§ Lord Lester of Herne Hillasked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether they accept the accuracy of the information published in the Sunday Times on 22 July showing how European continental health services compare with those in Great Britain; and, in particular, that the average waiting time for cataract removal, heart by-pass, hernia and knee replacement operations is longer in Britain than in France, Germany or the Netherlands; that health spending as a percentage of gross domestic product is smaller; and that the number of hospital beds per 1,000 of population is smaller; and, if not, whether they will publish what they consider to be accurate information on these matters. [HL742]
§ Lord Hunt of Kings HeathThe average wailing time information for England, as set out in theSunday Times article, reflects the position in 1999–2000. This is the latest available information. Accurate information on waiting times for specific procedures in other countries is not available at present. A study by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development in which we will be participating will look at this very issue. As part of the NHS Plan, by the end of 2005 no one in England will wait more than six months for admission to hospital once it has been decided that treatment is needed.
The Sunday Times article made no specific reference to gross domestic products. We are however committed to increasing health spending towards the average of the European Union and by 2003–04 health spending in this country as a proportion of GDP will increase to around 7.7 per cent. The article made no comparisons of hospital bed numbers either. However, in England last year we saw the first increase in the number of general and acute hospital beds in this country since 1971 and the largest increase since records began in 1960. This takes us a third of the way towards the NHS Plan target of 2,100 extra general and acute beds by April 2004.