Mr. Gareth ThomasTo ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he has reached a decision concerning the allocation of resources to health authorities in Wales for 1998–99. [30914]
§ Mr. Ron DaviesI announced on 10 December 1997,Official Report, columns 580–83 that I would be providing an additional £113 million for the NHS in Wales in 1998–99. This will bring total spending to £2,455 million. £1,725 million of this will be used to fund the Hospital, Community and Family Health Services.
Hospital, Community and Family Health Services will receive an additional £77 million in revenue resources-a cash increase of 4.9 per cent. Within this amount, the five health authorities, GPs and GP fundholders will receive revenue funding of £1,585 million-£71 million, or 4.7 per cent., more than in 1997–98 plans. In real terms, this is an overall increase of 1.9 per cent. Within these resources, I have been able to give health authorities an extra £62 million, which represents a 4.3 per cent. cash increase on discretionary purchasing power, and £4 million to cash limited General Medical Services, which is a 7.8 per cent. cash increase.
801WI am expecting health authorities and trusts to continue to generate efficiency savings and in 1998–99 these should amount to at least 2.4 per cent. This will release some £34 million which, together with the new money, will be available to meet inflationary and other pressures, and to increase investment in patient care.
Health authorities and trusts will also receive £97 million to fund capital development. Included with this is £2.7 million to fund estimated capital costs in the first year of the replacement of the linear accelerators at Velindere NHS Trust, a scheme that will cost £4.4 million over the next three years. In addition, I have made available an extra £3.5 million for Trust minor discretionary capital expenditure to support the maintenance and replacement of equipment and estate. This is an increase of 8.1 per cent. or 5.3 per cent. after taking account of inflation.
The settlement also provides £5 million for new developments, most notably £2.4 million for the support and expansion of cancer services through the Cancer Service Co-ordinating Group, £0.5 million to tackle prescription fraud and £0.8 million to meet the cost of implementing Calman Specialist Registrars.
A table of provisional NHS Trust External Financing Limits (EFLs) follows:
802W
Provisional trust external financing limits 1998–99 £000 North Wales Clwydian Community (68) Glan Clwyd 7,620 Gwynedd Community 1,540 Gwynedd Hospitals (946) Wrexham Maelor (601) Dyfed Powys Carmarthen and District (779) Ceredigion and District 154 Pembs Derwen (358) Llanelli/Dinefwr (439) Powys (287) Morgannwg Bridgend (374) Glan-Y-mor (1,109) Morriston (1,695) Swansea (937) Bro Taf Cardiff Community (393) East Glamorgan 18,552 Llandough (1,854) North Glamorgan (1,376) Rhondda (346) University Dental Hospital 3,285 UHW 13,509 Velindre 2,564 Gwent Glan Hafren 3,174 Gwent Community 326 Nevill Hall (613) Ambulance North Wales (535) West Wales 96 Mid Glamorgan 383 SEWAT (509) Total Trusts 37,984