England's Rural Areas Face Funding Cuts Under Labour's NHS Plans A Policy Exchange report warns that rural areas in England are facing significant funding cuts under Labour's NHS plans. The report highlights the disparities in healthcare funding and staffing between rural and urban areas, and calls for a level playing field in recruitment and retention for rural and coastal areas. A fifth of England faces a rural penalty that threatens to deprive residents of doctors and crucial NHS funding, a damning report warns. The report notes that millions of patients in rural and coastal areas stand to lose out under Labour's plans to shift more care from hospitals into the community. It adds that funding formulas and workforce policy included in the plan around neighbourhood health have all neglected the reality of these areas, which are far removed from major towns and cities. This risks creating an increasing divide between rural and urban areas, as the plan fails to recognise the higher costs of caring for older, more isolated populations.Coastal areas face shortage of medical staffThe report highlights figures showing that coastal communities have fewer medical consultants, postgraduate medical trainees, and nurses per patient than the national average, despite having older and less healthy populations. The report warns that this could backfire in rural communities, forcing patients to travel further for appointments as smaller GP practices disappear and the brain drain from hospitals accelerates.The report calls for a level playing field in recruitment and retention for rural and coastal areas, as well as funding according to local conditions. It also calls for changes to NHS pay arrangements, stronger protections against local service closures, and a dedicated minister responsible for rural and coastal healthcare. The report's authors believe that if these issues are not addressed, the 10-Year Health Plan risks meaning fewer local services and longer journeys for large parts of England.