What's the government trying to do to the NHS?
The Briefing Room
BBC
4.8 • 731 Ratings
🗓️ 20 March 2025
⏱️ 29 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
The Government is reorganising the way the NHS is run in England by scrapping the body that’s been in charge and giving direct control to the Department of Health and Social Care. Jobs will go and the country’s biggest quango will be dismantled. But what is the government actually trying to do to the NHS? What are its aims and how does the restructure fit into the government’s big picture for the health service in the UK?
Guests: Hugh Pym, BBC Health Editor Siva Anandaciva, Director of Policy, King’s Fund Dame Jennifer Dixon, Chief Executive of the Health Foundation Dame Carol Propper, Professor of Economics Imperial College in the Department of Economics and Public Policy
Presenter: David Aaronovitch Producers: Beth Ashmead Latham, Kirsteen Knight, Caroline Bayley Sound Engineer: James Beard Production Coordinator: Gemma Ashman Editor: Richard Vadon
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | BBC Sounds, Music, Radio, podcasts. |
| 0:08.2 | Earlier this month, the government suddenly announced the impending death of NHS England, |
| 0:14.7 | the overarching controlling body set up by the coalition government, remember them, over a decade ago. |
| 0:27.6 | At the same time, the health secretary, Wes Streeting, who on taking office declared the NHS to be broken, is preparing his promised 10-year plan for the Health Service, which should be published in the summer. |
| 0:33.6 | There's a lot going on. |
| 0:35.6 | So how does this reorganisation fit into the bigger picture of improving the health of the whole nation, not just England, and doing it in a way that's affordable? |
| 0:46.0 | Step into the briefing room and together we'll find out. |
| 0:52.6 | First, what is NHS England? |
| 0:55.4 | Why is it being abolished? |
| 0:57.3 | And what has the government said about its health priorities? |
| 1:00.9 | Hugh Pim is the BBC's health editor. |
| 1:03.8 | Hugh Pim, what is the reorganisation the government has announced? |
| 1:07.8 | Well, it's a very big move in terms of health policy. |
| 1:10.7 | It doesn't necessarily affect services on the ground. has announced? Well, it's a very big move in terms of health policy. |
| 1:11.0 | It doesn't necessarily affect services on the ground, hospitals, GP practices, community |
| 1:17.4 | health and so on. |
| 1:19.0 | It's all about the central organisation of the NHS in England. |
| 1:22.0 | Now, there's an organisation called NHS England, which is the central body running NHS policy throughout England, which is at arm's length from the government. |
| 1:33.3 | And what Kirstama and West Streeting are saying is they think that is an unnecessary construct being separate from government and autonomous, |
| 1:43.3 | and that it's duplicating work going on at the |
| 1:46.1 | Department of Health and Social Care and that it should be basically swallowed up by the department. |
| 1:52.2 | And there could be a total of around 9,000 jobs lost. |
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