Salford: Blears branded ‘hypocrite’ in closure row

Cabinet Minister Hazel Blears was yesterday accused of hypocrisy after joining protests against the closure of the maternity unit of a hospital in her constituency – reports the Yorkshire Post.

The Labour Party chair insisted she supports the government’s plans to "reconfigure" services in the NHS but said this should not stop her from opposing a particular closure as a constituency MP.

The maternity unit as Salford’s Hope Hospital is slated for closure as part of a reorganisation of mothers’ and children’s services agreed earlier this month by primary care trusts (PCTs) in the Greater Manchester area.

The changes are part of a programme of reconfiguration of the NHS, which chief executive David Nicholson has said will lead to 60 closures – mainly of maternity and casualty units – in the coming years.

Campaigners at Health Emergency accused Ms Blears of riding on the back of local protests while being complicit in government policies which are driving closures.

"There are 29 hospitals up and down the country facing the immediate threat of cuts and closure to key services in 2007", said head of campaigns Geoff Martin.

"If the closure of maternity services is wrong in Salford its wrong in all those other parts of the country as well, and Blears should be piling on pressure to ditch the cuts policy or she should resign."

Liberal Democrat health spokesman Norman Lamb said: "This is astonishing behaviour from Hazel Blears – you cannot back a policy on the national stage and then campaign against it in your own constituency."

- Article contributed by: B.S., Hull

North Yorks: Furious GPs attack health chiefs over ‘panic’ cuts

Health chiefs are ordering swingeing cuts in health services serving 750,000 people in Yorkshire in a "panic" attempt to tackle a dramatically-worsening financial crisis – reports the Yorkshire Post.

Sick patients referred to hospital could be sent back home, injured casualties turned away from A&E and people forced to endure waits of up to 16 weeks for operations under plans drawn up by NHS managers in North Yorkshire.

Last night family doctors claimed the emergency package was a "panic measure" in the face of urgent demands from Ministers to make savings, and warned patient care would suffer.

North Yorkshire’s newly formed Primary Care Trust (PCT) had faced a deficit of £24m in 2006-07 but officials now believe the cash crisis has significantly worsened and it could run up debts of £45m unless action is taken.

Measures being put in place are:

• New assessments of emergency admissions to hospitals in Scarborough, Northallerton and York;
  
• About half of patients in A&E being told to seek alternative help from walk-in centres, minor injury units and GPs;
  
• The imposition of minimum waits of 12 to 16 weeks for patients requiring routine surgery and 8 weeks for outpatients;
  
• The suspension of a range of treatments including joint injections, a ban on some investigative procedures and curbs on IVF treatment;
  
• A ban on some drug treatments and non-essential follow-up hospital appointments.

John Givans, secretary of North Yorkshire Local Medical Committee which represents GPs said they were "horrified" at the package.

He said: "This will undoubtedly cause patients to suffer increased pain and I can see all sorts of risks associated with it.

"The whole thing is a panic measure as a result of pressure from the government."

Cllr Sue Galloway, executive member for adult social services on Lib Dem-run York Council said: "It’s no use passing the buck because local authorities are cash-strapped as well. Already our services are over-stretched and we just cannot take people on. People are going to be in really, really desperate straits."

Selby Labour MP John Grogan said: "My fear is that unless a grip is got on the financial situation, the next step would be to propose very significant bed and job cuts, which would be completely unacceptable."

In a letter to health chiefs, chief executive of the troubled PCT Janet Soo-Chung said: "We fully appreciate the difficulties that the introduction of these measures entail. However, the financial position of the PCT is such that there is absolutely no alternative programme if we are to avoid even more difficult decisions in the near future."

Of course, one alternative would be for the government to stop wasting vast sums by sending it to the European Union, and bail out troubled PCTs like this one with a tiny fraction of the money that would be saved.

Sadly the government cares more about propping up the wasteful and fraud-ridden EU than it does about preventing these hospital cuts.

If Selby MP John Grogan votes to hand the extra £2.5bn a year Tony Blair has gifted the EU when it comes before Parliament, unfortunately the same will have to be said about him.

That’s unlikely to go down well with voters come the next election.

- Article contributed by: B.S., Hull

Yorkshire: NHS facing more pain after dental fees blunder

Cash-stricken NHS trusts in Yorkshire face another blow amid fears a government blunder in calculating controversial dental charges will leave a multi-million black hole in budgets.

A survey by the Yorkshire Post has found health chiefs in the region are predicting losses of up to £11m in revenue from the new dental charges introduced in April.

The huge shortfalls are being felt across England.

If the same pattern were to be repeated nationwide it could leave the NHS facing a dental charge deficit of more than £100m in 2006-07 – on top of an escalating crisis in health service finances which is already leading to big cuts in care.

