asked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland why he has asked the North Down and Ards unit of management to reduce its 1985–86 budget by £166,000.

Decisions on the allocation of resources to the units of management are a matter for the Eastern board itself. The board, in common with the other three boards, is required to realise efficiency savings of 0·5 per cent. of its revenue budget. These funds are retained by the board and reinvested in selected priority service developments along with the additional funds made available by the Government.