The most important man in government right now | Andrew Marr | New Statesman

It’s not Keir Starmer, according to Andrew Marr
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Labour have one mission which, if it fails the whole government fails. Andrew Marr joins Hannah Barnes and Rachel Cunliffe on the New Statesman podcast to explain why one man - “the best communicator in the cabinet” - has the weight of the entire Labour government project on his shoulders.
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The New Statesman brings you unrivalled analysis of of the latest UK and international politics. On our KZbin channel you’ll find insight on the top news and global current affairs stories, as well as insightful interviews with politicians, advisers and leading political thinkers, to help you understand the political and economic forces shaping the world.
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[@martineyles]

I keep hearing there's going to be reform, but without knowing what kind of reform it's impossible to know whether it will save or destroy the NHS. The word, reform, on its own, is almost meaningless.

[@gillianpope9039]

I think it means shovelling even more of taxpayers money into farages own pockets!!!

[@thespiritphoenix3798]

a bit like the name of a certain political party

[@alingard1]

Tech. AI , IT. That’s what is needed. And they’d what they’re trying to do.make hospitals 24/7 instead of 5 day week. Many things without just shovelling more money in.

[@HughCulp]

There will be no Reform. Just Lablur incompetence, corruption, gaslighting and collapse.

[@martineyles]

@@alingard1 Most of this isn't reform, but how hospitals already work. AI is an overused buzzword in most cases, but it is used to analyse cancer scans. Sure there are tweaks where systems might be integrated better, but this is a small tweak, not the huge reform some people make them out to be. I also find it particularly strange that you think hospitals shut down at the weekend.

[@evildude951]

The problem is reform or modernisation costs money. It'll cost billions. And the current government doesn't want to spend that money. And that's not even getting into the fact that Wes Streeting has been taking huge amounts in hospitality and donations from private health care providers - I wonder how that might affect his NHS reform plans? 😅

[@AndissKevlar]

Your videos don't require spoiler previews - please stop putting them on front of your videos.. It's literally easier to not do it...

[@TheTartanSpartans]

Is anyone going to mention the millions lost to dodgy PPI contracts?Let’s go after them!✌️

[@normanchristie4524]

According to research carried out by Carol Vorderman et al, the Covid 19 debt was dumped on the NHS.

[@gio-oz8gf]

Labour has been talking about it since they were in opposition. You can't be that interested. The following is an excerpt from a news report from 12 months ago. A Labour government would create a powerful Covid corruption commissioner to help recoup billions of pounds of taxpayers’ money that has been lost to waste, fraud and flawed contracts during the pandemic, Rachel Reeves is to announce. The new commissioner would be given the power to bring together public agencies including HMRC, the Serious Fraud Office and the National Crime Agency to pursue at least £2.6bn of “lost” public funds. They would examine contracts line by line and would have to update parliament on their progress in clawing back money. Source, The Guardian.

[@CmdrTobs]

Out of thousands of contracts a few were bad. This PPE* thing is just a partisan hope chest.

[@TheTartanSpartans]

@@CmdrTobs nope, try again, cupcake.

[@alingard1]

Rubbish. If govt build something where do you think that money comes from? They lend it. PFI etc are just another way of structuring debt. There’s nothing inherently wrong with that. The other way would be to save. Which no govt anywhere in world does….

[@tonners.pettitt9938]

The NHS is not in serious trouble! It has already collapsed!

[@garythompson4041]

Don't need the sideline, just need Andrew Marr

[@davidgee1585]

NHS reform is a euphemism for privatisation. It will cost more and not deliver the change needed. More money is needed may need higher taxes far better delivered by public sector.

[@timothyodeyale6565]

Not necessarily?

[@davidgee1585]

@@timothyodeyale6565 we’re going to be back at PFI, more privatised services, means tested and charged for more than we are already and profits siphoned off from the public purse. Labour will try to do what the Tories were frightened to do, and they will be punished for it.😡

[@Paintbrushlicker]

Good privatise it, do whatever tbh. After having a miserable 2 years getting misdiagnosed, ignored, given the wrong meds, and being repeatedly shafted I'm shocked by the hero worship we all give the NHS. It's failed utterly, and anyone misfortunate enough to actually have lived through it can see we need ANY change now.

[@andybrice2711]

There are different kinds of "privatisation" though. I don't want to see parts of the NHS sold off. But it's entirely sensible to issue health "vouchers" which allow people to have treatment at private health facilities. As long as a good price is negotiated, everyone wins.

[@timothyodeyale6565]

@@davidgee1585 What I'm skeptical about is this notion that reform necessarily means privatisation. I highly doubt that. As you have heard for many years now, the NHS is broken; a broken system is broken for a reason and those reasons need to be adressed. Adressing them requires reform- reforms that don't necessarily require privatisation. You seem to convienently not be able to mention any reforms Labour are _actually_ talking about which makes it very easy for you to paint them as Satan's lapdog 😂

[@andybrice2711]

I don't think we should be trying to make NHS staff work longer hours or increase their productivity. I get the impression that is a problem in many public bodies. But every NHS worker I've known already seems to work long, intense hours, often with difficult shift patterns.

