§ Dr. FoxTo ask the Secretary of State for Health on what date the decision was taken to publish a shortened version of the Chief Medical Officer's annual report. [24590]
§ Yvette CooperThe length and content of the Chief Medical Officer's annual report is a matter for the Chief Medical Officer of the day. The present Chief Medical Officer considered the length and format of the previous reports after taking up post in the autumn of 1998. He also reviewed the range of publications produced under the auspices of the Chief Medical Officer. He decided that the previous format which included detailed accounts of the Government's policies in relation to health and health care were now well covered in other publications and Government websites. With this is mind he decided to focus the report on a number of specific topics of importance to the public health. He began working personally on this new report in the spring of 2001 and it was published on 10 December 2001.