Future of the NHS: Lords general debate
9 July 2015
Members of the Lords, including a former chief executive of the NHS and a practising surgeon, debated the sustainability of the NHS as a public service free at the point of need, on Thursday 9 July.
- Catch up on Parliament TV
- Read the Lords Hansard transcript
- Lords Library note: Sustainability of the NHS as a public
service free at the point of need
Members agreed that the challenges facing the NHS today are considerable - the costs of healthcare services are rising because of medical advances, changing demographics and increased expectations.
Many members spoke of the need consider the role of the state - how there must be clear consensus over the role and responsibility of the state, the individual and the wider community in addressing healthcare challenges.
About the debate
This was a general debate. They usually take place on a Thursday in the Lords chamber. During debates, members are able to put their experience to good use, discussing current issues and drawing the government's attention to concerns.
The debate was proposed by Lord Patel (Crossbench), a member of the Medical Research Council and former obstetrician. Other speakers included:
- Lord Crisp (Crossbench), former chief executive of the NHS
- Baroness Emerton (Crossbench), president of the Florence Nightingale Foundation
- Lord Hunt of Kings Heath (Labour), former chief executive of the NHS Confederation and shadow spokesperson for Health
- Lord Kakkar (Crossbench), practising surgeon and Professor of Surgery at UCL
- Lord Turnberg (Labour), former president of the Royal College of Physicians.
Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for NHS Productivity, Lord Prior of Brampton (Conservative), responded on behalf of the government.
Further information
- Attend debates in the chamber
- Follow @ukhouseoflords on Twitter
- Like House of Lords on Facebook
- Watch House of Lords videos on YouTube
- View House of Lords photos on Flickr
- Connect with Lords on the Lords Digital Chamber