§ Mr. WelshTo ask the Secretary of State for Scotland (1) if he will make a statement on the progress in implementing the move to parity of funding for Scottish health boards;
(2) what assessment his Department has made of the funding implications for Scottish health boards of moving to parity of funding; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. StewartThere has been steady progress towards the fairer distribution of available resources to health boards in line with the population-based methodology set out in the Scottish health authorities revenue equalisation —SHARE—working party report. Latterly, allocations have been made to health boards as purchasers of services, based solely on weighted capitation of their resident populations using SHARE methodology as proposed in the White Paper "Working for Patients", Cm. 555.
In the present financial year, allocations ranged from 3.99 per cent. above the parity target to 4.69 per cent. below, compared with 16 per cent. above and 34 per cent. below in 1977–78 when SHARE-based allocations were first introduced.
Further movement to parity is proposed, but is constrained by the effect that significant changes would have on the financial situation of individual health boards.