Wales Facing Inequality And Poverty Crisis
New report, supported by 50 organisations, demands urgent action
Last updated 15th Jul 2022
Fifty organisations in Wales have come together to call for renewed cross-government action to tackle inequalities and ill-health.
It follows publication of the Mind the Gap report into the cost-of-living crisis and the rise in inequalities in Wales.
It says that over the coming months, as the everyday cost-of-living continues to rise, an increase in poverty and inequality will lead to greater strain on people’s health and the NHS. The report calls for coordinated cross-government action to improve people’s lives and protect health and care services.
The Welsh NHS Confederation Health and Wellbeing Alliance is also calling on Welsh Government to make a real difference to local communities by providing more hands-on support and detailed guidance for smaller organisations on how to tackle inequalities as well as simplifying a complex and ever-changing landscape with hundreds of targets and performance measures.
This report comes as research finds that 60 per cent of people in Wales feel their health has been negatively affected by the rising cost of living, according to a YouGov poll commissioned by the Royal College of Practitioners.
Ninety per cent said it was due to increased heating costs, over three quarters (76 per cent) said it was a result of the rising cost of food and almost half (45 per cent) said it was down to increased transport costs. 72 per cent said that other fixed bills (council tax, water etc) were also having a negative impact on their mental or physical health.
Health inequalities – unfair and avoidable differences in health and access to healthcare across the population, and between different groups within society – have long been an issue, but the COVID-19 pandemic and the rising cost of living has exacerbated them.
Respiratory conditions such as asthma and COPD are often made worse by air pollution or exposure to mould in poor quality housing. Recently, a debt counselling charity warned that the proportion of people in arrears with their energy bills in Wales is worse than any other part of the UK, which is pushing people into mental health crisis.
That is why the Welsh NHS Confederation Health and Wellbeing Alliance is calling for cross-government action to reduce inequalities and tackle poor housing, food quality, community safety, low incomes, fuel poverty, racism and discrimination, poor transport links and air pollution, many of which are outside the remit of health and social care services.
Inequalities at a glance
• Health inequalities cost the Welsh NHS £322 million every year (Public Health Wales).
• Wales now has the worst child poverty rate of all the UK nations at 31% (End Child Poverty).
• One in ten Welsh households live in insecure housing (Bevan Foundation).
• People in Wales face a higher risk of dying in poverty than any other UK nation (Marie Curie)
• Almost 60% of adults in Wales are living with overweight or obesity (Public Health Wales).¬
• The full social cost of obesity to Wales is around £3 billion a year (Frontier Economics).
• 12% of Welsh households are at least one month behind on a bill (Bevan Foundation).
• Child poverty has increased in 20 of 22 local authorities over the past 5 years (End Child Poverty).
• Half of all children in lone-parent families in the UK are now living in relative poverty (IFS).
Nesta Lloyd-Jones, assistant director of the Welsh NHS Confederation and chair of the Health and Wellbeing Alliance, said: “The COVID-19 pandemic has exposed the extent of the country’s inequalities - we know those living in more deprived areas have been disproportionately affected by the impacts of the pandemic. Data shows the stark difference in life expectancy between different parts of Wales and health leaders are deeply worried about the impact the rising cost of living is having, and will continue to have, on patients in their local communities.
“Tackling inequalities needs concerted and holistic action across Welsh Government departments and all sectors. There is clear evidence of the impact that poor quality housing, air pollution, food poverty and access to transport, sport and the arts has on people’s health. It is now vital that the government details how it will address the health divide and tackle the issue head on.”
Dr Olwen Williams, vice president for Wales, Royal College of Physicians said: “We know that poverty causes illness and poor health. In fact, everything affects health. The cost of living crisis is likely to have a significant impact on the NHS and social care in the coming months as more people become ill and join growing waiting lists for healthcare.
“People in poverty die younger. Inequalities in life expectancy in Wales are getting wider, partly due to the pandemic, which has highlighted how economic conditions can cut lives short. People should be able to afford healthy food and warm homes without worrying so much that it negatively impacts their mental and physical health.
“Concerted cross-government action to reduce health inequalities would help keep people contributing to the economy, their local communities, and wider society and reduce avoidable illness, and in the long-run, avoidable pressure on the NHS.”
Clarissa Corbisiero, deputy chief executive, Community Housing Cymru said: "Society's responsibility for health and wellbeing goes beyond simply healthcare. All public services have a part to play – not just the NHS. This report reinforces the fact that not everyone in Wales has access to the things they need to stay healthy and well – such as adequate housing, fair employment, quality food, access to green space and more.
"Housing associations in Wales are supporting the shift to prevention across the multiple issues and areas affecting these inequalities, including poverty, homelessness and social care. By working together, and with a cohesive plan, we can close the health inequality gap for good."
Tenovus Cancer Care said: "We fully supports the Welsh NHS Confederation Health and Wellbeing Alliance, in partnership with the Royal College of Physicians (RCP), in calling on Welsh Government to produce a cross-government plan to reduce poverty and tackle health inequalities based on the shocking findings of the Mind the gap: what’s stopping change? report.
“It is only by reducing poverty and tackling health inequalities generally that we can effectively address the widening gap in cancer outcomes between people in Wales’s most and least deprived communities. People are currently 20% more likely to develop and die from cancer in our most deprived communities and that cannot be allowed to continue.
“With the cost-of-living crisis expected to intensify into the autumn there is a real danger the deprivation gap in cancer deaths will widen further, not only meaning greater loss of life but extra pressure on our NHS services, which are already under great strain due to the continuing Covid-19 pandemic.
“Welsh Government needs to introduce a long-term, detailed strategy for cancer services moving forward in line with other UK nations to address the inequalities in cancer outcomes as a matter of urgency. There also needs to be commitment to introduce lung cancer screening in Wales, which is predicted to prevent more than 20% of lung cancer deaths amongst those screened and improve outcomes for many more patients. Lung cancer is presently the largest loss of life from any cancer in our most deprived communities - our recent report calls for action to tackle inequalities and improve outcomes for people with lung cancer in Wales.”