§ Mr. HarrisTo ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will announce the allocations to regional health authorities from the waiting list fund for 1989–90: and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. MellorThe Government are making a further £30 million available through the waiting list fund in 1989–90 to help tackle the problem of long waits for hospital treatment: £25 million will be allocated direct to regional health authorities so that there can fund projects aimed at reducing the time patients have to wait and the remaining £5 million will fund projects in health districts which have particular waiting problems.
This is the third phase of the waiting list initiative. Last year the £25 million fund enabled health authorities to treat some 100,000 additional in-patients/day cases and 44,000 out-patients. In 1988–89 the £30 million is enabling health authorities to treat even more additional patients from the waiting list. The further £30 million that I am announcing today represents the third year of special funding and will build on the successes already achieved.
The allocation to regions are as follows:
Region Allocation £ million Northern 1.627 Yorkshire 1.886 Trent 2.488 East Anglian 0.889 North West Thames 2.004 North East Thames 2.108 South East Thames 1.956 South West Thames 1.549 Wessex 1.358 Oxford 0.992 South Western 1.547 West Midlands 2.743 Mersey 1.445 North Western 2.407