BAILOUTS given to Aneurin Bevan other Welsh local health boards (LHBs) totalling £24 million are unsustainable, a finance watchdog has warned.

Aneurin Bevan, Cwm Taf, Cardiff and Vale and Powys Teaching boards received the cash in Welsh Government loans in May.

A report by the Wales Audit Office said the four organisations now face larger deficits to make up.

Aneurin Bevan LHB is said to have a £48 million shortfall - almost twice the amount of Cwm Taf's £28.4 million funding gap.

Powys Teaching has the smallest deficit of £8.1 million, while Cardiff and Vale had the largest with £66.75 million this year and an additional £12 million to repay to the Welsh Government.

Auditor general Huw Vaughan Thomas said without the emergency loans the boards would have failed in their legal duty to break even at the end of the last financial year.

"The 2011-12 financial year presented every health board in Wales with significant financial challenges because of the downward pressure on funding and the continuing upward pressure on service demand,’’ he said.

"In my view, the historical pattern of the Welsh Government providing health boards with additional funding in year to manage deficits is not sustainable.

"There are positive signs the NHS in Wales is prepared to take the tough choices needed to deliver long-term change, although clearly it is a very challenging agenda.’’ The Welsh Government confirmed it was aware of the report.

However, it denied the money amounted to a bailout and has ordered the LHBs to pay it back.

A spokesman said: "The health boards were allowed to draw down a small percentage (0.2%) of the future year's funding in order to provide some flexibility to manage their finances across the financial year end.

"As a condition of this flexibility, an external financial review of these organisations' financial plans has been commissioned.’’ The spokesman added the government was committed to preserving and maintaining the Welsh NHS.

He added: "We are investing more than 43% of the total Welsh government budget in health and social services - despite significant cuts to our budget by the UK Government.’’ Plaid Cymru finance spokesman Ieuan Wyn Jones AM reiterated his party's call for the Labour government to focus on sorting out financial mismanagement in the health service.

He said: "We have repeatedly warned the Welsh government is in a position where its budget will continue to shrink over the coming years.

"Money will be tight and services can only be maintained if ministers maximise the value of every pound spent.

"The Labour Welsh government is clearly failing to control its spending.

"Bailouts have doubled in just three years, and yet the health minister has failed to get to grips with the situation.

"Astonishingly, she has bailed out four health boards despite having said that there is no more money.’’