7. What consideration did the Minister give to healthcare in North Wales when allocating the 2019/20 budget? OAQ53279

Consideration was given to the care needs of the whole of Wales, including north Wales. For 2019-20, funding of £1.46 billion has been allocated to Betsi Cadwaladr University Local Health Board to improve performance, drive transformation and integration and help people live healthier, independent lives for longer.

Diolch. Last month the Countess of Chester Hospital, a fifth of whose patients come from Wales, reported concern that there'd been a 26 per cent increase in delayed transfers of care for its Welsh patients over the previous year. At the same time, there'd been a 24 per cent reduction for patients coming from the English side of the border, the west Cheshire patient catchment area that they service. Officers raised concerns about funding from the Welsh Government. Welsh Government denied claims they were not paying their fair share. The health Minister criticised the trust board chairman in the media. And the Welsh Government said health boards and local authorities were aware of the need to reduce delayed transfers of care and that the rate of improvement had been significantly evident in recent years. Well, clearly, these figures show that wasn't the case. So, clearly, there's a disagreement between the two sides, ongoing for many years, which is now having serious implications on the experience of patients over the funding arrangement. What is going on, Minister? Can you confirm that now or can you drill down and establish what's really going on and report back to this Assembly? 

Thank you for raising this issue. I know, certainly on an all-Wales level, we're seeing some of the lowest levels of delayed transfers of care that we've had since records began, but I appreciate the circumstance you describe is unique in the sense that we're talking about cross-border provision. I'm not aware of the issue but I will certainly have discussions with the health Minister to explore the matter further.