§ Mr. Carter-Jonesasked the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will ensure that health boards in Scotland introduce in-hospital dispensing of glasses in all cases where it does not take place now; and if he will make a statement.
Tonnage of merchant ships completed Country Units* 1972 1981 1982 1983 †1984 1985 United Kingdom Th.cgt 920 254 418 349 288 262 Belgium Th.cgt 289 96 85 153 81 102 Denmark Th.cgt 591 363 356 397 365 475 France Th.cgt 839 302 310 376 339 157 West Germany Th.cgt 1,965 922 764 926 704 782 Italy Th.cgt 613 284 177 143 193 109 Netherlands Th.cgt 635 255 364 381 295 283 Spain Th.cgt 736 485 549 465 444 248 Greece Th.gt 74 1 81 38 36 37 Irish Republic Th.gt 28 7 0 40 0 0 Portugal Th.gt 16 1 18 312 8 41 * Th.cgt=thousand compensated gross tonnes. Th.gt =thousand gross tonnes. † In 1984, a new basis of measuring the tonnage of vessels was introduced so that figures thereafter are not directly comparable with those for earlier years. Source: OECD and Lloyd's Register of Shipping.
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§ Mr. John MacKayThe Scottish Home and Health Department is presently consulting about new arrangements for patients in the hospital eye service to obtain their glasses or contact lenses. These arrangements do not affect the facilities for in-hospital dispensing of glasses which operate within a few health boards. I would not expect any increase in such facilities as a result of the changes proposed.
§ Mr. Carter-Jonesasked the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will make it his policy to set voucher values in Scotland at such a level that no additional payment has to be made by in-patients in hospital currently entitled to free glasses; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. John MacKayGovernment policy is to continue existing arrangements, whereby patients resident in hospital are supplied with free glasses.