As a bonus for the first day (and knowing I'll be away for a few), here's a second:
The key to
understanding this commitment is that although it’s quite generous compared to
Labour, it was utterly unfunded. The Conservatives produced this one when the
NHS began to be an issue in the campaign but gave no information about where
the money would come from. A party claiming to be fiscally responsible should
probably have plans for finding £8bn. Most people in this country like the idea
of the NHS being better-funded, but an open and honest politician would have
explained what would lose out.
By not even mentioning
who the planned losers would be (if there was a plan at all), the Conservatives
failed to be honest about how budgeting works. They gave the emotional
impression that they could fund everything worthwhile, but did it through being
irresponsible.
It’s also important to
note that the plan for the NHS which suggested that it needed £8bn more was
already pretty harsh, anticipating deep cuts (efficiency savings of a scale
that have never been achieved and that are required on top of ‘savings’ already
seen) in services.
£8bn in funding does
not address the structural problems the Conservatives introduced, nor the
massive long-term issues that the NHS faces. No mention was made of the
Conservatives’ attachment to PFI, the system that is bankrupting hospitals
across the country.
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