Satisfying the projected increase in demand would require extra revenues of between £34bn and £56bn by 2034. The need for health-centred tax rises is echoed today in a separate proposal by a pair of peers and former health ministers – one Labour, one Conservative. That is the totemic figure advertised by the pro-leave campaign as a bounty to be recovered from EU budget contributions. Every independent analysis points to the need for tax rises but politicians of all stripes, fearing that candour on that point carries a political penalty, seek comfort in procrastination and delusion, of which the “Brexit dividend” is an especially preposterous manifestation. If some good comes from the cynical, dishonest pledges of the leave campaign, it might be a definitive shattering of illusions about NHS funding.

Source: The Guardian May 23, 2018 22:52 UTC