The Conservative, Labour and Liberal Democrat parties have published their manifestos ahead of the General Election on the 12 December, outlining their commitments and spending plans for the next parliament. All three have made significant announcements on domestic politics, and the NHS has overtaken Brexit as the issue voters identify as the one most likely to impact their vote. Even so, Brexit will be sure to dominate the time of any new government, and so there remains a question as to the priority that will be given to the domestic policy pledges.

While many of the health and social care commitments within the manifestos are encouraging, and all commit to making additional investment in the NHS and social care in their own right, none of the parties commit sufficient funding to close the growing gap between available resources and demand. Regardless of which party forms the next government, politicians across the political spectrum will need to lead an honest and realistic debate on the long term sustainability of health and social care in the next parliament.

Our briefing provides details of the health and social care commitments made by the Conservative, Labour and Liberal Democrat parties in their manifestos, and sets out NHS Providers view.