§ Mr. WellsTo ask the Secretary of State for Social Services what has been the annual administration cost of the East Hertfordshire health authority and of the West Essex health authority since 1979.
§ Mrs. CurrieThe information is in the table. It is derived from the annual accounts of the authorities since their establishment on 1 April 1982:
Expenditure on headquarters administration East Hertfordshire district health authority £000 West Essex district health authority £000 1982–83 1,694 (2.15) 1,142 (3.82) 1983–84 1,686 (2.02) 1,147 (3.72) 1984–85 1,841 (2.02) 1,279 (3.93) 1985–86 1,070 (3.75) 1,486 (4.03) 1986–87 1,012 (3.29) 1,493 (3.70) Notes:
1. Expenditure on headquarters administration includes all current expenditure on the pay and pay related costs of staff of all disciplines (including general managers) employed at district headquarters levels and their office costs and overheads. It excludes the cost of secretarial and clerical support staff employed in departments at hospital and unit levels: such costs arc regarded as operational.
2. Prior to 1 April 1985 the East Hertfordshire Health Authority had an associated family practitioner committee (FPC) and the authority's expenditure figures shown for the years before that date include elements relating to the FPC's administrative expenses which are not separately identifiable.
3. The figures in brackets show that expenditure on headquarters administration as a percentage of each authority's total revenue expenditure for the relevant financial years. In the case of East Hertfordshire Health Authority the totals used for the years prior to 1 April 1985 include expenditure on family practitioner services incurred by the FPC.
4. Prior to 1 April 1982 each authority's predecessor health district formed part of a multi-district area health authority and district based figures were not collected centrally.