§ Tim LoughtonTo ask the Secretary of State for Health what research his Department has commissioned into the extent of solvent abuse by children. [169029]
§ Miss Melanie JohnsonInformation on volatile substance abuse (VSA) among young people aged 11–15 years is collected in an annual national survey of secondary school children commissioned by the Department. Latest information is given in the statistical release, "Drug use, smoking and drinking among young people in England in 2003: headline figures", which was published on 31 March 2004.
The Department funds the Department of Public Health Sciences at St. George's Hospital in south London to collect statistics on deaths associated with the abuse of gas fuels, aerosols, glues and other solvent based products. It produces an annual statistical summary of data. The sixteenth annual report highlighting mortality statistics for 2001 was published on 21 July 2003.
The Department also funds the National Children's Bureau, which is working with `Childline' to analyse calls to the helpline on VSA. This work will provide qualitative data on issues relating to young people's misuse of volatile substances, which will also inform policy and practice on VSA.
§ Tim LoughtonTo ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate he has made of the number of deaths of children caused by solvent abuse in each of the last 10 years. [169058]
§ Miss Melanie JohnsonStatistics, collected by St. George's Hospital Medical School on behalf of the Department, on the number of deaths of children by volatile substance abuse for the last available 10 years, are shown in the table.
Number of deaths of children under 18 years by volatile substance abuse
Deaths 1992 39 1993 30 1994 21 1995 32 1996 35 1997 29 1998 16 1999 25 2000 17 2001 25 Source: St. George's Hospital Medical School: 16th Annual Report on Trends in Death Associated with Abuse of Volatile Substance 1971–2001—Key findings for 2001