§ Dr. Roger Thomasasked the Secretary of State for Social Services whether his Department is considering increasing the national insurance surcharge by an amount specifically calculated to cope with the annual increase in the cost of the National Health Service and providing that this increase should be made inflation-proof.
§ Mrs. ChalkerI assume that the hon. Member is referring to that part of the national insurance contribution which is allocated to the National Health Service, rather than to the national insurance surcharge, which is a matter for my right hon. and learned Friend the Chancellor of the Exchequer.
My right hon. and learned Friend the Chancellor of the Exchequer announced the national insurance rates for 1982–83, including a 0.1 per cent. increase in the class 1 and class 4 National Health Service allocations, on 2 December 1981—[Vol. 14, c. 237–40]. This annual review of contribution rates not only provides an opportunity for considering the National. Health Service allocations in the light of economic and other relevant factors but also ensures in any event that these allocations are effectively inflation-proofed.