Cam claims Tories raised NHS budget despite rebuke


by Sunny Hundal    
9:55 am - December 5th 2012

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The Conservative party is unwilling to take down claims they increased the NHS budget after it was rejected by the Statistics authority.

David Cameron and Jeremy Hunt were rebuked by the Government’s own statistics watchdog yesterday for claiming that spending on the NHS had risen in real terms in recent years.

The claim is made on the Conservative party website as well as in ministerial statements.

Here is a screenshot from their website from earlier this morning.

The rebuke came after Labour shadow health secretary Andy Burnham wrote (letter below) to the Chair of the UK Statistics Authority, Andrew Dilnot CBE, and asked him to review the claim.

Dilnot wrote back saying:

On the basis of these figures, we would conclude that expenditure on the NHS in real terms was lower in 2011-12 than it was in 2009-10. Given the small size of the changes and the uncertainties associated with them, it might also be fair to say that real terms expenditure had changed little over this period. In light of this, I should be grateful if the Department of Health could clarify the statements made.

In a statement released yesterday, Labour’s Andy Burnham hit hard at Cameron

For months, David Cameron’s Government have made misleading boasts about NHS spending, misrepresenting the true financial difficulties he has brought upon the NHS. At the same time they have recently begun to try to distance themselves from these problems which David Cameron has created, trying to shift the blame to the NHS and its staff.

The Prime Minister must come to the House of Commons at the earliest opportunity and correct the record. He has been found out. He has cut the NHS budget for two years running and he owes it to patients and NHS staff to be honest about that.

The full letter from Dilnot is below

Letter From Andrew Dilnot to Rt. Hon. Andy Burnham MP 04122012.PDF

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About the author
Sunny Hundal is editor of LC. Also: on Twitter, at Pickled Politics and Guardian CIF.
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Reader comments


1. the a&e charge nurse

A minor squirmish in a battle already won, and since ratified by the coalition’s disastrous Health & Social Care Bill.

The tanking of the NHS has always been driven by ideology (rather than evidence or accurate figures) – sadly this type of marketisation was initiated by Tony and his NuLab cronies before finally being put to bed by Dave and the old Etonians.

What is the point of this piece?

2. the a&e charge nurse

“medicine is a social science, politics by other means, and politics nothing but medicine on a grand scale” (Virchow).

Brilliant article here
http://libjournal.uncg.edu/ojs/index.php/ijcp/article/viewFile/217/269

3. Bob B

These are the consequences of government policies for the NHS:

Cameron admits NHS nursing problems after Ann Clwyd complaint

PM says some elderly people not getting appropriate care in hospitals, after MP said her husband died like ‘battery hen’
http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/2012/dec/05/cameron-nhs-nursing-ann-clwyd

Nine in 10 beds full in a third of NHS hospitals

Nine in 10 beds are normally occupied at night in a third of English hospitals, according to new NHS figures show that demonstrate just how full they are. [Telegraph 4 December 2012]

Norman Lamb is the LibDem health minister for care.

What is he doing about it?

4. the a&e charge nurse

[4] “There were just under 300,000 beds in 1987, but by last year that had fallen to 160,000 as advances in treatment have meant patients do not need to spend as long in hospital” – the likes of ‘REFORM’ are calling for yet further reductions.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/8570822.stm

Who was it who said a hospital bed is just a piece of furniture?

Perhaps such people have never wandered onto a standard NHS medical admissions ward or more importantly received care there?


Reactions: Twitter, blogs
  1. marcusguinane

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  2. Sunny Hundal

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  3. James Holloway

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  4. Sarb Johal

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  5. PCSCroydon

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  6. Declan Skews

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  7. Gareth Carthew

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  9. Paul Trembath

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  10. Jason Brickley

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  11. leftlinks

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  12. Twittus Maximus

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  14. Mark Chesham

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  15. Alex Braithwaite

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  18. alan cocks

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  19. PCSCroydon

    Cameron still claims Tories increased NHS budget despite rebuke by Stats body | Liberal Conspiracy http://t.co/oGuYFH59 via @libcon

  20. andrew

    Cam claims Tories raised NHS budget despite rebuke | Liberal …: The Conservative party is unwilling to take do… http://t.co/Hu6boPtj





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