asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether the words "next year" in Lord Skelmersdale's Written Answer to Lord Winstanley's Question (HL Deb., col. 1223) refer to 1989 or 1988.

I regret that my reply to your Question on 12th January 1988, Official Report Vol. 491, col. 1223, contained an error. It should have read:

"Blood glucose testing strips are already available to diabetics through the hospital service. Our intention is to make them available on general practitioner prescription as soon as the necessary arrangements can he made to include them in the list of chemical reagents prescribable by general practitioners. We hope this will be in the course of this year."