Real terms increase for Scottish Health Boards as UK Health Secretary jeered

Friday, 10 February 2012 22:36

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NHS boards across Scotland are to benefit from a real terms increase of 2.9 per cent in their funding in 2012-13.

The news comes on the same day that Westminster Health Secretary Andrew Lansley was greeted by protesters opposed to his changes to the English NHS, as he arrived to give a speech at the Royal College of Surgeons in Edinburgh.

In Scotland territorial boards will benefit from £7.761 billion, while special boards will receive £1.040 billion.

In addition, figures indicate that revenue funding for territorial health boards is likely to increase further by 3.3 per cent in 2013-14 and by 3.1 per cent in 2014-15.

Health Secretary Nicola Sturgeon said:

“The Scottish Government is committed to protecting spending on health, and this budget allocation reflects an increase in real terms for every territorial health board across Scotland.

“Despite a difficult economic climate, we know how important it is that we continue to invest in frontline NHS services, and that is why the core budgets of all territorial health boards are increasing in real terms.

“Sustained investment in our national health service will ensure that boards continue to have the necessary resources to bring about real benefits to both patients and staff, and that we can deliver a first class service to patients across the country.

“This funding will help us continue to provide more sustainable, high quality and improving healthcare services. It will also support the integration of prison healthcare into the NHS, enable the Scottish Ambulance Service to implement the meal break settlement, and it will help us deliver the 18 week referral to treatment waiting times standard.”