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39.
Mr. Cyril D. Townsend
To ask the Secretary of State for Health what is the average cost per day of a patient's meals in hospital; what was the comparable figure for each of the last two financial years; and how much Bexley health authority is spending per patient per day at the present time.
Mr. Freeman
It is for individual health authorities to determine how much they will spend per day on feeding patients. Information on health authorities' catering costs is not collected in-year. The following information is derived from annual financial returns submitted to the Department:
| Total cost of meals per patient day1 | ||
| 1987–88 £ (Cash) | 1988–89 £ (Cash) | |
| Bexley Health Authority | ||
| Bexley Hospital | 2·87 | 3·47 |
| Queen Mary's Hospital | 4·25 | 3·22 |
| England | ||
| Average for hospitals | 3·45 | —2 |
| 1 Catering costs include provisions, labour and energy | ||
| 2 Not yet available. | ||