[@gio-oz8gf]

Increasing productivity doesn't necessarily mean working longer hours. It can be achieved by increasing efficiency.

[@andybrice2711]

@@gio-oz8gf Yes. I don’t mean “productivity” in the economic sense. Perhaps “industriousness” might’ve been a better word. Like I’ve seen evidence in both the public and private sector of many people spending much of their day skiving off or deliberately wasting time. But I get the impression that’s not common in the NHS.

[@VinceLammas]

I agree that NHS staff on the whole are extremely dedicated and work hard to deliver safe, hiigh-quality patient care. Nevertheless, we can see that the staff cost of treating each patient has been going up and we are acheiving less good outcomes despite more staff time being available. Some of that is undoubtedly because of the direct long-term health impacts of COVID but also due to treating patients later than they should be - a problem that COVID made worse but was an existing problem linked to poor access to GPs and health screening. I hope Andrew Marr is correct that Labour will find a way to invest in community treatment centres where there is rapid access to diagnostic and lower cost treatments while acute hospitals can specialise in the most serious conditions - a change that should free up resources and support reform.

[@alingard1]

2 of my sister are nurses so I feel I can comment. They freely admit the NHS us old fashioned in practice. People do not get sick 9-5 Mon - Fri. Also expensive machines and beds sit mostly idol at weekend. This is doctors not wanting change. That's reform. Also AI diagnosis, I.T ... Doctors , not all but mostly are resistant to change.

[@andybrice2711]

​@@alingard1 So are you saying that doctors are reluctant to work evenings and weekends? Even though it would considerably improve the efficiency of hospitals? That sounds plausible to me. But what I'm saying is: I don't think doctors and nurses spend their working hours dossing around on multiple extended tea-breaks, and scrolling on their phones at every opportunity, like people do in many other organizations. They do mostly seem to work very hard whilst they're at the hospitals.

[@janohara6995]

Answer to Rachel Cunliffe's posed question from the public "Why do I have to make lifestyle changes when I can't even see a GP when I need it?" Because making choices that keep you healthy in the first place gives you better life outcomes than becoming ill and asking your GP to sort out the negative consequences" Perhaps a better question would be "When are we going to get a real food strategy from government so I don't keep being forced to buy poor quality processed foods because I can't afford better?

[@gdok6088]

Buying in season produce and cooking healthy food from scratch is cheaper than buying ultra processed food.

[@DEVAEGIR]

@@gdok6088 Yes, but this is not everyone's understanding. You need a modicum of coercion, mild at least. Why? Psychology. A person is much less open to abstract arguments about possible ailments in the remote future. But they will be scared to touch something which they understand to be poisonous. Why not force labels on ultra-processed foods, like we did on cigarettes? I would like to see the muppet who would go and buy that crap if it had the picture of a rotten ulcer on it, or of an infected gut . ;) Of course, the producers of this sh&t would be absolutely livid, but at the end of the day, we are talking about '#hard choices', aren't we? Tings will never change if we are trying to treat everyone with kids gloves while also consistently screwing over the little man.

[@crayontom9687]

If Streeting is who they are pinning their hopes on then they really are doomed. Bought and paid for

[@fatherofthenoo]

I work in surgeries, in an FM capacity, and the staff there often complain about the entitled nature of the public. Some still don't turn up for appointments, some don't even have an ailment and just make them up, but the majority are simply lazy and refuse to take responsibility for their own health. Instead, they ruin their own bodies and expect the country to pay to put it right. This is not who the NHS should be for. These people should be charged for the priviledge to use it.

[@James-yl3kk]

I have some experience about visiting the doctor in Japan. The clinic was run by one man, he worked 6 days a week. We took my son there when he was baby. One man running an entire clinic in his own. Hard work it's all relative.

[@iainmackenzieUK]

Not that many kids in Japan :)

[@James-yl3kk]

700k+ births in 2023, there are many children to be seen

[@stevenwilliamson6236]

If you decrease the size of a pint glass it's no longer a pint glass.

[@bruceplenderleith838]

the tax on tobacco is extortionate and a ban would be hypocritical

[@TootlinGeoff]

They talk about reform but as was said earlier what reform. Cameron "reformed" the NHS and was a significant factor in the current state of the NHS

[@taffyterrier]

Cameron lied in his election campaign. The CCGs were corrupt. You shouldn’t put foxes in charge of the henhouse.

[@momo8200]

When the UK spends less on public health compared to continental europe. Why can't it be more spending particularly on productivity, infrastructure investments and an emphasis on preventative health measures. Why is it being presented as reform or more spending. I would also argue that some preventative steps will only go so far until there is an increase in incomes and the standard of living.

[@jackbaynes3959]

Tory austerity - THAT'S why Labour can't spend more

[@thomasswift3563]

if this man is the difference between success and failure the UK is in dire straits

[@janeknight3597]

Diagnostic centre. We used to call them Health Centres. They employed GPs and other professionals. So maybe we should invest in some more. Since when did the NHS stop employing people?

