Written question asked by Lord Lansley (Conservative) on Wednesday, 18 January 2006, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Friday, 20 January 2006. It was answered by Liam Byrne (Labour) on Wednesday, 1 February 2006 on behalf of the Department of Health.

Vulnerable Adults

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) how many individuals are on the protection of vulnerable adults list;

Answer: The legislation underpinning the operation of the protection of vulnerable adults (POVA) list is the Care Standards Act 2000, which sets out the criteria for referring people to the list and for deciding whether to include a person on the list. As at 31 December 2005, the latest date for which figures are available, there have been 3,448 referrals made to the POVA list, which was established on 26 July 2004.Overall, there are 288 individuals confirmed as being unsuitable to work with vulnerable adults and they have been placed on the list. There are also 1,228 people provisionally listed who are subject to further investigations and cannot work in a regulated social care position in the interim.

Secondary information