Despite persistent claims of underfunding and long patient waiting lists, Britain’s socialised health sector has spent over £1 million on woke LGBTQ+ and racial staff communications.
According to Taxpayers’ Alliance (TPA) research, 493 staff networks are financially supported by National Health Service (NHS) branches across the country. The most common networks are for LGBTQ+ issues, with 101 such groups receiving taxpayer funding, followed by racial networks, of which there are at least 99.
The links were discovered to have held “tea and rainbow cake” picnics for staff as well as sessions to discuss personal pronouns. The time spent operating such networks — not including attending events — consumed 108,807 staff hours and cost the taxpayer £1,081,878.
Given that only 111 of 230 NHS trusts responded to Freedom of Information requests, the actual cost is likely to be substantially greater.
Elliot Keck, the Taxpayers’ Alliance’s lead project researcher, stated, “Many of the networks are a questionable use of NHS time and taxpayers’ money.” While British citizens wait for appointments and surgeries, NHS middle managers are busy planning right-on lectures and social events. Health officials must reduce some of these unnecessary ‘woke’ networks.”
Amidst the NHS’s repeated claims of underfunding, the public healthcare system has not been cautious about wasting cash on apparently non-essential woke issues, such as having to spend £60,000 to paint an LGBTQ+ rainbow zebra crossing during the height of the Chinese coronavirus crisis.
Conservative MPs have also slammed the woke schemes as a waste of money, with David Jones saying, “When patients are being denied operations and waiting too long for care, expending taxpayers’ money on networks like this seems wasteful at best and sinful at worst.”