SAM ROWLANDS, Member of the Welsh Parliament for North Wales, wants the Welsh Government to do more to support hospice care.
Speaking in the Senedd, Mr Rowlands, Shadow Health Minister, called for a statement from the Cabinet Secretary for Health and Social Care on the future funding and sustainability of hospice care in Wales.
He said: “The vast majority of work undertaken by hospices, which is absolutely fantastic, is done on a charitable basis, with around 24% of funding being received on the clinical side of the work that they do, so the vast majority of the work they do is done through raising charitable funds.
“I met with a North Wales hospice just last week who outlined to me that the recent change in National Insurance contributions is going to cost them £130,000 a year alone, and including the change in the national minimum wage and the differentials, it will put an additional pressure on their budget of around £400,000 a year, just to stand still to deliver those excellent services that they seek to deliver.
“I think it would be really helpful if the Cabinet Secretary could provide that statement on the future funding and sustainability of those really important hospices here in Wales, so that we can see them function to the best of their ability in the future as well.”
Jane Hutt, Cabinet Secretary for Social Justice, said they were looking at how they can support particularly the third sector and charitable organisations in relation to National Insurance increases for employers.
Mr Rowlands added: “The Welsh Labour Government should be doing much more to support our hospices in the face of the rise in National Insurance contributions announced by their colleagues in the UK Labour Government.
“These places rely mainly on charitable funding and donations to keep running and deserve government support as they provide an important and vital service.”
