§ Mr. Peter Millsasked the Secretary of State for Social Services if she will take steps to provide for a consultant in mental subnormality for west Devon.
§ Dr. OwenWe have recently agreed to a request from the South Western Regional Health Authority for an additional consultant post in Mental Handicap for 1976–77, which I understand is intended to serve the Plymouth Health District.
§ Mr. Peter Millsasked the Secretary of State for Social Services if she will take steps to assist in the provision of residential accommodation for the severely handicapped and disturbed in west Devon.
§ Dr. OwenIt is for the Devon Area Health Authority to assess the priority to be given to the needs of all categories of
508W
§ Dr. OwenAt 30th June 1975, the latest date for which information is readily available, the position was as set out in the following table. The figures do not necessarily give a true indication of the level of provision in practice available to each district's population, as a substantial proportion of referrals by general practitioners are across health district boundaries.
patients as part of the general structure review that my right hon. Friend has asked authorities to undertake, and particularly in the light of the allocations recently notified for 1976–77 and provisional planning assumptions for later years.