HC Deb 26 May 1988 vol 134 cc251-2W
Mr. Allan Stewart

To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he proposes to announce any changes in the cash limits for 1988–89 within his responsibility.

Mr. Rifkind

Subject to parliamentary approval of the necessary Supplementary Estimates, the cash limit for Class XVI, Vote 14: "Prisons, Hospital and Community Health Services, etc, Scotland" will be increased by £86,100,000 from £1,783,653,000 to £1,869,753,000. Most of the increase—£86 million—follows the decision to implement the recommendations of the review bodies in respect of doctors, dentists, nurses, midwives and professions allied to medicine from 1 April 1988. The remaining £100,000 is the amount allocated to health boards following the error of calculation of the retail prices index as announced by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Social Services on 18 December 1987.

The cash limit for Class XVI, Vote 15: "Education, Arts, Libraries and Social Work, Scotland" will be increased by £796,000 from £197,720,000 to £198,516,000. This is to allow the disbursement of funds to various voluntary sector bodies and teachers' benevolent funds as a consequence of the earlier announced error in the retail prices index.

Those changes represent a net charge on the reserve of £86,896,000 and will not therefore increase the planned total of public expenditure.