HC Deb 21 January 1997 vol 288 cc732-3
8. Mr. Richards

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment has been made of the likely savings to be made for the health services as a result of the measures contained in the Health Authorities Act 1995. [10363]

Mr. Dorrell

Total annual savings as a result of the Health Authorities Act 1995 are estimated at £150 million: £100 million from the abolition of regional health authorities, and £50 million from the introduction of single, unified health authorities. Those savings will be used for direct patient care.

Mr. Richards

Does my right hon. Friend recall that the savings from administration that he just announced were bitterly opposed by the Labour party? Will he confirm that an additional £300 million a year will be diverted to patient care from cuts in hospital bureaucracy? Therefore, is it realistic for the Labour party to claim that a further £100 million a year can be saved? Where would the money come from?

Mr. Dorrell

My hon. Friend is absolutely right. There will be an extra £300 million a year for patient care as a result of the Government's squeeze on unnecessary administrative processes.

The hon. Member for Islington, South and Finsbury (Mr. Smith) loves talking about savings from reduced administration, but he is not serious about it. Indeed, so unserious is he that the Health Service Journal, which circulates among health service managers, says: Managers will not lose their jobs, says Smith". So he will reduce costs on administration but he will not reduce the number of people in administration.

Mr. McNamara

The Minister will be aware that, a fortnight ago, a patient from Leeds was sent to the intensive care unit in Hull, a journey of 60 miles, because there was no room in the Leeds intensive care unit. Last Tuesday, because of no room in the Hull royal infirmary intensive care unit, a constituent of mine, Mr. Dennis Drax, was sent to Leeds, another journey of 60 miles. Sadly, both patients died. How much of the new surplus will be given to our intensive care unit?

Mr. Dorrell

The hon. Gentleman raises an important point; it is not directly relevant to this question, but I shall answer it none the less.

Any individual case where the service may be seen to have failed will of course be investigated, but I hope that the hon. Gentleman will tell the House the whole story of intensive care referrals this winter. I hope that he will remind the House that, this winter, for the first time, every intensive care unit in the health service is connected to an emergency bed referral system, and that an intensive care clinician who needs to refer a patient to another intensive care unit has immediate access to availability in the health service for the first time. The hon. Gentleman might have spared time to welcome that development of service.