NHS money Ringfence spending on prevention, experts urge

Rachel Reeves is being urged to use next week's budget to ringfence health spending on prevention so it is protected from cuts when money is tight.

- Larry Elliott

A letter sent to the chancellor by a leading health charity, thinktanks and the body that represents accountants says carving out a new category of preventive spending would mean a healthier population and save the NHS money.

The letter, seen by the Guardian, welcomes Labour's emphasis on prevention but says there has been a long history of previous administrations making similar promises only for services that affect health outcomes to become a casualty of pressures on day-to-day budgets and a victim of short-term thinking.

Analysis by the Health Foundation-one of the signatories - showed that in the five years leading up to the pandemic (2014-19) spending on hospitals rose by 10%. The share of health spending devoted to prevention fell by 10% during that period.

Anita Charlesworth, the Health Foundation's chief economist, said a shift was needed "so we are spending more on prevention and less of failure".