RCN Responds to Projected NHS Under Spend

Published: 22 November 2007

Tom Sandford, Director of Royal College of Nursing (RCN) England, said:

“The Department for Health have a lot of explaining to do to both patients and healthcare workers. How can they justify a record financial surplus of £1.8 billion when they’ve forced job losses and service cuts across the NHS over recent years? This news comes at a time when nurses have had to take a paltry pay offer from a Government who are reliant upon the hard work and commitment of frontline staff to deliver reform. It is absolutely essential that every penny left over from this under spend is reinvested in frontline patient services and staff.”

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Notes to Editors

For further information, interviews or illustrations please contact the RCN Media Office on 0207 647 3633, press.office@rcn.org.uk or visit http://www.rcn.org.uk/news/mediacentre.php

Royal College 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.