§ Mr. DobsonTo ask the Secretary of State for Social Services, pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Holborn and St. Pancras on 11 May,Official Report, column 121, whether the Hospitals for Sick Children special health authority or its officers ever informally inquired of the Government whether they would be willing to fully fund the refurbishment of Great Ormond street hospital.
§ Mrs. CurrieIn preliminary discussions about this proposal, the possibility of full funding by the Government was raised but it was accepted very early on by both sides that the size of the scheme sought by the authority made this impossible given the time scale which the authority believed was desirable. It was agreed therefore that the best solution to enable the project to proceed rapidly was for a joint approach to funding, with the Government supporting the efforts of the public at large. I am delighted to learn that these efforts are meeting such success.