§ Mr. Alan Hunterasked the Secretary of State for Scotland whether he will make a statement about the implementation of the Zuckerman Report on Hospital Scientific and Technical Services.
§ Mr. RossSince the announcement in the House by my hon. Friend, the Minister of State, Department of Health and Social Security, on 6th December, 1968, welcoming the publication of the Zuckerman Report I have had consultations with many interests in Scotland about the main recommendations of the Report. The recommendations concerning the staffing structure for scientists and technicians have received overwhelming support, and I can now accept them in principle.
The staffing structure will, as the Committee intended, be introduced on a Great Britain basis, and my officers will join with those of the Secretary of State for Social Services and the Secretary of State for Wales in consulting the staff interests and in the other steps necessary to work out the arrangements in detail.
The Committee also made proposals for the administration and organisation of the service but recognised that different considerations obtained in Scotland. Partly for this reason, and partly because 278W it is necessary to ensure that any reorganisation of the hospital scientific services is compatible with the plans for the general reorganisation of the health services, it is unlikely that implementation in Scotland will be exactly on the lines envisaged in the Report.
As a first step, however, I have decided to set up a Scottish Hospital Scientific Council, though its precise relationship with existing advisory bodies in the field is still to be finally determined. The first task of the Council will be to review with the hospital authorities the organisation of their scientific services and to make recommendations concerning future organisation.