HC Deb 11 December 2001 vol 376 c733W
30. Norman Baker

To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement on bed blocking in East Sussex. [19685]

Ms Blears

The Government are aware that delayed discharges remains a particular problem in East Sussex. A Performance Improvement Plan was developed by East Sussex, Brighton and Hove health authority and the East Sussex and Hove social services departments to address the issue. The number of delayed discharges has been falling steadily since September 2001.

Delayed discharges is a problem common to many parts of the country. To address this the Secretary of State, on 9 October, announced an additional £300 million over this year and next to tackle delayed discharges. East Sussex county council was recognised as a local authority in need of extra help and was allocated £1,255,000 this year from that money.