§ Dr. Roger Thomasasked the Secretary of State for Wales if he will list the number of new beds provided in 435W each of the health authorities in Wales since May 1979 and the number of approved closures in each authority between May 1979 and the present time.
§ Mr. Mark RobinsonSince May 1979, 395 new beds have been provided in Clwyd health authority, 529 in Gwynedd health authority and 497 in Mid Glamorgan health authority. These are mainly as a result of the commissioning of new district general hospitals in Rhyl, Bangor and Bridgend.
The number of approved hospital closures in each authority is given in the table, together with changes in the bed complement.
Health authority Number of Approved hospital closures since 1979 Overall change in bed complement since 1979 Clwyd 3 -152 Gwynedd 4 +60 Powys 1 -230 East Dyfed 1 -325 Pembrokeshire — nil West Glamorgan — -82 Mid Glamorgan 6 -359 South Glamorgan — -197 Gwent 1 -356 Most of these reductions are in mental illness and mental handicap beds, largely due to my right hon. Friend's policy that more patients should be cared for in the community.