The Treasury on Saturday prevented an announcement pencilled in for tomorrow of the so-called ‘elective recovery plan’, the multi-billion pound initiative to reduce the NHS’s record backlog of treatments.
Treasury sources insist the plan wasn’t ready and this was a joint decision with the NHS. ‘The NHS wanted to pause too,’ said one. But this is disputed by those working for the Department of Health and the NHS. They believe the delay to its launch stems from mounting tensions between the Chancellor and Prime Minister, and a reluctance on the part of the Treasury to help a PM it views as a lame duck and living on borrowed time. According to senior Whitehall officials, the plan to make a dent in a waiting list of six million people had been worked out and was ready to go, and was pencilled in to be rolled out tomorrow, as part of the PM’s relaunch.
Some ministers are furious with Rishi Sunak, for failing to show sufficient loyalty to the PM in his hour of greatest need
The NHS recovery plan is viewed by the Prime Minister as possibly the most important initiative in restoring his credibility and popularity.
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