§ Mr. StrangTo ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what was the average waiting time for National Health Service hospital beds for non-urgent operations in the Lothian health board area and Scotland respectively, for each year since 1979.
§ Mr. Michael ForsythInformation distinguishing urgent and non-urgent cases is not held centrally. The mean waiting times (in days) for operative treatment in the Lothian health board area and Scotland up to 1985 (the latest year for which statistics are available) were as follows:—
Mean waiting time (days) Year Lothian health board Scotland 1979 92 86 1980 73 79 1981 64 76 1982 63 70 1983 88 101 1984 72 85 1985 66 76
§ Mr. StrangTo ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will publish the number of people on hospital waiting lists in Scotland for each year since 1979.
§ Mr. Michael ForsythThe information requested, which relates to 30 September in each year, is as follows:
Year Number 1979 71,247 1980 67,387 1981 65,228 1982 86,365 1983 88,338 1984 83,077 1985 77,677 19861 80,708 1 Provisional