- NHS: “bonfire” of targets shows shocking lack of ambition for patients
- Over 500 infrastructure incidents at delayed hospitals last year which now are “hanging by a thread”
- Councils paying £24,000 more a year per pensioner in nursing costs as Lib Dems call on govt to reverse “foolish” NICs hike
- Reeves on Kuenssberg: Chancellor’s approach to growth “does not survive contact with reality”
- Badenoch on Kuenssberg: “Bungling Badenoch” still has no idea how angry people are at the damage the Conservatives did
- Scottish Conservative leader urged to explain whether he believes triple lock should be means tested
- Almost 1 in 5 senior mental health roles missing a permanent appointee
NHS: “bonfire” of targets shows shocking lack of ambition for patients
Responding to a report in the Times that the government is set to scrap half of NHS targets, Liberal Democrat Health and Social Care spokesperson Helen Morgan MP said:
Patients have put up with a health service that has been run into the ground and caused unnecessary suffering for millions.
The new government cannot claim to have broken with years of Conservative neglect simply by moving the goalposts in this way.
That is not delivering for patients, instead it is a sly attempt to give themselves an undeserved pat on the back.
From delays to reforms of social care, new hospitals being kicked into the longgrass and now this reported bonfire of NHS targets, this new government is showing a staggering lack of ambition for patients.
Over 500 infrastructure incidents at delayed hospitals last year which now are “hanging by a thread”
- At hospitals in the New Hospital Programme which have seen their construction dates pushed back there were 506 infrastructure incidents – causing 32 days of clinical time to be lost
- These sites also saw close to 100 floods last year – a quarter of all floods on the NHS England estate despite accounting for less than 1% of the buildings
- Delayed hospitals have already had to shut all toilets on the estate following sewage leaks and burst water pipes mean patients warned off going to A&E
- The Liberal Democrats said that the figures revealed that the delayed hospitals are “hanging on by a thread” and called on the Health Secretary to publish a full impact assessment into the risks to patient safety
There were more than 500 infrastructure and estate incidents last year at hospitals where construction as part of the New Hospital Programme will be delayed, research by the Liberal Democrats has revealed.
They resulted in significant impact for patients with 759 hours of clinical time lost as a result of these incidents, the equivalent of 32 days.
241 of these infrastructure and estate incidents were judged to be caused by or related to critical infrastructure risk at these sites, equating to almost half. These issues can include crumbling roofs at risk of collapse, water leaks, broken-down lifts or ventilation and heating systems not working properly.
Of the total 506 incidents, 153 occurred at the Princess Alexandra, 120 at the Royal Lancaster and 72 at the Queen’s Medical Centre.
The research also revealed that 93, more than a quarter, of the 357 floods that occurred on the NHS England estate last year occurred at these delayed hospitals, despite making up 1% of the total sites.
Torbay Hospital, one of the delayed projects and the third oldest hospital in the country with its foundation stone laid in 1925, has suffered from sewage leaks, water ingress and crumbling concrete. It has been found that 80% of the site is in poor or bad quality.
In January 2024 all toilet facilities had to be closed as sewage was found to be leaking into the wards themselves. Torbay Hospital has also had to place crash decks at the base of one of the buildings to protect from crumbling concrete hitting the floor, costing the hospital over £1 million to mitigate defects from a building that is earmarked for demolition anyway. The hospital is also still using portacabins, installed in 1984, to house its laboratories.
In 2023, the Royal Berkshire Hospital, another scheme that has been delayed, saw a burst water pipe flooding part of the hospital and causing a power failure. It caused the hospital to ask people to avoid A&E unless absolutely necessary and restrict visiting hours.
The Liberal Democrats have slammed the government for their decision to delay the projects calling it a “false economy” that will only put patients’ safety at risk. The Party also called on the government to release the full impact assessment of the decision to delay the projects including the consequences for patient safety in these hospitals.
Liberal Democrat Health and Social Care spokesperson, Helen Morgan MP said:
These shocking figures have laid bare the consequences of delay. Communities who were promised that these projects would rescue their local health services will now have to put up with buildings that aren’t fit for purpose and put their wellbeing at risk.
Millions have been led up the garden path by a previous Conservative government that treated them with utter contempt, making promises that they never intended to keep.
Now this new government is set to prolong their suffering by embracing the false economy of dither and delay that will only put patients’ safety at risk. By burying this news on the day of Trump’s inauguration, they’ve shown complete disrespect for the communities affected.
The Health Secretary needs to immediately publish the full impact assessment of these delays with many of these hospital buildings already hanging by a thread. People have a right to know what the impact of this decision will be and just how at risk they are as a result.
Councils paying £24,000 more a year per pensioner in nursing costs as Lib Dems call on govt to reverse “foolish” NICs hike
Councils are having to pay a staggering £53,352 a year in nursing costs per pensioner, up more than £24,000 on 2015/16’s level of £29,276 a year – an 82% jump – House of Commons Library research commissioned by the Liberal Democrats has revealed.
The Party has called on the government to reverse their “self-defeating” and “foolish” hike in national insurance on health and care providers or risk seeing these costs spiral further as the burden of the tax rise is passed onto council budgets and those in care.
The figures show that in 2015/16 nursing care costs paid by councils per pensioner sat at £563 a week. As of 2023/24 that number stood at £1,026 a week, an 82% increase in cost.
