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Buses: Review
Lord Gregson asked Her Majesty's Government:
- What steps they are taking to pursue their commitment to the proper regulation of buses.
Baroness Hayman: As part of the fundamental review of transport policy announced by my right honourable friend the Deputy Prime Minister on 5 June, my right honourable friend the Minister for Transport announced in a speech to the Confederation of Passenger Transport earlier today a wide ranging bus review. Its purpose is to examine how buses can best play their part in an integrated transport policy. Our aim is to see increased use of the bus as a means of reducing congestion and pollution, particularly by attracting motorists from their cars.
The review will look at all aspects of buses including: the scope for more effective use of bus priority measures, coupled as necessary with traffic restraint; better arrangements for passenger information and ticketing, including inter-modal travel; and regulatory and other measures to improve the quality of bus services, notably through the "quality partnership" approach between operators and local authorities. In addition, it will address financial issues such as costs and support for the industry.
We intend to consult fully with the industry, local authorities, bus users and other interest groups, building on the joint work that has previously been done in this area. The results of the review will form part of the proposed White Paper next Spring on integrated transport policy.
Local Authorities: Intervention Powers
Lord Bowness asked Her Majesty's Government:
- Whether, in regard to their proposals to replace compulsory competitive tendering with a new duty on local authorities to ensure best value for money, they
- have considered what powers the Secretary of State shall have to enforce his chosen form of intervention in appropriate cases, and whether that intervention is to be on the advice of individual auditors or the Audit Commission.
Baroness Hayman: On 2 June, we sent the Local Government Association and the Audit Commission a draft set of 12 principles which would underpin further development work on the best value framework. A copy of the relevant letter has been placed in the Library. These principles included four points covering the roles of auditors and the Audit Commission, and the nature and form of intervention.
At this stage, we have an open mind about the precise form of intervention powers and the roles of the Audit Commission and individual auditors within the relevant procedures. In advance of legislation on best value we will be consulting all interested parties. I expect a number of these parties will have views on intervention powers and the procedures which should be adopted. We will consider these views before bringing forward legislation.
National Car Free Day: Travel Awareness
Lord Lucas asked Her Majesty's Government:
- Whether National Car Free Day illustrates the importance which the public attach to the unrestricted use of their cars.
Baroness Hayman: The National Car Free Day initiative organised by the Environmental Transport Association resulted in reduced car use by some organisations and people, although day-to-day variations in traffic levels make it difficult to determine its effect in detail, and it is clear that many people continued to use their car on 17 June. But such events are largely intended to raise people's awareness of the wider environmental and economic consequences of over-reliance on the car, and not simply to reduce car use on a particular day. The Government consider that initiatives to raise travel awareness have an important role to play. The effectiveness of such measures in changing attitudes and influencing individual transport decisions will be addressed in the Government's fundamental review of transport and its development of an integrated transport policy.
Properties for Disabled People
Baroness Macleod of Borve asked Her Majesty's Government:
- What percentage of homes to be built by local authorities will be designed for use by disabled people.
Baroness Hayman: Under the Housing Investment Programme (HIP) resources are allocated to local authorities for capital expenditure on housing. Local
authorities also receive resources from other programmes such as the single regeneration budget and the capital challenge pilot, and in addition they can use their own resources such as useable capital receipts to fund housing works. It is for local authorities to set out local priorities in their housing strategy including the need for properties for disabled people.Local authority tenants are also able to apply for Disabled Facilities Grants (DFGs). DFGs are awarded on a mandatory or discretionary basis depending on the type of works and subject to a means test. Mandatory grants are awarded for essential works needed to help a disabled person manage more independently in their home and discretionary grants are available for a wide range of other adaptation works.
Housing associations are the main providers of new social housing. New Housing Association housing for people with physical disabilities will receive funding where housing for the disabled is identified as a priority housing need by the local authority in its housing strategy.
Health Authorities and Trusts: Board Appointments
Lord Jenkin of Roding asked Her Majesty's Government:
- When the Secretary of State for Health expects to resume making appointments to health authorities and trusts to fill vacancies that have occurred in recent months.
The Minister of State, Department of Health (Baroness Jay of Paddington): My right honourable friend the Secretary of State for Health is introducing a range of measures to ensure that appointments to the boards of both National Health Service trusts and health authorities are more democratic and representative of the communities they serve. The new process will start in the very near future.
Poliomyelitis Cases
Baroness Macleod of Borve asked Her Majesty's Government:
- How many new cases of poliomyelitis have been reported in each of the last five years.
Baroness Jay of Paddington: Cases of poliomyelitis are categorised as caused by wild virus, vaccine associated or imported aetiology. There has not been a single confirmed case of indigenous wild virus polio in the United Kingdom for more than a decade. The number of cases of polio reported to the Public Health Laboratory Service for the last five years are given in the table. Between 1992 and 1996 over 30 million doses of oral polio vaccine were distributed in the UK.
| Vaccine associated(1) | Imported | Total cases | |
| 1996 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1995 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1994 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1993 | 2 | 1 | 3 |
| 1992 | 2 | 0 | 2 |
(1) Vaccine associated cases cover those that are recipients of polio vaccine and those that occur in contacts of recently immunised people who were themselves not adequately immune.
