To ask the Secretary of State for Health what indications he has as to the proportion of eligible general practices which is applying for budget-holding status.

Over 850 practices have registered their interest in the practice funding scheme. While not all of these practices are likely to meet the full eligibility criteria and opt to take part in the scheme, we are clearly on course to meet our target of a few hundred practices choosing to participate from April 1991.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what proportion of general practitioners have applied to manage their own indicative budgets; and if he will make a statement.

All general practitioners are intended to have indicative prescribing budgets from 1 April 1991 unless they choose to become practice fund holders and meet the eligibility criteria for that scheme.