New figures reveal £76,949,474.00 needed to fix Kent and Medway NHS
New analysis by the Liberal Democrats has found that £76,949,474.00 is needed to clear Kent and Medway NHS maintenance backlog and repair crumbling buildings. Meanwhile, the part of the NHS which covers hospital buildings is facing a £700 million cut. The small print of the Autumn Statement revealed the savage cut to the Department for Health's capital spending budget next year, which is used for buildings, facilities, and infrastructure.
Nationally the cost of the repairs backlog has been revealed by the NHS estates review as an astonishing £10.2 billion. It comes alongside news that the NHS waiting list has hit 7 million people. See link: https://waitinglist.health.lcp.com/
Medway Liberal Democrats are calling for the Chancellor to halt his plans "to make patients and staff pay" for the Conservative government's "economic mess". They propose urgent investment in local hospital buildings to ensure they are safe and can function effectively.
John Castle, chair of Medway Liberal Democrats said: "Kent and Medway NHS is falling apart at the seams. I meet people all the time who are worried about the conditions their loved ones are being treated in. Now the government wants to make patients and staff pay for their economic mess and are cutting the budget to make these essential repairs. Medway deserves so much better.
The chronic state of disrepair in our local hospitals is not only a scandal in itself. It is also a symptom of this Conservative government's dire mismanagement of our NHS. People here have had enough of record-high waiting times for GPs, dentists and ambulances. They've had enough of outdated and decaying hospital equipment.
The fault lies squarely at the feet of Conservative ministers. It is their inaction and their disinterest which has led us to this disastrous point. They should lay out a plan to recruit the staff we need and to remove these repair backlogs immediately, not just more damaging and dangerous cuts."
ENDS
Notes to Editors
Repair backlog data can be found here: https://digital.nhs.uk/data-and-information/publications/statistical/estates-returns-information-collection/england-2021-22#summary
The Government has announced a cut to the Capital budget for Health and Social Care in the Autumn Statement. All figures given by the Government in its report are current prices, in other words they aren't adjusted for inflation. The Liberal Democrats have adjusted these figures using the OBR's GDP Deflator (which measures the changes in prices) figures to calculate the Capital budget in real terms.
These calculations show that the Capital budget for Health and Social Care will fall by £700m in 2023-24 in real terms, potentially derailing the Government's pledge to build 40 new hospitals