Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt branded a hypocrite after splashing £44,000 of taxpayers’ money on office shower suite after demanding £22billion in savings from the NHS budget
The multi-millionaire Health Secretary demanded the private bathroom so he could freshen up after cycling to work
HEALTH Secretary Jeremy Hunt has had a £44,000 taxpayer-funded toilet and shower suite put in his new office after ordering £22billion NHS savings.
He demanded the private bathroom, with floor-to-ceiling slate tiles and sensor-activated lights, so he can freshen up undisturbed after cycling to work.
The multi-millionaire Health Secretary’s 15ft by 8ft suite boasts floor-to-ceiling lava tiles, vanity mirrors, recessed lighting, a designer toilet and a power shower.
Its lighting system has been wired with sensors which automatically switch on when someone enters.
The new £25million Health Ministry HQ in central London’s Victoria already has showers for staff in the basement near the bike racks.
But Mr Hunt, 50, demanded the private suite in his penthouse office, which has magnificent views over the capital, so he can freshen up undisturbed after cycling to work.
NHS chiefs have been asked to make £22billion of “efficiency savings” by 2020.
The £44,000 spent on Mr Hunt's luxury shower suite could have paid for the annual salary of two nurses, almost 170 sessions of chemotherapy or the deliveries of 15 babies.
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A whistleblower at the new HQ said: “It’s a disgrace that Hunt talks about the need to save money while getting the taxpayer to pay for a private bathroom fit for a king.
“People across Britain are waiting on trolleys at hospitals because there are no beds and waiting lists are getting longer by the day.
“But that’s OK so long as Jeremy doesn’t have to queue for the bathroom.
“How can he justify it while telling everyone else in the NHS to tighten their belts?”
Labour Party chairman Ian Lavery said: “It is outrageous that Jeremy Hunt, who has overseen an average real term cut of 14 per cent in nurses’ pay, is spending £44,000 on a ministerial bathroom.”
John O’Connell, of the TaxPayers’ Alliance, added: “It is an absurd amount to spend when the building already has perfectly adequate facilities.”
Mr Hunt has insisted the NHS can only provide a top- class service if it focuses spending on health care.
While announcing the "efficiency savings" he said: “Can we really afford the kind of care we all want?
“The answer is yes — but only if we care as much about every pound the NHS spends as every patient it treats.
"Money wasted can’t be spent on those needing care.”
Mr Hunt’s department said yesterday: “The Health Secretary has not approved any costs relating to the department’s new building, but has requested facilities for all cyclists and runners in line with those the department currently has.”