Rishi Sunak has refused to accept that the NHS is in crisis, despite the acknowledging the “enormous pressure” the health service is currently under this winter.
The prime minister also refused to say whether he uses a private GP – insisting the issue is a “distraction from the things that really matter”.
Asked about overwhelmed emergency services, record waiting lists and whether the NHS was “in crisis”, Mr Sunak told BBC’s Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg: “The NHS is undeniably under enormous pressure.”
Pointing to the Covid pressures, the PM added: “Recovering from Covid is going to be tough and we’re seeing that play out on our TV screens every day and in communities up and down the country”.
Mr Sunak refused three times to discuss reports that he uses a private GP, saying: “As a general policy I wouldn’t ever talk about me or my family’s healthcare situation … it’s not really relevant, what’s relevant is the difference I can make to the country.”
Asked if he was registered with a private GP, Mr Sunak said: “Yeah, my dad was a doctor. I grew up in a NHS family.” Asked why he won’t tell people if he used a private GP, he replied: “It’s just a personal choice. I think healthcare is somewhat private.”
The PM also said he wanted to have a “reasonable, honest, two-way conversation about pay” with the unions – but suggested health secretary Steve Barclay would only talk about next year’s pay settlement when he meets NHS union chiefs on Monday.
Mr Barclay has hinted at pay increases on the table if the unions will agree to efficiency savings to make higher salaries more “affordable” – but will try to discuss the 2023-24 pay review process, which starts in April, rather than this financial year’s pay row.
Despite Mr Barclay’s previous refusal to discuss pay with the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) and other health workers’ unions, Mr Sunak denied it amounted to a shift in the government’s stance.
“The door has always been open,” the prime minister told the BBC. “When it comes to pay, we’ve always said we want to talk about things that are affordable, that are reasonable.”
Pressed again if ministers were willing to talk about pay for this financial year, he said: “We have to look now – we’re about to start a new pay settlement round for this year [2023-24]. Before that process starts, the government is keen to sit down with the unions and talk about pay, and make sure they understand where we’re coming from.”
Mr Barclay is expected to unveil extra funding to expand bed capacity in hospitals and care homes as part of package to be announced on Monday.
Hundreds of millions of pounds will be spent on block buying thousands of care home beds, according to the Sunday Times, in a bid to free up 1,000 to 2,000 hospital beds and ease pressure on emergency services.
The government’s plans will also propose more “virtual wards”, in which patients are “remotely monitored” in their own homes, using wearable devices, according to the Telegraph.
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