Last night dentists’ leaders warned the shortfall could be made up in future years by big increases in dental charges.

The total loss in Yorkshire is predicted to be £10.9m, although the figure excludes East Riding.

The biggest predicted deficit is in the Bradford district, where health chiefs estimate they will be £2.4m below target by March.

Sheffield primary care trust (PCT) could run up losses of £2m.

The losses are exacerbating the NHS financial crisis. In latest estimates, NHS trusts in Yorkshire are predicting they will plunge £129m into the red by the end of March.

Scarborough dentist John Renshaw warned there were dangers charges would go up. He said: "If PCTs are not getting this money, then it’s going to hit them big time when they’re already in trouble.

"You can see what will happen. Charges will go up to make up the shortfall and the trouble is it’s already fairly expensive to get treatment on the NHS.

"It will cause further damage to services in the future as it will get more difficult to get affordable care under the NHS."

Hounslow: Budget cuts could mean loss of six community teachers

Anger is brewing over council proposals to cut funding for six valuable community teachers working in Hounslow schools - reports the Richmond & Twickenham Times.

The community outreach officers currently help organise activities - including fun trips, adult education classes and evening clubs - at the Beavers Community, Green Dragon, Berkeley, William Hogarth and Edward Pauling primary schools, as well as Sparrow Farm Infants school.

But, as part of £1.3million cuts to be made to next year's children's services and life long learning budget, Hounslow Council has proposed cutting funding for the officers in a bid to save £350,000 over three years.

It is believed that alternative funds might be available to allow these workers to carry on their work, but some teachers and parents said they still feared the worst.

Kim Osborne, whose eight-year-old daughter Broghan attends Beavers Community, has written to all the parents at the school asking them to support her fight to keep the funding.

In her letter, Mrs Osborne writes: "Without our valuable community teacher, school funds will dwindle, families will not get the opportunity to socialise, our children will not be able to continue taking part in fantastic educational events, the PTA may fold and teachers may not get as much vital support as they would like from parents. The school will never be the same again.

"We cannot allow this to happen."

A petition has been placed at The Hub community centre and in shops around Hounslow by Mrs Osborne.

Mrs Christine Haflam, acting headteacher at Berkeley Primary, said her school would "lose out a great deal" if community outreach officer Stephanie Collis had to leave.

"I think we would either be working really hard to maintain the work that Stephanie does, or some of these services might not happen," she said.

In its report on the proposed cuts, the council recognised that "these community officers are based in some of the most deprived areas of the borough and perform a valuable role in involving parents with education".

A final decision on the fate of the teachers could be made as late as March 2007 when the council sets its final budget for the next year.

At the time of going to press, Hounslow Council could not be reached for comment.

Other possible changes proposed in the Children's Services and Lifelong Learning report:

1) Increasing school meals by 10p from 2007, raising an extra £100,000 per year for the Hounslow council's coffers.

But a council report warned there was "the risk of a reduced take-up of meals if prices are increased".

2) Grants for voluntary language classes could be cut to save £33,000 a year.

The classes help residents to learn English.

A report examining all possible budget cuts said that "opportunities for ethnic- minority communities would be reduced at some cost to the council's policies for social cohesion" if the classes were stopped.

3) The Ride children's home in Brentford could be closed to cut £200,000 a year from the budget.

Cared-for kids would be placed in other facilities and staff would be made redundant, the council's report said.

The under-utilised home is in a prime residential area, the council noted, and could be sold to generate a "significant" amount of money.

Mr Valery Agborsangaya, manager of The Ride, did not wish to comment on the proposed closure.

York: Fears for city as funding cuts force review of flooding defences

A review of York’s flood defences is under way as concerns grow that the city could be put at risk by multi-million pound cuts in government funding – reports the Yorkshire Post.

The Environment Agency is currently battling to make multi-million pound cuts to meet government deadlines.

York Council has launched the review of contingency plans put in place in the wake of the 2000 disaster to ensure the flood-prone city is adequately protected while having to contend with the planning financial cuts.

The River Ouse burst its banks earlier this month following torrential downpours and parts of the city remained under water this week.

Chairman of the council’s scrutiny management committee Madeleine Kirk said: "There is a financial crisis in Westminster and vital defences in York look as though they could be put at risk. We can only hope that any reduction in funding does not have disastrous consequences for the people of York."

"It seems ludicrous that at a time when we are being warned of the danger of global warming the government is looking to reduce funding for flood prevention."

880 police stations have closed since 1992

Almost 900 police stations have closed in the past 14 years, reports the Daily Mail.

Figures from the Home Office showed 880 have shut in England and Wales since 1992.

