 2013 showed improvements in staff and patient experience. There was better staff engagement (3.74/5 up from 3.68 (2012)), and better patient experience with 65% of national health service staff saying that if a friend or relative needed treatment they would be happy with the standard of care provided by their organisation, up from 63% in 2012, and 66% saying the care of patients and service users is their organisation's top priority, up from 62% in 2012.

Engaged, motivated NHS staff who feel supported by their organisation will be equipped to provide the best care for patients on a day to day basis, which will contribute to improving patient experience overall. We are working with NHS England, which runs the NHS Staff Survey, and NHS Employers, to build on this encouraging progress and identify what further help NHS trusts may need to maintain the improvements they are making in staff experience, and to ensure that translates into improvements in patient experience.

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NHS Employers is supporting “Compassion in Practice” to help improve patient experience; helping trusts improve NHS staff health and wellbeing; and continuing to identify and spread good practice in staff engagement to improve patient care.

The Friends and Family test can provide trusts with access to timely feedback on staff and patient experience to help them identify what they are doing well and where they need to make improvements.

Opiates

Mr Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how his Department measures the number of patients in treatment for opioid dependence who receive (a) a comprehensive assessment at the start of treatment and (b) a regular treatment review, including a medication review where appropriate; and if he will make a statement. [194431]

Jane Ellison: The National Drug Treatment Monitoring System (NDTMS) collects data from drug treatment services across England. The number of patients in treatment for opioid dependence in England who received a comprehensive assessment is not recorded centrally. Neither is information on medication reviews.

However, all such treatment is expected to follow Drug Misuse and Dependence: UK Guidelines on Clinical Management which emphasises the importance of comprehensive assessment for people starting treatment for opioid dependence, and outlines what these assessments should include.

As part of a series of initiatives to promote a dynamic treatment system, an expert group, chaired by Professor John Strang, looked at ways of improving the recovery orientation of opioid dependence treatment. Its widely disseminated and promoted report, published in July 2012, called for regular clinical reviews of all existing patients to ensure they are working to achieve abstinence from problem drugs; these reviews would involve medication review where appropriate.

The 2012 report was entitled “Medications in Recovery re-orientating drug dependence treatment” and can be found using the following link:

www.nta.nhs.uk/uploads/medications-in-recovery-main-report3.pdf

Mr Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what monitoring his Department undertakes of the implementation of guidance from the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence and his Department on patients in treatment for opioid dependence receiving comprehensive assessment when entering treatment; and if he will make a statement. [194480]

Jane Ellison: National health service and local authority commissioners are legally required to fund drugs and other treatments recommended by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) and this is enshrined in the NHS Constitution as a right to NICE approved drugs.

NICE clinical guidelines provide authoritative, evidence-based guidance on the care and treatment of patients, however they are not mandatory. They represent best practice and while we expect health care professionals

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and commissioners to take them fully into account in their decision-making, there is no formal process for monitoring this.

Osteoporosis

Liz Kendall: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the average waiting period was for bone density (DXA) scans in each of the last five years. [194753]

Norman Lamb: The information is shown in the following table:

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Liz Kendall: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many bone density scanning machines were available in each region of the UK in each of the last five years. [194754]

Norman Lamb: The Department is responsible only for health services in England and data related to the number of bone density scanning machines in England is not held centrally.

Liz Kendall: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what estimate he has made of the number of people affected by osteoporosis in each of the last five years; [194755]

(2) how many finished hospital admission episodes with a primary or secondary diagnosis of fractures attributable to osteoporosis there were amongst (a) women under the age of 50, (b) women over the age of 50, (c) men under the age of 50 and (d) men over the age of 50 in each of the last five years; [194756]

(3) what estimate he has made of the cost to the NHS of treating fractures attributable to osteoporosis in each of the last five years. [194757]

Norman Lamb: Information concerning the number of people affected by osteoporosis in each of the last five years is not collected.

