Health plans highlight urgent need for extra funding

Long-awaited plans for the future of health services in South Cumbria have finally been released today. The plans show the urgent need for extra NHS funding, according to local MP Tim Farron. The plans show a projected deficit of £572 million by 2021, and would cost an estimated £160 million to implement.

The plans were drawn up behind closed doors but have finally been publicly released today. However, compared to similar documents released elsewhere in the country, the plans contain very few details about what they would mean in practice for local services.

Tim said: "It is right that these plans have finally been published, so that the public can take part in the debate about the future of our local NHS. However, at the moment these plans tell us almost nothing about what these changes would actually mean.

"Although this document tells us very little about what the plans would mean for our health services, it does highlight the financial crisis that our NHS faces. By 2021, the NHS in our area faces a deficit of £572 million. Even just to implement these proposals, the local NHS will need an extra £160 million.

"The government should come clean about the real-life impact of this funding shortage. We desperately need a public debate about the urgent need for extra cash for our NHS. The government can't just bury its head in the sand and pretend everything will be fine."