Greens call for extra £50bn a year to ‘nurse NHS back to health’

The party has previously announced tax proposals it argues would raise £50bn a year.

This includes a new Wealth Tax charged at 1% on all assets worth more than £10m declared in a self-assessment tax return, increasing to 2% on all assets above £1bn.

The party has also set out plans to bring Capital Gains Tax (CGT) in line with income tax bands, and reform National Insurance contributions.

The Greens have proposed new legislation to abolish competition within the NHS and limit commercial companies’ roles.

The Conservatives pledged an extra £6.6bn for the NHS and £7.5bn for adult social care over three years, raising total health spending to £192bn annually.

The government have a long-term target to build 40 hospitals by 2030, which it is expected to miss. But it has set aside £3.7bn to fund the programme and open up to 160 new Community Diagnostic Centres by the end of next year.

Labour have proposed improving NHS overtime pay, to fund staff to work evenings and weekends to help treat the 7.5 million currently on a waiting list, funded by closing tax loopholes.

They have also committed to recruiting 8,500 additional mental health staff.

The Green party have been campaigning to rapidly accelerate the rollout of renewable energy, focusing on wind and solar power – as well as increasing recycling and reducing plastic waste.

But on Wednesday the green industrialist and former party donor Dale Vince said: “It would be a mistake to vote Green, Labour is the only one of the two parties that can form a government that would be green in nature.”

Mr Vince made the comments as he announced he was increasing his funding of Labour to £5m.

Responding to Mr Vince, Mr Ramsay said Labour’s environmental proposals “don’t go anywhere near far enough”.

“Keir Starmer has backtracked on his proposals on climate funding and he’s not put anything significant forward for funding for the NHS,” Mr Ramsay argued.

“The Green Party is willing to be honest about the changes that are needed.”