Stop-go economics is no way to run the NHS, says RCN
Published: 24 August 2007
Responding to the NHS Financial Performance final quarter figures for 2006-7, General Secretary of the RCN, Dr Peter Carter, said:
“These end of year figures expose the tragedy and farce of NHS finances. We now have a mind-boggling state of affairs in which individual organisations are in deficit to the tune of £911 million, while the NHS as a whole has amassed a surplus of £510 million.
“This means that the job losses, services cuts and economies that were imposed as a short-sighted reaction to deficits were so aggressive, widespread and deep that they actually resulted in a damaging under-spend across the entire NHS. Taxpayers' money that should have been invested in front-line services may well now be sitting idle in bank accounts.
“This financial squeeze also means that hard working nurses have been denied the mere 2.5% unstaged pay deal recommended by the independent pay review body. With a NHS surplus of more than half a billion pounds and the threat of industrial action on the horizon, it is surely time for ministers to do the decent thing and give nurses the fair pay deal they deserve.
“Stop-go economics is no way to run the NHS. So ministers have to learn the lessons from the serious errors that have brought us to this point. If not, then it will be patients and staff who continue to pay the price.”
Notes to Editors
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RoyalCollege of Nursing (RCN) is the voice of nursing across the UK and is the largest professional union of nursing staff in the world. The RCN promotes the interest of nurses and patients on a wide range of issues and helps shape healthcare policy by working closely with the UK Government and other national and international institutions, trade unions, professional bodies and voluntary organisations.