I OFTEN write about the NHS in my columns. I'm proud of the staff who deliver a remarkable service day in day out. It isn't perfect and we all know that austerity means that there is less money for every public service.

I do get annoyed when I read the active and deliberate dishonesty of the Welsh Conservatives on the NHS, local government and public spending in general. The latest claims in last week's Penarth Times that I have robbed the NHS of hundreds of millions are especially obnoxious and dishonest. The Conservatives are committed to greater NHS privatisation in England and that will have serious adverse consequences for the NHS funds coming to Wales if they win the next General Election.

Conservative advocates of austerity have the cheek to campaign against funding cuts in public services. When they call for more money for local government that means money coming out of the NHS. When they call for more NHS funding that means even less money for schools and local government. It is sometimes comforting to think that the Welsh Conservatives can't do basic maths and are simply incapable of working out their demands do not add up. The fact is they know perfectly well what they are doing. It is a cynical dishonest attempt to dupe the public. I think my constituents deserve more respect and honesty from the Tories.

Vaughan Gething

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