§ Mr. RathboneTo ask the Secretary of State for Social Services (1) what steps he is taking to fund the Brighton health authority to meet the £750,000 million cost of repair to buildings following recent hurricane storm damage which cannot by law be covered by insurance;
(2) what steps he is taking to fund the Brighton health authority to meet the cost of approximately £250,000 million of repair or replacement of its computer system following recent hurricane storm damage.
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§ Mr. RoweTo ask the Secretary of State for Social Services if he intends to compensate the Maidstone district health authority for the damage to National Health Service property incurred in the recent hurricane.
§ Mr. NewtonI refer my hon. Friends to my reply to my hon. Friend the Member for Thanet, North (Mr. Gale) on 4 November.
§ Mr. RoweTo ask the Secretary of State for Social Services how many representations he has received about storm damage to National Health Service property in the South East Thames regional health authority area; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. NewtonQuestions about storm damage in the South East Thames regional health authority area have been received from four hon. Members, and a further three right hon. or hon. Members have written to Ministers. The chairman of the regional health authority has also written.
As explained in my reply to my hon. Friend the Member for Thanet, North (Mr. Gale) on 4 November, information is being assessed and we shall be considering the position in the light of that assessment. I would take this opportunity to express my thanks to all the staff in the National Health Service and others whose efforts during that night and subsequently helped to minimise the effects on patients and services in very difficult and frightening conditions.