Andy Burnham MP, Labour’s Shadow Health Secretary, responding to NHS England’s announcement of 29 ‘vanguard’ areas for integration, said:

“We welcome the vision set out by NHS England but it will never be turned into reality if current Government policy remains in place.

“The Tories’ extreme plan for £70 billion of spending cuts will put the NHS and social care at risk, severely damaging efforts to integrate services at a local level. In addition, the Government’s drive to increase competition in the NHS is leading to greater fragmentation of services and making integration harder to achieve.

“The NHS as we know it can’t survive five more years of the Tories. Labour will bring the NHS and social care together in a fully integrated service, increase investment and repeal the rules that require NHS bodies to put services out on to the open market. This is the only way to make integration a reality and, until these changes are made, the Five Year Forward Way will remain an aspiration rather than a reality.”