§ 10. Mr. MorganTo ask the Secretary of State for Wales what proposals he has to meet the chairman of South Glamorgan health authority to discuss the future status of the University hospital of Wales, Cardiff.
§ Mr. Nicholas BennettMy right hon. Friend has no such plans.
§ Mr. MorganI will give another example of the problem to which the previous question referred. While the junior Minister has been going round trying to interest the University hospital of Wales in trust status, his waiting list policy has failed to stem the inexorable rise in numbers. As for the treatment centre at the Prince of Wales hospital, Rhydlafar, in my constituency, a patient from Clwyd arrived there last week for a knee operation, but because the centre had already reached its quota of three knees from Clwyd for this financial year, that patient returned home without undergoing an operation. Does the Minister agree that that is a further scandalous example of our market-driven health service? Is it not time he resigned and made way for a Minister who really wants to see a national health service in Wales?
§ Mr. BennettMy interest in the NHS in Wales is exemplified by the fact that in the past two weeks I have visited all five of the hospitals which, between them, account for 50 per cent. of the waiting list. I have spoken to consultants and managers about how they may tackle the problems. The Government are interested. We spent: £5 million on the treatment initiative since 1986, and this year we have approved expenditure of £1.3 million towards the waiting list initiative, including the establishment of a fourth treatment centre. If the hon. Gentleman will write to me about the particular case that he mentioned, I will certainly investigate it. However, I cannot be expected to carry in my head the details of the 2.9 million people treated in Wales.