Funding (Hansard, 20 June 1995)

4. Mr. Robert Ainsworth
To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans she has to ensure equality of funding between district health authorities. [27714]

§ Mr. Malone
We remain committed to the principle of weighted capitation as being the fairest way in which to achieve equality of funding for health authorities.

Mr. Ainsworth
Despite covering the area with the second highest level of deprivation in the region, Coventry Health receives the lowest level of funding. Why is there not yet a time scale for addressing that issue? How on earth do those facts stack with what Ministers continually say about applying money where it is needed? Is it not the case that the Conservatives are loth to remove money from more affluent areas where the needs are not as great? That is the real issue.

§ Mr. Malone
Certainly not. If the hon. Gentleman looked at his own figures, he would see that, during the past year, Coventry Health moved from minus 3.5 per cent. below target to minus 2.2 per cent. That involved a cash increase of £7 million being spent within the hon. Gentleman's health authority.
A number of points have to be borne in mind. As one moves towards targets, it is extremely important not to destabilise arrangements that are already in place. If the hon. Gentleman is suggesting that the health service across the country should be destabilised in terms of funding—his right hon. and hon. Friends intend to destabilise it' by ripping up the structure that has been put in place—he will find that that opinion is not very popular.

§ Mr. Wilshire
Does my hon. Friend accept that the over-provision of service in central London results in underfunding in places such as my constituency? Will he 141 accept the advice of my NHS managers, my consultants, and my GPs, and stand firm on the Department's proposal to rationalise services in central London?

§ Mr. Malone
I can certainly assure my hon. Friend of that point. I reiterate that the whole purpose of weighted capitation payments is to ensure that there is fairness not just between London and the rest of the country, but across the rest of the country as a whole.

§ Mr. Janner
When looking at funding, will the Minister be kind enough to remember the representations made to him just now by his hon. Friend the Member for Blaby (Mr. Robathan), who pointed out the grave concern of people in the Trent area in general, and in Leicestershire in particular, about the difficulty of getting hospital beds at all? A number of people have been dying before they manage to get into hospital or because of delays, an example being my constituent, Mrs. Lillian Wilkinson.
As yesterday marked 25 years of my service to my constituency, will the Minister be good enough to have a special look at the problems of the city of Leicester and its hospitals? Will he try to do what his hon. Friend the Member for Blaby asked him to do, and what Leicestershire Members of all parties wish him to do, which is to bring some hope and help to people in the area?

§ Mr. Malone
I congratulate the hon. and learned Gentleman on 25 years of representing his constituents, of which I was unaware. The sounds of rejoicing had not quite reached my ears at Westminster, but I am sure that, locally, they are loud indeed.
Allocating resources fairly across the country is the principal objective of policy, but we also have mechanisms whereby local purchasers, be they health authorities or GP fundholders, can ensure that there is proper provision by directing funds at a local level and causing investment to take place. That is exactly what is happening across the health service, and it would be destroyed by the policies of the right hon. and learned Gentleman's party.