Labour blew £11m on health spin in its final 12 months in power

By
Kirsty Walker

Last updated at 12:00 AM on 30th December 2011

Labour blew £11million of taxpayers’ money on health ‘communications’ in its last year in power.

The free spending included a £30,000 campaign to persuade young people to use condoms on foreign holidays.

Latest figures revealed that the outgoing regime presided over an eye-watering 1,000 per cent rise on spinning its health policies.

Big spender: New figures reveal Labour presided over a 1,000 per cent rise on spinning its health policies

Big spender: New figures reveal Labour presided over a 1,000 per cent rise on spinning its health policies

In the decade since 2000, Labour spent £35million on communications at the Department of Health.

The amount splashed out on ‘perception reports, national media evaluations and communications research’ rose every year.

This included soaring from £942,015 to over £11million per year in 2009-10, according to information revealed in a  Parliamentary answer.

One £30,000 campaign was aimed at encouraging young adults to use condoms at 18-30 resorts abroad.

A research paper said it had been ‘well received’ and added: ‘The Jonny character was central to the campaign and was well liked.

He was seen as an easily  understandable and engaging, fun character who was their friend in resort.’

£40,000 was spent on books, modelled on the classic Ladybird series, telling youngsters how to have under-age sex safely

£40,000 was spent on books, modelled on the classic Ladybird series, telling youngsters how to have under-age sex safely

Another campaign with a £63,000 bill was bafflingly entitled NHS Brand Architecture Strategic Research.

The figures suggest that if Labour’s spending on health communications had been unchecked, current spending  levels would have hit £16million  a year.

In March last year, it emerged that the department had also doubled its spending on public relations in just two years – despite the recession.

The cost of private PR consultants rocketed from £5million in 2007 to £9.8million in 2009. The huge increase was the equivalent to paying for 170 nurses earning an average £28,421 salary.

At the time, campaigners accused ministers of using ‘spin’ to cover up substantial cuts to vital health services.

Coalition ministers said they have reduced communications costs by more than £1.5million in their first year in power.

Tory MP Dr Phillip Lee said: ‘It is staggering that the last Labour government spent £11million in a single year on these reports.

‘They were clearly more bothered about fine-tuning their public relations operation than providing quality care for patients.

‘The Coalition is taking action to bring the spending back under control.’

A Labour Party spokesman said: ‘Andy Burnham’s year as Health Secretary saw a world swine flu pandemic, which required additional spending on urgent communication.

‘In comparison, this Government last year cancelled the annual flu injections campaign to cut costs, which was disastrously followed by a winter flu crisis.’

The spokeman dismissed the ‘reheating of figures about the last Government’ and called on the Coalition to ‘explain why they are wasting £3.45billion on a reckless NHS reorganisation’.

Here’s what other readers have said. Why not add your thoughts,
or debate this issue live on our message boards.

The comments below have not been moderated.

Your not still banging on about that are you,Get a life!! What id happening now I wonder.All the time they are all at it, 30000.00 just to improve the Cameron family residence,they are worth it,Yes!Yes!Yes!!!!.Or would it be better spent teaching some youth the finer arts of rolling on a Condom.

At least they wasted it on the British NHS and NOT the Brazilian NHS.

Your not still banging on about that are you,Get a life!! What id happening now I wonder.All the time they are all at it, 30000.00 just to improve the Cameron family residence,they are worth it,Yes!Yes!Yes!!!!.Or would it be better spent teaching some youth the finer arts of rolling on a Condom.

Last 12 months in power? The last 12 months in power were the responsibility of some other goon and not the one pictured above,
There are enough things to blame on Blair, things which he should answer for but by trying and finger him for this crime does you no good. I am now wondering if you have previously pointed the finger at him for things he was not responsible for. Also Brown should be taking responsibility for his Government. I appreciate that the Dm are not labour supporters but what you are doing is exactly what you accuse them of…. Engaging in SPIN.

The sad part is after many years of hardship getting the country back on track, the idiots will one day get back in and financially ruin the country again.

Labour are duplicitous, disgusting and dishonest. Having left an unsustainable legacy of debt and despair, they must NEVER be allowed back into power.

More important than: “Labour blew £11m on health spin in its final 12 months in power” is the fact that you’ll find Labour didn’t care about this then…and perhaps more importantly Labour don’t care about this now.

Blair should be up in court wasting our,tax payers money! He ruined the country, now they blame the Torys for what they are doing! How can you fix it, when it’s well broken?

liquidation.

Tomenfloedoewig as they say where I’m from. Roughly translated it means a flowering dunghill. All pretty on the outside but with a centre of, well you get the message.

The views expressed in the contents above are those of our users and do not necessarily reflect the views of MailOnline.

Views: 0

You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.

Leave a Reply

Powered by WordPress | Designed by: Premium WordPress Themes | Thanks to Themes Gallery, Bromoney and Wordpress Themes