§ 56. Dr. Strossasked the Minister of Health whether he is aware that a more generous allocation of capital expenditure to the West Midlands Hospital Regional Board would ensure considerable saving in the running costs of many of the hospitals in the region; and whether he will make a statement as to his intentions for the coming financial year.
§ Mr. Iain MacleodI am aware that capital expenditure can often save running costs and have advised all boards to bear this in mind in determining priorities. A supplementary allocation of £60,000 was made to the Birmingham Regional Hospital Board this year for such schemes, but I do not anticipate that it will be possible to make a similar additional allocation in the coming year.