§ Mr. BurstowTo ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement on the New Consultant Entry Scheme; and whether doctors on the Scheme count as consultants for the sake of the NHS Plan consultant recruitment targets. [152819]
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National Health Service: Number of dentists in England by region and Strategic Health Authority at September each year 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 England 19,980 20,483 21,041 21,556 21,902 22,438 22,810 NHS Region Northern and Yorkshire 2,401 2,477 2,540 2,558 2,589 2,668 — Trent 1,749 1,799 1,820 1,900 1,915 1,918 — West Midlands 1,895 1,938 1,982 1,998 2,058 2,134 — NorthWest 2,740 2,777 2,846 2,900 2,887 2,929 — Eastern 1,961 2,050 2,110 2,206 2,259 2,329 — London 3,633 3,680 3,807 3,821 3,875 3,967 — South East 3,538 3,627 3,683 3,840 3,915 4,033 — South and West 2,063 2,135 2,253 2,333 2,404 2,460 — Strategic Health Authority Avon, Gloucestershire and Wiltshire 943 983 1,043 1,084 1,096 1,115 1,114 Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire 634 648 684 729 748 801 803 Birmingham and The Black Country 891 909 918 910 924 965 964 Cheshire and Merseyside 1,010 1,045 1,070 1,089 1,093 1,107 1,161 County Durham and Tees Valley 383 413 425 422 422 436 455 Coventry, Warwickshire, Herefordshire and Worcestershire 549 564 584 597 622 636 664 Cumbria and Lancashire 738 742 776 773 760 797 787 Dorset and Somerset 466 475 494 500 520 519 540 Essex 557 577 579 599 621 627 625 Greater Manchester 1,122 1,115 1,127 1,162 1,155 1,149 1,161 Hampshire and Isle of Wight 681 685 704 735 762 793 800 Kent and Medway 641 664 654 679 668 663 686 Leicestershire, Northants and Rutland 491 504 517 523 519 524 541 Norfolk, Suffolk and Cambridgeshire 770 825 847 878 890 901 941 North and East Yorkshire and North Lincolnshire 573 584 592 611 632 664 671 North Central London 696 730 750 767 755 768 765
§ Mr. HuttonThe New Consultant Entry Scheme (NCES) has been developed for specialist registrars who have recently acquired the certificate of completion of specialist training and would like more practical support to help make the transition to consultant grade in their first consultant post. Placements are for six months in vacant consultant posts, after which the doctors can apply for substantive appointment in open competition.
Appointments of NCES doctors to consultant vacancies are counted for the purposes of consultant recruitment targets.