Keir Starmer will vow to unleash biggest overhaul of NHS in 70 years – but without tax rises
SIR Keir Starmer will today vow to unleash the biggest overhaul of the NHS since its foundation more than 70 years ago.
The PM warns the health service is on life support and must “reform or die” — as taxpayers cannot afford to pump in any more extra cash.
He will say that endlessly splurging the public’s money will not fix crippling waiting lists or an increasingly sick population.
Instead, he urged harnessing artificial intelligence, slashing red tape and moving care from hospitals to the community.
The PM will say: “Only fundamental reform and a long-term plan can turn around the NHS and build a healthy society.
“The challenge is clear; the change could amount to the biggest reimagining of our NHS since its birth.
“We know working people can’t afford to pay more, so it’s reform or die.”
A report out today from surgeon Lord Ara Darzi warns the NHS is in critical condition after a decade of “unforgivable” damage.
It said in the best case scenario, the health service will take four years beyond the next election to return to peak performance standards.
Lord Darzi found that A&E queues have exploded in size from an average of less than 40 in April 2009 to more than 100 in the same month this year.
One in ten patients seeking urgent treatment must wait 12 hours or more.
Meanwhile, the UK has higher cancer rates than comparable countries.
No progress was made in diagnosing the disease at stage one between 2013 and 2021.
Lord Darzi blasted the reforms in 2010 spearheaded by Tory Lord Andrew Lansley which infested the NHS with red tape and middle managers, saying it caused “calamitous damage” to the health service.
The peer said: “I have been shocked by what I have found, not just in the health service but in the state of the nation’s health.
“We need to rebalance the system to care in the community rather than adding more staff to hospitals.
“And we need a more honest conversation about performance.”
Health Secretary Wes Streeting said: “While the NHS is broken, it’s not beaten.
“We will turn it around so it is there for you when you need it, once again.”
However, Tory Victoria Atkins said: “Labour has stopped hospitals from being built, scrapped our social care reforms and taken money from pensioners to fund unsustainable pay rises with no gains in productivity.
“They need to move from rhetoric to action.”