The Department of Health is now working to assemble the necessary data to earn a World Health Organisation certificate of eradication as part of the programme for the global eradication of polio.
Lord Monkswell asked Her Majesty's Government:
Baroness Jay of Paddington: Information on the percentage of gross domestic product spent on the National Health Service is available from 1949 and is given in Table A. The available information on contributions from general taxation and charging, and on capital costs and running costs, is set out in the Department of Health departmental reports, but refers to England only. A summary of the available information is given in Tables B and C. Copies of the departmental reports are available in the Library.
Notes:
(2) Information is only available in the Department of Health for 1978-79.
(3) Capital refunds to NHS trusts were not separately identified prior to 1993-94.
(4) Mainly health authority capital receipts.
Notes:
(5) Information is available from 1985-86 onwards in the departmental report series. Prior to that date the information is available in the Department of Health's chapter of The Government's Expenditure Plans which were produced by Treasury in January every year up to 1990. (Copies available in the Library).
(6) Departmental administration is used as a proxy for running costs as this is the measure used in the departmental report series.
Whether they will list for every year from 1947 to date the percentage of GDP spent on the National Health Service, together with the percentages of the total raised by general taxation and through charges to patients, together with the percentages of the total spent on capital costs and on running costs.
Year Proportion of GDP per cent.
1949 3.5
1950 3.6
1951 3.4
1952 3.1
1953 3.1
1954 3.0
1955 3.0
1956 3.0
1957 3.1
1958 3.2
1959 3.2
1960 3.3
1961 4.2
1962 3.4
1963 3.4
1964 3.4
1965 3.5
1966 3.7
1967 3.9
1968 3.9
1969 3.8
1970 3.9
1971 3.9
1972 4.0
1973 4.1
1974-75 4.8
1975-76 5.1
1976-77 5.0
1977-78 4.8
1978-79 4.7
1979-80 4.7
1980-81 5.3
1981-82 5.5
1982-83 5.5
1983-84 5.3
1984-85 5.4
1985-86 5.2
1986-87 5.1
1987-88 5.1
1988-89 5.1
1989-90 5.1
1990-91 5.2
1991-92 5.7
1992-93 6.0
1993-94 5.9
1994-95 5.8
1995-96 5.8
1996-97 5.8
Year Total Public Consolidated Fund Expenditure NHS Contribution Total from other sources Charges Capital refunds
to NHS Trusts(3) Miscellaneous(4)
1978-79 97.5 87.5 10.0 2.5 2.2 -- 0.3
1979-80 97.4 87.5 9.9 2.6 2.3 -- 0.3
1980-81 97.2 88.7 8.5 2.8 2.5 -- 0.3
1981-82 97.0 87.3 9.7 3.0 2.7 -- 0.3
1982-83 96.9 85.2 11.7 3.1 2.8 -- 0.3
1983-84 96.6 85.2 11.4 3.4 3.0 -- 0.4
1984-85 96.5 85.0 11.5 3.5 3.0 -- 0.5
1985-86 96.4 84.9 11.5 3.6 2.9 -- 0.7
1986-87 95.8 83.7 12.1 4.2 3.1 -- 1.1
1987-88 95.7 82.2 13.5 4.3 2.9 -- 1.4
1988-89 95.2 80.1 15.1 4.8 3.1 -- 1.7
1989-90 94.1 77.5 16.6 5.9 4.5 -- 1.4
1990-91 94.5 78.8 15.7 5.6 4.5 -- 1.1
1991-92 94.7 80.7 14.0 5.6 4.1 -- 1.1
1992-93 95.0 81.8 13.2 5.2 3.7 -- 1.5
1993-94 94.7 82.0 12.7 5.4 3.1 1.2 1.1
1994-95 94.5 82.4 12.1 5.6 2.4 2.2 1.0
1995-96 94.3 82.1 12.2 5.8 2.3 2.5 1.0
1996-97 93.0 80.8 12.5 6.7 2.4 3.2 1.1
Year NHS Total Expenditure NHS Capital Expenditure NHS Capital Expenditure as a percentage of NHS Total Expenditure Departmental Administration(6) Departmental Administration as a percentage of NHS Total Expenditure
1985-86 14,923 1,012 6.8 159 1.1
1986-87 16,060 1,096 6.8 174 1.1
1987-88 17,653 1,129 6.4 167 1.0
1988-89 19,628 1,221 6.2 180 1.0
1989-90 21,148 1,454 6.9 201 1.0
1990-91 23,654 1,604 6.8 299 1.3
1991-92 26,786 1,693 6.3 324 1.2
1992-93 29,371 1,868 6.4 384 1.3
1993-94 30,402 1,807 5.9 345 1.1
1994-95 31,983 2,073 6.5 338 1.1
1995-96 33,483 2,018 6.0 329 1.0
1996-97 34,933 2,012 5.8 315 1.0
1997-98 35,958 1,621 4.5 303 0.8
1998-99 36,622 1,546 4.2 302 0.8
1999-00 37,329 1,562 4.2 301 0.8
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