We are advised by the chairman of Monitor, the independent regulator of NHS foundation trusts, that bad debt as an operating expense is reported in the Consolidated Accounts for NHS Foundation Trusts. This report is produced annually by Monitor and laid before Parliament. Copies of each report are available from Monitor's website:
www.monitor-nhsft.gov.uk/
A summary of available figures on bad debt is set out in the following table.
Number of foundation trusts Operating expenses: bad debt (£ million) 2004-05 25 8.9 2005-06 32 28.1 2006-07 59 21.5 2007-08 89 17.4 Total — 75.9
(2) what methodology his Department uses to account for the (a) actual and (b) potential debt of NHS trusts and foundation trusts.
All debt owed to the Department by a national health service trust or NHS foundation trust is recorded as assets on the Department's balance sheet equal to the liability in the NHS trust accounts.
Where the debt owed to the Department is in the form of a loan this is further disclosed in notes to the Department's accounts.