HC Deb 09 December 2002 vol 396 cc171-2W
Mrs. Brooke

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what guidance NHS Chief Executives have been given regarding the need for preservation of public health microbiology in relation to the proposed establishment of a Health Protection Agency. [84253]

Ms Blears

The Chief Executive of the National Health Service and Permanent Secretary of the Department, Nigel Crisp, has written to NHS chief executives saying that the public health activities of Public Health Laboratory Service (PHLS) laboratories transferring to NHS trusts are to be protected and maintained.

The regional public health microbiologists, to be appointed within the Health Protection Agency (HPA), will be working with the NHS trusts to ensure that all

Expenditure on non-NHS nursing, midwifery and health visiting staff as a proportion of total nursing, midwifery and health visiting staff—England 1995–96 to 2000–01
Region 1995–96 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01
Northern and Yorkshire n/a 0.007 0.008 0.008 0.010 0.011
Trent n/a 0.009 0.012 0.015 0.017 0.021
West Midlands n/a 0.026 0.030 0.037 0.042 0.045
North West n/a 0.010 0.014 0.018 0.022 0.026
Eastern n/a 0.024 0.026 0.036 0.044 0.056
London n/a 0.089 0.089 0.099 0.123 0.128
South East n/a 0.022 0.030 0.040 0.046 0.053
South West n/a 0.014 0.018 0.023 0.024 0.034
England total 0.026 0.030 0.033 0.039 0.047 0.052

n/a = Not available

Sources:

1. Annual financial returns of NHS Trusts, 1995–96 to 2000–01

2. Annual financial returns of district and regional health authorities and the special health authorities for the London postgraduate teaching hospitals, 1995–96

3. Annual financial returns for health authorities, 1996–97 to 2000–01

4. Annual financial returns for primary care trusts, 2000–01

the microbiology laboratories within NHS—not only those transferred from the PHLS—play their full public health role.

The establishment of the HPA is intended to enhance public health microbiology and to position the protection of public health in the mainstream of NHS activities. This is just one element of the Chief Medical Officer's strategy for combating infectious diseases, "Getting Ahead of the Curve".