Health spending ‘being cut by £319m’

Scottish Government claims that health spending is being protected from the Budget cuts have been slammed by the opposition.

Health secretary Nicola Sturgeon insisted that “core budgets” are going up yesterday, as she announced £581 million for new NHS building projects in 2012-13 – the largest amount in a single year.

But official Scottish Parliament figures show that overall health spending will fall by £319m over the next four years, as the spending squeeze bites.

Labour’s Jackie Baillie said: “The SNP is desperate to peddle the myth that they are protecting the health budget – they are not. The official Scottish Parliament analysis of the health budget shows it will be cut by £319m in real terms. It is there in black and white. Every penny spent on the NHS is welcome, but the SNP should not be trying to take people for fools.”

Ms Sturgeon said that Scotland’s 14 territorial health boards in Scotland will get a real-terms increase in cash.

“Despite a difficult economic climate, we know how important it is that we continue to invest in frontline NHS services. And that is why the core budgets of all territorial health boards are increasing in real terms.”

The new capital funding announced by Ms Sturgeon will be used to pay for major projects such as the new Southern General Hospital in Glasgow and Royal Victoria Hospital in Edinburgh, as well as replacing vehicles and defibrillators for the Scottish Ambulance Service.

That money is part of £2 billion of capital funding that the NHS will receive over four years.

As well as that, £750m of NPD funding, using the non-profit distribution scheme under which profits for private firms involved in the projects are capped, will be spent on new and existing NHS buildings over the same period.