Britain’s May slaps down foreign minister over health funds

PRIME Minister Theresa May slapped down her foreign secretary on Tuesday after he demanded more funding for Britain’s public health service, telling him any discussion of money saved from Brexit should be kept private.

Boris Johnson, whose promises that Britain’s departure from the European Union would boost funds for the National Health Service helped persuade many voters to back Brexit, raised his demands at a regular meeting of her top ministers after publicly calling for an extra £100 million a week.

But the response was swift. Mrs May, trying to reassert her authority, said any money saved from Brexit would be spent on her priorities, including health, and that ministers should not air discussions outside her Cabinet meetings.

“The prime minister and a large number of Cabinet ministers made the point that Cabinet discussions should take place in private,” her spokesman told reporters, describing the hourlong discussion on the NHS as “constructive”.

“As regards the future, and how the return of any EU contribution would be spent, the prime minister reminded Cabinet that the government has consistently said that we will spend money on our priorities such as housing, schools and the NHS.”

Mrs May is under pressure over the state of the health service from the opposition Labour Party, which says healthcare is being put “recklessly” at risk by ministers unable to tackle bed shortages and thousands of cancelled operations. Under fire from some lawmakers in her own party for lacking direction on some of the most pressing concerns in Britain, Mrs May is also trying to keep the warring factions of her Cabinet of top ministers united as she negotiates Brexit.

But divisions over the so-called Brexit dividend, the funds that will be freed up when Britain stops paying into EU coffers, are deepening, with the ministers for health, education and defence and others bidding for more funds for their departments.

Shortly after Mr Johnson made his demand, Chancellor of the Exchequer Philip Hammond fought back by saying he had already increased payments to the NHS. Mrs May has repeatedly said that funding is at record levels.

“Mr Johnson is the foreign secretary,” Mr Hammond told reporters in Brussels. “I gave the health secretary an extra £6 billion at the recent budget and we’ll look at departmental allocations again at the spending review when that takes place.”