NHS Wales is set to receive an extra £450m as part of the Welsh Government’s 2024/25 budget.
The additional funding supplements the extra £425m announced in October for the remainder of the financial year, and which was baselined into the budget for the future.
Ultimately, this means that health budget will see a 4% increase for 2024/25, compared to less than 1% in England.
Overall though, the Welsh budget is worth £1.3bn less in real terms than when it originally set in 2021.
During the development of the draft budget, the finance minister, Rebecca Evans, said that Welsh ministers had faced the “most stark” and “painful” budget choices in decades.
Today, we published our Draft Budget for 2024-25.
— Welsh Government (@WelshGovernment) December 19, 2023
Our spending plans for this year focus on the services that matter the most to you.
We joined Finance Minister Rebecca Evans as she visited @torfaencouncil to meet the people who deliver those services day in and day out. pic.twitter.com/YCi2Ki674G
Evans said: “We have been presented with the most stark and painful budget choices in the devolution era. We have reshaped departmental spending plans so that we can invest more in the NHS and protect core local government funding for schools, social care and the other services we rely on every day.”
Responding to the announcement, the Welsh NHS Confederation’s director, Darren Hughes, acknowledged the challenging financial backdrop the budget was developed against.
Hughes emphasised that the NHS is not the only contributing factor to health and sufficient funding for other sectors that impact wider determinants must be ensured, including social care.
In the Welsh budget, the core local government settlement which helps to fund social care was protected, with a 3.1% increase.
Hughes said: “We need an open and honest conversation with the public about what the future health and care service looks like to ensure future sustainability.
“The whole public service must ensure any spending decisions are planned to make the biggest impact on the lives of the communities they serve, supporting the health and wellbeing of the population, tackling inequalities and responding to the cost-of-living crisis to prevent further harm to the most vulnerable.”
The Welsh Government has indicated it will examine whether charges for certain services may be increased to provide extra funding for public services and higher education – this could impact NHS dental care, university tuition fees and domiciliary care.
Image credit: iStock
