Lord Darzi has delivered a stark report on the NHS’s unprecedented problems. The Prime Minister responded with a commitment to producing a new long-term plan for the NHS, but also stated firmly that “no new funding would be available without reform”. With debts mounting this leaves many local NHS leaders with tough choices affecting staff and patients.
Funding shortfall?
In May the IFS calculated that should the new Labour government adhere to the Tories spending plans, the NHS in England would suffer a 1.2% cut, amounting to around £2bn – despite the need to cut waiting times and meet the significant costs of recent pay deals.
In the last budget, the government came up with an additional £2bn, but this leaves the NHS with a real-terms rise of less than 0.5%. Historically the NHS has received around 3.5% extra a year – but not in recent years.
Full article in The Lowdown, 18 September 2024