To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) how many paediatric intensive care beds were in use in (a) 1979 and (b) 1996; [40194](2) how many paediatric intensive care beds per head of the population there were in
(a) West Yorkshire and (b) the rest of England in the last year for which figures are available. [40183]
Information on provision of paediatric intensive care is not available for 1979. Children from West Yorkshire needing such care may receive it within Northern and Yorkshire region, or in the adjoining north west region. Information for Northern and Yorkshire and for England is as follows.
| Area | Beds open1April 1996 | Population2(0–16 years) | Beds per thousand children |
| Northern and Yorkshire Region | 28 | 1,467,354 | 1:52 |
| England | 196 | 10,639,921 | 1:54 |
Sources:
1 "Paediatric Intensive Care: Report from Chief Executive of the NHS Executive to the Secretary of State" (May 1996).
2 Office for National Statistics (1995).
To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps his Department is taking to ensure the adequate provision of paediatric intensive care beds in the Yorkshire region. [40205]
Health authorities in West Yorkshire have agreed funding for additional paediatric intensive care beds at both United Leeds Teaching Hospitals, national health service trust and St. James's and Seacroft University Hospitals national health service trust. An emergency bed service will also be in place by this winter, providing accurate information on the availability of intensive care beds, including paediatric provision.