To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will list the health boards which, under the Scottish health authorities revenue equalisation formula, lose a proportion of their allocation annually because of revenue equalisation; if he will give details of the original percentage of overfunding of these health boards as defined by the Scottish health authorities revenue equalisation formula; and if he will give details for each of these health boards in percentage terms, of the amounts they lose annually; and how much, in percentage terms, each health board still has to lose.

The SHARE process for allocating revenue expenditure among health boards does not involve the best financed boards losing any of their allocations. In general, progress to revenue equalisation is achieved by giving the best financed boards smaller percentage increases in allocation each year than less well financed boards. When the SHARE formula was introduced the following boards were "overfinanced" against their objectively determined targets:

Board	Percentage overfinanced
Tayside	15·33
Lothian	3·52
Highland	2·14
Greater Glasgow	1·13

Highland health board is no longer overfinanced in SHARE, and the 1988–89 position of the other boards is as follows:

Board	Percentage overfinanced
Greater Glasgow	4·11
Tayside	2·36
Lothian	0·35

It is not possible to state with accuracy likely changes in boards' allocations in future years as allocations depend upon each board's SHARE target. Targets are recalculated afresh each year to take account of changes in the relative health care needs of each board.