§ Mr. KirkwoodTo ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what profits the Scottish National Blood Transfusion Service made on the sale of blood to private hospitals or health care organisations in each of the last five years; at what price blood was sold in each year; what happens to the profits; and what steps are taken to inform people giving blood to the Scottish National Blood Transfusion Service that their blood is to be sold to private hospitals or health care organisations.
§ Mr. StewartThe Scottish National Blood Transfusion Service does not sell blood or blood products and therefore the matter of profit does not arise. Where blood or blood products are supplied to non-national health service hospitals, the administrative and other costs are recovered in the form of a handling charge. Literature is available at donor sessions to explain that a proportion of blood donated may be used to treat non-national health service patients but only where this can be done without detriment to the national health service.