Balls writes to Osborne over NHS ‘false claim’

Today Ed Balls has written to George Osborne, and asked him to withdraw his “false claim” about Labour being responsible for the fall in NHS spending. You can read the letter below:

Balls Letter to Osborne on NHS

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Dear George,

As you will be aware the Treasury’s own documents reveal that NHS spending fell in real terms in 2010/11 – the first year of the new government (1).

This explicitly breaks one of the most important promises made by the Prime Minister before the general election. It is also the first time NHS spending has fallen in real terms since 1996/97 (2).

I notice that in your comments reported in the newspapers today you do not disagree with your own department’s figures showing that NHS spending has fallen in real terms and that this pre-election pledge has already been broken.

However you go on to claim that it was “Labour spending plans” which meant “NHS spending fell”. But as the last Labour government’s Budget clearly shows, under our plans NHS spending was to be £106.6 billion in 2010-11 (3). In fact, you have actually spent just £102.0 billion (4).

You made a false claim and so I ask that you immediately withdraw it.

I look forward to hearing from you.

Yours sincerely,

Ed Balls MP
Shadow Chancellor of the Exchequer

1. http://www.hm-treasury.gov.uk/d/pesa_july_2011_chapter1.xlsx; table 1.9

2. http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/20101128151454/http://www.hm-treasury.gov.uk/d/11.pdf; table 1.4

3. http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/20100407010852/http://www.hm-treasury.gov.uk/d/budget2010_complete.pdf; table C11.

4. http://www.hm-treasury.gov.uk/d/pesa_july_2011_chapter1.xlsx; table 1.8

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