§ 14. Mr. Win Griffiths (Bridgend)What assessment he has made of the impact of treating patients from Wales on English waiting lists. [116537]
§ The Minister of State, Department of Health (Mr. John Hutton)The provision of NHS services to Welsh patients by English NHS trusts is a matter for local NHS commissioners. The maximum waiting time for English patients will be six months for in-patient treatment and three months for an out-patient appointment by 2005. The setting of targets for Welsh patients is, of course, a matter for the National Assembly for Wales.
§ Mr. GriffithsMay I thank my right hon. Friend for that reply? However, I was hoping that he might have been able to tell me whether there was any capacity on the English side of the border for even more Welsh patients to be treated, given that the incidence of illness in Wales is much higher than it is in England.
§ Mr. HuttonI agree with my hon. Friend. It is obviously important that the NHS provides an integrated service across the border between Wales and England. If there is spare capacity in NHS hospitals in England, it is right and proper that NHS patients who live in Wales should have access to it when that can be agreed. In fact, that is precisely what is happening. The number of Welsh patients treated in English trusts is increasing substantially and is up from 26,000 in 2000–01 to 37,000 last year.