PM and Hunt misled public on NHS cash, says top Tory
A SENIOR Tory will today accuse ministers of misleading the public over the extent of an NHS cash crisis that could see services slashed within four years.
In an explosive intervention, Sarah Wollaston says Theresa May and Jeremy Hunt have used ‘incorrect’ figures to give a misleading impression that the NHS is ‘awash with cash’.
Dr Wollaston, who is chairman of the Commons health committee, says the reality is that some key services – including elderly care – are already at crisis point, with others set to follow.
In a strongly-worded letter sent to Chancellor Philip Hammond today, she says the scale of the financial crisis ‘calls into question the ability of the NHS to maintain services’ by 2020, when the current spending deal ends.
The Prime Minister and Health Secretary have repeatedly said the Government has given the NHS an extra £10 billion – more than the £8 billion demanded by NHS chief Simon Stevens ahead of the last election.
But Dr Wollaston says the figure is misleading , because it only covers NHS England and does not take account of cuts to other parts of the health service, such as public health and elderly care, and money spent by councils.
When these have been fac - tored in, she says the true fig - ure given is just £4.5 billion. And because NHS trusts are up to £3.5 billion in the red, much of the extra cash has already been spent.
‘The continued use of the figure of £10 billion for the addi - tional health spending up to 2020-21 is not only incorrect but risks giving a false impres - sion that the NHS is awash with cash,’ she says.
‘This figure is often combined with a claim that the Govern - ment “has given the NHS what it asked for”. Again, this claim does not stand up to scrutiny as NHS England spending cannot be seen in isolation from other key areas of health spending.’
The letter also warns that unless the Government increases spending on things like buildings and equipment, the NHS will struggle to meet the long-term demands of caring for an ageing population.
It is signed by four other health committee members, including Tory MP Dr James Davies, former Labour health minister Ben Bradshaw and SNP health spokesman Dr Philippa Whitford.
The accusations will be seized on by critics who claim that spending increases have failed to keep up with the demand for healthcare. Ministers point out that the NHS has had more generous funding increases than any department except foreign aid, with health funding continuing to increase in real terms.
But Dr Wollaston says this is misleading, as the NHS faces ‘far higher inflationary pres - sures ... from an ageing population.’ Her letter calls on Mr Hammond to make extra NHS funding a priority in next month’s Autumn Statement.
And it says any extra cash should go to social care, which is in ‘crisis’. It warns that though councils have been given the power to levy a 2 per cent charge to raise money for social care, this has been ‘entirely swal - lowed up’ by paying care work - ers the new living wage.
The letter also warns that Mr Stevens told the committee that on current figures, NHS spending per person would ‘actually fall in 2018/9’. It says this ‘calls into question the ability of the NHS to maintain services in the latter part of the spending review period’.
NHS Providers chief execu - tive Chris Hopson welcomed Dr Wollaston’s ‘clear - sighted analysis’. ‘The gap between what the NHS is being asked to deliver and the funding it has available is too big and is growing rapidly,’ he said.
‘ In the face of spiralling demand for care from an older population ... there is a big risk that the NHS will not be able to maintain services at current levels, let alone improve them.’
A Government spokesman said: ‘The Government has backed the NHS’s own plan for the future with a £10 billion real-terms increase in its funding a year by 2020/2021 ... It is wrong to suggest otherwise.
‘We have also allowed local government to increase social care spending by the end of Parliament, with access to up to £3.5 billion of new support.’
‘£10bn figure is incorrect’