Part of Oral Answers to Questions — Health – in the House of Commons at 11:30 am on 22 February 2005.
We started off with 96 different sets of criteria. We reduced those to 28, which we ensured were legally reliable and properly administered before we started the review. The review of the outstanding cases is complete in all but one strategic health authority area, and even that one will be finished shortly, so we have made substantial improvements. In developing the national framework, we must now make sure that we go down to one single framework that is easy for patients and carers to understand and can be reliably implemented by professionals. By establishing best practice, that is exactly what we shall do.