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NHS Confederation reaction to the Spending Review
In yesterday's Spending Review (20 October) Chancellor George Osborne announced:
- a real-terms increase in NHS funding every year with its budget rising to £114bn by 2015
- an extra £2bn for social care by 2014/15.
He also repeated that a Cancer Drug Fund is to be made available and reiterated that £20bn in efficiency and productivity savings are needed by 2014.
Potent cocktail of pressures despite overall financial settlement
On the overall financial settlement for the NHS, Nigel Edwards, NHS Confederation acting chief executive, said: “The high level of unavoidable pressure on NHS finances – from increasing demand to new technology and structural reform – means the Government is right to treat healthcare differently. Even with this settlement, the NHS faces a potent cocktail of pressures and we will have to work very hard to ensure the impact on services is minimised.
Social care funding
“It is really good news that the government has recognised the need for an interim solution on social care funding. There is no long-term solution due until the second half of this parliament and as a result there would have been serious problems right across the health and social care system if the Government had not acted.
“Much of the extra NHS money being used for social care would probably have been spent on this anyway. This announcement means this can now be done in planned way, rather than in a patient-by-patient haphazard fashion.
“The extra money going to councils for social care is also good news. But we do need to be cautious because the money is not ring fenced. With severe pressure on council budgets, we are worried that these funds will not get through to the people who need it.”
NHS productivity
On NHS productivity, Mr Edwards said: “Even with this settlement, the NHS is going to have to really up its game on productivity because of high levels of increasing demand and new technology. We already have some of the most stretching productivity targets anywhere. Achieving more will be immensely difficult when we are going through such a major programme of structural reform.”
Key points briefing
Look out for our briefing for members on the key points in the Spending Review which will be available soon.
Contacts
Francesca Reville
Francesca.Reville@nhsconfed.org
Niall Smith
Niall.Smith@nhsconfed.org
James Pritchard
James.Pritchard@nhsconfed.org
