This is the Liberal Democrats’ first election manifesto commitment; to invest an extra £6bn a year in our NHS & Social Care system.
This new funding will be paid for through an immediate 1p rise on all rates of income tax.
This funding will be ring-fenced to be spent only on the NHS and social care and will provide vital services with the money they desperately need until a longer-term solution can be found.
This is our flagship spending commitment and our first major policy announcement for the election.
Our manifesto will also set out a ‘five-point recovery plan’ for NHS and social care services.
As he made the announcement, Liberal Democrat Leader, Tim Farron, said:
“. People are lying on trolleys in hospital corridors and she has done nothing. The truth is you can’t have a strong NHS with a Hard Brexit.”
“The Liberal Democrats will rescue the NHS and social care. We are prepared to be honest with people and say that we will all need to chip in a little more.”
“It is not too late to change Britain’s future. , Labour are too weak to stand up to them, so we will. The Liberal Democrats will be the strong opposition Britain needs.”
Liberal Democrat Shadow Secretary of State for Health, Norman Lamb, added:
“The NHS was once the envy of the world and this pledge is the first step in restoring it to where it should be.”
“A penny on the pound to save the NHS is money well spent in our view.”
“Simply providing more money on its own is not enough and that’s why this is just the first step in our plan to protect health and care services long-term.”
“We also need to do much more to keep people fit and healthy and out of hospital, and that is why this new funding will be targeted to those areas that have the greatest impact on patient care such as social care, general practice, mental health and public health.”
The Lib Dem 5-step plan for the NHS & Social Care: