§ Mr. Ernie Rossasked the Secretary of State for Scotland what is the percentage of gross domestic product spent on the National Health Service in Scotland; and what information he has as to how this compares with other European Community countries, the United States of America and Canada.
§ Mr. John MacKay[pursuant to his reply, 14 November 1983, c. 337]: Gross expenditure on the National Health Service in Scotland in 1981 accounted for approximately 6.9 per cent. of Scotland's gross domestic product.
Differences between the health care and health financing systems of the member states of the European Community, and other countries, and between their systems for classifying expenditure mean that no precise comparisons can be made. An OECD report in preparation gives figures for health expenditure as a percentage of gross domestic product for 1980. Details are as follows: 130W
Per cent. Belgium 5.9 Denmark 7.8 France 8.0 Germany 8.0 Greece 5.6 Ireland 8.4 Italy 6.5 Netherlands 8.3 Luxembourg 10.5 United States of America 9.5 Canada 7.2 Figures of this kind provide no more than a rough guide to relative levels of expenditure, and should not be taken as necessarily reflecting differences in the levels of provision.