Health shake-up will prepare us for new threats
PUBLIC Health England’s replacement will be charged with ensuring Britain is better prepared for future pandemics and biological weapons.
Minister Matt Hancock yesterday confirmed The National Institute for Health Protection will replace PHE which has been widely criticised for its Covid-19 response.
It will be led by Tory peer Baroness Harding and will combine the coronavirus testand-trace programme with a wider brief to protect the nation from emerging health threats.
Health Secretary Mr Hancock said the move follows his concern that the focus on coronavirus had left the country vulnerable to other health threats.
Relentless
He added: “My single biggest fear is a novel flu, or another major health alert, hitting us right now in the middle of this battle against coronavirus.
“Even once this crisis has passed – and it will pass – we need a disease control infrastructure that gives us the permanent, standing capacity to respond as a nation and the ability to scale up at pace.
“The National Institute for Health Protection will have a single and relentless mission: protecting people from external threats to this country’s health – external threats like biological weapons, pandemics and, of course, infectious diseases of all kinds.”
The effort to merge PHE with NHS Test and Trace and the Joint Biodiversity Centre will begin immediately, with the new organisation becoming formally operational next spring.
John O’Connell, chief executive of the TaxPayers’ Alliance, welcomed the move.
He said: “For too long taxpayers have propped up a nannying quango more interested in dictating diets than preparing for a pandemic. PHE’s woeful performance has signified the problems with our vast quango-state in which money is spent frivolously with little accountability.
“The National Institute for Health Protection must prioritise real health emergencies and ensure taxpayers get the maximum possible value for every pound spent.”
But many health experts also questioned the wisdom of scrapping PHE in the middle of a crisis.
Richard Murray of The King’s Fund health charity, said: “PHE appears to have been found guilty without a trial.
“Undoubtedly, there are questions to be answered about England’s handling of the Covid-19 crisis, but the middle of a pandemic is not the time to dismantle England’s public health agency.”
Nigel Edwards, chief executive of the Nuffield Trust think tank, said: “The Government risks making a major misstep by dismantling its own public health agency at such a crucial time.
“It will create a huge distraction for staff who should be dedicating themselves to the next stage of the pandemic.”
PHE chief Duncan Selbie was ousted in the shake-up, with NHS Business Service Authority head Michael Brodie appointed interim chief executive of the organisation during the merger.
Mr Selbie insisted it had been an “honour and a privilege” to lead the PHE.
He said: “I could not be any prouder of what PHE has achieved... from reduced smoking rates to tackling poor air quality, obesity and much else.
“PHE’s work on the pandemic stands testament to the professionalism and unremitting hard work of my colleagues and bought precious time for the NHS and Government to prepare.”
‘For too long taxpayers propped up a nannying quango more interested in dictating diets than a pandemic’