Regarding the cost to the national health service of treating fractures attributable to osteoporosis, while programme budgeting data provide figures for annual NHS spend on musculoskeletal services in England, cost of treating individual musculoskeletal conditions, such as osteoporosis, is not available as part of this.

Finally, the following table provides a count of finished admission episodes (FAEs) with a primary or secondary diagnosis of fractures attributable to osteoporosis in women and men in the age categories requested for the last five years. The table also provides data of FAEs where the gender of the patient was not recorded.

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Out-patients: Attendance

Andrew Stephenson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate his Department has made of the cost of missed NHS appointments in (a) England, (b) the North West and (c) East Lancashire in each of the last five years. [194347]

Jane Ellison: The Department has not made an estimate of the cost of missed national health service appointments.

Ovarian Cancer

Mrs Ellman: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) which local health commissioning groups have prescribed bevacizumab for patients diagnosed with ovarian cancer who have received first and second line treatments; [194614]

(2) what guidance he has issued to (a) NHS England and (b) local commissioning groups about the prescription of bevacizumab for patients diagnosed with ovarian cancer who have received first and second line treatments. [194615]

Norman Lamb: We do not hold the information requested on prescribing of bevacizumab for patients diagnosed with ovarian cancer who have received first and second line treatments. NHS England has published information on the number of notifications received for each drug and indication available through the Cancer Drugs Fund. This information is available at:

www.england.nhs.uk/ourwork/pe/cdf/

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) has appraised bevacizumab within its licensed indications for both the first and second line treatment of advanced ovarian cancer and does not recommend its use.

Any funding decisions in the absence of positive NICE technology appraisal guidance should be made by the relevant national health service commissioner based on an assessment of the available evidence. The NHS Constitution states that patients have the right to expect local decisions on the funding of drugs and treatments “to be made rationally following a proper consideration of the evidence”. If an NHS commissioner decides not to fund a treatment, then it should explain that decision.

Bevacizumab is available through the Cancer Drugs Fund for the first and second line treatment of advanced epithelial ovarian, fallopian tube, or primary peritoneal cancer where certain criteria agreed by the Cancer Drugs Fund clinical panel are met.

Palliative Care

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate his Department has made of the proportion of accident and emergency admissions made up of people approaching the end of life and who have indicated a preference to be cared for and die at home. [194934]

Norman Lamb: These data are not held centrally.

We recognise that unnecessary emergency admissions can be avoided when people who are dying receive the right support at home and in hospices. It is the responsibility of commissioners to ensure that end of life care services provided to people in all settings is appropriate.

Patients: Travel

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate his Department has made of the number of (a) patients and (b) parents of patients who cannot afford travel costs to access medical treatment. [194771]

Jane Ellison: The Department does not collect these data, and so can make no estimate of these numbers.

However, patients who are on low incomes or in receipt of qualifying benefits can have their travel costs reimbursed through the Healthcare Travel Costs Scheme when attending secondary care appointments in the United Kingdom on referral by a doctor or dentist.

People receiving a benefit providing entitlement to the Healthcare Travel Costs Scheme can also claim for travel costs where the health care appointment has been made for a child or other dependent.

The Healthcare Travel Costs Scheme is part of the NHS Low Income Scheme, and was set up to provide financial assistance to those patients and in certain cases their carers who do not have a medical need for ambulance transport, but who require assistance with their travel costs.

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Plastic Surgery

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people have been referred to the NHS for cosmetic surgery where an operation has not been completed by a private provider due to that provider going out of business in the last 12 months. [194462]

Dr Poulter: These data are not collected.

The Health and Social Care Information Centre has advised that it is not possible to identify people coming from private facilities for completion of cosmetic surgery due to the financial circumstances of the private facility.

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Skin Cancer

Mark Durkan: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the take up of innovative treatments for advanced melanoma over the last 10 years. [194397]

Norman Lamb: Information on the use of treatments for advanced melanoma which have been recommended in appraisal guidance from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) is shown in the table. Prior to 2011 NICE had not issued appraisal guidance recommending treatments for advanced melanoma.

