UNISON has demanded a ‘full disclosure’ of moves to privatise Staffordshire cancer services and warned NHS commissioners that ‘secrecy is against the public interest’.
The union has written to the four Clinical Commissioning Groups that have quietly embarked on the £1bn tender for health services in Staffordshire.
Unison said in a statement: ‘The £1bn procurement process could lead to the privatisation of Staffordshire cancer and end of life care, affecting the lives of many thousands of patients and staff.’
Christina McAnea, Unison’s national secretary for health said: ‘This is by far the biggest procurement process in the NHS and is a dangerous experiment.
‘We are talking about £1bn of taxpayers’ money and contracts lasting ten years in vital cancer services and end of life care.
‘Clinical Commissioning Groups are potentially handing over all decision-making on these crucial services to private companies.
‘This is much bigger than just asking private companies to provide a service; this is asking them to design the whole system.
‘With profit as the main driving force, how can it not lead to problems?
‘Decisions about the future of these services are being taken behind closed doors. Patients, the public, and staff have a right to see all relevant documents about the business case and strategy behind the decision to outsource these services.
‘They also need to be involved in shaping the future of these services, which we believe should be kept firmly within the NHS.’
Meanwhile, Margaret Hodge, Chair of the Committee of Public Accounts has issued a warning about the prospect of a quarter of hospital trusts going into debt and facing ‘failure’.
She said: ‘These are tough times for the NHS. The number of NHS foundation trusts in difficulty is growing, and this casts doubt on Monitor’s effectiveness as their regulator.
‘Over a quarter of foundation trusts, 39 out of 147, were predicted to be in deficit at the end of 2013-14, evidence of the increasing financial challenges they are facing.
‘By December 2013, 25 trusts – one in six – were in breach of the conditions set when they were awarded foundation trust status.
‘These trusts are suffering from serious financial pressures, poor leadership or both, and some have been allowed to go on struggling for more than four years. Monitor has got to get much better at identifying and taking radical action in trusts at risk of failure.’
She warned: ‘Furthermore there are potential conflicts between Monitor’s traditional role of regulating NHS foundation trusts and the new responsibilities it has been given in the health sector.
‘At present Monitor relies heavily on consultants and it is not clear whether the organisation can build the capacity to carry out effectively its expanded remit.
‘Responsibility for overseeing the provision of healthcare is fragmented, and there is a strong risk of regulatory overlaps and gaps between Monitor’s role and those of other bodies, including the Care Quality Commission, the NHS Trust Development Authority, NHS England and the Department of Health.’
