NHS: Financial Performance

Lord Hunt of Kings Heath Excerpts

Monday 12th October 2015 Lords Chamber

[Lord Hunt of Kings Heath (Lab)]

My Lords, the Minister is certainly having a busy day. I thank him for repeating the Statement. Obviously, these figures are very worrying. They relate to quarter 1. We are now well into quarter 3. What is the Minister’s latest assessment of hospital finances and his updated estimate of the year-end position? Clearly, there is not enough money in the budget to cover the existing costs of growing pressures, so how on earth is the service to fund seven-day services?

I noted the Minister’s comments about consultancy spend and agency staff. However, does he recognise that the reason so much money has been spent on agency staff, apart from through the actions of agencies themselves, is the fact that his Government cut the number of nurse training places in 2010? Does he also recognise that his Secretary of State’s attitude towards doctors is driving many of them away from this country? We should not be surprised if desperate NHS bodies, beset by criticism from the CQC about the numbers of doctors and nurses they need on the wards, resort to the use of agencies. As far as consultancy spend is concerned, does he accept that the Government’s own agencies—Monitor and the NHS Trust Development Authority—encourage NHS bodies to use consultancies? Will he ask them to try to reverse some of their actions themselves?

I quoted the Daily Telegraph to the Minister earlier. However, I want to say something about a story in the Mail yesterday concerning Sir Thomas Hughes-Hallett, chairman of Chelsea and Westminster Hospital in London. He has said that the NHS is in crisis and has referred to:

“A ‘worsening financial crisis’ leading to a ‘crisis in care provision’; An ‘environment of negativism’ triggered by endlessly critical missives from Ministers and officials; ‘Highly burdensome regulation’ leading to ‘abject confusion, fatigue and short-sightedness’; A ‘climate of fear’ ruling wards … ‘Continued emigration’ of doctors … The risk that these problems will cause an ‘inevitable reduction in quality and patient care’”.

You do not have to believe everything that Sir Thomas said without knowing that most people in the NHS share that view about tackling impossible pressures with limited resources. What are the Government going to do about it?