§ Mr. DismoreTo ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of his Department's ability to counter the risks and effects of bioterrorism(a); with the existing Public Health Laboratory Service arrangements, (b); after completion of the reorganisation of the Public Health Laboratory Service and (c) during the transitional period whilst new arrangements settle down; and if he will make a statement. [74815]
§ Ms BlearsThe Department works closely with the Public Health Laboratory Service (PHLS) and with the National Health Service to ensure that biological threats are rapidly identified and dealt with. We are confident that the United Kingdom is as well prepared as any country could be to protect the health of its citizens in the event of bioterrorism.
The transfer of most PHLS general microbiology services to the NHS will strengthen the public health outputs of the NHS. It will also improve surveillance and linkages between human, veterinary, food, water, and environmental surveillance systems, which are essential to identify new events and monitor the effectiveness of interventions.
In considering the transfer of the PHLS laboratories to the NHS, the Department is ensuring that there will be dedicated public health microbiology support at local and regional levels to make sure that incident response and public health surveillance continues.
§ Mr. DismoreTo ask the Secretary of State for Health what arrangements will be put in place to require local public health laboratories to respond to requests for information and samples from the central Public Health Laboratory Service after reorganisation; and if he will make a statement. [74810]
§ Ms BlearsAll National Health Service laboratories as well as laboratories in the proposed Health Protection Agency will be able to respond to requests for404W information and samples from one central public health laboratory. These arrangements will be a continuation of the current system.
§ Mr. DismoreTo ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans he has to visit Public Health Laboratory Service, Colindale. [74808]
§ Ms BlearsMy right hon. Friend the Secretary of State has no current plans to visit the Public Health Laboratory Service (PHLS). The then Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Public Health (Yvette Cooper) visited the PHLS on 6 November 2000 and I plan to visit on 28 October 2002.
§ Mr. DismoreTo ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the impact on the National Vaccination Campaign of the proposals to reorganize the Public Health Laboratory Service; and if he will make a statement. [74812]
§ Ms BlearsWe do not anticipate any negative impact and hopefully there will be positive impact from the incorporation of Public Health Laboratory Service into the proposed new Health Protection Agency. It is clear that the immunisation priorities will remain priorities of the Agency.
§ Mr. DismoreTo ask the Secretary of State for Health what arrangements he has made to consult trade unions and professional bodies over the reorganisation of Public Health Laboratory Service. [74816]
§ Ms BlearsA consultation document on the proposed establishment of the Health Protection Agency (HPA), which would assume many of the functions of the Public Health Laboratory Service (PHLS) and a discussion document about proposals to transfer a number of PHLS laboratories to the National Health Service was issued in June 2002. Both were sent to relevant trades unions and professional bodies.
A trades union liaison group has been established between the relevant trades unions, officials and the current employing organisations to co-ordinate consultation and discussion about the proposed HPA. There are regular meetings with trades unions or professional bodies on a range of relevant issues.