Political opinion: Mid Sussex Lib Dem candidate calls for emergency Health and Care Budget to rescue local services

This is a contributed party political press release. This website and its associated newspapers support no political party and it does not necessarily reflect our views. We consider contributed releases from all lawful parties as part of the vibrant debate in the run-up to the General Election and would encourage all candidates to use this platform to positively explain their vision and policies for their local communities.

The Liberal Democrat manifesto has set out proposals for an extra £9 billion a year of spending on the NHS and care, paid for by asking banks and billionaires to pay their fair share. The new investment in the NHS and care would be funded through additional revenue raised by closing loopholes in Capital Gains Tax exploited by the ultra-wealthy and reversing the Conservative Party’s tax cuts for the big banks.

Liberal Democrat Parliamentary candidate for Mid Sussex, Alison Bennett, said: “Local health services are on their knees. A staggering number of people I talk to on the doorstep have their own stories of not being able to get a GP appointment, register with an NHS dentist, or having been forced to wait for hours in A&E.

“Promised GP surgeries have not been delivered, in east Burgess Hill or south of Haywards Heath. It is essential that people here have convenient access to their doctors, and confidence that when they need to see their GP they don’t need to wait weeks for an appointment.

“Ending the crisis in our NHS has to be the top priority of any government after the election. We must rescue our local health services which have been pushed to the brink by the Conservative party.

“An emergency budget right after the election is the only way we can start to repair the damage done to our communities' health services. People in Mid Sussex should not have to wait for a moment longer to get the care they deserve.”