§ Mr. RedmondTo ask the Secretary of State for Health on what date the accounts of health authorities and health trusts for 1991–92 became available for publication.
§ Mr. SackvilleEach national health service trust is required to hold a public meeting by 30 September at which its annual report and accounts and any audit report on the accounts are presented. Health authorities are not obliged to publish their annual accounts individually, but are encouraged to prepare annual reports to meet local accountability requirements. After they have been audited the accounts of individual health authorities and NHS trusts are in the public domain and we would expect those bodies to make copies available on request.
The Department of Health summarises the accounts of health authorities, family health services authorities and NHS trusts in England and submits them to the Comptroller and Auditor General by 30 November each year. After audit the summarised accounts are presented to Parliament and subsequently published.