Social Services

Gregg McClymont: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans he has to exclude retirement income products other than annuities from the asset test used to assess social care funding. [194802]

Norman Lamb: The pension reforms fundamentally change the way that people can access their retirement savings, giving them much greater choice about how they support themselves during later life. This means that depending on the decision they make, people may increase or decrease their chances of being eligible for means-tested services at some point in their retirement. We are working closely with cross-government colleagues to consider the options for England, including what other products may be disregarded, and to ensure that where necessary, the relevant guidance is updated before the new flexibilities are implemented in April 2015.

Soft Drinks: Schools

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to the answer of the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Health of 1 April 2014, Official Report, column 718 on children's diet, whether the consumption of sugary drinks is banned in schools. [194788]

Jane Ellison: The school food standards severely restrict foods and drinks high in sugar. The regulations allow only healthy drinks to be provided in local authority maintained schools, academies set up prior to 2010 and academies and free schools signing their funding agreements from spring 2014. Through the school food plan, academies and free schools set up between 2010 and spring 2014 are encouraged to make a voluntary commitment to adhere to the regulations. Healthy drinks include plain water, plain low-fat milk, plain fruit juice or vegetable juice, combinations of fruit juice (at least 50%) and water, flavoured milk containing at least 90% low-fat milk and less than 5% added sugar and tea, coffee or hot chocolate with less than 5% added sugar.

South West

Mr Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many posts in his Department will be relocated to the South West in the next five years. [194574]

Dr Poulter: The Department has no specific plans to relocate posts to the South West in the next five years.

Tuberculosis

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people had TB in the UK in each of the last three years; and what reports he has received of a connection between TB and cats. [194464]

Jane Ellison: The great majority of cases of tuberculosis (TB) in the United Kingdom are caused by the bacterium called Mycobacterium tuberculosis, and are the result of human to human transmission. A very small fraction of cases of tuberculosis are caused by Mycobacterium bovis (M. bovis)—the strain which can be transmitted from animals, such as cattle to humans. The total number of cases of TB and TB infection caused by M. bovis in the UK, in the last three years is shown in the following table.

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The majority of TB caused by M. bovis were aged 65 years or over or born outside the UK, and are likely to have acquired their TB either abroad or as a result of reactivation from TB acquired before pasteurisation and widespread TB control among cattle was in place.

TB infection caused by M. bovis in cats is uncommon in the UK. Between December 2012 and April 2013, a single veterinary practice diagnosed TB infection caused by M. bovis in nine domestic cats from separate households in Berkshire and Hampshire. Two people who had contact with the same cat were subsequently diagnosed with active TB disease caused by M. bovis.

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Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Biofuels: Wheat

Julian Sturdy: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what estimate he has made of the amount of British-grown wheat used in bio-fuel production. [194276]

George Eustice: There is no specific published data on the amount of wheat grown in the UK that is used for bioethanol. However, it is possible to provide an estimate. DEFRA’s statistics on “Area of Crops Grown For Bioenergy in England and the UK: 2008 - 2012” published in December 2013 include data reported under the renewable transport fuel obligation (RTFO) on the volume of bioethanol supplied to the UK road transport market with information on the feedstock and the country of origin of the feedstock. By applying appropriate conversion factors, it is possible to derive an estimate of the equivalent tonnage and crop area of wheat grown and used to produce bioethanol. These figures are outlined in the following table.

https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/289168/nonfood-statsnotice2012-12mar14.pdf

The RTFO data exclude UK biofuel production from UK grown wheat which may be subsequently exported, although the 2010-11 figure also includes an estimate of bioethanol produced from wheat and used for other markets or exported. Similarly, data are not available on wheat grown in the UK which is exported for possible biofuel production outside the UK.

