§ Mr. Barry JonesTo ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will meet parents of children of Deeside, Clwyd, who are awaiting heart surgery or who are deemed likely to need surgery at Alder Hey royal children's hospital.
§ Mr. Nicholas BennettI have no plans to intervene in contractual arrangements between health authorities in Wales and their chosen provider units.
§ Mr. Barry JonesTo ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many children from(a) Clwyd, (b) Gwynedd and (c) Powys have had heart surgery performed at the Alder Hey royal children's hospital.
§ Mr. Nicholas BennettData provided by Mersey regional health authority show that no children from Clwyd, Gwynedd or Powys had surgical operations on the heart at Alder Hey royal children's hospital in 1989–90, the only year for which data are available. This information is based only on those cases where the hospital episode has finished, and complete clinical details are available.
§ Mr. Barry JonesTo ask the Secretary of State for Wales how much money, as a down payment, health authorities in Wales are required to pay to the appropriate health authority, to which Alder Hey hospital answers, before operations are performed or before youngsters are placed on the waiting list.
§ Mr. Nicholas BennettNone. District health authorities strike contractual agreements, including with Alder Hey hospital, under which they agree to make regular payments for the care provided or make individual extra-contractual arrangements, mainly for emergency cases, which incur payment after treatment has been provided.