Car Parking Charges Abolished in Welsh Hospitals - Chaos Ensues

Car park Charges abolished and then chaos ensues

At the beginning of the financial year in gods country (Wales) the first minister announced that car parking fees, the subject of much controversy in the principality and elsewhere, were to be abolished. This 'lead' was not followed by the Department of Health in the UK at large who said England would not be following the Welsh example -"We have no plans of forcing hospitals in England to subsidise their car parks with resources that could be used to improve and speed up patient care," a spokesman said. Who went on "It would also be contrary to the Government's climate change objectives." Conservative health spokesman Stephen O'Brien said: "For the Department of Health to say that free parking in hospitals is contrary to their climate change objectives is quite desperate and I doubt sick patients want to harm the planet. Now this is where the conservatives have it wrong.

A nice populist move in Wales it is very easy for ministers to make announcement for which they bear no consequences. We are going to abolish car-parking means you (the Trusts) have to do it and by the way you will have to find the money out of one of your budgets we are not paying. So an announcement is made and politicians take the 'pat on the back' and they have actually done nothing but create a problem elsewhere. The actual amount we are talking about are not very large about Ł1M earned for the average trust but never-the-less has to be found out of the budget - so where do we cut? A million pounds per trust equates to being able to treat 10,000 kidney cancer patients nationally with the very expensive treatment required - there are only 3000 patients diagnosed per year roughly but it gives an idea of what sort of balances have to be made by Trusts. By politicians inventing yet another 'right' in the NHS without any acknowledgement of responsibility has forced another difficult balancing act.

The more practical bad consequences of the above move became apparent when I had to drive over to Wales to visit my father who was poorly following an operation at the Royal Gwent in Newport. I approached the vicinity of the Hospital and saw that it was Completely Gridlocked. There were cars everywhere trying to get into the car-park, ambulances could hardly get in and the scheduled bus service that stops inside the grounds by the main entrance was blocked. Furthermore, there were five yellow vested car-parking guys trying to control things and at least allow the ambulances in - it was complete bedlam and this scene is repeated every day. I was talking to one man who could not get into the site to pick up a patient being released for good behaviour he thought the car park should be used only for those dropping off or picking up actual patients and not just for visiting. So a political gesture at the alter of the NHS being free at point of use has caused a marked deterioration in parking service, the patients who really need to use the facility are blocked, has removed the contribution from those who insist on using their cars, and added to the costs of the Trust to manage the mayhem caused to boot.

Royston