§ Mr. Tom Benyonasked the Secretary of State for Social Services how many new nursing posts have been created since May 1979.
§ Mr. Fowler[pursuant to his reply, 25 February 1982, c.485]: Provisional figures for September 1981 show that the whole-time equivalent of all nursing and midwifery staff, including unqualified nursing staff and agency nurses and midwives, rose from 358,400 in September 1979 to 392,200 in September 1981, an increase of 33,800 over the two-year period. In 1980 the working week was reduced from 40 hours to 37½ hours and part of the increase will be accounted for by additional staff recruited as a direct result of this change.