COMMENT
The Health White Paper & GP commissioning
The Conservative Party no longer does what it says on the tin. As a “People’s Republic” is invariably a tyranny, so the Conservatives may soon become known for their radicalism in government, says David Furness
L
David Furness is health project leader at the Social Market Foundation
14 nhe
ong gone are the days when a Conservative government meant the upholding of old
traditions and a suspicion of new ideas. Not content with electoral reform, the transformation of the schools sector and a root and branch overhaul of housing policy, the government has now announced equally radical plans for the NHS.
Andrew Lansley and his team have produced a White Paper full of interesting ideas that may be very challenging to implement – normally a hall mark of left wing governments! What follows teases out the guiding principles of policy and questions whether
commissioning reform is either achievable or desirable.
The White Paper Equity and Excellence: Liberating the NHS contains some excellent ideas. But what is ironic about its genuine radicalism is just how much continuity it shows in terms of building on the core principles of Labour’s NHS reform. It is entirely possible to imagine Alan Milburn putting forward these proposals at the height of his influence as Tony Blair’s reforming health secretary.
But it is true that many of the new proposals will significantly the change the way the NHS
works, even if the foundations on which they are built are a continuation not a departure from previous thinking.
The most important changes to the NHS will come in the way it commissions services. But ahead of discussing the operational impact of these reforms for GPs, PCTs and patients it is useful to identify the underlying principles that will guide government policy.
The central principle is that of the inherent benefit of markets over monopolies. For the Conservatives, choice, competition and individual decision making are of intrinsic
Jul/Aug 10
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