§ Mr. Meacherasked the Secretary of State for Social Services whether he is considering any proposals to change the numbers of community health council members or the ways in which they are appointed.
§ Mr. Kenneth ClarkeNo.
§ Mr. Meacherasked the Secretary of State for Social Services what has been the amount of funding by each regional health authority for community health councils for each of the past five years; and what has been the overall average allocation to community health councils for each of the past five years.
§ Mr. Kenneth ClarkeWe do not collect information centrally on the funds allocated by regional health authorities to community health councils. Actual expenditure by the councils, as recorded in the annual accounts submitted by health authorities to the Department, is shown in the table. It is not possible to give an average figure for 1981–82 and 1982–83, as the number of councils changed during those years because of NHS restructuring.
§ Mr. John PattenA survey of pre-school children, undertaken for the Department and the Scottish Home and Health Department by the department of human nutrition at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, has examined possible associations between a number of biological and social variables, including unemployment, and the attained height of one and two year old children. 147W The researchers state that no causal relationship can be claimed between any particular variable and attained height. A synopsis of the findings is due to be published next year as part of the third report on nutritional surveillance from the chief medical officer's committee on medical aspects of food policy.