Environment Agency

Maria Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many cases were (a) investigated for enforcement action, (b) issued and proceeded in the courts, (c) discontinued completely, (d) enforced using a lower level of action than originally envisaged and (e) ceased to be investigated in each Environment Agency area since 2010. [194446]

Dan Rogerson: The Environment Agency is unable to provide a breakdown of legal and enforcement cases in each of its geographical areas since 2010 which were (a) investigated for enforcement action, (b) issued and proceeded in the courts, (c) discontinued completely and (e) ceased to be investigated altogether, due to disproportionate cost.

The Environment Agency can confirm that there were no cases enforced using a lower level of action than originally envisaged. At the commencement of any investigation, the Environment Agency does not know whether any enforcement action is required and, if so, what level of action is appropriate. Decisions on the level of action required are only ever made when an investigation is concluded.

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Maria Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many staff worked in investigation, legal and enforcement action in each geographical area of the Environment Agency in each year since 2010. [194447]

Dan Rogerson: The Environment Agency is unable to provide a breakdown of the number of staff that worked in investigation, legal and enforcement action across geographical areas since 2010 due to disproportionate cost.

Many Environment Agency staff work on investigation, legal and enforcement action as part of their role and across more than one geographical area.

Maria Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the answer of 24 March 2014, Official Report, column 31W, on the Environment Agency, when the review of existing workloads against enforcement priorities and available budgets will be completed; and if he will make a statement. [194449]

Dan Rogerson: It is expected that the process of reviewing the baseline total enforcement and legal casework to match this to the Environment Agency budget will be completed within the next six weeks.

Maria Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if he will publish (a) the results of the review of each area of the Environment Agency's existing workloads against enforcement priorities and available budgets and (b) any decisions made about the future workload and priorities of the enforcement and legal caseload. [194450]

Dan Rogerson: The Environment Agency's process of reviewing its baseline total enforcement and legal casework to match its future budget will be used for internal work force planning and resource allocation. It is, therefore, not intended for publication.

The announcement in the Budget statement of an additional £5 million for tackling waste crime means that the Environment Agency is reviewing its planning assumptions and associated work load.

Maria Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the answer of 24 March 2014, Official Report, column 31W, on the Environment Agency, whether the review of existing workloads against enforcement priorities and available budgets each area of the Environment Agency is conducting has a minimum percentage cut of workload and expenditure against which it is being assessed. [194493]

Dan Rogerson: The Environment Agency was reviewing its baseline total enforcement and legal casework to match them to its budget. The planning assumption had been that baseline funding would reduce from £24 million in 2013-14 to £20.5 million in 2014-15. As part of this, the Environment Agency was reviewing the current portfolio of enforcement cases to understand the implications of a potential 25% reduction.

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However, the announcement in the Budget statement of an additional £5 million for tackling waste crime means that the Environment Agency is reviewing its planning assumption and associated work load.

Maria Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many legal and enforcement cases in each geographical area of the Environment Agency were (a) under investigation, (b) being considered for enforcement action, (c) being considered for legal action by the legal services department, (d) issued and proceeding through the courts and (e) completed on the final day of that accounting year for each of the years 2010 to 2013. [194647]

Dan Rogerson: The Environment Agency is unable to provide a breakdown of legal and enforcement cases in each of its geographical areas which were (a) under investigation, (b) being considered for enforcement action, (c) being considered for legal action by the legal services department, (d) issued and proceeding through the courts and (e) completed on the final day of that accounting year for each of the years 2010 to 2013, due to disproportionate cost.

Maria Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many full-time employees in the operations and legal services departments of the Environment Agency work on (a) operations and (b) legal services. [194648]

Dan Rogerson: As of 28 February this year, the Environment Agency directly employs 8,532 full-time equivalent employees within Operations and Legal Services, shown as follows. These figures exclude employment agency staff and contractors and are rounded to whole full-time equivalent numbers.

Maria Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many requests to leave the Environment Agency under the voluntary early release scheme are from staff in the operations and legal services departments. [194649]

Dan Rogerson: As of 1 April this year, the Environment Agency had received 956 requests within its operations and legal services departments to leave the organisation under its voluntary early release scheme.