Written question asked by Earl Howe (Conservative), in the House of Lords. It was answered by Lord Warner (Labour) on Monday, 18 July 2005.

General Practitioners: Slimming on Referral

Question: What advice and assistance is made available to encourage general practitioners to take advantage through practice-based commissioning of evidence-based schemes such as slimming on referral.

Answer: No specific advice has been issued to general practitioners on referral issues in the context of practice-based commissioning. However, practice-based commissioning does provide the opportunity for GPs to take more responsibility for the commissioning of evidence-based services for patients.In addition, the White Paper Choosing Health made a commitment to assess the role that the independent sector, including validated programmes such as slimming on referral, can play in providing effective behaviour-change programmes.

Secondary information