Public health spending cuts condemned by RCN

The Royal College of Nursing has criticised the government for the potentially damaging impact of its newest plans for public health spending cuts.

Following the Department of Health's announcement that equal cuts of 6.2 percent will be imposed on all local authority health budgets, the RCN has protested that this will undermine preventative public health measures and cement current health inequalities.

According to the royal college, this move will impact the most deprived communities hardest, as help will not be available to patients when they need it most, thus potentially plunging them into a spiral of health deprivation.

Janet Davies, chief executive and general secretary of the RCN, said: "The current government has been expressing very laudable intentions in terms of prevention and public health, but the finances are going in a completely different direction."

The RCN is one of a number of organisations representing healthcare professionals that have been highly critical of the government's approach to NHS funding over the last few years.