§ 1. Mr. Ted Rowlands (Merthyr Tydfil and Rhymney)If he will make a statement on progress on the reform of the health service in Wales following the most recent meeting of the joint ministerial committee on health. [126693]
§ The Secretary of State for Wales (Mr. Paul Murphy)The purpose of the joint ministerial committee on health was to provide an opportunity for all parts of the United Kingdom to share ideas and best practices.
I know that everyone has found the exchange of experiences a useful tool for putting together plans for the future.
Following the three meetings held so far, I understand that Jane Hutt, the Assembly Health and Social Services Secretary, will be making a statement to the National Assembly for Wales in July on progress in improving the NHS in Wales and her plans for further action.
§ Mr. RowlandsFollowing the joint ministerial meetings, can my right hon. Friend say what has emerged as the most immediate, urgent reform required in the NHS in Wales? May I suggest that one fundamental reform would be a formula to ensure that the large amount of new money that we are putting into our health service is distributed to the areas of greatest deprivation in health terms? While I very much appreciate and warmly welcome the most recent announcements of additional support for the national health service in North Glamorgan, I am sure that my right hon. Friend will agree 888 that they represent only the beginning of the fundamental requirement to produce a 21st-century national health service in North Glamorgan.
§ Mr. MurphyYes. I take the point that my hon. Friend makes. The joint ministerial committee dealt with the relationship between social services and the health service. In that respect, we can learn from Northern Ireland. We looked at the question of preventive medicine and, in respect of Scotland and Wales, what we can offer by way of telemedicine. There will be other important announcements in July. So far as the specific issue of deprivation is concerned, again I take my hon. Friend's point and remind the House that my hon. Friend, other right hon. and hon. Members and I met Jane Hutt this week to discuss the very points that he raised. Like my hon. Friend, I represent a valleys constituency and I understand the importance of tackling the deprivation which undoubtedly exists in Glamorgan and Gwent. I know that the Assembly has already put a great deal of resources into our valleys.
§ Mr. Dafydd Wigley (Caernarfon)Has the joint committee considered the financing of health in Wales via the Barnett formula and the tendency of that formula to move towards convergence, so that if a service such as health requires more money in Wales because of socio-economic and industrial conditions, it may need money to come from outside what otherwise would have been the health block? Given the need for those additional resources, more resources for ysbyty Glan Clwyd and the £30 million required to deal with asbestos, can my right hon. Friend give an assurance that the July comprehensive spending review will include a consideration for maximising health money for Wales?
§ Mr. MurphyAs the right hon. Gentleman knows, my right hon. Friend the Chancellor of the Exchequer dealt with the question of health spending when he explained to the House the considerable increases in the health budget for Wales resulting from the earlier spending review. It means that Wales will receive an extra £1.3 billion over the next few years. I hope that the money will go to the areas of greatest need. The joint ministerial committee has not discussed the Barnett formula. Of course the right hon. Gentleman knows as well as I do that the Assembly Finance Secretary and others discuss these matters regularly.
§ Mr. Huw Edwards (Monmouth)In his discussions with other health Ministers, will my right hon. Friend discuss consultants' contracts? Does he recognise the concerns of my constituents who find that if they are on a waiting list they are sometimes advised that if they went privately, the procedure would be carried out much more quickly? Does he agree that what might have been necessary for Aneurin Bevan in 1948 is not suitable for the health service of the 21st century? We should not have restrictive practices which continue to allow consultants to have their mouths stuffed with gold.
§ Mr. MurphyI understand exactly what my hon. Friend says and I assure him that these matters are being discussed. I hope that a number of them will be addressed in the national plan for health which will be announced later this year. At about the same time, the National 889 Assembly for Wales will be making its own deliberations and announcements regarding the matters to which my hon. Friend referred.