Commenting on a new letter to NHS systems
on financial challenges created by industrial
action, the deputy chief executive of NHS Providers,
Saffron Cordery said:
“Trust leaders will feel a deep sense of frustration over the
lack of extra funding from the Treasury to help the NHS tackle
the fallout from nearly a year of industrial action.
“They understand the pressures on public finances and the need to
achieve financial balance, but today’s announcement for frontline
services – funded largely through cuts to existing DHSC and NHSE
budgets- will undoubtedly have knock-on consequences for
the health service and patient care.
“It is right that patient safety, cancer treatment, maternity
services and urgent and emergency care are put front and centre
as we head into the challenging winter months. As always, trusts
will do everything they can to prioritise these services.
“The impact of industrial action so far means that efforts to
bear down on waiting lists- a government priority- will now not
happen as quickly as trusts would like, as targets for planned
care are watered down.
“The lack of additional funding from the Treasury has put even
further strain on the core NHS budget. Today’s announcement means
inevitable cuts to national health budgets including digital
transformation that would have made a major difference to
transforming care and reducing costs over the long run. This, and
other much needed innovations, will now be put on the back
burner.
“Trust leaders will also ask whether the funding NHS England and
DHSC have found from existing national budgets will be enough to
plug the gap created by month after month of industrial action.
Indeed, trusts were already facing very stretching efficiency
targets and major, systemic financial challenges and these remain
a huge challenge.
“More than ever, today’s announcement underlines the critical
need to resolve industrial action in the NHS. With this
announcement based on no further strikes taking place, it is
vital that ministers pull every lever at their disposal to break
the deadlock in negotiations with doctors’ unions.”
