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Press Release

NHS 'watchdog' set to become 'bureaucratic monster', says Unite

12 September 2011

Monitor - the government's revamped organisation to regulate competition in the NHS - is set to become 'a bloated bureaucratic monster', Unite, the largest union in the country, has warned.

Unite said that Monitor's running costs were set to soar from £72 million-a-year to £82 million – with a 600-strong staff being paid twice the national average wage of £26,000.

Unite said that ministers were creating a bloated, old fashioned bureaucracy which would be responsible for handing over lucrative NHS contracts to the 'government's friends' in the private healthcare sector.

Monitor was expecting to spend a further £14 million-a-year on consultants and £4 million in legal fees, according to the Department of Health's own Impact Assessment report.

Monitor is a lynchpin of the government's Health and Social Care Bill, currently before Parliament, with the remit of promoting choice, competition and collaboration – which Unite says are contradictory and confusing aims.

Unite national officer for health, Rachael Maskell said: 'It is equally disgraceful that the Impact Assessment team have been unable “to develop a robust monetary estimate of the benefits of changes to the regulatory regime”.

'All this indicates that a revamped Monitor is not being geared for the benefit of patients, but as a conduit to channel lucrative NHS contracts to private healthcare companies, many of whom have bankrolled the Tory party since David Cameron became leader.'

'Monitor anticipates employing about 600 staff at an average cost of £84,000 each, which would include salaries, National Insurance contributions, any pension provision and other costs.'

'This works out at average annual salary levels of more than £50,000 – double that of the average national salary of £26,000. A bloated bureaucratic monster is being created - so much for all the ministerial chatter about efficiency savings. This is being paid for by cuts to frontline services, as well as staff pay and terms and conditions.'

Unite will be lobbying the members of the House of Lords who will be scrutinising the bill over the next couple of months – Rachael Maskell described the peers as 'the last thin line defending that great British institution - the NHS - from rampant privatisation'.



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