The Labour Party Annual Conference 2023
SME4Labour fringe: The NHS at 75, the Future of Our Health Service
🗓 Date: Tuesday, 10 October 2023
⏳ Time: 8:00
📍Location: SME4Labour POD (Meeting Room 22), ACC Liverpool, Kings Dock Street, Liverpool, England, L3 4FP
SME4Laobur fringed: The NHS at 75, the Future of Our Health Service with Dr Sonia Adesara, NHS Doctor; Claire Ward, Chair of Sherwood Forest Hospitals Trust. This panel discussion was chaired by Fatima Kamara, Secretary for SME4Labour and NHS worker.
The importance of the National Health Service (NHS) and more investment in it are discussed. Further investment would not only make the NHS a stronger health service for the country but more job opportunities. The increase of industries such as life sciences, food, and health tech were also discussed, strengthening arguments for a better-funded health service. There was also on becoming world leaders in these industries.
The NHS was mentioned as a flagship achievement of the Labour Party and something that the party wishes to preserve and enhance.
The country’s food industries were also discussed and cited as reasons for why the NHS was overstretched. Challenging supermarkets and the quality of foods that were sold were ideas explored to have healthier populations. They were accused of producing low nutritious, high sugar, high salt, low fibre foods that were very addictive. Good quality foods were also deemed unaffordable for many families who were low-income earners.
With the UK going through several crises in recent years, such as Brexit and COVID-19, these issues were also cited as reasons for the “ripple effect” of the NHS and the public sector in general. Ideas such as apprenticeships in the NHS were discussed to create opportunities for people to get employed in the NHS. This would also mean programs where people would not have necessarily attended university and could work their way up on the job. Better GP services and mental health services were also stressed to better service local communities.
