§ 58. Mr. Ralph Howellasked the Secretary of State for Social Services how many persons were employed in the National Health Service both part-time and full-time in the latest period for which figures are available; and how many are expected to be employed in 1984–85 and 1985–86.
§ Mr. Kenneth ClarkeAt 30 September 1983, the latest date for which figures are available, there were 619,172 full-time and 352,305 part-time staff employed in the NHS in England. The comparable figures for Great Britain are 753,884 full-time and 428,651 part-time staff, these figures are provisional. Numbers of staff employed in the next two years will depend on health authorities' plans for developing services and on the cost improvement programmes they produce. I have asked for summaries of plans to be sent to me by the end of May. These will produce firm manpower targets for March 1985 and an indication of trends thereafter.