§ Mr. ButlerTo ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he has any plans to cut back the number of NHS administrators in Wales to 1979 levels.
§ Mr. Nicholas BennettResponsibility for the number of administrative staff employed in the NHS in Wales is a matter for the appropriate health authority. The NHS reforms will deliver a better-managed and more responsive service in which resources follow patients and manpower requirements reflect local service needs. Provision of health care is now governed by district contracts in which quality and costs are continually scrutinised. In the year to March 1990—the latest period for which figures are available—management, administrative and clerical staff costs accounted for approximately 10.2 per cent. of the salary budget for district health authorities, including the Welsh Health Common Services Authority as opposed to 12.2 per cent. in the year to March 1979.