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Ministers have asked for more work to be done on the government’s draft 10-year plan for the NHS, amid claims it lacks policies exciting enough to resonate with the British public.
Tom Kibasi, a health expert brought in by health secretary Wes Streeting in February to draft the plan, will no longer lead on writing the document, according to three people briefed on the move.
Officials close to the discussions said an initial draft of the document had been completed, but that further work was under way to come up with solutions for a health service that is struggling to cope with increasing demand.
The plan for the NHS in England is seen in government as central to Labour’s long-term electoral prospects after it was hammered in English local elections.
“The first draft is done but we need to do a bit more work on it,” said a senior government official.
“It was considered underwhelming,” said a senior figure in the health sector, a characterisation denied by officials in Downing Street and the Department of Health and Social Care.
“There’s nothing really retail in it. What’s going to be the big, headline-grabbing change that patients notice?” the senior figure added.
Chris Thomas, an IPPR research fellow on secondment to the health department, will be taking the reins to help strengthen the report in the final stages of drafting, according to the people briefed on the move.
“Everyone is aware that it is not there yet,” said a health official, who added that the plan was largely completed.
The official said Kibasi was still working full time but had pivoted to focusing on policy development rather than drafting. He also remains an adviser to the healthy secretary.
Kibasi declined to comment.
One of the main proposals in the plan is about developing the NHS app, according to people briefed on the document.
This will include enhancing its functionality to allow the public to book and change doctors’ appointments, as well as receive automated advice about their symptoms.
“We definitely see expansion of the app as a big part of the plan,” said one senior official. “It can be the great equaliser in healthcare.”
A Number 10 spokesperson confirmed that more work was being done on the 10-year plan in “collaboration” with DHSC.
“The prime minister is pleased with the progress that has been made so far,” the spokesperson said. “As the work progresses towards completion, that collaboration will continue to ensure we deliver the shorter waiting times that patients deserve.”
DHSC did not comment.
Reducing waiting times and improving NHS performance has become a cornerstone of how the Labour government expects to be held accountable by the public at the next election.
Despite Starmer’s vow that the NHS would receive “no more money without reform”, the health service received a £22.6bn rise for day-to-day running in October’s Budget.
Last month, the government announced it would abolish NHS England, returning management to central government.
The full extent of Streeting’s ambitions will not be revealed until later in the year with publication of the 10-year plan, which government officials say will be published in “the late spring” — close to a year after Labour took office.
Among areas of contention, according to two people familiar with discussions, is whether the acute hospitals sector should have a target for a share of overall health expenditure.
The idea behind such a move would be to rebalance spending to direct more resources to primary and community care, one of the people said. The second said the plan might include only a softer statement of intent.
Streeting has made clear he wants to see a shift in the centre of gravity from hospitals to the community, to focus more on preventing illness or treating it at a far earlier stage.
At the same time, hospitals are still fighting to clear long waiting lists that grew during the Covid-19 pandemic, while the government is also committed to ensuring patients are treated within 18 weeks after receiving a consultant’s referral.
