Birmingham: Hundreds of hospital jobs to go

The BBC reports today that hundreds of hospital jobs are being axed by a West Midlands health trust.

At a budget meeting of the Sandwell and West Birmingham Hospitals NHS Trust it was decided to cut up to 800 jobs at its three Birmingham and Black Country sites.

The trust runs City, Sandwell and Rowley Regis hospitals and needs to save up to £20m in the next year. This deficit is barely two days worth of our contributions to the EU budget at the newly agreed level of £115 million a week.

Auditors haven't been able to explain for eleven years running where that money paid to the EU then goes to, so wouldn't it be better to use it to save these hospital jobs instead?

The cuts are the latest in a series of job losses in English hospitals, which began with up to 1,000 being cut in neighbouring Staffordshire in March.

John Adler, chief executive of the Trust said, ""I think it's a little bit rash to say that patients will notice no change at all".