Plaid Cymru calls for public enquiry into Betsi Cadwaladr failures
Plaid Cymru has called for a public enquiry into the running of Betsi Cadwaladr Health Board after it was put back into special measures, just over two years after it came out.
Rhun ap Iorwerth, the party’s spokesperson on health and care, and Member of Senedd for Ynys Môn, has repeatedly called for the replacing of Betsi with new, smaller health boards.
But with that call being rejected by the Welsh Government, he said that a full public inquiry must be established to “protect patients” from long standing problems with the health board, which are yet to be satisfactorily resolved.
Responding to Mr ap Iorwerth in the Senedd today, Health Minister Eluned Morgan said: “I’m certainly not going to agree with the call for a public inquiry.”
Damning
Rhun ap Iorwerth said: “The patients and staff of Betsi Cadwaladr deserve better.
“Damning report after damning report detailing wrong treatment being given – even amputation, patients dying when they shouldn’t, and to top it off, £122 million going missing.
“Questions about the board’s structures and leadership have damaged this health board for so many years with most of its time in existence having been in some level of government intervention – yet the Health Minister says it ‘wasn’t her job’ to have a grasp on things.
“We’ve called for the health board to be split up – we’ve been told ‘no.’ We’ve called for the health minister to go – we’ve been told ‘no.’ All the while patients and staff continue to be let down, time and time again.
“If the Health Minister won’t share with me my ambition to look forward to a fresh start with new health boards, then we need to have a proper look back to learn more about the lessons that need to be learnt – but she doesn’t want to do that either.
“We’re going round in ever decreasing circles, and the Health Minister is intent on dragging health in the north down with her.”
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That is all she was put there for Rhun, to be a block on any inquiry, be it Covid, BC or any other thing that might show up those in power…
I suggest the trip to London of MD and VG when the Baroness took over from Vaughan also needs looking at in detail…
I agree, especially as it has been revealed this week that the person in charge of the Health Board is on £229k a year!
Spot on, Rhun , and the current state of Betsi is one of main reasons you should reconsider standing for Westminster, without Plaid Cymru standing up to challenge why citizens of the North of Wales are having to put up with such shabby political management of Betsi, who else will, Tories wll want to privatise it and farm services to the private sector. Wales NHS is not part of the co operation agreement with Welsh Labour and thus the urgently needed restructuring of Betsi Cadwaladr back into at least 2 seperate trusts must be the main focus before even contemplating… Read more »
“Tories wll want to privatise it and farm services to the private sector.”
NHS Wales is entirely controlled by Welsh Government. The only way this could happen is if the Tories win control of the Senedd. Thankfully this has a vanishingly low level of likelihood.
It appears that for some strange reason the Labour party is content with the status quo in North Wales. It is clear that this health board has been significantly underperforming for a long time.
Baroness Eluned Morgan just seems to say ‘no’ to any suggestions that are made to improve things and is unable to fix the health problems in the north herself. The health secretary is now becoming part of the problem. Mark Drakeford should demand real improvements or appoint someone who can make the changes that are required.