Cash Crisis at Basingstoke Hospital

This week's announcement of funding cuts at Basingstoke Hospital is a cause for great concern. (see Gazette, Monday 8th March). At a time when the population served by the Hospital continues to increase, this is a double blow. Whilst the hospital NHS trust will do its best to manage the process, much of the real change needed is beyond their powers.

The Government is currently committed to making billions of "efficiency savings" in the NHS and further cuts are likely as the UK deals with a debt mountain. Labour ministers are happy to take the credit for success in the NHS but are nowhere to be seen when care is compromised.

Local people have been let down by Labour. Last week Labour councillors in Basingstoke were delivering a leaflet which states "Labour invests in Basingstoke NHS".

What a joke. Contrast the amount of fuss they have made about who is to be Mayor with their lack of anything useful to say about the funding crisis problems at our local hospital.

Residents will be worried. A national survey in the current issue of the Nursing Times reveals horror stories of patients being treated in areas of the hospital not designed for clinical care. Beds are being put in the middle of wards, patients are being put on trolleys in corridors, cupboards and kitchens as hospitals struggle to cope. There has been the scandal at Mid-Staffordshire NHS Trust were up to 1,200 people died needlessly. Residents will want to know if these are warnings that will be heeded or the shape of things to come.

We can reform the NHS to redirect many to health care. The Liberal Democrats believe that the NHS needs to be put under local control

Anyone working in the NHS knows that the government sets so many tests and ask so many unnecessary questions that each hospital now employs an army of clerks simply to respond. What we need is common sense regulations that don't waste health professional's time. This would drastically reduce costs across the NHS and free staff to concentrate on patient care.

Reducing central control would mean fewer civil servants are needed. By reducing the size of the central bureaucracy could lead to enormous efficiency savings. Lib Dems would halve the cost of civil servants in the dept of health over four years.

There are too many unelected quangos - these need to be cut back or scrapped. There are 14 different bodies "scrutinising" the local NHS. Only a tiny fraction of the health budget is spent on preventing people getting ill in the first place. Lib Dems would increase that spend. Prevention is better than cure.

We can spend money more wisely and improve patient care.