Ashworth challenges Hancock over timing of NHS reorganisation

Jonathan Ashworth has challenged Matt Hancock over the timing of his health and social care white paper planning for a significant reorganisation of the NHS while the health service is dealing with the coronavirus pandemic.

Responding to a parliamentary statement by the Health Secretary this afternoon, Labour’s health spokesperson stressed to the government that the country is currently in “the middle of the biggest public health crisis our NHS has ever faced”.

Emphasising the situation facing health workers at the moment, Ashworth told the House of Commons: “Staff on the frontline are exhausted and underpaid. The Royal College of Nurses said the NHS is on its knees.

“Primary care and CCGs [clinical commissioning groups] staff are vaccinating and will be doing so for months ahead, including possibly delivering booster jabs in the autumn.

“And today we’ve learned that 224,00 people are waiting over 12 months for treatment. And this Secretary of State thinks this is the right moment for a structural reorganisation of the NHS.”

The Shadow Secretary added: “Given the Prime Minister insists lessons can’t be learnt from this pandemic until the crisis is over, why does he [Hancock] disagree with that and consider this reorganisation so urgent now?”

Boris Johnson has repeatedly argued, during Prime Minister’s Questions for example, that now is not the time to “learn the lessons” of the pandemic. But on reorganisation of the NHS, Hancock said today that “there is no better time”.

“He’s announcing this at the very moment the NHS is successfully delivering the vaccination,” Ashworth told MPs. “In striking contrast to the delivering of test and trace, to personal protective equipment early on, where he was responsible.”

Head of the British Medical Association Dr Chaand Nagpaul has warned that the proposals must not be “rushed through while doctors are still tackling the winter surge in infections, hospitalisations and tragically, deaths”.

Ashworth said today that Labour has “long argued for more integrated care”. But the Labour health spokesperson voiced concerns about accountability under the plans. “Where does the buck stop?” he asked the minister.

The proposals outlined by the Health Secretary this afternoon will ministers more power over the NHS. It is the first white paper on the health service since the coalition government’s hugely controversial health and social care bill in 2010.

The plans, leaked ahead of the announcement today, would give the Health Secretary new powers to direct NHS England on its functions and would reduced the independence of its chief executive.

Ashworth also challenged the minister over how the changes would improve patient care and added: “He didn’t mention waiting times in his statement. It’s mentioned once in the leaked white paper. So, how will he bring waiting lists down?”

Recent figures showed that over 4.5 million people are on the health service waiting list, while almost 200,000 have been left waiting more than a year for treatment. This latest number stood at 1,163 less than a year ago.

Trade union GMB has highlighted that the white paper leaked ahead of the statement gives no plan on how the government will fix social care. The document has instead stated that the reforms will be unveiled “this year”.

“We need a sustainable social care plan,” Ashworth told Hancock this afternoon. “We were promised one on the steps of Downing Street – we still don’t have one.”

Boris Johnson has several times promised to reform social care since becoming Prime Minister. In his first speech after taking office in July 2019, the Conservative Party leader pledged to “fix the crisis in social care once and for all”.