§ Mr. Sternasked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he is satisfied that all reasonable efforts have been made by regional and district health authorities to appoint to the post of general manager people with wide managerial experience, not necessarily limited to the National Health Service; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. Kenneth ClarkeIn making appointments, we expect authorities to select the best person for the job regardless of previous background. We have advised authorities to consider in the first place whether to appoint or select a general manager from members of their own team of officers but we have also encouraged them to consider going to competition open to people from inside and outside the service. We are satisfied that health authorities have taken all the necessary steps to act on this advice in making the appointments so far announced, and in arranging open advertisements for other proposed appointments. Inevitably, the quickest appointments made by authorities and approved by Ministers have been made by those authorities appointing their present administrator or some other member of their present team. We expect the final full list of appointments to reflect a much wider spread of profession and experience.