§ Mrs. BeckettTo ask the Secretary of State for Health what was the cost of administration in the NHS within(a) trusts, (b) district health authorities, regional health authorities and family health service authorities and (c) in total, in real terms and as a percentage of total NHS expenditure in (i) 1993–94 and (ii) 1990–91. [30434]
§ Mr. MaloneThe figures for administrative support in hospital departments, in trusts and at other levels, are regarded as operational expenditure and are not separately identifiable.
Changes over the years in the roles and responsibilities of FPCs, which became family health services authorities, in 1990, and RHAs and DHAs which started to transfer provider functions to NHS trusts in 1991–92, and together with changes in accounting policies, particularly the inclusion of capital charges in health authorities' administration and purchasing expenditure, mean that the following figures are not comparable. Additionally, there were differences in management practices, geographical size and the numbers of DHAs, FPCs/FHSAs within regions.
In 1990–91, the cost of administration in district health authorities, regional health authorities, and family practitioner committees, was £854,571,000, equivalent to £973,284,000 adjusted to 1993–94 prices; in 1993–94 the figure was £1,045,084,000. For an explanation of these figures, I refer the right hon. Member to the reply I gave the hon. Member for Darlington (Mr. Milburn) on 16 December 1994, columns 833–34. In 1990–91, revenue expenditure for the national health service was £19,826,937,000 equivalent to £22,581,196,000 adjusted to 1993–94 prices; in 1993–94, the figure was £27,627,018,000. In 1990–91, administration accounted for 4.31 per cent. of revenue expenditure and in 1993–94, 3.78 per cent.