HC Deb 08 March 2002 vol 381 c608W
Mr. Heald

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what proportion of the NHS budget was spent on(a) cancer and (b) heart disease in (i) 1997–98, (ii) 1998–99, (iii) 1999–2000, (v) 2000–01 and (v) in the current year to date. [16461]

Yvette Cooper

[holding answer 20 November 2001]: I apologise to the hon. Member for the delay in responding to this question. I refer the hon. Member to the reply that my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State gave my hon. Friend the Member for Blackpool, North and Fleetwood (Mrs. Humble) on 5 March 202, Official Report, column 192W.

The Department of Health does not collect figures on the cost of NHS services in a way that enables an accurate figure to be calculated for the total cost of a particular disease.