HC Deb 09 February 1989 vol 146 c801W
Mr. Boateng

To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he has considered the recommendations made to his Department in the National Association of Health Authorities' report entitled "Action not Words"; and if he will make a statement.

Ms. Short

To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he has received a copy of "Action Not Words: A Strategy to Improve Health Services for Black and Minority Ethnic Groups", published by the National Association of Health Authorities; and if he will make a statement.

Mr. Mellor

When I spoke at its launch last November I welcomed the report and its constructive criticism. In responding to the recommendations addressed specifically to the Department, I said that we

  1. 1. had already begun to integrate ethnic minority health into the review process and that henceforth it would be a standard feature;
  2. 2. saw the value of ethnic monitoring of service delivery and were exploring how it could be developed;
  3. 3. had demonstrated the importance we attached to training;
  4. 4. had taken positive steps to ensure that black and minority ethnic groups were represented on health authorities and FPCs;
  5. 5. acknowledged that the proposed central resource unit had some attractions but needed to consider whether establishing a separate unit was the best way forward.

In these and other ways we shall continue to seek to improve health services for people from ethnic minorities.