Mass Exodus? Figures show number of Welsh NHS patients using English NHS is FALLING since 2010

The Tories have been trying to use the Welsh NHS as a stick with which to beat the Labour Party, so it wasn’t too surprising to see the Daily Mail parroting Tory attack lines today with this front page splash:

Now if you look beyond the (largely anecdotal) stories and carefully selected numbers in Daily Mail piece and look at the complete figures (available here) – they reveal that the number of Welsh patients using the NHS in England is actually falling. Here’s how they look as a graph:

The Labour Party (understandably) aren’t happy with the Mail’s reporting. A Labour source attacked the Daily Mail this afternoon, telling us:

“This is a politically-motivated smear. They are peddling a series of half-truths and downright lies.”

We’re expecting a sustained assault on Labour and the NHS from the Mail, as they seek to undermine one of the party’s traditional strengths to benefit the Tories ahead of election day. We’ll continue to check their reporting for the facts…