HC Deb 16 May 1995 vol 260 cc144-5
11. Mrs. Roche

To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many (a) hospital beds and (b) hospitals have been lost in London since 1990. [22861]

Mr. Malone

The number of acute hospital beds in greater London has been reduced by around 1,900 between 1990–91 and 1993–94. The equivalent figure for inner London, including the special health authorities, is around 1,000. Information on the hospitals that have closed is not held centrally.

Mrs. Roche

Given that a ward has recently closed in Hornsey central hospital in my constituency without consultation and that waiting lists have increased by 7 per cent. in the Whittington hospital, which also covers my constituency, does the Minister now accept that, although the Government may have won the vote last week, they did not win the argument in the House or with the people in London or in the constituencies?

Mr. Malone

I will tell the hon. Lady what we did win last week and that was a vote for better health care in London, for bringing specialist medical care together on fewer sites, and obtaining better value for money and a better quality of health care. We made some progress towards improving London's health care in both the acute and primary care sectors and the Opposition want to call a halt to that progress.

Dame Jill Knight

Does my hon. Friend accept that for many of us what is important is not the number of hospitals or beds that are closed but the number of patients treated? In view of the extra primary care being offered, the number of day care patients being treated and the number of patients dealt with by general practitioners, would it not be extraordinary if the number of hospital beds stayed exactly the same?

Mr. Malone

My hon. Friend is quite right. The relevant statistic is the number of people treated. What is important is the amount of activity in the health service, not the simple number of beds. As for London, there is no bed target. It is up to individual health authorities to determine from time to time how many beds are necessary to provide care for the people living in their area. My hon. Friend is also right to point out that the Labour party is obsessed with the bricks and mortar of the health service, whereas we want to improve patient care.