Manx Care is projecting an overspend of £27.2m in its budget, equal to £74,520.54 a day.

The agenda for its September meeting cites pay awards and increasing costs among the causes.

While it is anticipating the major overspend, the healthcare provider believes it can bring that down to £22.2m, which it said ‘is expected to be approved from the DHSC reserve fund’.

The Finance, Performance and Commissioning Committee records this funding gap as one that ‘remains a concern to the committee’ and as one of the ‘urgent matters or new risks or issues that need to be escalated to the Department of Health and Social Care’.

Earlier in the agenda, the director of finance’s report noted that the year end position for 2022/23 ‘has been finalised as an £8.7m deficit’.

Jackie Lawless’s report said: ‘Whilst not meeting financial balance in the year was disappointing, it is important to note that the deficit has reduced year on year in the face of rising costs.’

But warned: ‘In the current year many savings are likely completely overtaken by the growth in funding pressures.’

That section of the agenda also references pay awards as ‘unaffordable’ as Treasury will not be providing any further money.

It added: ‘Manx Care spend is tracking around £80million below Sir Jonathan Michael’s suggested funding model but above actual funding.’

When Manx Care was created, part of its reason for being was to end the annual pilgrimage of DHSC ministers going to Tynwald with a begging bowl to fill an overspend.

In his first Budget, then treasury minister David Ashford outlined that the government would be following the principles of the Sir Jonathan Michael review and pumping up the funding for the system, something which the figures in this agenda appear to show is still not happening.

However, these latest figures will only put further doubts into the minds of islanders who question whether Manx Care will ever present good value for money for taxpayers, or least present better value for money than the old DHSC model did.