Answers issued to Members on 26 June 2007
[R] signifies that the Member has declared an interest.[W] signifies that the question was tabled in Welsh. Contents Questions to the Minister for Education, Culture and the Welsh Language Questions to the Minister for Health and Social Services Questions to the Minister for Social Justice and Public Service Delivery
Questions to the Minister for Education, Culture and the Welsh Language
Rhodri Glyn Thomas (Carmarthen East and Dinefwr): Will the Minister make a statement on proposed options for change to Special Educational Needs services? (WAQ50081)
The Minister for Education, Culture and the Welsh Language (Carwyn Jones): Following its comprehensive policy review of special educational needs, the previous Education, Lifelong Learning and Skills Committee recommended that the Welsh Assembly Government should seek the necessary framework powers to make more fundamental changes to the structure of the current statutory assessment and statementing process. Officials are currently consulting with parents across Wales on a number of options which may or may not form a proposal for change which will be fully consulted on in due course. Among other options for change is the proposal by the Children’s Commissioner for Wales that the Assembly Government consider providing a right of appeal for children. Currently only parents and/or carers have a right of appeal to the SEN Tribunal for Wales. Any such change will be subject to widespread consultation with the key stakeholders later this year. These are just two possible examples of the type of changes which might be necessary to ensure we secure the best possible provision for children with SEN in Wales and, in my view, best illustrate the importance of the Additional Needs Legislative Competence Order which we debated in Plenary on 12 June and which seeks the necessary competence to allow us, if necessary, to make theses and other such changes.
Questions to the Minister for Health and Social Services
Kirsty Williams (Brecon and Radnorshire): Will the Minister make a statement on the number of midwifery training places available in Wales? (WAQ50082)
Kirsty Williams (Brecon and Radnorshire): Will the Minister make a statement on the number of midwifery vacancies? (WAQ50083)
The Minister for Health and Social Services (Edwina Hart): The number of midwifery training places available in Wales for 2007/08 academic year is 90. At 30 September 2006 the number of midwifery vacancies in Wales was 7.3 Whole Time Equivalents.Kirsty Williams (Brecon and Radnorshire): Will the Minister make a statement on the waiting time to see orthodontists? (WAQ50085)
Edwina Hart: 2,393 people were waiting for an initial orthodontic outpatient appointment at the end of April 07. Of these, 381 were waiting over 22 weeks, the target to be achieved by 31 March 2008. Primary care orthodontic waiting times data are not collected.
Nicholas Bourne (Mid and West Wales): Will the Minister make a statement about funding for Deep Brain Stimulation treatment for sufferers of Parkinson's Disease in Wales? (WAQ50090)
Edwina Hart: The provision of Deep Brain Stimulation services for patients is the responsibility of Health Commission Wales (HCW).
The provision of this treatment option has been designated as a low priority for HCW. This decision was supported by the HCW National Commissioning Advisory Board. HCW will review its Deep Brain Stimulation policy on an annual basis.
Ann Jones (Vale of Clwyd): When will the Welsh Assembly Government be responding to the National Institute of Clinical Excellence (NICE) Appraisal Consultation Document on the use of Macugen and Lucentis for the treatment of wet age-related macular degeneration (AMD)? (WAQ50113)
Edwina Hart: We will be sending our formal response to NICE’s Appraisal Consultation Document by their recently extended deadline of 12 July.
Questions to the Minister for Social Justice and Public Service Delivery
Rhodri Glyn Thomas (Carmarthen East and Dinefwr): Will the Minister make a statement on council tax levels for residents of holiday park homes, and will he detail any comparison he has made with the situation in England? (WAQ50108)
The Minister for Social Justice and Public Service Delivery (Andrew Davies): The valuation banding that is applied to a property in Wales, and hence the council tax level that applies, is based on the freehold open market value as at 1 April 2003. This applies to all dwellings, including park homes, whatever the type of construction and regardless of whether the property is owned or rented, leasehold or freehold.
The approach to valuation for council tax purposes is consistent across England and Wales and overall average council tax rates for Wales are still lower than in England. There has been no specific commissioning to compare Wales with England regarding the council tax levels for park homes.