§ Mrs. BeckettTo ask the Secretary of State for Health how many(a) acute, (b) intensive care, (c) long-term care (geriatric), (d) maternity, (e), paediatric, (f) psychiatric, (g) casualty and (h) total hospital beds were available in the national health service, in each year since 1978 and for each region of England.
§ Mr. SackvilleFor the financial years 1988–89 to 1993–94 the information requested on numbers of acute., intensive care, geriatric, maternity, paediatric, mental illness and total beds by region has been published in "Bed availability for England". The volume for the financial year 1991–92 covers the years 1988–89,1989–90, 1990–91 and 1991–92, and the subsequent volumes cover the two later years. Copies of the volumes are available in the Library.
For the period 1978 to 1987, data were not collected on the same basis. National information on bed numbers was published in the statistical bulletins, "NHS Hospital Activity Statistics for England 1974–1984" and "NHS Hospital Activity Analysis for England 1979–1988–89", copies of which are available in the Library.
Information on numbers of accidents and emergency beds is not available centrally.