§ Mr. Meacherasked the Secretary of State for Social Services what is the current shortage, in numbers and percentage terms, of hospital doctors in each specialty by region.
§ Mr. NewtonInformation on the number of vacant posts is not held centrally for all hospital grades. I am aware of reports of difficulties in filling senior house officer posts in certain specialties. The underlying cause appears to be problems in the hospital medical staffing structure, which our proposals in "Achieving a Balance" are intended to address.