Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer will on Thursday promise the “biggest reimagining” of the NHS since its birth after a damning report by Lord Ara Darzi found that the health service was lagging far behind other countries.
Patients are facing “widespread problems” in accessing services across the country while funding has been disproportionately focused on hospitals and not other areas of the NHS, the report concludes.
The health service has also been “starved of capital” with “too many outdated scanners“ and “too little automation”, it says.
In a speech on Thursday morning, Sir Keir will say that the scale of the damage done to the NHS revealed by the report is “unforgivable”.
Lord Darzi’s review has made a series of recommendations for the NHS
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He is also expected to outline three fundamental areas of reform as part of a ten-year plan. This will include an emphasis on “moving from an analogue to a digital NHS”, shifting care from hospitals to communities and moving from “sickness to prevention”.
The 142-page report was commissioned by Labour following the party’s General Election victory on July 4.
Lord Darzi is an honorary consultant surgeon at Imperial College Hospital NHS Trust and sits as an independent peer in the House of Lords, after resigning the Labour whip in July 2019.
Lord Darzi’s report also warns that: |
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The NHS is seeing a “surge” in patients suffering multiple long-term illnesses such as diabetes, high blood pressure and chronic breathing difficulties |
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Mental health referrals are “soaring”, particularly among young people |
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Staff are wasting time on solving “process problems” due to a lack of resources |
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More operations and procedures were cancelled during the Covid pandemic compared with any comparable country due to “underinvestment” and “reorganisation” |
The report concludes that, while the NHS is in crisis, its “vital signs are strong” and performance can be improved by utilising its “extraordinary depth of clinical talent”.
“Despite the massive gap in capital investment, the NHS has more resources than ever before, even if there is an urgent need to boost productivity,” Lord Darzi writes.
The peer does not advocate for changing the funding model of the NHS, writing that models in other countries are “more expensive, even if their funding tends to be more stable”.
But he warns that it will take “years rather than months” to get the health service back to peak performance.
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer will speak about the findings on Thursday
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In his speech on Thursday, Sir Keir will pledge that the Government has the “courage to deliver long-term reform”.
He will say: “The NHS is at a fork in the road, and we have a choice about how it should meet these rising demands.”
“Raise taxes on working people to meet the ever-higher costs of aging population – or reform to secure its future.
“We know working people can’t afford to pay more, so it’s reform or die.”
In its general election manifesto, Labour promised that 92 per cent of patients would begin routine hospital treatment within 18 weeks of referral by the end of this parliament.
The party have also pledged to deliver 40,000 extra weekly NHS appointments to reduce waiting times, with plans to further utilise the private sector to increase capacity.
Health Secretary Wes Streeting said of the report: “I asked Lord Darzi to tell hard truths about the state of the NHS. He has produced an honest, expert, comprehensive report on the appalling state our health service is in.
“Today’s findings will inform our 10-year plan to radically reform the NHS and get patients treated on time again.
“The damage done to the NHS has been more than a decade in the making. We clearly have a long road ahead. But while the NHS is broken, it’s not beaten. We will turn the NHS around so it is there for you when you need it, once again.”
Amanda Pritchard, NHS England Chief Executive, said the health service was “committed to working with government to create a 10-year plan for healthcare to ensure the NHS recovers from Covid, strengthens its foundations and continues to reform so it is fit for future generations.”
