§ Mr. HinchliffeTo ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment she has made of the adequacy of funding of local authority personal social services in the current financial year in terms of the ability of individual social services departments to undertake their statutory responsibilities.
§ Mr. YeoPersonal social services (PSS) standard spending for 1992–93 has been set at £4,850 million, an increase of 7.7 per cent. (3.1 per cent. in real terms) over 1991–92 standard spending, and 6 per cent. higher than 1991–92 budgets. The settlement provides a realistic increase in resources for PSS taking account of falling inflation, and allows for the first full-year costs of implementing the Children Act 1989, phase 2 of community care, new and increased specific grants, inflation and demography. PSS expenditure has increased by nearly 60 per cent. in real terms since 1978–79.