§ 28. Mr. Blenkinsopasked the Minister of Health what extra sum has been granted to the Newcastle Regional Hospital Board in addition to the original capital allocation for 1954–55; and whether similar additional provision can be made for 1955–56.
§ Mr. Iain MacleodAbout £250,000. Ido not expect to be able to make a similar supplementary allocation next year.
§ Mr. BlenkinsopDoes the right hon. Gentleman realise that if additional sums are made available towards the end of the financial year it is very difficult to make full use of them? If he can make them available at the beginning of the financial year, we can guarantee to get the work done.
§ Mr. MacleodIf there is any possibility of under-spending, I shall do what I can to allocate the money available to the boards who can take it as soon as I can in the financial year, but I should have thought it unlikely that there would be the amount of under-spending this year that there was last year owingto the slow progress made with centrally financed schemes.
§ Mr. BlenkinsopCan we assume that, in addition to the original capital allocation for schemes which are going forward the board, will get, say, £150,000 extra?
§ Mr. MacleodOf course not. The hon. Members knows perfectly well that I must keep within the budget. But if moneys become available, I shall consider the claims of all regions equally when the time comes.