The rise in nursing costs for councils has also outstripped inflation by 7%, meaning that if the cost had been in line with inflation since 2015/16 it would be £3,328 a year less than it is now per pensioner.
In 2023/24, the cost of nursing care for councils per pensioner jumped by £116 a week or 13% compared to the year before; when looking from 2021/22 it rose by 27%, more than £200 a week.
The Liberal Democrats said that the figures “laid bare” just how desperate the situation in social care is and said it risked seeing costs for those in need of care spiral and the strain placed on council budgets made ever greater.
The Party has also previously called for the government’s social care review to be completed within the year, not three years as is currently proposed.
Liberal Democrat Treasury spokesperson, Daisy Cooper MP said:
Our social care sector is on the brink of collapse and council budgets are stretched to breaking point after years of the previous Conservative government’s shameful neglect. The result is that far too many who are simply not getting their care needs met.
That’s why it has been so disappointing to see the new government ram through this self-defeating jobs tax that makes the situation for care providers even worse.
Councils providing care are already warning that their budgets are in turmoil and this tax rise will only make it more expensive, stretching their finances even further.
Instead of heeding these warnings, the Chancellor has pushed ahead with this foolish tax hike and Ministers risk repeating the Conservatives’ mistakes of kicking the can down the road on desperately needed social care reform.
The government needs to see sense and scrap this jobs tax for care providers before it is too late for many care homes and ultimately patients and their loved ones.
Reeves on Kuenssberg: Chancellor’s approach to growth “does not survive contact with reality”
Responding to the Chancellor’s remarks on Laura Kuenssberg, Liberal Democrat Treasury spokesperson Daisy Cooper MP said:
Our country desperately needs economic growth but to date the government’s approach does not survive contact with reality.
The Chancellor must scrap her jobs tax which is weighing down small businesses and unleash their ability to trade more easily with a bespoke UK-EU customs union.
After years of Conservative economic vandalism which caused immense financial hardship for so many, the Chancellor needs to change course now to get the growth that will help families and small businesses.
Badenoch on Kuenssberg: “Bungling Badenoch” still has no idea how angry people are at the damage the Conservatives did
Responding to Kemi Badenoch’s remarks on Laura Kuenssberg, Liberal Democrat Deputy Leader Daisy Cooper MP said:
It’s clear that bungling Badenoch still has no idea just how angry people are at the damage done by the Conservatives and still has nothing to say about the challenges facing the country today.
Badenoch and her Conservative colleagues cheered on Liz Truss’s mini-budget which sent mortgages spiralling, turned a blind eye to raw sewage dumping and left millions to suffer in pain as they struggled to access NHS and care.
As the Conservative Party refuses to learn the lessons of their disastrous time in office, we Liberal Democrats will continue to provide real opposition to this government.
Scottish Conservative leader urged to explain whether he believes triple lock should be means tested
Scottish Liberal Democrat leader Alex Cole-Hamilton has today written to the Scottish Conservative leader Russell Findlay to ask whether he agrees with Conservative Leader Kemi Badenoch’s comments in which she said that she would look at means testing the pension triple lock.
The triple lock was introduced by the Liberal Democrats to protect the state pension, by ensuring it increases each year by at least 2.5%, or in line with average wage increases or inflation if they are higher. If means testing were introduced by the Conservatives it would mean some pensioners would lose out on the annual automatic uprating of the state pension.
Mr Cole-Hamilton said:
Dear Russell,
I am writing to ask whether you agree with Conservative Leader Kemi Badenoch’s comments in which she said that she would look at means testing the triple lock for pensions?
Kemi Badenoch’s comments sent a shiver down the spine of millions of pensioners across the country. Older people have already seen their fuel payments for this winter ripped away by the Labour Government and now the Conservatives seem to want to come after their state pension.
The Liberal Democrats are proud that we introduced the triple lock to protect people’s pensions. We will fight to protect pensioners from Conservative attempts to scrap it every step of the way.
Are you able to confirm how many pensioners would lose out as a result if these changes were applied in Scotland?
Your sincerely,
Alex Cole-Hamilton
Almost 1 in 5 senior mental health roles missing a permanent appointee
After new research by his party revealed that almost 1 in 5 senior mental health roles are either vacant or being filled by locums, Scottish Liberal Democrat leader Alex Cole-Hamilton MSP has urged the SNP to get serious about staffing to tackle Scotland’s mental health crisis.
A Scottish Liberal Democrat freedom of information request to health boards has revealed that:
- 101 consultant psychiatrist roles out of 536 whole time equivalent roles (WTE) across Scotland are currently vacant.
- The health board with the highest number of vacancies is NHS Tayside, which currently has 21.1 vacancies.
- Neither NHS Shetland nor NHS Western Isles has any permanent consultant psychiatrists in place, while more than 40% of roles are vacant in NHS Fife
Mr Cole-Hamilton said:
On the SNP’s watch, a significant number of the most senior mental health roles are either lying empty or being filled on a temporary basis.
These gaps will only add to the devastating waiting times that thousands of children and adults are already suffering, while piling on the pressure for staff.
Alongside increasing the number of consultant psychiatrists in training, Scottish Liberal Democrats would roll out more counsellors in schools and deliver more mental health professionals in GP surgeries and A&E departments.
Scotland deserves world-class mental health services- that starts by getting serious about staffing.