HL Deb 15 January 2004 vol 657 cc677-9

11.21 a.m.

Lord Roberts of Conwy

My Lords, I beg leave to ask the Question standing in my name on the Order Paper. In doing so, I declare an interest as president of the University of Wales College of Medicine.

The Question was as follows: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many professorial appointments are currently vacant in United Kingdom medical schools.

Lord Warner

My Lords, the Government do not collect the information that the noble Lord has requested. However, we are aware that the Council of Heads of Medical Schools is undertaking a UK-wide survey of the number of posts and vacancies, which will be published soon.

Lord Roberts of Conwy

My Lords, I am sure that the Minister will know the outcome of that survey, which shows 84 vacancies among professorships in medical schools in the UK. He will also be aware of the recent report in the Times that medical schools are short of some 80 professors. That is the equivalent of one in 10 of the professorships in the 24 British medical schools. The percentage of vacancies among senior lecturers and so on is even higher. What is the explanation for that? How do the Government account for those vacancies, and what will be the effect on the training of medical students who have increased by substantial numbers since 1998?

Lord Warner

My Lords, I do not have officially the information that the noble Lord has cited. The council carrying out the survey is an independent body, and it is for the council to put the information in the public arena. I understand that the figure that he has cited has some familiarity to me, but it is not the formal figure that the council has put in the public arena.

It is worth reminding the noble Lord that, as he said, the medical school student intake has risen from just over 5,000 in 1997–98 to more than 6, 700 in 2002–03. The money for that has come from the Higher Education Funding Council. When institutions have bid for that money to increase their student intake, they have all given assurances that they can recruit the staff necessary to carry out their obligations.

Lord Turnberg

My Lords, is not the problem a reflection of the fact that clinical academic medicine is no longer such an attractive proposition, and that for many it is becoming very unattractive? Is it not also the case that the report from the Academy of Medical Sciences, of which I happen to be vice-president, will go some way to remedying some of those problems, if the proposals are taken up?

Lord Warner

My Lords, my noble friend is quite right. There have been some long-standing problems with regard to clinical medicine but, under this Government, the National Clinician Scientist Award Scheme was introduced in response to the Saville report to tackle disincentives in this area. Sixty-five awards have been made on a five-year personal basis to stimulate recruitment in this area.

Baroness Sharp of Guildford

My Lords, how will the new fee arrangements proposed by the Government affect medical students? Given that clinical medicine is no longer such an attractive profession and that the report in the Times indicated that the problem arises because clinical academics are moving into work for the NHS, surely the problem will be exacerbated if students have accumulated a very large debt over the many years that they have to train.

Lord Warner

My Lords, the Government's position on the future of higher education is set out in the White Paper and will be pursued through the Higher Education Bill. Department of Health Ministers have made it clear that they will, if necessary, take measures to ensure that any increase in the level of tuition fees will not have an adverse impact on the supply, retention, diversity or quality of students undertaking medical training.

Lord McColl of Dulwich

My Lords, the Government gave an assurance that they would ensure parity between clinical academics and NHS consultant posts. How far have they got with that?

Lord Warner

My Lords, I understand that there is parity. It is worth bearing in mind that the BMA announced, on 12 January, that an overall majority of clinical academics voted for the new contract for consultants.

Lord Mackie of Benshie

My Lords, will the Minister tell us how much a professor of medicine gets paid? Could he tell us how much the Government supply to individuals to bring them up and to make them take the appointment?

Lord Warner

My Lords, those are matters for individual universities. I shall make some inquiries about the average figure and write to the noble Lord.