§ Mr. Spearingasked the Secretary of State for Social Services (1) what delays have occurred in the proceedings of the National Health Service Tribunal since January 1984; how many cases now await determination; and what is the current time interval between receipt of cases and his decision;
(2) how many cases were referred to him from family practitioner committees in 1983 where the committee was requesting removal of a general practitioner from the National Health Service list; how many practitioners were so reviewed; and how many cases remain to be determined.
§ Mr. Kenneth ClarkeRecommendations for removal of a practitioner from a family practitioner committee list are made direct to the National Health Service Tribunal. I understand that consideration of referrals made to the tribunal was suspended following the death of the chairman in January 1984. A new chairman was appointed by the Lord Chancellor on 1 April 1984 and early attention is being given to the three cases awaiting determination. The average time interval between referral and the decision of the tribunal is five months.
There were four cases referred to the tribunal in 1983, one of which remains to be determined.