§ Q7. Mr. McGradyTo ask the Prime Minister if he will list his official engagements for Thursday 4 February.
§ The Prime MinisterI refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave some moments ago.
§ Mr. McGradyMay I draw the Prime Minister's attention to the patients charter that he had published and so ardently supported? The charter sees clinical effectiveness and accessibility as the twin pillars of a good acute hospital service. Is the Prime Minister aware that in many areas, and in particular my constituency of South Down, with an area of 750 square miles, all hospital services are being abolished? Will the Prime Minister join me in condemning that action as contrary to the patients charter, and will he take a personal interest in seeing that those scandalous proposals are abandoned?
§ The Prime MinisterI was certainly not aware of the point made by the hon. Gentleman. I shall ask my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State to investigate and report back to me.
§ Mr. ShersbyFurther to my right hon. Friend's earlier reply about juvenile offenders, does he agree that the two single most important actions that the Government can take to deal with the problem are, first, to stop juvenile offenders reoffending on bail and introduce legislation to deal with that secondly, and to provide the resources for secure accommodation so that youngsters who persistently reoffend can be locked up?
§ The Prime MinisterI agree with the two points made by my hon. Friend. I assure him that we have both those matters in mind.