Darlington MP Peter Gibson last night said struggling hospices should not have to rely on donations to care for those at the end of their lives.

The Conservative MP, who has long campaigned for palliative care told the House of Commons on Monday evening it “cannot be acceptable” that funding is reliant on charity as he described a picture of “immense challenge” for providers.

It comes after Hospice UK last week said providers were facing a huge cash shortfall because of a rising staff bill, which is putting services at risk, with a total £186m deficit across the sector.

Most of hospice expenditure (71%) is spent on staff, with hospices recruiting from the same pool of staff as the health service, Hospice UK told the PA news agency, meaning they need to keep up with NHS wages to attract workers.

Mr Gibson told the Commons: “In the 21st century it cannot be acceptable that funding is reliant on pensioners performing skydives, communities baking cakes to fund palliative care.

The Northern Echo: Peter Gibson MP.Peter Gibson MP. (Image: The Northern Echo)

“Our hospices really must be seen as an integral part of our national health service.

“The picture today is one of immense challenges for our hospices.

“Much work has been done, much work must be done, by our ICBs (integrated care boards) and the government to map the demands and needs for palliative care across the country. We must end this postcode-based patchwork of provision.

“It really is time that the government established a rapid task force to collaborate with the entire hospice movement and ICBs to ensure that as a nation we have the best provision of palliative care to ensure everybody can have a good, peaceful death.”

Fearless fundraiser 80-year-old Nancy Spencer last year completed a wing walk to raise money for St Teresa’s Hospice in Darlington.

The Northern Echo: Nancy Spencer pictured strapped to a biplane for a fundraising wing walk.Nancy Spencer pictured strapped to a biplane for a fundraising wing walk. (Image: FRENCH & LAMMING MEDIA)

It’s more than a year since Mr Gibson told the Echo ICBs - the bodies responsible for health service commissioning and governance across different areas of England - were not discharging their statutory duties to commission hospices for palliative care.

Hospice UK chief Toby Porter has said previously funding from ICBs was failing to keep up with inflation.

He said: “We need ICBs to properly plan to meet the demand for palliative care in their area and provide fair funding to do so.

“And we need those ICBs to be properly funded by central Government. End-of-life care should not be determined by a postcode lottery.”

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Speaking after the debate Peter Gibson added: “As a champion for our hospices, as both a trustee and co-chair of the All Party Group in Parliament I am delighted that we secured the largest ever debate on hospices on the floor of the House of Commons. MPs from all over the country spoke in favour of a better framework for their local hospices – such is the love for these precious organisations in their communities.

“I am hopeful that this important debate shines a light on the way the NHS integrated care boards treat our hospices and will lead to improve relationships and better planning and more creativity of provision.

“At a local level, I am looking forward to bringing the four Tees Valley hospices to Parliament along with our eight MPs once again to ensure we are at the forefront of palliative care in Darlington, Teesside and Hartlepool.”