§ Mr. MilburnTo ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will list the number of redundancies among NHS staff for each year since 1989–90 dividing the figures by the reason.
§ Mr. Stewart[holding answer 10 February 1993]: Statistics on redundancies in the NHS in Scotland are not collected centrally other than in respect of staff who are both over 50 years of age and have at least five years' reckonable service for superannuation purposes where a benefit is immediately payable under the NHS (Compensation for Premature Retirement) (Scotland) Regulations 1981. The total number of such premature retirement awards for the years since 1989–90 is as follows:
Year Number of cases 1989–90 1,040 1990–91 480 1991–92 625 A breakdown by reason of redundancy is not readily available and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.