That this House notes that the charity Help the Hospices have submitted an urgent proposal to the Secretary of State for Health requesting that interim hospice funding be considered as part of the Government's 2002 Spending Review pending a longer term solution based on the NICE review into supportive and palliative care; acknowledges that the proposal include a request for the Government to fund the equivalent of the medical and nursing costs of voluntary hospices totalling ??60 million and to uplift such funding on annual basis in line with NHS funding; recognises the tremendous care given to hospices across the country to patients and their relatives; congratulates the thousands of volunteers who raise the majority of the funding for hospices; and urges the Government to view interim funding for the hospices as a priority.

That this House notes that the charity Help the Hospices have submitted an urgent proposal to the Secretary of State for Health requesting that interim hospice funding be considered as part of the Government's 2002 Spending Review pending a longer term solution based on the NICE review into supportive and...