HC Deb 26 February 2004 vol 418 cc558-9W
Mr. Burstow

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate his Department has made of the cost to public funds of the consultant contract. [154145]

Mr. Hutton

The estimated costs of the new consultant contract, as agreed between the Department, the British Medical Association and NHS Confederation, are around £135 million in 2003–04, rising to around £250 million in 2005–06.

Mr. Burstow

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what his Department's timetable is for implementation of the new consultant contract. [154439]

Mr. Hutton

Following the agreement reached last year with the British Medical Association and the NHS Confederation, national health service trusts and other employing organisations were asked to use the new NHS consultants' contract for all new appointments advertised after 31 October 2003 and to give all existing consultants the opportunity to indicate by 31 October 2003 whether they wished to give a commitment to the new contract. For existing consultants, the timetable assumed that, once a commitment had been given, trusts and consultants should seek to agree new job plans typically within three months, but the timetable recognised that trusts might need slightly longer than this to complete the process for all their consultants. We expect that the great majority of consultants who have given a commitment to the new contract will have agreed job plans by 31 March 2004. Where, exceptionally, there are any consultants whose job plans have taken longer to complete than other consultants, NHS trusts and other employing organisations have been asked to agree arrangements with their strategic health authority to complete the process as early as possible in the new financial year.

Mr. Burstow

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what representations he has received on delays in the implementation of the new consultant contract. [154440]

Mr. Hutton

We are aware that the British Medical Association and some individuals have expressed concerns about the time needed for trusts to complete the process of agreeing new job plans with their consultants. The timetable agreed with the British Medical Association explicitly recognised that trusts may need longer than three months to agree job plans. We have nonetheless asked trusts to ensure that they complete the great majority of new job plans by 31 March, while continuing to ensure that job planning delivers the intended benefits of the new consultants' contract for national health service patient care.

Mr. Burstow

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what funding has been allocated for implementation of the new consultant contract; and whether that funding has been spent. [154441]

Mr. Hutton

For 2003–04, additional funding worth 0.3 per cent. of allocations (around £135 million) has been allocated to primary care trusts to meet the estimated costs of the new consultant contract, with a further 0.1 per cent. in 2004–05 and a further 0.1 per cent. in 2005–06. Information on the expenditure so far committed to meet the costs of the new contract is not available centrally.

Mr. Burstow

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what representations he has received on the funding of the new consultant contract; and if he will make a statement. [154442]

Mr. Hutton

A number of national health service organisations have sought further information from the Department about the basis for the funding allocated to primary care trusts for 2003–04 onwards to meet the estimated costs of the new contract. The Department and the NHS Modernisation Agency have provided further guidance to the NHS on this subject. The allocations are based on cost assumptions agreed with the British Medical Association and the other parties to the negotiations on the new contract.

Mr. Burstow

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the maximum number of programmed activities that a consultant should undertake per week is under the consultant contract. [154443]

Mr. Hutton

The new consultants' contract is based on a standard weekly commitment of 10 programmed activities for full-time consultants. The inclusion of additional programmed activities in consultants' job plans is ultimately a matter for agreement locally between national health service employing organisations and consultants, subject to ensuring that such agreements do not contravene the requirements of the Working Time Directive. The Department, the British Medical Association and NHS Confederation have agreed, however, that it should be one of the principal objectives of the contract to prioritise the use of consultants' time more effectively and better manage consultant workload.