Hospital Beds Mr. Gordon Prentice To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 11 February 2009, Official Report, column 2079W, on hospital beds, if he will make it his policy to collect and hold information from each NHS hospital trust on how many days each trust has been placed on its highest level of alert because of a shortage of beds; and if he will make a statement. Ann Keen It is not the Department’s policy to collect and hold information from each national health service hospital trust on how many days each trust has been placed on its highest level of alert because of a shortage of beds. It is for individual trusts to ensure they have the necessary bed capacity to treat patients.