2.30pm
The Cabinet referred the following to this Committee for consideration:
(a) Proposed Cuts to Devon Health Services and Impacts on Patients (Councillor Biederman)
‘This Council is deeply concerned about the impact the proposed cuts to Devon health services will have on patients – especially the loss of whole departments including maternity services at North Devon District Hospital - and massive reduction in acute and community hospital beds across Devon, as set out in the sustainable transformation plan.
This Council also recognises that Governments have deliberately not provided the NHS with the adequate level of funding and now calls on local MPs to lobby government ministers to urgently and significantly increase the level of funding to the NHS, in order to protect our precious health services for current and future generations’.
(b) NHS Success Regime (Councillor Greenslade)
‘County Council believes that the NHS Success Regime project for Devon is now seriously flawed and accordingly calls on the Secretary of State for Health and NHS England to cancel it forthwith. County Council further calls on Government and NHS England to firstly address the issue of fair funding for our area and to ensure the general election promise of an extra £8 billion of funding for the NHS is taken into account when assessing the claimed deficit for Devon NHS services.
Until funding issues are addressed it is not possible to decide whether or not there is a local NHS budget deficit to be addressed. Unnecessary cuts to local NHS budgets must be avoided!
Devon MP’s be asked to support this approach to protecting Devon NHS services”
The Cabinet had resolved
“that the aforementioned Notices of Motion be referred to the Heath & Wellbeing Scrutiny Committee for consideration and report back”
Minutes:
(Councillor Biederman attended in accordance with Standing Order 25 and spoke to this item)
The Chairman noted that the Council’s Cabinet had previously agreed (Minute 82 refers) as promised by the Leader of the Council on 6 October 2016 (Minutes 55 and 56 thereof refer) to refer the Notices of Motion set out in the names of Councillors and Biederman to this Committee for consideration to this Committee for consideration and report back to a future meeting of the Cabinet.
The Chairman reported that additional issues relating to fair funding for health services in Devon would be investigated by the joint Task Group (with members from Corporate Services Scrutiny Committee) reporting in January 2017. Representations on funding for health services in Devon (and concerns about the Sustainable and Transformation Plan process) had been sent to the Secretary of State by the Chairman following the last meeting and a response by the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Community Health and Care had been circulated to Members of the Committee (also circulated at the meeting).
The Committee was now invited to consider any amendments it might wish to offer the Cabinet on the Notices of Motion
It was MOVED by Councillor Greenslade, SECONDED by Councillor Morse and
RESOLVED that the Cabinet be advised that the Notices of Motion should be accepted as now amended (shown below) in order that Cabinet may make a formal recommendation to Council for consideration on 10 December 2016, noting also the response from the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Community Health and Care to earlier representations made on behalf of the Scrutiny Committee about the Sustainability and Transformation Plan and funding:
Proposed Cuts to Devon Health Services and Impacts on Patients (Councillor Biederman)
‘This Council is deeply concerned about the impact the proposed cuts to Devon health services will have on patients – especially the loss of whole departments including maternity services at North Devon District Hospital - and massive reduction in acute and community hospital beds across Devon, as set out in the sustainable transformation plan.
This Council also recognises that Governments have
[deliberately] not
provided the NHS with a
fair [the
adequate] level of funding and now calls on local MPs
to lobby government ministers to urgently and significantly
increase the level of funding to the NHS, in order to protect our
precious health services for current and future
generations’.
NHS Success Regime (Councillor Greenslade)
‘County Council
believes that the NHS Success Regime project for Devon is now
[seriously] flawed and accordingly asks [calls on]
the Secretary of State for Health and NHS England to put the process on hold, until issues relating to
the ‘independence’ of the Success Regime are
investigated and for fair funding to be considered[cancel it
forthwith]. County Council further calls on Government
and NHS England to firstly address the issue of fair funding for
our area and to ensure the general election promise of an extra
£8 billion of funding for the NHS is taken into account when
assessing the claimed deficit for Devon NHS
services.
Until funding issues are addressed it is not possible to decide whether or not there is a local NHS budget deficit to be addressed. Unnecessary cuts to local NHS budgets must be avoided!
Devon MP’s be asked to support this approach to protecting Devon NHS services”