§ Q170. Mr. Harry EwingTo ask the Prime Minister if, following her visit to Aberdeen on Friday 8 July, she will indicate what role she envisages for the National Health Service in situations when there has been a major disaster.
§ The Prime MinisterIn the United Kingdom the response to most peacetime emergencies, whether natural or man-made, is based on the principle that those best placed to decide what needs to be done and then to manage the remedial action are people at the site of the emergency who know both the problems and the resources available. Consequently, for the immediate response there is heavy reliance on contingency plans made by local emergency services, health and local authorities, public utilities and the operators of industrial and other sites.
160WThe health services' special role is to get injured people to the nearest hospital offering the particular services they need as quickly as possible. Guidance on major incident planning, which is constantly reviewed, has been issued to the health services by the Department of Health and Social Security and the territorial Departments. This guidance stresses the need for the plans of health authorities to be as flexible as possible, since no two major accidents are identical. Nor can it be foreseen how any particular situation may develop. It also advises that plans should be reviewed regularly with the other emergency services in the light of local discussions and circumstances.