(London) – Prime Minister Boris Johnson promised new funds for Britain´s state-run national health service (NHS), seeking to fulfill one of the promises of his 2016 Brexit campaign.
Johnson pledged an extra £1.8 billion (2.0 billion euros, $2.2 billion) to immediately help frontline services, in a move that further fuelled speculation he is preparing for a snap election.
During the referendum on Britain´s European Union membership, Johnson´s “Vote Leave” campaign promised to divert £350 million a week sent to Brussels to the NHS after Brexit.
But the claim was misleading — Britain´s gross contribution to the EU budget is £350 million but it gets a £85 million a week rebate.
In an article in the Sunday Times, Johnson paid tribute to NHS staff but noted “the pressures, the delays, the cancellations and the obvious need to get more funding to the front line”.
“Which is why I am so determined to deliver now on the promises of that 2016 referendum campaign: not just to honour the will of the people, but to increase the cash available for this amazing national institution,” he wrote.
