Sunak’s plan to help NHS
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has announced his plan to fix emergency care in the National Health Service (NHS). Waiting times for ambulances, as well as in accident and emergency departments, have increased in recent months. Speaking in Darlington, England, on 30 January, Sunak promised “the largest and fastest improvement in emergency waiting times in the NHS’s history”.
What was announced?
The Prime Minister announced several changes to the NHS that he hopes will help patients. One idea is to create “virtual wards”, which would allow patients to stay at home and speak to doctors and nurses by video call. He also said that over two years, the Government will spend £1 billion on 800 new ambulances, 100 mental health vehicles and 5,000 hospital beds. Sunak also hopes to train more experts in mental health and let some call handlers (people who answer emergency calls) work from home.
How is it being paid for?
The Prime Minister says that the cost of these new policies is covered by the plans announced last November by Jeremy Hunt, the Chancellor of the Exchequer (the person in charge of the country’s money). The money needed will come from higher taxes and from spending cuts that Hunt has already set out. Tax is money that people and businesses have to give to the Government. It pays for public services such as police, roads and schools. Around 80% of the whole cost of the NHS is paid from general taxes such as income tax, which people pay from the money they earn.
What about pay rises for NHS staff?
Despite announcing more money for emergency care, Sunak said no to giving NHS staff pay rises. The Government said paying nurses more would make inflation worse. However many experts disagree. Inflation is the increase in the cost of goods – such as food, energy and fuel. New figures revealed on 31 January showed that the price of groceries, including food, went up by more than 15% in January. This means that the average yearly food bill would now cost almost £800 more than last year. The Government said that inflation won’t go down if wages increase. However many experts say workers need higher wages when costs go up. Sunak has promised to halve inflation by “making sure the Government is responsible with its borrowing”.
How did people react?
Doctors and health experts have warned that finding people to fill the 133,000 empty roles in the NHS is vital to making the plan work. The Prime Minister has also been criticised for how long it would take to introduce the plan. Professor Phil Banfield from the British Medical Association, an organisation that represents doctors, said, “The NHS cannot afford to wait two years for the fraction of help that the Government has proposed.” The Labour Party’s health spokesman, Wes Streeting, said the Government had managed the NHS badly over the last 13 years.