When the NHS White Paper was first debated in an early session of the Liverpool Lib Dem conference in September 2010, Coalition ministers were startled by the storm of well reasoned but strongly expressed criticism of Andrew Lansley’s plans – but they clearly listened.
An early concession was the retention of local council powers to scrutinise the way NHS services are delivered in their areas.
Next came promises that the massive centralisation of the new Whitehall-based NHS Commissioning Board would be diluted by the establishment of local offices more closely in touch with the family doctor services they are to administer.
Finally a concerted. well-informed campaign of medical professionals and think-tanks emerged from the Liberal Democrat’s Sheffield Conference this Spring to engage and debate with professional organisations, the Royal Colleges and groups of NHS trusts.
This has resulted in a series of important changes to be announced this afternoon:
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– Secretary of State to remain responsible for an NHS that is free at the point of need
– GP commissioning of hospital services to be shared with other medical professions and with doctors responsible for hospital care and for specialised treatments
– Independent representatives of the local community also to be involved in commissioning
– Integration and partnership working are to be priorities for trusts and others who deliver secondary care and who may compete only on quality, not on price, and without “cherry-picking” easy-to-treat cases
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Hertfordshire Liberal Democrat Health Spokesman, Nick Hollinghurst, said: “I am proud of the contributions Liberal Democrats made to removing potentially damaging elements from this Bill. With proper safeguards there is no reason why specialised diagnostics or treatments cannot be delivered within the framework of the NHS. If adopted, the changes we have fought for will give us a health service which combines care with quality; and continuity with innovation and growth.”
He added: “I particularly look forward to the new public health responsibilities that will be given to local authorities.”