THE Coalition’s plans to ‘privatise’ the National Health Service will cost more than £1.7 billion, it has emerged today.
Shadow Health Secretary Andy Burnham, MP for Leigh, has exposed the true cost of the ‘reforms’ and warned about their impact on patient care.
He said: “The cost of this re-organisation will be £1.7billion – that’s £1.7 billion not spent on patient care.”
The shocking cost of the plans comes amid claims from the Coalition Government that cuts in public services are essential because the Treasury’s cupboard is bare.
Yet the Government appear to have found enough money to introduce their own pet projects – despite there being no mention of the NHS changes in their election manifestos.
Professor Chris Ham, chief executive of the King’s Fund, said: “Clearly it is going to cost more money.
“There’ll be redundancy for people currently employed in the NHS who won’t have jobs in the future.
“There’ll be about 600 GP groupings controlling budgets compared with 150 PCTs today. They will need their managers to do the work on their behalf.
“For hospitals having to negotiate with a larger number of smaller buyers of healthcare there are all the transaction costs associated with that.”
Meanwhile Education Secretary Michael Gove’s plans to introduce ‘free’ schools will cost £175 milllion next year, according to Channel 4 News.
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Cllr Jonathan Reynolds, Labour, Stalybridge and Hyde
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