HC Deb 24 March 1981 vol 1 cc318-9W
Mr. Hordern

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services how many people were employed by the National Health Service, broken down by category as far as possible, and excluding doctors and nurses, in each year since 1970

Mr. Patrick Jenkin

The earliest year for which a realistic comparison of the different staff groups can be made is 1971; comparable figures for 1970 are not available. The latest year for which comparable and complete information is available is 1979. As I informed the House during the debate on the Budget resolutions and economic situation on 12 March—[Vol.1000, c. 1010–1013]—however, my Department has made a rough estimate of NHS staff numbers for 1980 based on provisional estimates from nine regions. The figures should therefore be used with caution. The following is the available information:

NHS directly-employed staff* England as at 30 September Whole-time equivalents
1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980‡
Professional and Technical 40,671 42,799 44,998 43,561 46,845 52,472 54,117 57,237 60,136 65,500
Works 4,329 4,593 4,741 4,678 5,003 5,324 5,467 5,579 5,612 5,800
Maintenance 17,513 17,502 17,045 17,643 19,100 19,671 19,875 19,864 20,106 20,500
Administrative and Clerical† 70,396 74,324 77,108 82,758 91,865 98,507 99,036 100,302 102,962 105,700
Ambulance including Officers 15,243 15,611 16,022 16,032 16,994 17,184 17,402 17,522 17,129 17,900
Ancillary 167,951 167,760 165,135 163,421 167,819 173,592 172,791 172,177 171,896 172,500
* In addition to staff in the 14 regions numbers include staff in the London Post-graduate teaching Hospitals, the London Ambulance Service, The Dental Estimates Board and The Prescription Pricing Authority.
† Following NHS reorganisation on 1 April 1974, staff previously employed by Local Authority Health Departments were transferred to Area Health Authorities. Figures for 1971 to 1973 have been corrected for this, but a direct comparison with figures for 1974 to 1979 is unreliable.
‡ The figures for 1980 are an estimate based on provisional returns from nine regions.