A Somerset MP has warned that terminally ill patients across the country are facing cuts to vital hospice care.
Gideon Amos, the Liberal Democrat MP for Taunton and Wellington, is backing a campaign led by his party in support of St Margaret’s Hospice and the wider hospice sector, warning that many services are "on the brink of collapse unless government ministers step in now."
The warning comes as two in five hospices nationally are planning cuts this year, and 50 per cent of children’s hospices say they could be forced to reduce or stop care entirely within six months without guaranteed funding.
More than half of hospices ended the 2024-25 financial year in deficit, with one in five reporting deficits exceeding £1m.
Mr Amos said: "I know from the time I have spent at St Margaret’s in Taunton, about the essential support provided by our hospices based only on hand-to-mouth funding with no guarantees of what they will receive from one year to the next.
"Too many hospices are closing beds right now, leaving families with nowhere to turn.
"The government really must reverse its hiking of National Insurance contributions, the jobs tax, which is costing our hospices a staggering £34m nationally.
"No reasonable person can justify dropping such huge taxes onto our hospices.
"Reversing the jobs tax for hospices and small businesses needs to be part of the government's next budget.
"In particular, we mustn't see anybody end their days in unnecessary pain or difficulty just because the jobs tax is loading such huge costs onto our hospices."
Hospice leaders across the country are warning that "time is running out" for hospices across England.
The Liberal Democrats are calling on the government to address the "postcode lottery of care" by allocating funding based on need and introducing ringfenced funding for children’s hospices.
Alison Bennett, the Liberal Democrats’ care spokesperson, recently tabled a Bill in Parliament to guarantee universal access to hospices and require the Secretary of State to come clean on the current gap in hospice funding.
The government awarded £80m in funding over three years for children’s hospices in response to the motion, but no additional funding has been made available for general needs hospices like St Margaret’s.
Joanna Hall, interim CEO of St Margaret’s Hospice, said: "While St Margaret’s receives some funding from the government, over 70 per cent of our income is generated by our generous community coming together in support of the hospice, whether that’s through fundraising, participation in events, buying lottery tickets, leaving gifts in a Will, or donating and purchasing items from our 31 shops.
"It’s a huge undertaking each year, and not one we take for granted.
"There is no doubt that as the demand for our care increases, and costs rise, it will become increasingly difficult to balance the books without a fairer and more sustainable funding model.
"Our new five-year strategy, Time to Care – Now & Always, recognises the challenges ahead and sets out how we can address this by raising our voice, enhancing our care, and crucially, stewarding our resources.
"That’s why adding our voice to the collective call to government for long-term reforms is so important.
"Change will only be achieved if we can demonstrate the impact hospices have in local communities; that we are part of the solution, and that we are expertly placed to help the NHS meet its new ten-year plan to shift more care into the community."
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