To ask the Secretary of State for Social Services (1) if he will give the number of current unfilled medical physicists posts for each health authority;(2) what action his Department is taking to ensure that health authorities can retain and recruit medical physicists; and if he will make a statement.

Vacancy figures for medical physicist posts are not collected centrally.The management side of the Scientific and Professional Staffs Whitley council has recently offered to increase the pay rates of scientists (including physicists) and clinical psychologists by 5·5 per cent. This offer is now being considered by the staff side. The management side has also agreed to undertake a review of the recruitment and retention of these staff in the light of service needs.