Responding to the commission on race and ethnic disparities, the deputy chief executive of NHS Providers, Saffron Cordery said:

“We welcome the clarification on the role and composition of this commission, which is long overdue.

“The impact of COVID-19 has highlighted once again the inextricable link between structural racism and health inequalities which have resulted in a disproportionate number of cases and deaths among people from Black, Asian and minority ethnic communities.

“It is vital that this commission works quickly to identify how we can address these issues which have an enormous impact on NHS patients and staff, and that the government follows through to ensure this examination of inequality is translated into meaningful action.

“As an organisation representing trust leaders employing 800,000 staff, we look forward to working closely with the commission in this important work.”