But the real number is almost certainly higher because some larger forces have only provided figures for recent years.

Of the 880 closures, a total of 516 were under Labour, while 364 were under John Major's Tory government.

They have been partly counter-balanced by the opening of 376 stations in the same period, leaving a net loss of 504 stations since 1992.

However, many of the remaining police stations offer only a part-time service to the public, often only open 9am to 5pm during the week and closed at weekends.

Thousands more post offices will go

The implications of cuts to government subidies for post offices are being highlighted today by the Daily Telegraph.

The paper is reporting that somewhere between 3,000 and 7,000 face the axe out of a total network of 14,500, according to Whitehall sources.

Rural areas are likely to be hit hardest by such cuts, with the local post office often playing a central role in community life. More than 4,000 offices have closed in the past six years and more than 5,000 in the past 10 years. Many of the remaining 14,500 lose money, particularly those in rural areas.

The Government provides a £150 million annual subsidy, but this subsidy is being cut causing the closures.

Royal Mail executives are understood to have given ministers a detailed breakdown detailing how many offices will have to close if the £150 million-a-year subsidy is cut to various levels.

The question is why is this subsidy being cut? It isn't even 10 days worth of the cash Tony Blair has promised to pay the EU from next year - at £115 million a week (net). Were we to Stop the Cheques there'd be money for an increased subsidy and much more besides.

If only the government could get its priorities right and start looking after essential needs like post offices rather than lavishing billions more on an already wealthy but wasteful EU.

Colchester: £4m health cuts fears

Mental health services in north Essex face cuts of up to £4 million, reports the Colchester Evening Gazette.

Beds could go at key outpatient units like The Lakes in Colchester and Peter Bruff ward at Clacton Hospital, as NHS bosses aim to plug budget black holes.

North East Essex, Mid Essex and West Essex primary care trusts (PCTs) are all reviewing the services they commission from North Essex Mental Health Partnership NHS Trust.

As well as Colchester and Tendring beds, areas under "particular scrutiny" include home visits and long-term care for elderly patients.

The blow comes hard on the heels of evidence that already too little is being done to help those with mental illness, which affects one in four of the UK population.

An official study revealed that an average of 52 people a year – one a week – are killed by violent patients released into the community.

A lack of support at home was blamed for figures showing 1,300 mentally ill people commit suicide every year.

A spokesman for the Mid Essex PCT said: "The PCT is looking to all its partner NHS organisations to endorse a joint approach to achieving efficiency savings."

Colchester MP Bob Russell said: "I believe what we are witnessing is further evidence that the NHS is in financial crisis."

- Article contributed by: Mr & Mrs L.C. M, Colchester

London: Health cash row in parliament

The escalating row over NHS funding in South London was taken to the House of Commons.

MPs Simon Hughes and Kate Hoey quizzed Health Minister Patricia Hewitt about the future of health-care last week.

Even though Lambeth and Southwark's primary care trusts performed well in their annual ratings, their budgets will be slashed and services hit.

Mr Hughes is spearheading the campaign to stop the cuts which will mean less cash spent across the services, with sexual health services the worst hit.

Last month he met with Ms Hewitt but said he was disappointed with the outcome.

During the heated Commons debate last week, Mr Hughes asked: "What changes in the budgets for 2006/07 for NHS trusts serving Lambeth and Southwark have been agreed?"

Ms Hewitt replied: "I asked NHS London to look again at budgets in Lambeth and Southwark. "It has confirmed that after other factors have been taken into account, Lambeth and Southwark primary care trusts were asked to contribute less to the London-wide risk reserves for this year than most other London PCTs."

Mr Hughes told the Commons he had thought that after meeting Mrs Hewitt a "fairer" allocation of money would be agreed.

He pointed out that despite Lambeth and Southwark being among the two most deprived boroughs in the country, an estimated £23million would be chopped from the budgets for Guy's and St Thomas', King's College Hospital and South London and Maudsley trusts.

However,the Secretary of State answered that Southwark and Lambeth would get the money back once the other badly performing London PCTs were up to speed.

Until then Lambeth and Southwark PCTs will have to continue to bail them out.

After the debate, Mr Hughes said:"I and the other South London MPs are upset that it appears the Government are refusing to budge on this."

Presumably both MPs Kate Hoey and Simon Hughes will be voting against the EU budget deal - a clear waste of billions of pounds a year of public money.

The government plans to give this money to an organisation that, for twelve years in a row, hasn't been able to get auditors approval for its accounts, while there's clearly not enough money to go around London's NHS trusts.

Blocking the EU budget deal and making this saving would be an obvious source of much more money than is needed to prevent these NHS cuts.