asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will take steps to improve the salaries of all nursing staff trained in intensive care, including neonatal care, to ensure that all beds and cots provided in specialised intensive care units are fully occupied.

The pay of nurses and midwives will, from the settlement due on 1 April 1984, be a matter for the review body which we propose to establish shortly. It will be for the review body to determine whether particular groups of staff should receive special consideration.