Mr. John D. TaylorTo ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many state pathologists there are in Northern Ireland. [83934]
§ Mr. IngramThere is one State Pathologist, Professor Jack Crane, who is assisted by a Deputy State Pathologist, Dr. Derek Carson, and one other consultant forensic pathologist.
Mr. John D. TaylorTo ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many post mortems each state pathologist in Northern Ireland has conducted in each of the last three years; and what were the numbers performed by Home Office pathologists in England and Wales. [83937]
§ Mr. IngramI am not prepared to release the numbers of post mortems performed by individual forensic pathologists. The total numbers of post mortems performed in Northern Ireland by the State Pathologist's Department in the previous three years were:
Number 1996 1,479 1997 1,525 1998 1,672 The number of forensic post mortems performed by pathologists in England and Wales is a matter for the Home Secretary.
Mr. John D. TaylorTo ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what plans she has to issue a standard charter for the State Pathologists Department. [83939]
§ Mr. IngramThere are no plans for a charter for the State Pathologist's Department. The work of the Department is presently under review and I propose to await the outcome of the review before considering that possibility.