new health secretary Jeremy Hunt: Supporter of switching NHS cash from poor to the rich elderly
Four months ago I wrote a blog (see http://wp.me/pHiYZ-xu) revealing a dastardly plan to switch NHS funding away from the poorest parts of England to the wealthiest areas under the guise of helping the elderly.
The scheme which drew attacks from Labour effectively meant tearing up the funding formula adopted since Clement Atlee which saw that the poorest deprived areas got more cash than the wealthy. To implement it Lansley was planning to get a health quango to recommend the changes. Thankfully since then nothing has happened..until today.
Jeremy Hunt, the newly appointed health secretary, it turns out is a passionate believer in such a scheme – as it would give loadsa state money to his own constituents in Surrey at the expense of Labour voting people in places like Newcastle upon Tyne and Sunderland.
I am indebted to a contact for alerting me to this information on Jeremy Hunt’ s own blog.
In his own words he says:
the real problem lies with the inherent bias in the Government’s NHS funding formula of areas like Surrey. Guildford and Waverley’s population is weighted 9.1% upwards for market forces and 2.0% upwards for age structure but is weighted 25.3% downwards for additional need. The result of this is that the former Guildford & Waverley PCT’s target allocation per un-weighted head of population was £1,176, 15.3% less than the England average of £1,388. This means that even in an area with a large population of older people, the Royal Surrey is losing out”. Jeremy Hunt website (24 July, 2007,
http://www.jeremyhunt.org/campaignshow.aspx?id=112&ref=50)
So this reshuffle may mean an even worse future for the NHS from the man who befriends Rupert Murdoch. It will great news for the Tory voting upper middle classes from Esher to Guildford, but every, very bad news for deprived areas where Labour has a huge majority. It will allow Tory voters to live longer in safe seats and contribute to Labour voters dying before their they have another chance to vote.Clever man, Mr Hunt. You can quiz him, by e-mailing at
huntj@parliament.uk
Westminster Confidential 