Oral Answers to Questions

Nicholas Brown Excerpts

Tuesday 12th June 2012 Commons Chamber

[Anne Milton]

I am always delighted to meet any hon. Member or hon. Friend and their constituents, particularly if they face inequality concerns.

[Mr Nicholas Brown (Newcastle upon Tyne East) (Lab)]

14. What his policy is on the resource distribution formula for primary health care commissioners.

[The Minister of State, Department of Health (Mr Simon Burns)]

From 2013-14, the NHS Commissioning Board will allocate resources to clinical commissioning groups. The Health and Social Care Act 2012 contains the first ever legal duties on health inequalities for NHS commissioners and the Secretary of State. This applies to everything the NHS Commissioning Board does, including allocating resources.

[Mr Brown]

Will the Minister give the House a clear assurance that he will not downgrade the importance of economic deprivation in his resource allocation formula?

[Mr Burns]

Yes, I can give that assurance. I know this has been of some concern to the right hon. Gentleman and the north-east, but I can tell him that we are not planning to alter resource allocation to transfer funds from the poorest parts of the country. There is also no mandate to propose a formula based purely on age. As he may or may not know, although age is the primary driver of an individual’s need for health services, the most recent primary care trust formula uses a range of factors to determine fair shares, including the age structure of the population, levels of deprivation and the unavoidable costs in providing services between areas.