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Education: Minimum Leaving Age
Lord Lucas asked Her Majesty's Government:
How many additional places for each kind of qualification they expect to have to provide to accommodate the increase in pupils resulting from the extension of compulsory education to age 18. [HL4358]
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Children, Schools and Families (Lord Adonis): We were already planning on the basis of our existing aspiration for 90 per cent participation among 17 year-olds by 2015. With compulsory participation, our modelling suggests that, nationally, this does not require a big expansion of places. Our current estimates indicate that there will be around 15,000 more 16 and 17 year-olds in schools in 2015 than there are this year and all of this growth is accounted for by the already planned growth in academies; most of which will have sixth forms. Of course, it does not follow that all new demand will go into academies; rather we will need to make sure that every young person has a suitable place in learning and the balance of provision across the system will cater for that. In FE, we estimate that in 2013 13,000 additional places will be needed compared to this year, and in 2015 another 31,000 will be needed. Demographic changes will vary between local areas and local authorities will need to use their own projections to plan accordingly. We do not have modelling on additional places by kind of qualification. However, the Government have committed by 2013 to providing young people with an entitlement to a diploma place, and an entitlement to an apprenticeship place for those who meet the entry requirements.
Health: Blood Tests
Lord Brooke of Alverthorpe asked Her Majesty's Government:
How many National Health Service patients in England and Wales are referred annually to hospitals for blood tests. [HL4286]
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department of Health (Lord Darzi of Denham): This information is not collected centrally.
Health: Communicable Diseases
Lord Avebury asked Her Majesty's Government:
How many people in the United Kingdom they estimate to have been infected with a communicable disease as a result of charging for treating persons not ordinarily resident in the United Kingdom. [HL4325]
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The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department of Health (Lord Darzi of Denham): This information is not available. However, under the National Health Service (Charges to Overseas Visitors) Regulations 1989, as amended, no charge may be made to anyone for the treatment of certain communicable diseases. This is regardless of whether or not the person is considered to be ordinarily resident in the United Kingdom, or otherwise entitled to free NHS hospital treatment.
Health: Complementary and Alternative Medicines
The Countess of Mar asked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether they intend to implement the recommendation of the report of the House of Lords Select Committee on Science and Technology on Complementary and Alternative Medicines, published in 2000 (6th Report, Session 1999—2000, HL Paper 123), that the professions of acupuncture and herbal medicine should be statutorily regulated; and whether they have taken into account the effect of the European Union traditional herbal medicines directive that comes into force in 2011 on consumer choice, practitioners and industry. [HL4088]
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department of Health (Lord Darzi of Denham): The steering group set up by the department in 2006 to report to Ministers on the statutory regulation of acupuncture, herbal medicine and traditional Chinese medicine has just submitted its report. We intend to consult this summer on the report's recommendations and will, together with the devolved Administrations, consider the report in the light of the consultation responses and respond in due course. The report takes into account the effect of the European directive on traditional herbal medicinal products, as will our response.
Health: Orthopaedics
Lord McColl of Dulwich asked Her Majesty's Government:
What is the current total annual funding for orthopaedic research; how this compares in real terms with funding in the past five years; and what plans there are for the next five years; and [HL4323]
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department of Health (Lord Darzi of Denham): The information requested is not available.
Over the past 10 years, the main part of the department's total expenditure on health research has been devolved to and managed by National Health Service organisations. Those organisations have accounted for their use of the research and development (R&D) allocations received from the department in an annual R&D report. The reports have identified expenditure
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Details of individual NHS-supported research projects undertaken from 2000 to 2007 are available on the archived national research register (NRR) at: https://portal.nihr.ac.uk/Pages/NRRArchiveSearch.aspx.
The NRR was superseded in January 2008 by the United Kingdom Clinical Research Network's portfolio database available at: www.ukcrn.org.uk/index/clinical/portfolio_new.html.
Health: Pain Relief
Baroness Finlay of Llandaff asked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether the International Narcotics Control Board make its estimates of global demand for pain relief medication on the basis of the previous year's consumption. [HL4256]
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Home Office (Lord West of Spithead): The International Narcotics Control Board's estimate of global demand for pain relief medicines reflects estimates submitted by individual countries which are usually based on the previous three years' consumption but also take into account any emerging trends.
Health: X-rays
Lord Brooke of Alverthorpe asked Her Majesty's Government:
How many National Health Service patients in England and Wales are referred annually to hospitals for X-rays from single-doctor surgeries. [HL4287]
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department of Health (Lord Darzi of Denham): The data are not currently collected in England. There are no plans to collect the data in the future.
Welsh health services and the data they collect are the responsibility of the Welsh Assembly Government.
Justice
Lord Laird asked Her Majesty's Government:
Further to the Written Answer by Lord Hunt of Kings Heath on 21 May (WA 197—201), whether they will ensure that the Answers appear in the Official Report; why it was decided to respond only by letter in the Library of the House; who took that decision; and on what basis. [HL4114]
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Ministry of Justice (Lord Hunt of Kings Heath): The noble Lord asked 34 Questions. Placing a letter in the Library of the House enables the Government to provide the fullest possible Answers to them.
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Parades: Northern Ireland
Lord Laird asked Her Majesty's Government:
With reference to the annual report of the Northern Ireland Parades Commission for 2006—07, for what and to whom the following sums were paid: £459,007 on exceptional items; £102,570 on mediation; and £57,007 on legal costs. [HL3914]
Lord Tunnicliffe: The sum of £516,014 was paid to HMRC and represents full settlement of the department’s liability for the Commissioner's income tax and national insurance contributions from 1997-05. A credit movement in provision of legal costs in the sum of £57,007 (as explained further below) was deducted which gives a balance of £459,007.
The sum of £102,570 related to the costs of facilitating mediation processes to help resolve local parading disputes.
In 2006-07 £250,000 was provided for legal costs stemming from a judicial review. During the year £70,599 was paid for these legal fees and a further £122,394 was accrued for agreed legal costs. As a result the remaining £57,007 was written back to the income and expenditure account.
Lord Laird asked Her Majesty's Government:
In each of the past five years, what funding awards have been made by the Northern Ireland Parades Commission; to whom; for what; and who made the selection. [HL3960]
Lord Tunnicliffe: I have been informed by the Northern Ireland Parades Commission that the following funding awards have been made in the past five years by the commission:
Lord Laird asked Her Majesty's Government:
Why £102,570 was spent on mediation by the Northern Ireland Parades Commission during 2007; and why nothing was spent in 2006, according to figures presented in the body's annual report. [HL4095]
Lord Tunnicliffe: The expenditure, incurred in 2006-07, related to a number of new mediation initiatives established to help resolve local parading disputes. The mediation expenditure incurred in 2005-06 was included under other expenditure for that financial year.
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