§ Mr. WellsTo ask the Secretary of State for Health what is her estimate of cumulative savings to the national health service from the contracting out of support services; and what plans she has to extend contracting out.
§ Mr. SackvilleSupport services in the national health service have been contracted out since the earliest days and we have no estimate of the cumulative savings involved. It is estimated that in 1990–91 there were savings in excess of £125 million as a result of the market testing initiative started in 1983.
The plans for extending market testing in the NHS were set out in chapter 4 of the White Paper "Competing for Quality", Cm 1730 November 1991.