NHS Confederation - Extra £3 billion for the NHS welcome but the bare minimum

23 Nov 2020 02:26 PM

Danny Mortimer, chief executive of the NHS Confederation, responded to the reported extra £3 billion funding for the NHS 

“Given the current state of the public finances, this extra £3 billion is an important investment to support the NHS to deal with the unprecedented challenge we continue to face from coronavirus. 

“We need to see the detail of the announcement, but for now we welcome investment to help clear the backlog of treatment that has built up and to help meet the extra demand for mental health services that we are now seeing. We would expect this to be followed up soon with the additional funding that will be required to meet the extra costs of Covid-19, for example from PPE and test and trace. 

“We also know there is unfinished business in other key areas of health and social care expenditure, such as capital funding, training and education budgets and social care, that need to be addressed in next week’s Spending Review, and we look forward to Wednesday’s announcement.

“While the NHS will do everything it can in these unprecedented times, if £3bn is to be the extent of the additional investment for next year then the Government will need to manage expectations and ensure patients understand their care could be disrupted.