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Department of Health

I agree that we need an open and honest debate. The greatest problem for the NHS, certainly since I have been a Member of Parliament, is the fact that it is treated as a political football. It appears in everyone’s manifesto, and it is kicked around almost every day in the House. I am not suggesting that Ministers in the present Government have done this, but Conservative Ministers did not want to advertise certain issues, as they knew that they would be magnified and turned over by the press. As a result, we do not have sensible debates on health care, but it is about time that we did. The report that I cited earlier says that 28 PCTs with a combined turnover of £5.6 billion were forecasting a deficit of £264 million, or just 4 per cent. Thirty-four NHS trusts with a combined turnover of £6.5 billion were forecasting a deficit of £467 million, or 7 per cent. That excludes foundation trust hospitals. Analysis by accountants KPMG showed that 18 organisations required urgent intervention and that 23 needed additional expertise and/or resources. It is not clear from the report whether such interventions and additional resources are helping to turn around trusts’ finances.