Draft budget for Health and Social Care in Wales published

Press Release 16/10/02 from the Welsh Assembly

The draft budget announced by Finance Minister Edwina Hart provides a
significant increase for Health and Social Care in Wales, Health and
Social Services Minister Jane Hutt said today.
"The draft budget increases funding for the NHS in Wales for 2003-04 to
£3.8 billion - around £1,295 for every man, woman and child in the
country," she said. "This is an increase of 50 per cent over the £2.5
billion health budget which the Assembly inherited in 1999.
"Out of the additional £322 million for the NHS the new Local Health
Boards will receive a £205 million increase in their allocations for
next year to fund hospital services and primary health care 
"With this new money we will make further progress to improve our key
services , including cancer, coronary heart disease and mental health. 
"On top of the £205 million there is funding for a new Performance and
Financial Management Fund which will also provide money towards the new
consultants' contracts. We are also providing extra funding for the new
GP contract and Agenda for Change.
"Another major development is an increase of £21m (16 per cent) for NHS
Education and Training which will further increase the numbers of
medical, nursing and allied health profession students. This also
includes funding clinical schools in North Wales, Gwent and the Swansea
Clinical Graduate School.
In addition there will be other increases in revenue funding including
the following:
*       £39 million (9 per cent) for the cost of drugs 
*       £4 million additional allocation increase for areas of greatest
need under Professor Townsend's formula, 
*       £1 million for Innovations in Care, 
*       £3.2 million for Information Management and Technology; 
*       £2 million to expand NHS Direct; 
*       £2.5 million for the emergency ambulance services; 
*       £1 million for low vision aids; 
*       Over half a million pounds to strengthen Community Health
Councils; 
*       £0.5 million to complete the expansion of the NHS Breast
Screening programme which began in 2001-02; 
*       £0.7 million for new technology audiology aids 
*       £1 million for the Welsh Blood Service to improve
blood-screening tests, 
*       £0.8 million for the roll-out across Wales of universal neonatal
hearing screening which was introduced in two areas in 2002-03.
For social services, in addition to the extra money that will come to
councils through the local government revenue settlement and over and
above the published plans for 2003-4 I will be providing: 
*       an extra £6.1m for services and organisations supporting
children 
*       an extra £ 0.5m for the Children's Commissioner 
*       £12.4m to help to help to relieve delayed transfers of care and
to continue the 6 weeks free home care scheme 
*       an extra £2.5m to social services workforce reforms and
training. 
"I am also providing up to £1m for the voluntary sector to support
Building the Bridges with the Local Health Boards. There will also be
£0.25 million in 2003-04 to further development of advocacy services
across Wales for people with learning disabilities. This will be
followed by a further £7 million in extra resources in the next two
years to fund this and our other responses to the 'Fulfilling the
Promises' report 
"The budget for 2003-4 also includes £1m to begin the implementation of
the Older Person's Strategy which I will launch in the New Year. 
"I am delighted to be able to announce today that I have agreed with the
Finance Minister an additional £20 million package of funding for
2002-03. This will cover £5 million to the NHS to ease the Winter
Pressures and improve Waiting Times, £13 million for equipment and small
scale capital spending capital investment package in-year, and £2
million for social services to tackle delayed transfers of care. I shall
provide further details to the Health and social services Committee next
week.
"I also have been discussing the development of NHS capital schemes from
2003-04 with the Finance Minister, and will be making a number of
further announcements over the next few weeks. However, I can today
confirm that, subject to business case approval, there will be capital
funding over and above the funding in the draft Budget tables for:
*       an £8 million scheme, including land acquisition for new
services in Tenby and South Pembrokeshire 
*       public funding for the new community hospital for Ebbw
Vale/Blaenau Gwent; 
*       public funding for the new community hospital in Merthyr Tydfil;

*       public funding for the redevelopment of community health care
services in Cynon Valley. 
"The Finance Minister has also announced that Derek Wanless has agreed
to review Health and Social Care in Wales and report to the Welsh
Assembly Government. I welcome this review and we look forward to
working with Derek. His report will assist us to set the agenda for the
NHS and its further modernisation and reform in Wales."
(16 October, 2002)