North Swindon MP Justin Tomlinson has welcomed the Prime Minister’s announcement that the NHS is to receive an extra £20 billion a year in real terms in the NHS by 2023-24.
As part of the celebrations for the 70th anniversary of the NHS, the Prime Minister & the Health Secretary have confirmed that the Government will bring forward a new long-term sustainable funding settlement reflecting the fact the NHS is our number one spending priority.
The additional investment, equivalent to almost £400 million extra each week for the NHS, will come in part from money no longer going to the European Union. In return, the Prime Minister will ask the NHS to produce a 10 year plan that tackles waste, reduces bureaucracy and provides better access to mental health services – ensuring that every penny of funding is well spent.
The announcement comes as the Government sets out plans for the NHS designed to ensure we continue to invest record amounts in our health system, expand the services on offer, and increase funding into vital research.
The new plan will ensure this is done while also maintaining the core principle of the NHS: that treatment is universal and free at the point of use.
It comes as data shows more people are using the NHS than ever before. Since 2010, 2 million more people a year are accessing A&E services, and almost a million more people are receiving high quality mental health support (thanks to our record £11.4bn investment in these vital services).
Ministers have been clear we need to take a balanced approach that ensures this record funding continues while also making important targeted investments in preventative medicine, primary care, and extra infrastructure like the new radiotherapy centre at the GWH.
This new settlement will allow us to build on the important work which is being done to improve the NHS. The new investment will also allow Minsters to deliver on plans to:
- Train 5,000 more GPs
- Increase access to evening & weekend appointments
- Reform & expand access to mental health services
- Reduce waiting times for key appointments and operations
- Invest in new life-saving and life-extending drugs
Funding in the NHS is currently at record levels, both nationally, and here in Swindon, and over the next five years we will spend over half a trillion pounds on the health service.
In this vein, we will continue the important strides made in the NHS since 2010, which include:
- 14,260 more doctors and 12,000 additional nurses nationally
- 156 doctors and 472 more nurses at the GWH.
- 11,000 more operations a year at the GWH than in 2010.
- 17,000 more diagnostic tests a year at the GWH than in 2010.
- Increasing funding by around £10 billion a year by 2020.
- Protecting & increasing mental health spending to a record level
- Spending up to £2 billion more on new drugs that patients need.
- Improving cancer survival rates through a multi-billion pound investment in the Cancer Drugs Fund
Justin Tomlinson MP said: “I am delighted that the Prime Minister has announced a £20 billion a year boost in funding for the NHS. Since 2010, we have increased funding for the NHS in every year to record amounts, and this new funding will ensure that clinicians can continue to deliver the high-quality life-saving care. This new money will also deliver on our commitment to improve access to GP appointments, increase the availability of mental health services, and ensure we stay at the forefront of research into new drugs”.
