Examination of Witnesses (Questions 260
- 261)
THURSDAY 1 DECEMBER 2005
SIR NIGEL
CRISP, MR
JOHN BACON,
MR RICHARD
DOUGLAS AND
MR ANDREW
FOSTER
Q260 Dr Taylor: Is it possible to
know how many trusts are having to make plans to save greater
than £20 million?
Sir Nigel Crisp: I am not sure
we can do that because all trusts will be having income rises
of a very significant amount and individually people will then
be planning how to spend that money and how they need to adjust
their services. I do not think that we have anywhere—unless
Mr Douglas is going to correct me—a statement about what
people are thinking about in detail for 2006-07 yet.
Q261 Dr Taylor: It must be known.
The two trusts in my area, one has to save £20 million and
the other £30 million, so it must be known.
Dr Naysmith: To bring succour to anyone
who has had anything to do with local authority finance, which
is not the same thing as NHS finance, about this time of the year
every year, for the last 20 years, I have been involved in similar
kinds of discussions with treasurers and deficits projected. Good
luck, gentlemen.
Chairman: Gentlemen, could I thank you
very much indeed for coming. I know it has been a bit of a marathon
session. Could I say I hear what you were saying in relation to
one of the questions you had earlier today about an absence from
the questionnaire that was sent out to yourselves, but I would
say a rule of thumb should be if you do not answer a question
we are likely to ask it in here. I do take note that when we do
want something specific that we have not got from the PEQ we will
try, if it is at all possible, to let you know before you arrive.
Once again, thank you very much for coming along and sharing your
experience with us this morning. Thank you.
| 
