To ask the Secretary of State for Social Services (1) when was the last occasion on which he met representatives of speech therapists to discuss their salaries, career structure and funding by his Department;(2) if he will reorganise the career structure of speech therapists;(3) what are the minimum and maximum rates of pay of speech therapists; and what steps he intends to take to increase them;(4) if he will undertake a reassessment of the role of speech therapists and seek to elevate their status and pay.

Pay is a matter for negotiation in the appropriate Whitley council. I understand that a claim to increase the pay of speech therapists from 1 april 1988 has been received and will be discussed at a joint meeting on 27 June. The last joint meeting on 9 December 1987 resulted in the agreement for a comprehensive restructuring of speech therapist grades effective from 1 January 1988. The minimum salary for a newly qualified speech therapist is now £8,250. The maximum salary for the most senior grade, available to both managers and holders of posts requiring the provision of an exceptionally high level of clinical expertise, is £19,207.

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Services (1) what is his estimate of the number of stroke victims, elderly people and children with speech problems who require speech therapy; and what steps he is taking to ensure that their needs are met;(2) what is the average number of speech therapists available per 100 children needing their help.

I regret that there are no accurate estimates available of the number of speech and language impaired people in the population. The Department is currently sponsoring a research study by Dr. Philip Davies, Rivermead hospital, Oxford, which should produce improved prevalence and incidence data, when completed next year. However, not all those with communication problems necessarily need or would benefit from speech therapy, so it is unlikely to be possible to derive the kind of ratio the right hon. Member seeks.

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Services how many speech therapists are (a) women and (b) men.

At 30 September 1986 there were 2,510 whole-time equivalent speech therapists in England. Fifty of these were male. The numbers employed are a matter for individual health authorities.

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Services what is the basic educational requirement for speech therapists.

In order to obtain employment in the National Health Service, there is a statutory requirement to hold a certificate, issued by the College of Speech Therapists, certifying success in an examination approved by the college. All such current examinations are at first degree level, but many practising speech therapists hold diploma level qualifications gained before speech therapy became a degree level entry profession. Entry requirements for degrees in speech therapy are a matter for the individual educational establishment.

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Services what is the number of unfilled posts for speech therapists at special schools.

I regret that this information is not available centrally and could not be provided in the form requested. It is for individual authorities to decide on the deployment of speech therapists.

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Services (1) how many speech therapists have left the profession in each of the past five years; and what proportion they are of the total;(2) what is the present annual rate of recruitment of speech therapists; and what has been the comparable rate in the last five years.

Information is collected centrally only on the number of speech therapists employed. The total number employed for the past five years in England is shown in the table.

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Services (1) what steps he has taken to assess the increased demand for speech therapists in the last five years;(2) how many speech therapists there are in England and Wales; if he has any evidence of shortage in some areas; and what steps he intends to take to increase the present number of speech therapists.

It is for individual health authorities to assess the demand for speech therapists and determine the appropriate level of speech therapy provision. Health authorities have taken account of increased demand and the numbers of speech therapists employed has increased by 32 per cent. from September 1982 to September 1986, the last five years for which data are available.There is no shortage of speech therapists in authorised posts, although I am aware of reports of some isolated instances of difficulties in filling posts in certain specialties or geographical areas. The numbers of speech therapists employed in Wales is a matter for my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Wales.