Bitter medicine

This newspaper has supported efforts to reduce public spending, believing that the Government should live within its means and leave taxpayers with more of their own money to spend as they see fit. That means cuts, but those cuts must be made intelligently and with regard for the consequences, both financial and social.

The proposal to remove financial support for many rural pharmacies falls well short of that condition. The decision could mean the closure of 3,000 pharmacies, though ministers have said they do not know the precise number, which is in itself a worrying sign. The proposal has been made in apparent disregard of the important role that rural pharmacies play in many communities. For people who live far from a doctor’s surgery, and for people who live near one but still struggle to get an appointment, a pharmacy can be an essential source of medical help. Pharmacists, indeed, are among the unsung heroes of a National Health Service that is stumbling under the growing demands placed on it by Britain’s growing, ageing population and hamstrung by a funding model not fit for the 21st century.

Changes that would leave more people in rural areas having to travel long distances to their nearest pharmacy must also be seen in the context of public transport that is poor or non-existent in parts of the country. No wonder people have registered their unease about these plans in their hundreds of thousands. From welfare cuts to trade union reforms and child migrants, this Government has recently shown its willingness to U-turn to placate left-wing interest groups. It should show similar flexibility over plans that will cause real pain to rural communities.