Top London hospital to cut 360 posts after fall in funding

One of the country's leading hospitals is cutting hundreds of posts.

University College London Hospital is axing 360 positions, which could include frontline staff.

The move came after the hospital in Euston was hit by a major drop in funding for treating NHS patients.

Primary care trusts, which provide the money, instead intend to treat more patients in the community.

As a result, treatments that are known as "low-priority procedures" such as tonsillectomies, varicose vein surgery or cosmetic procedures would no longer be provided free at UCLH.

Chief executive Sir Robert Naylor said: "If we have fewer contracts from the primary care trust to treat patients, and we do less work, then we must have fewer staff. Any business runs like that. We flex our staff numbers up and down all the time."

He said any job cuts would "mainly be achieved by improving efficiency in back office and admin areas".

Thousands of NHS posts will be slashed across London as health trusts struggle to meet the Government's £20 billion in "efficiency savings" over the next four years.

London Ambulance Service is due to axe 890 positions, with the majority of those frontline jobs.

In addition, St George's Hospital and Kingston Hospital are both axing around 500 posts, including those of doctors and nurses.