Part of 1. Questions to the First Minister – in the Senedd at 1:39 pm on 23 January 2018.
Well, First Minister, you have to ultimately be responsible and accountable for health. Health is fully devolved and responsible to you. Now, the health board are indicating that they want people treated closer to their homes and in the community, but that's not what the proposals in the leaked document appear to be about. One aspect that could complement existing hospital services is the creation of community hubs with beds, or perhaps more accurately, 'I can't believe it's not a community hospital'. Shutting down community hospitals was once a Labour Government's policy, and it has led to a reduction in beds, and it has been a big mistake. Community services should not be used as an excuse to close district general hospitals. With bed occupancy across the NHS over the safe level of 85 per cent for the last seven years, do you accept that the NHS needs more beds in order to enable it to cope with the additional winter pressures?