1.339
Brain Tumours:
[LORDS]
Lord Trefgarne: My Lords, I agree with the last part of the noble Baroness's supplementary question: that where facilities cannot be made available in every location, then patients should be facilitated to be moved to other locations for the purposes of these particular diagnostic procedures or, in due course, operations, if that is proved necessary. I also agree with the noble Baroness that voluntary funds have played a very important part in financing some of these facilities, and I think that is a most admirable thing.
The Earl of Halsbury: My Lords, can the noble Lord the Minister give the House any information on the annual incidence of these operable tumours as a background to one's judgment of the adequacy of the facilities about which we have been speaking?
Lord Trefgarne: Not without notice, my Lords. Perhaps I might find what figures I can and then write to the noble Earl.
Lord Cledwyn of Penrhos: My Lords, the noble Lord, Lord Trefgarme, has been extremely helpful in the replies he has given. Can he confirm to the House that there is no difficulty about patients crossing boundaries between one health authority and another? As I understand it, patients who suffer in this way in North Wales are able to cross the boundary into Merseyside, where these facilities are available.
Lord Trefgarne: My Lords, I can confirm what has been said by the noble Lord, Lord Cledwyn of Penrhos. It is open to the consultant to refer the patient to whichever hospital he considers necessary for the examination or treatment of the patient concerned.
Lord Wallace of Coslany: My Lords, in order to assist the many noble Lords who have put supplementary questions of some importance, can the noble Lord the Minister prepare a list of the hospitals where these facilities are available--not only scanners but operations as well? If it is impossile to publish this information in Hansard, perhaps a list can be made available in the Library in due course.
Lord Trefgarne: My Lords, one of the difficulties of proceeding along that course is that the list could be changing constantly, because these facilities are being added to all the time, as I said. Also, some facilities are not the same as others; that is to say, some of the scanners have high resolution attachments which are not available in every case. I am not certain, therefore, that such a list would be as helpful as the noble Lord imagines; but perhaps I might look into the matter and write to him.
Lord Elwyn-Jones: My Lords, I believe that what concers my noble friend Lady Bacon is: who will foot the bill when a case is transferred to another regional authority? Will it be the regional authority who receives the patient, or will it be the referring authority? I believe that was the point which worried my noble friend Lady Bacon.
Lord Trefgarne: My Lords, the RAWP formula, as it is called the Resource Allocations Working Party formula-provides for what are called cross-boundary
Detection and Treatment
1340
flows. Any significant action of this kind would therefore be covered by that formula. I understand that in individual cases it is open to the relevant local health authorities to agree between themselves the funds to be transferred.
Immigration Ordinances of Dependent Territories
2.46 p.m.
Lord Avebury: My Lords, I beg leave to ask the Question which stands in my name on the Order Paper.
The Question was as follows:
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether any of the dependencies have changed their immigration ordinances since the British Nationality Act 1982 received the Royal Assent; whether they will place copies of any such alterations in the Library; whether they will make an estimate of the number of British dependent territories' citizens who have no right of entry to any territory for which the United Kingdom is internationally responsible; and whether they will produce an analysis of such persons, showing their respective origins and numbers.
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Home Office (Lord Elton): My Lords, Hong Kong, Gibraltar and Montserrat have so far changed their immigration ordinances. Copies will be placed in the Library as soon as they become available. The other dependent territories are in the process of introducing similar changes. However, since such legislation is the responsibility of the individual territories, it is not possible at this stage to provide the assessments and analyses for which the noble Lord has asked. We expect that persons who held belonger status on 31st December 1982 will continue to hold that status.
Lord Avebury: My Lords, is it not the case that after this change, in the Gibraltar ordinance persons born in the territory of Gibraltar will no longer necessarily have the right of entry into that territory; that this applies also to Bermuda; but that, whereas the Gibral- tarians have a right of registration as British citizens, the people born in Bermuda who do not have access to that territory may not be able to get British citizenship or, indeed, any other? Does the noble Lord, the Minister not agree that it is necessary to have compre- hensive advice available for the agencies who will have to tell people about these matters? What information leaflets have the Government made available to CABS and others who will have to deal with questions of BDTC status.
Lord Elton: My Lords, until the ordinances are passed in the respective places it is difficult to be specific. I cannot therefore make a categorical statement at this stage, but we do not expect many people, if any, who were formerly citizens of the United Kingdom and colonies, to have their status vis-a-vis the dependent territories changed as a result of the change in the description of their citizenship following enactment of the British Nationality Act
DATE 28.3.83
COL.
VOL.
1340-1341
..440.
No comments yet.
Private notes are available after approval.