§ Mr. RedmondTo ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will set up an investigation into the recent supply of the names and addresses of NHS pensioners and their Paymaster General's office reference numbers to third parties.
§ Mr. SackvilleResponsibility for this matter has been delegated to the National Health Service Pensions Agency under its chief executive, A.F. Cowan. I have asked him to reply to the hon. Member.
Letter from A. F. Cowan to Mr. Martin Redmond, dated 27 February 1995:
The Secretary of State for Health has asked me to respond to your written parliamentary question of 17 February 1995 because it falls within my area of responsibility.The Agency contracts Paymaster to administer the payment of NHS pensions. They had, without reference to us, issued promotional material to pensioners from a third party but I have been assured by Keith Sullens, who is the Chief Executive of Paymaster, that at no time has any information about NHS pensioners been released to third parties.