A plea for Welsh Assembly Government support for a hospice in a funding crisis has fallen on deaf ears.
Assembly Member for Clwyd West, Darren Millar, has described the Welsh Health Minister as ‘Scrooge’ following her refusal to support his calls for short-term funding arrangements for St Kentigern’s hospice in St Asaph.
Darren said: ‘There was little Christmas cheer for staff and patients at St Kentigern’s in the Minister’s response.
‘St Kentigern’s high quality palliative and end-of-life care are vital services that must be retained. However the hospice only receives 18 per cent of its funding from Welsh Assembly Government sources each year, compared with a significantly higher proportion of income received by hospices over the border in England.
‘With the economic downturn and a reduction in charitable donations, St Kentigern’s and other hospices across Wales are facing a short term gap in funding.
‘I asked the Minister to consider contingency funding to see them through this difficult time but it’s clear that the Minister wants to play Scrooge this Christmas and she isn’t going to cough up any cash.
‘I’ll continue to do all I can to ensure that St Kentigern’s has sustainable funding so that its long-term future is ensured.’
