§ Ms. Clare Shortasked the Secretary of State for Social Services (1) if he will publish in the Official Report a table showing for each district health authority the number of occasions during an appropriate period on which it has had 118W recourse to the provision for urgent action set out in paragraph 20 of the National Health Service (Community Health Councils) Regulations 1973;
(2) whether, on any occasion, an urgent situation has arisen within the terms of the National Health Service (Councils) Community Health Regulations 1973, as a result of reckless or negligent failure of a health authority to consult a community health council at an earlier time; and what action he intends to take to seek to ensure that no such circumstances occur in future.
§ Mr. Kenneth ClarkeWe do not collect information on urgent closures centrally. We have advised health authorities that no permanent closures should take place without full consultation.