To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will list (a) details of all overseas trips made by him, or ministerial colleagues in his Department, paid for wholly or partly from public funds and (b) the purpose, destination and duration of such overseas trips, which officials accompanied them and the total cost to public funds in each case, including that of officials for each year since 1992. [32254]
I refer the hon. Member to the reply that the then Minister for Health, my right hon. Friend the Member for Peterborough (Dr. Mawhinney), gave the hon. Member for Newport, East (Mr. Hughes) on 3 November 1994, Official Report, columns 222–24, for information covering the period April 1992 to mid-October 1993.
Information on the dates, destinations and purpose of visits made by my right hon. Friend and ministerial colleagues since 14 October 1993 is shown in the table. The total cost of overseas travel by Ministers and private secretaries in each financial year is also shown.
Information on officials accompanying Ministers could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
Date
| Destination
| Purpose
|
| FINANCIAL YEAR APRIL 1993 TO MARCH 1994 | ||
Minister of State for Health—Dr. Mawhinney
| ||
| 7–15 November 1993 | USA | Fact finding visit in connection with Ministerial responsibilities |
| 13 December 1993 | Brussels | EC Health Council |
Total spend for 7th November to March 1994
| £4,653
| |
| FINANCIAL YEAR APRIL 1994—MARCH 1995 | ||
Secretary of State for Health
| ||
| 17–18 November 1994 | Brussels | To address OECD High Level Conference of National Experts on Health Reform |
| 1 December 1994 | Paris | World AIDS Summit |
| 21–22 December 1994 | Brussels | EC Health Council |
| 13–17 March 1995 | Japan | Trade Mission to promote inward investment (Prescribe UK) |
Minister of State for Health—Dr. Mawhinney | ||
| 4 March 1994 | Dublin | Meeting with Irish Health Minister |
| 30 March 1994 | Brussels | EC Health Council—Bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) meeting |
| 19 June 1994 | Helsinki | European Conference on environmental health |
Parliamentary Under Secretary of State—
| ||
Mr. Bowis OBE
| ||
| 3 February 1994 | Strasburg | European Council Meeting on Drugs |
| 13 May 1994 | Rhodes Island | Greek Presidency Conference on heart disease |
| 2 June 1994 | Luxembourg | EC Health Council |
| 30 June 1994 | Amsterdam | EC Health Council |
| 18–24 September 1994 | Amsterdam; Germany; Hungary | Fact finding visit on Child care, drug abuse,a nd AIDS. Also signing Health Co-operation plan in Hungary |
| 1 January 1995 | Lebanon | Council for Advancement in Arab British Understanding |
Parliamentary Under Secretary of State—
| ||
Baroness Cumberlege CBE
| ||
| 3–4 May 1995 | Geneva | World Health Assembly |
| 17–18 June 1994 | Paris | AIDS Summit |
Total annual spend
| £20,507
| |
| FINANCIAL YEAR APRIL 1995 TO DATE | ||
Secretary of State for Health
| ||
| 2–3 May 1995 | Geneva | World Health Assembly |
| 29 May-2 June 1995 | USA | Fact finding visit in connection with Ministerial responsibilities |
Parliamentary Under Secretary of State—
| ||
Mr. Bowis OBE
| ||
| 1–2 June 1995 | Luxembourg | EC Health Council |
| 22 June 1995 | Copenhagen | European Social Services Conference |
Date
| Destination
| Purpose
|
Parliamentary Under Secretary of State—
| ||
Mr. Sackville
| ||
| 25–28 April | Hamburg; Hanover; Dresden | Trade mission to promote health exports |
Total spend to end May 1995
| £17,710
| |