NHS: Independent Investigation

In a statement to the House of Commons, the minister acknowledged the significant challenges facing the National Health Service (NHS) and outlined the government's plan to address them. The minister began by thanking Lord Darzi, an eminent cancer surgeon, for conducting an independent investigation into the state of the NHS, the findings of which were described as "raw, honest and breathtaking." The minister highlighted several alarming issues uncovered by the report, including the NHS's inability to meet its treatment promises for nearly a decade, growing patient dissatisfaction, surging waiting lists for mental health and community services, and the reversal of progress on cardiovascular disease, with cancer being more likely to be a death sentence for NHS patients compared to other countries. The minister also noted that the report found the NHS to be under pressure due to the declining health of the general population, with children being sicker and adults falling into ill health earlier. The minister attributed these problems to several factors, including a decade of underinvestment that left the NHS technologically behind, the disastrous 2012 reorganization overseen by the previous government, and the devastating impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, which the minister said hit the NHS harder than any other comparable healthcare system. The minister then outlined the government's three-pronged approach to addressing the crisis: recovery and reform. This includes immediate actions, such as hiring 1,000 additional GPs and resolving the ongoing strikes, as well as a 10-year plan for transformative change. The plan focuses on three key shifts: from analog to digital, from hospital to community, and from sickness to prevention. The minister emphasized the government's commitment to the NHS, stating that it is a public service that must be preserved, and that the party that created the NHS has turned it around before and will do so again. The minister expressed confidence in the extraordinary depth of clinical talent and the shared determination within the NHS to improve patient care, despite the critical condition the service currently finds itself in.