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George Osborne to pledge extra £2bn for NHS George Osborne confirms extra £2bn for NHS
(about 9 hours later)
Chancellor George Osborne is to announce an extra £2bn for the health service across the UK next year. George Osborne has told the BBC he will put an extra £2bn into frontline health services.
Mr Osborne will use his Autumn Statement on Wednesday to announce the extra funding for frontline services. The chancellor told the BBC it was not a "one-off" but what he called a "down-payment on a long-term NHS plan".
The government can pay for it because of the "growing" economy and its "tight control" of finances, he will say. There would be no "unfunded giveaways", he said, adding the increase in NHS funding was possible because the economy was strong.
Labour blamed the Conservatives for the NHS's "fragile" finances, saying it would "rescue" it with a £2.5bn-a-year fund, on top of Tory spending plans. Labour's Ed Balls said it was "crisis money" and they would pledge an additional £2.5bn to the NHS.
Mr Osborne's pledge comes after NHS bosses warned of a need for extra funds to keep the NHS going and maintain standards of care. Mr Osborne's pledge - which will be announced in his Autumn Statement on Wednesday - comes after NHS bosses warned of a need for extra funds to keep the NHS going and maintain standards of care.
They along with analysts had said £2bn extra was needed to cope with the immediate, unprecedented pressure on NHS budgets. They said £2bn extra was needed to cope with the immediate, unprecedented pressure on NHS budgets.
'Strong NHS' Mr Osborne told BBC One's Andrew Marr Show: "Because we have a strong economy and we've got the public finances under control, we can afford to put £2 billion into the frontline of the NHS across the United Kingdom," he said.
Mr Osborne is to say the extra money - from April next year - will be invested in frontline services, to support the day-to-day work of nurses, doctors and other NHS staff. "I can tell you we can go further and use those fines that have been paid by the banks for a permanent improvement in GP services.
It will also be used to buy new facilities and make the health service more efficient for taxpayers and more effective for patients, he is expected to say. "This is a down-payment on the NHS's own long-term plan and it shows you can have a strong NHS if you have a strong economy."
"Here's a simple truth: You can't have a strong NHS without a strong economy to pay for it. If you don't have a long term plan for the economy, you don't have a plan for the future of the NHS," he will say. Further details are expected in the Autumn Statement, which is his update on tax and spending plans based on the latest predictions for the economy.
"We have both. It's because our economy is growing, and we've kept a tight control on the finances, that we can do more for the NHS." He rejected claims public services would suffer if funding was cut further and said he would outline how the UK would "stay the course to prosperity".
Confirming the funds, he will say: "This will support the day-to-day work of our incredible nurses, doctors and other NHS staff; but it is also a down-payment on the future of our health service." "We shouldn't face this false choice of either bankrupting the country or having decent public services," he said.
Details of how the chancellor will pay for it will be given in the statement, which is his update on tax and spending plans based on the latest predictions for the economy. He said "difficult decisions" might be ahead on welfare - possibly freezing working age benefits, although he appeared to rule out cuts to pensioners' benefits.
BBC political correspondent Carole Walker understands some of the funds will come from underspending in other departmental budgets. BBC political editor Nick Robinson tweeted that it was still unclear where the money would come from.
She described the cash injection as a "significant announcement".
'At crossroads''At crossroads'
Mr Osborne will also endorse a five-year plan - NHS Forward View - unveiled by six national bodies last month.Mr Osborne will also endorse a five-year plan - NHS Forward View - unveiled by six national bodies last month.
Many of the measures put forward are designed to curb the rise in hospital admissions and the impact of the ageing population - the source of most pressure in the health service.Many of the measures put forward are designed to curb the rise in hospital admissions and the impact of the ageing population - the source of most pressure in the health service.
The chancellor has been discussing the plan with Simon Stevens, chief executive of NHS England, who drew up the proposals.The chancellor has been discussing the plan with Simon Stevens, chief executive of NHS England, who drew up the proposals.
Mr Osborne is expected to say: "I endorse this Forward View as the way to deliver a world class and universal NHS that is sustainable for the long term." Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt will make a statement on Monday formally announcing that the government is committed to the plan to increase spending on the health service by £8 billion in real terms over the next Parliament.
Mr Stevens has said the NHS is at a "crossroads" and warned of an £8bn funding shortfall by the end of the next parliament.
But he said there was no reason a tax-funded service could not continue if the five-year plan was followed.
Last week the King's Fund health think tank called for the NHS in England to be given £2bn more next year.
BBC health editor Hugh Pym said at the time that, as far as NHS England chiefs were concerned, a £2bn injection next year was the minimum needed to keep the service going without cuts to staffing and lower quality care.
The NHS is a huge political issue with all the main parties pledging extra money in the future.The NHS is a huge political issue with all the main parties pledging extra money in the future.
The Liberal Democrats had called for an emergency injection of £1.5bn. Shadow chancellor Ed Balls blamed the Conservatives for causing a crisis in the NHS through its re-organisation and questioned whether the money would be "an actual long-term investment in the nurses and doctors we need".
'Worse in store' He said it was a "typical Tory pattern" of a "winter crisis, and crisis money coming after it".
Labour had called for an extra £1bn next year, paid for by banking industry fines. It had also said that it would add £2.5bn per year to the NHS budget over the course of the next parliament, should it gain power at the next election. This would be part-funded by its proposed mansion tax. Mr Balls said Labour's proposed 'mansion tax' on properties worth £2m and over would raise the money to invest £2.5bn "over and above" the government's spending plans into the health service.
Shadow health secretary Andy Burnham said: "David Cameron chose to put NHS finances on a knife edge when he wasted £3bn on a damaging reorganisation. That's why the NHS is in today's fragile financial position. Labour had called for an extra £1bn next year, paid for by banking industry fines.
"This is exactly the same pattern we saw under the last Tory government: winter crises, followed by emergency bailouts. The Conservatives' coalition partners, the Liberal Democrats, had called for an emergency injection of £1.5bn and a party spokesman said they had "fought to make sure that extra funding for the NHS next year is in the Autumn Statement".
"Labour will rescue the NHS with a £2.5bn-a-year Time to Care fund - on top of Tory spending plans - to fund new staff, including 20,000 more nurses. "The easy choice would have been to put off this decision until after the election for the next government to deal with, but that would have betrayed patients. The NHS needs this money urgently and we have acted in the national interest to make it a priority."
"NHS patients are already seeing waiting times and cancer care heading downhill on this government's watch - people will fear that much worse will be in store next year. It is clear you can't trust the Tories with the NHS."