§ Mr. Arthur Lewisasked the Secretary of State for the Social Services, in view of the contentions of most independent 714W people and organisations concerning the deterioration in the National Health Service, shortage of hospitals, equipment and staffs, what action he proposes to take to make more money available and to improve the service to what it was some 10 years ago.
§ Mr. MoyleDespite economic constraints, expenditure overall on the National Health Service in England has grown in real terms each year in the last decade. The numbers of doctors, nurses and other staff have steadily increased whilst numbers of in-patient cases and out-patient attendances are greater than they were ten years ago. But public expectations change as medical science advances, there is an increasing number of elderly people and waiting lists have increased. Some of our hospital stock is still out-moded or in the wrong place. Meeting these changing circumstances will need resources. Meanwhile, we have asked health authorities to pay special attention to the need to obtain full value from the money allotted to the health services, and Appendix III of The Way Forward deals with ways of achieving more effective use of NHS resources.