Labour: Millions more people will be on NHS waiting lists under Tory plans

31 May 17

Conservative plans would leave 5.5m people on waiting lists in England by 2022, according to a Labour document released today.

This would be 1.8m more than at present, Labour said in an attack on the Conservative’s public services record and manifesto pledges.

Labour reiterates in The NHS and Schools at Risk its pledge to spend billions of pounds on public services, as set out in its general election manifesto.

The research also said Conservative plans would leave almost 1.5 million older and vulnerable people with unmet social care needs by 2022.

The Conservative manifesto has outlined an extra £8bn in real-terms for health care by 2022 as well as controversial reforms to social care funding, which raise the cost of social care threshold from £23,000 to £100,000.

Labour has pledged a to raise billions by taxing the top 5% of earners to pay for £37bn investment into the NHS and £8bn in social care.

Conservative spending plans would also leave 650,000 pupils in “supersized” primary school classes of over 30 pupils, the analysis suggested.

Labour has also argued families will be £450 poorer per child as a result of the Tories’ plan to scrap free school meals for 1.7 million children.

Theresa May has promised to invest £4bn more in schools, partly funded by scrapping free school meals and replacing them with free breakfasts instead.

Corbyn has pledged to cap class sizes at 30 for five, six and seven-year-olds and providing free school meals to all primary school children by removing VAT exemption on private school fees.

The party has committed to invest £6.3bn into schools to reverse the real-terms funding cuts due to hit schools by 2022 and increase per pupil spending.

Speaking at the launch of their public services document in London, Corbyn said: “The futures of our NHS and schools are at stake in this election.

“Over the last seven years the Tories have starved the public services we rely on of resources, running them down and pushing them into disrepair."

He said Thersea May’s government would be “disastrous” for public services and they would be plunged into further crisis with more underfunding.

Work and pensions secretary, Damian Green, told the BBC: "Made-up numbers from Corbyn cannot hide the fact he's not up to the job of getting the deal we need.

"Theresa May has the plan to get the right Brexit deal, keep our economy strong, and invest billions more in public services. But a loss of just six seats and Theresa May's government will lose its majority."

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