Hospital Beds: West Midlands

Mr. Jim Cunningham
To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps the Government have taken to increase the availability of hospital beds in the West Midlands since 1997.

Dawn Primarolo
It is for the national health service locally to make decisions on bed numbers and occupancy rates. The Department expects NHS trusts to ensure that there are sufficient beds available to react to changing local circumstances, such as local demand and staff availability and thereby ensure the delivery of a safe and flexible service.