Thank you for the well researched article on the state of the NHS (‘Balancing the books as demand on the NHS soars’, 9 October).

David Smith, chief executive of the Oxfordshire Clinical Commissioning Group, says that meeting government targets is ‘the cornerstone of his job.’ But the evidence is that meeting government targets is simply not possible without additional funds on top of what the government (and for that matter the Labour Opposition) are planning over coming years.

Oxford Mail:

Oxfordshire Clinical Commissioning Group chairman David Smith, right, and the group’s clinical chairman Dr Joe McManners, left, talk to Oxford Mail health reporter Oliver Evans

Indeed a gap of some £20 million between what is needed and what will be provided in Oxfordshire has been projected by the CCG itself.

This is evident in light of reported national trends of longer waiting times, and local cuts such as ending free non-emergency transport from some people, to say nothing of the hundreds of jobs that have been cut in NHS staffing locally.

Today’s letters

This is not to speak, either, of the shortage of funding in social care, with the result of additional pressure on hospital beds. The ‘deep seated problems within the care industry’ of which Mr Smith speaks arise from the privatisation of care homes, profit being put before patient care, and pay cuts in real terms for low paid NHS and care home staff.

CCG clinical chairman Joe McManners is paraphrased as saying that the cost the cost of delivering care is going up from staff pay to new treatments. But (apart from the top managers) pay in the NHS is falling in real (purchasing power) terms. KONP supporters were wholeheartedly behind health workers as they took strike action yesterday morning.

A huge increase in funding for NHS and social care is necessary to bring the UK up to the level of per-head spending we see in most industrialised countries.

Bill MacKeith Secretary,

Oxon Keep Our NHS Public

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