Re: What went right elsewhere?
Wales did not seem to be as badly hit and they are part of the same NHS as England
No they are not. Health is one of the devolved areas and NHS Wales is completely separate (as far as I'm aware) from NHS England. From what I see, the structure is a lot "flatter" than in England, with seven Local Health Boards, rather than innumerable tiny bodies.
Funding, however, is subject to the whims of the UK government which effectively means the English government. Health is one of those areas where it sounds as if Welsh (and Scottish etc.) MPs should not have a say on English policy (the so-called West Lothian question), but as I understand it the Welsh government grant as calculated by the somewhat out-of-kilter Barnet Formula is directly related to spending in England, thus if English MPs decide to reduce NHS funding in England, a proportional amount is removed from the Welsh Government grant, even if the policy in Wales is to maintain or increase funding for the NHS. Money then has to be transferred from other budgets.
Education is another devolved area where the structure is different in Wales to England.
M.
Biting the hand that feeds IT
