Tom calls for action to protect North Yorkshire’s vital hospice services

Tom Gordon, MP for Harrogate and Knaresborough, has backed a Liberal Democrat campaign in Parliament to protect local hospice services, warning that many “are on the brink of collapse unless Government ministers step in now.”

The warning comes amid news that 2 in 5 hospices nationally are planning cuts this year, with 50% of children’s hospices saying they may reduce or stop providing end-of-life care altogether if new funding is not guaranteed within six months. More than half of hospices ended the 2024-5 financial year in deficit, with one in five seeing a deficit of over £1m.

Sector hospice leaders are cautioning that “time is running out” for hospices across England.

The Liberal Democrats are putting pressure on Wes Streeting to step in. They have launched a campaign to “save our hospices” - with calls to end the postcode lottery of care by allocating funding based on need, and for protected ringfenced funding for children’s hospices. They are also demanding that April’s national insurance hike, which has cost hospices £34m, be urgently reversed, and for additional support to protect bereavement services.

The party’s Care Spokesperson Alison Bennett will table a Bill in Parliament today (Tuesday 14 October) as part of the campaign, to guarantee universal access to hospices and require the Secretary of State to come clean on the current gap in hospice funding.

Liberal Democrat MP Harrogate and Knaresborough said:
 
“Hospices in North Yorkshire are at breaking point, while across the country staff are laid off and beds are closed. Families are paying the price.

“The Government must step in now and answer our calls to protect children’s hospice funding, reverse the National Insurance hike that costs hospices £34 million, and make sure funding always matches local need.

“Liberal Democrats are campaigning to save our hospices. No one should face their final days in pain, on a busy hospital ward, or even in isolation because government ministers are asleep at the wheel.”