‘Birmingham’s bin strike underlines why public health matters. Labour should talk more about it’

The Birmingham bin strike proves the rule that public health rarely dominates the headlines for positive reasons. The pandemic is the standout modern example. Consequently, public health talk now triggers traumatic memories many would rather dispose of in the dustbin of history. This perhaps explains why Labour’s public health agenda has largely slipped under the radar. It deserves a spotlight. 

Public health provides optimistic answers to multiple complex policy questions, as well as an overarching framework for a decent society. Managing demand on the health system? Build homes and communities that enable us to live in comfort and security. Boosting productivity and economic growth? Promote modern workplace rights and conditions. Cutting crime? Invest in skills and poverty reduction to offer pathways beyond hopelessness, mental illness and addiction. Reducing obesity rates? Hardwire cycling and walking into our towns and cities and stand up to the commercial interests that make the healthy choice the hardest choice. 

The work of change has begun under Labour. Legislation continues its journey through Parliament to prevent children ever getting hooked on smoking; the roll out of free breakfast clubs are providing a heathy start for hungry minds; a supervised toothbrushing programme will prevent levels of decay that are putting kids in A&E; a Renters’ Rights Bill offers stability at home; housebuilding plans revive the ownership dream; and the Employment Rights Bill strengthens rights at work. A decade of cuts to local public health budgets – amounting to around a quarter – has come to an end with a £200 million funding boost. 

This is a solid, practical, evidence-based foundation for a bold public health drive. In an age of doubt and despondency about democracy, a delivery record like this deserves praise and pride. 

But Labour needs to go further and faster on public health reform in three respects. 

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‘Taking back control of health policy’

First, the end of NHS England opens the door for the government to take back control of health policy. The NHS should have a powerful voice; however, it is far from the only driver of our health outcomes. A beefed-up Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) must guard against undue influence from either public or commercial interests.

As I previously wrote for LabourList, Labour needs to ensure the health mission is broader than NHS if it is to oversee measurable improvements in health and a narrowing of health inequalities. It is clear from the forthcoming 10 Year Health Plan that whilst prevention is one of the three main themes, the social determinants (the factors that overwhelmingly shape our health, like income, housing and air quality) are out of scope. As things stand, we are left with a list of public health achievements in search of a strategy, vulnerable to events.

‘Cross-government approach to health and wellbeing’

Second, the DHSC must be a more active cross-government champion of health and wellbeing. Just as balancing the books and driving economic growth requires every department to play its part, so too does public health. Some capacity from the NHS England policy and strategy teams should be retained inside government. Every policy, whether on tax or culture or education, has the potential to add to our collective wellbeing or indeed undermine it.

For instance, recent welfare proposals are projected to push more children into poverty. It is hard to think of an issue that gets to the soul of the Labour Party as much as child poverty – the prevarication needs to stop. The upcoming Child Poverty Strategy is a test of the government’s moral fibre and DHSC’s influencing skills. 

‘Adopting a wellbeing economy vision’

Third, the drive for economic growth – essential though it is – risks obscuring a conversation about the nature of our economy and what good, in contrast to any, growth looks like. Crucially, from a public health perspective, using GDP as the top success measure for the nation is problematic in that it counts activity that is bad for health (such as the illegal drug trade) and excludes things that can enable health and wellbeing (such as unpaid caring).

It matters whether our economy – through the behaviour of businesses towards their employees and customers to the products and services they sell help or harm the population. Adopting a wellbeing economy vision, which goes beyond a headline GDP figure and elevates the value of planetary and human health has the potential to be a unifying cause across politics. A new economic framework could enable Labour to meet all its missions through one idea.

‘Labour can make public health a good news story’

During the Covid-19 pandemic, surrounded by death and despair, those us working in public health dared to dream of ‘building back healthier’. That a dark chapter might usher in a boldness of leadership with the determination to tackle the plague of health inequalities holding back millions. 

The last Parliament was dominated by public health for all the wrong reasons, could this Parliament cast it in a brighter light? The ongoing situation in Birmingham is a serious public health threat, from rats carrying diseases to the mental toll of rubbish piles on street corners. For the wellbeing of people in Birmingham, let us hope a solution that shows respect to those workers on the frontline of public health is reached soon. 

The defining purpose of public health is creating richer and freer lives for all, not just crisis management. The Labour Government can make public health a good news story. 

Read our coverage of the 2025 local elections:

• Expert predicts ‘bad night’ with no net Labour gains 
• Analysis: What’s a good night for Labour?
• Where’s Keir? PM barely features in Labour party election broadcasts for the locals
• Hull and East Yorkshire mayor election: Labour candidate spars with Reform’s boxing star in UK’s most disillusioned city
• Cambridgeshire & Peterborough mayor election: Nik Johnson on why he’s standing down and Anna Smith on knife-edge Labour-Tory fight to replace him
• The meme elections: Labour’s social media pivot to take fight to Farage
• Inside the West of England mayor campaign, from Tory and Green threats to Dan Norris and low voter awareness
• Runcorn and Helsby: At least 150 Labour MPs visit – but Keir Starmer ain’t one
• Runcorn and Helsby interview: Labour candidate Karen Shore on Reform, the NHS and closing asylum hotels

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