§ Mr. AmessTo ask the Secretary of State for Health how much money was spent on medical instruments for use in national health service hospitals in each year since 1994; and if he will make a statement. [173578]
§ Ms Rosie Winterton[holding answer 19 May 2004]:Information is only held for the years 2000–01 onwards. This is shown in the table. The figures are based on instrument sales via the NHS Purchasing and Supply Agency's national contracts and reflect the increasing use of disposable single use instruments. Some National Health Service trusts buy instruments from other sources so these figures, do not cover total NHS spend on medical instruments.
£ 2000–01 500,000 2001–02 6.1 million 2002–03 27 million 2003–04 33.3 million Note: All figures include Value Added Tax