To: xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx.xxx

 

Our ref: DE00000449918

16 October 2009

 

 

 

Dear Ms Brooke,

 

Thank you for your further email of 8 October to the Department of Health requesting, under the Freedom of Information (FOI) Act, further details about your previous FOI requests (our refs: DE00000434571, DE00000443329).  Your request has been passed to me for reply.

 

You have asked me to explain why NHS-run stop-smoking services were not considered as part of our response to your original request (our ref: DE00000434571).  In response to that request, we provided the following information relating to publicity and advertising spend:

 

Total spending on Publicity and Advertising 2006-07 to 2008-09

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The figures above represent total Department of Health spending on publicity and advertising and I can confirm that they are correct.

 

The £74million figure referred to in the article you mention relates to NHS stop smoking services.  These services are run at hospitals, prisons, pharmacies, military bases, dental practices and other facilities and the £74million figure reflects total spending on all stop smoking services, such as nicotine replacement therapy, telephone support and drop-in clinics.  While it is possible that these figures may include local NHS spending on communications relating to stop smoking services, they largely reflect the provision of health services, not communications campaigns as you have inferred.

 

Full data on NHS stop smoking services is collated from Primary Care Trusts and published by the Information Centre (IC) on a routine basis.  It is available online here:

www.ic.nhs.uk/statistics-and-data-collections/health-and-lifestyles/nhs-stop-smoking-services.  If you have further enquiries about the way the IC collects data on stop smoking services, you should contact it directly at the following email address: xxxxxxxxx@xx.xxx.xx.

 

To clarify further, the Department of Health and the NHS are separate bodies; the Department allocates funding to the NHS, but decisions on spending are then made locally.  Revenue allocations are made to Primary Care Trusts (PCTs) on the basis of the relative needs of their populations.  If you would like to obtain information about local healthcare spending, you would need to contact those PCTs in which you are particularly interested directly.  A full list of NHS trusts and authorities is available online at:

www.nhs.uk/NHSEngland/aboutnhs/Pages/Authoritiesandtrusts.aspx.

 

If you have any queries about this response, please contact me.  Please remember to quote the reference number above in any future communications.

 

I hope this reply is helpful.  If you are dissatisfied with the handling of your request, you have the right to ask for an internal review.  Internal review requests should be submitted within two months of the date of receipt of the response to your original letter and should be addressed to:

 

Head of the Freedom of Information Team

Department of Health

Room 317

Richmond House

79 Whitehall

London

SW1A 2NS

  

Email: xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx@xx.xxx.xxx.xx

 

If you are not content with the outcome of your complaint, you may apply directly to the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) for a decision.  Generally, the ICO cannot make a decision unless you have exhausted the complaints procedure provided by the Department.  The ICO can be contacted at:

 

Information Commissioner’s Office

Wycliffe House

Water Lane

Wilmslow

Cheshire

SK9 5AF

 

Yours sincerely,

 

Aimee Gasston

FOI Officer

Department of Health