Healthy NHS

I am pleased that the Government has today taken the opportunity to "pause" the transformation of health services to allow additional time for further consultation.  The Health and Social Care Bill, currently making its way through Parliament, promises the most profound changes to the NHS since it was created.

The challenges facing the UK's health services are enormous including the rising costs of treatment, the development of new (and expensive) drugs and surgical procedures, and the demographic effect of an ageing population.  Getting my head around the proposed changes has not proved an easy task - in recent months just as I though I understood the new structure then a further organisation chart would appear which caused me to question the extent of my understanding.

Now I have to declare a personal interest; I was born in a NHS hospital and all medical tests and treatment since then have been delivered by the NHS and NHS funded GPs.

I wish the NHS well and believe that for the overwhelming majority of the population it remains the only source of their health services.  Taking time, before decisions are finalised, has to be a good step.  In the last decade I, with other Conservatives, have worked to ensure that our Party is seen as NHS-friendly and lost its 'nasty' tag which we acquired the last time we were in government.  Reforms are necessary, including reducing the administrative costs, if the NHS is to remain fit for purpose in the coming decades.

As part of the "pause" I expect that the Government, and particularly the Conservative Cabinet members, to reinforce the message that "the NHS is safe with us".