NHS Devon chair Sarah Wollaston quits in protest over 'further cuts' to spending
The chair of NHS Devon has resigned, saying she "did not feel able to sign off on a further cut" as the budget for local health services is "already stretched too far."
Dr Sarah Wollaston, a former GP and Conservative MP, was appointed chair of the Integrated Care System for Devon in December 2021.
She wrote on X, formerly Twitter, that she was "genuinely sad" to be leaving and thanked staff for doing their "very best in challenging circumstances."
"In a nutshell, I'm not happy as chair to sign off on the financials so time for me to go," she said.
"No point promising the unachievable, especially if only achievable with unacceptable consequences".
Dr Wollaston, who has also previously stood for the Lib Dems, warned about "unacceptable consequences" to services from the lack of available funding.
She said she took on the role with a desire to focus on health inequalities, prevention and repairs to NHS infrastructure. But, she said, there is no money in the system to be able to do that.
"It really makes no sense to 'punish' the most challenged systems with penalties on their capital budgets when access to capital is essential to improving their performance, conditions and safety," she said.
Dr Wollaston was the former Conservative MP for Totnes before she joined the Liberal Democrats and lost her seat in the 2019 election.
She is not standing in the 2024 election and told ITV West Country her decision to leave NHS Devon was not political.
In a statement, Dr Wollaston said it had "not been an easy decision," but added the "time is right for me to step back to allow a new Chair to work with the Board on delivering the performance and financial plans for this year and beyond."
She also said she was "hugely proud" of the way "partners across Devon have worked together to improve services, including pioneering work in elective care at the Nightingale Hospital, delivering millions of Covid vaccinations, improving 111, reducing waiting times and forging new ways of working together in provider collaboratives."
Elizabeth O’Mahony, South West Regional Director at NHS England, thanked Sarah for her "valuable contribution" and said work is underway to appoint her successor.
"I want to thank Sarah for stepping into the role of interim chair for NHS Devon and for staying in it for over two years, which was much longer than originally planned.
"We will now make arrangements to appoint a substantive chair and in the meantime welcome Kevin, as an experienced member of the Board, who is stepping into the role on an interim basis."
Interim Chairman Mr Orford said he is "really grateful to have had the opportunity to work with Sarah" and wished her all the best for the future.
The Conservative Party has said it plans to boost community care by expanding Pharmacy First, as well as building 100 new GP surgeries and modernising 150 more if they were relected to government.
Labour has said they will "pay NHS staff properly for overtime to work evening and weekend shifts to bust the backlog – paid for by abolishing non-dom tax loophole for the very wealthy."
The party added it will provide 700,000 extra dental appointments each year if Labour is elected to government.
The Liberal Democrats have said they plan to "tackle the health crisis from top to bottom," sorting the NHS backlog, freeing up more dental appointments and taking pressure off staff in the healthcare system.
The party has pledged a £9bn package for health and social care, which they said would be funded by hiking taxes for banks and closing finance loopholes used by the super-rich.
NHS Devon said Kevin Orford has stepped into the role on an interim basis.