§ Mr. GardinerTo ask the Secretary of State for Health what specific proposals have been put forward by the Northwick Park and St. Mark's Hospital Trust to recover from its deficit; what targets his Department has set; and what progress has been made towards them. [4619]
§ Mr. MilburnThe trust has in place a recovery plan, jointly agreed with Brent and Harrow Health Authority and the NHS Executive, which includes a variety of measures to ensure that it achieves financial balance within a 2-year time scale. Progress has been made on this with the trust having identified just under £6 million savings for this year, predominately from non-clinical budgets. The NHS Executive will continue to monitor the situation.