Chamber and committees

I refer the member to the answer to question S2W-13555 on 24 January 2005. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/wa.search.

The Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 gives an absolute exemption from access to personal census information. The exemption applies for 100 years commencing at the beginning of the calendar year following the year in which the records were created. Census information from the census held in 1911 will therefore be available from 2012. The protection to this category of information is required in order to underwrite assurances of confidentiality given to those who complete census returns.

The naturally-occurring gas radon disperses in open air but can accumulate in houses. Following advice in 1990 by the National Radiological Protection Board (NRPB), the UK government set an action level of 200 becquerels per cubic metre for radon in homes. Where radon is found to be above this set level, action to reduce exposure to radon is recommended. Local authorities can assist with grant owners who cannot afford to meet the cost of remedial works.

After advice given by NRPB in 1993, two radon affected areas were designated in Scotland. These are areas where there is a 1% or higher possibility of houses being above the action level. One of the areas includes parts of Aberdeenshire and the other is in the eastern part of the Highland area. I would encourage house owners within the affected areas to have their homes tested and, if necessary, take action to reduce the radon level in their homes. The building regulations require that in radon affected areas appropriate anti-radon preventative measures must be incorporated into new houses or extensions as they are being built.

The Executive has commissioned the NRPB to complete its survey of radon in housing across Scotland and to update its advice on the radiological significance of levels of radon in Scotland.

A list of the 41 hospitals undertaking maxillofacial in-patient and day case treatment during the year to 30 September 2004 is provided in the following table.

NHSScotland: Hospital Undertaking Maxillofacial¹ In-Patient and Day Case Treatment During the Year Ending 30 September 2004^P

NHS Board	Location
Argyll and Clyde:	Inverclyde Royal Hospital
	Lorn and Islands District General Hospital
	Royal Alexandra Hospital
	Vale of Leven District General Hospital
Ayrshire and Arran	Crosshouse Hospital
	The Ayr Hospital
Borders	Borders General Hospital
Dumfries and Galloway	Dumfries and Galloway Royal Infirmary
	Garrick Hospital
Fife	Queen Margaret Hospital
	Victoria Hospital
Forth Valley	Falkirk and District Royal Infirmary
	Stirling Royal Infirmary
Grampian	Aberdeen Royal Infirmary
	Dr Gray’s Hospital
	Royal Aberdeen Children’s Hospital
Greater Glasgow	Canniesburn Hospital
	Glasgow Dental Hospital and School
	Glasgow Royal Infirmary
	Royal Hospital for Sick Children
	Southern General Hospital
	Stobhill Hospital
	Victoria Infirmary
	Western Infirmary/Gartnavel General
Highland	Belford Hospital
	Caithness General Hospital
	Raigmore Hospital
Lanarkshire	Hairmyres Hospital
	Monklands Hospital
	Wishaw General Hospital
Lothian	Roodlands General Hospital
	Royal Hospital for Sick Children
	Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh at Little France
	St John's Hospital At Howden
	Western General Hospital
Orkney	Balfour Hospital
Shetland	Gilbert Bain Hospital

NHSScotland: Hospital Undertaking Maxillofacial¹ In-Patient and Day Case Treatment During the Year Ending 30 September 2004^P

Tayside	Ninewells Hospital
	Perth Royal Infirmary
	Stracathro Hospital
Western Isles	Western Isles Hospital

^PProvisional.

Note: 1. Operations defined using the Office of Population Censuses and Surveys 4th Revision Classification of Surgical Operations and Procedures (OPCS4). Maxillofacial surgery is defined using OPCS4 F08-F18 AND V01-V21 recorded as primary operations.

The Scottish Executive announced an additional £4 million for smoking cessation services for 2005-06. This more than doubles the funding available for cessation services and will allow smoking cessation programmes to expand to meet the increased demand for services which is likely to stem from the implementation of the ban on smoking in public places.

Final figures are not yet available.

However, in September 2004, 83% of consultants had reached agreement on the contract and signed off their job plans.

12% of consultants had been offered job plans by their employer but not yet agreed them at the time of the data collection.

2% of consultants had decided not to move to the new contract and 3% of consultants were in mediation about their job plan or had not received an offer of a job plan.

NHS boards have made progress since then and a data collection is currently being undertaken by boards. The final figures are not yet available.

Health Protection Scotland estimates that approximately 50,000 persons in Scotland have been infected with the hepatitis C virus (HCV) of whom some 20,000 have been diagnosed. The estimate of 50,000 is based on a wide range of HCV prevalence data which were generated through surveys of high and low-riskpopulations during 1996-2004. Numerous surveys of injecting drug users throughoutScotland have been performed and these indicate prevalences of between 30% and 80%. Other populations surveyed include pregnant women, genito-urinary medicine clinic attenders, prisoners, health care workers and blood donors.

Data is not available by maxillofacial unit. However, tables 1 and 2 provide figures for consultants in maxillofacial specialties (Surgery and Radiology) by NHS board. These figures are likely to be an undercount of all maxillofacial consultants because maxillofacial consultants working in oral surgery cannot be explicitly identified.

Table 1: Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery Consultants Employed in NHSScotland by NHS Board (as at 30 September 2003)

	Establishment		Staff in Post		Population	Whole-Time Equivalent Consultants in Post Per 100,000 Population
	Headcount	Whole-Time Equivalent	Headcount	Whole-Time Equivalent
Scotland	10	10.0	7	7.0	5,057,400	0.14
NHS Ayrshire and Arran	2	2.0	2	2.0	367,140	0.54
NHS Forth Valley	2	2.0	2	2.0	279,680	0.72
NHS Grampian	1	1.0	0	0.0	523,390	0.00
NHS Lanarkshire	1	1.0	1	1.0	553,440	0.18
NHS Lothian	4	4.0	2	2.0	780,010	0.26

Source: ISD Scotland.

Table 2: Dental and Maxillofacial Radiology Consultants Employed in NHSScotland by NHS Board (as at 30 September 2003)

	Establishment		Staff in Post		Population	Whole-Time Equivalent Consultants in Post Per 100,000 Population
	Headcount	Whole-Time Equivalent	Headcount	Whole-Time Equivalent
Scotland	2	1.6	2	1.6	5,057,400	0.03
NHS Greater Glasgow	1	0.6	1	0.6	866,370	0.07
NHS Tayside	1	1.0	1	1.0	386,550	0.26

Source: ISD Scotland.

Notes:

1. Staff in post and establishment figures are sourced from the Medical and Dental Workforce Census.

2. Population figures are mid 2003 estimates sourced from the General Register Office for Scotland.

No information about the terms and conditions of service for individual consultants has been collected by the Scottish Executive Health Department. This is confidential to NHS boards and the consultants.

This information is not collected centrally.

Information is available by NHS board on the average number of programmed activities (i.e. four hour blocks of work) contained in consultants’ job plans. The average figure for Scotland is 11.6, which indicates that on average consultants are contracting to working less than 48 hours per week.