§ Sir John FarrTo ask the Secretary of State for Health whether he proposes to provide funds for a third consultant post in plastic surgery in Leicester.
§ Mr. Kenneth ClarkeI announced in "Working for Patients" that we intend to fund centrally 100 additional consultant posts over the next three years. We will soon be inviting bids from health authorities for these posts. Whether individual bids succeed will depend on their meeting the criteria of the scheme. It is also open to health authorities themselves to fund new consultant posts as part of their normal service planning.