NHS Providers response to the Queen’s Speech 2017

21 June 2017

 

The Queen’s Speech has been delivered this morning (21 June 2017) setting out the government's legislative programme for the next two years.

It includes some specific health and social care commitments:

 

Responding to the Queen’s Speech, Saffron Cordery, director of policy and strategy at NHS Providers, said:

 

On patient safety:

“We welcome the bill to establish a fully independent Health Service Safety Investigation Body.

“The bill will give NHS staff more confidence to speak freely about why they think a patient harm has occurred, without fear of repercussions by regulators or employers. It is positive that the government has listened to the views of safety experts who strongly supported this step.

Independently, the HSIB will be able to help the NHS learn from mistakes.

“Independently, the HSIB will be able to help the NHS learn from mistakes, build a stronger culture of learning and improvement, and have the authority to call out the system where it is acting as a barrier to change.”

 

 

On mental health:

“We welcome the Government’s continued commitment to mental health set out in the Queen’s Speech, with specific proposals to review the ongoing suitability of the Mental Health Act 1983.

“However, we know that local authority and social care funding cuts have placed significantly more pressure on mental health community services. This is reducing their overall accessibility and ability to respond, meaning that people are reaching crisis point before they seek help. We must not think that legislative reform is the way to address this gap in much-needed support services on the ground. 

Funding for children's and young people's mental health services has been overlooked for too long with wider implications for a very vulnerable group.

“Reducing stigma, improving the reach of services into BME communities and building more joined up local services will also help address long-term structural inequalities that affect these communities.

“We welcome that there will also be a specific focus on mental health services for children and young people, funding for these services has been overlooked for too long with wider implications for a very vulnerable group.

“We look forward to working with the government and health and social care partners to achieve this.”

 

On social care:

“The funding crisis for social care, and the suffering this causes, means we must move beyond consultation. We need action to secure a realistic and sustainable funding solution for both health and social care, which creates the additional capacity that will be urgently needed to support the demographic pressures that will lead to accelerating demand for these services in the coming years.”