Health minister John Denham has named 59 projects in the first wave to win grants from the health action zones innovation fund. 'These innovative schemes are the creme de la creme of the many schemes being produced across the country to improve healthcare and modernise services, ' he said. 'They are about tackling the problem through early intervention and creative thinking.' The projects include local schemes to tackle heart disease, school-based projects to reduce accidental injury and a raft of schemes aimed at particular groups, such as ethnic minority health or women. Mr Denham also told HAZ leaders that he would fasttrack Health Act provisions allowing health authorities in HAZ areas to make payments to local councils for health-related activities.