[@VinceLammas]

I agree that Health Centres in local communities with a range of professionals who coordinate care and advice makes sense. Acces to general screening and initial health assessments is a major problem with the current private GP network. I would like to see ALL GPs working in or through such multi-professional centres by 2028. These probably need a large investment in diagnostic equipment to succeed so we may need to accept a combination of public-sector borrowing or private finances to support that imvestment.

[@Antipaxos_Nadja123]

Lord deliver us

[@archerversuslight]

I'd expect nothing else to be said form a man who has taken £175,000 from private health firms.

[@davidmiller6504]

The last thing the State has to sell- the NHS. Started with Blair. Will end with Starmer and Streeting.

[@clementattlee6984]

If he succeeds, the NHS will be privatised and cease to exist, so I hope he fails! Reform is always a codeword for further privatisation.

[@johnburrows3385]

We need to de privatise the NHS , get services back in house . Adopt a wellness ,preventative model and employ technology big time.

[@jesuisjamaiscontent]

"Why do I have to make lifestyle changes if I can't even see a doctor" well because if you don't, then given the situation today, you're in trouble, however, making lifestyle changes relieves pressure on the NHS and therefore helps by removing some of the load on the current infrastructure.

[@nastropc]

Wes Streeting the best in the cabinet? Wesley Streeting? Can we all have some of what Andy Marr’s been smoking?

[@MARTINA-gc3tq]

The NHS hasn’t been able to keep up with the population explosion.

[@domm1341]

Wes Streeting is a man in a hurry. I believe he’ll get it done.

[@einseitig3391]

Agreed. Wes Streeting is the most competent and credible Labour politician. I would also add the Manchester mayor too; compare him to the London one. Oh, dear. Quite frankly even now Starmer pales by comparison and should step aside. The Chancellor too isn't up to scratch. I guess after 14 years in opposition they should be given the benefit of the doubt, however, I distinctly had a better view of the incoming Tony Blair administration than this Labour one. Given the mess we need competence and integrity. On both scores the PM and his Chancellor have fallen short.

[@Jimbo-qd5zz]

Copy the French model and stop messing about. No model is perfect but the French is the best there is.

[@chrismccartney8668]

My GP Surgery has many GPs Minor surgery District Nurses Practise Nurses Good Appointment System Physiotherapist Specialist get the Private Practise to use spare capacity to reduce waiting list we have lots very good private hospitals locally and we must use their capacity to get waiting Lists down Up until this Election Wes was my Local MP and very vocal about local hospitals and now after the boundary changes my MP is Iain Duncan Smith who again has always been very vocal along with Wes on our Local hospital and its Closure Revamp Replacement etc.. If Wes does a good Job Starmer will look good is Wes fails is force to fail bycReeves and a lack of Funding Nigel Farage may well be number 10

[@kristoffscuba5466]

If Wes streeting is the mvp of your team, you’d best take up another sport. 😂

[@michaelpalmer4387]

They tried once before to install an NHS-wide computer system. It failed. While it does seem crazy that we don't have one overall computer system, doesn't that make it harder to hack?

[@VinceLammas]

@@michaelpalmer4387 A system isn't necessarily easy or hard to hack into because of size - rather it depends on the security model it had in place. It IS true that a successful hack tends to be localised (which we saw in Lodon in 2024) if there are many different environments across the country.

[@bluestarsaberstarwarsfan3838]

So the nhs is screwed because his plans will ruin it

[@ufoc700]

If streeting is the answer then we have a problem. He is the best communicator? Then we are really up the duff aren’t we. Reform is resisted if it means privatisation and with no money and such a majority these plastic politicians they will find a way to get private capital to pay for things. The alternative: tax major companies and the billionaires at a global level.

[@dh1380]

It's been five minutes ffs

[@Veni_Vidi_Vortice]

We need to have a BMI based tax calculation. Fatties cost the NHS more than any other group so let's provide some financial incentives for them to slim down. For example if your BMI is over 25 you pay 50% extra income tax or if it rises to 30 or above you pay 100% more income tax. That will free up plenty of capacity in the NHS faster than any other measure the government could introduce.

[@ericajohnson3504]

I know lots of people who are very skinny with low BMI but who cost the NHS millions because they smoke. So your scheme doesn't really work.

[@Dayrile123]

You seem to have an incredibly ignorant view of the causes of obesity. It's primarily poverty btw.

[@timwoodger7896]

@@ericajohnson3504smokers pay more tax than what they cost the nhs.

[@Judgles]

"Fatties", as you put it, tend to die young. The ones who really cost money are the ones who live a long time with multiple health problems. Health economics is much more complicated than you realise.

[@dorotheewigginton2211]

Isn’t a ring fenced NHS/social levy finally the answer?

[@NewStatesman]

Watch next: The Liberal Democrats' "unsettling ambition" kzbin.info/www/bejne/r4m5pWaArt-YipY

[@James-yl3kk]

You're going to need to train an awful lot of new doctors if the average GP is working 26 hours a week.

[@ianfraser6161]

Wes will be PM after Keir Starmer steps down.

[@ianfraser6161]

And Andy Burnham will be deputy PM.

[@Judgles]

@@ianfraser6161 LOL they hate each other. Then again, everyone who has ever worked with Streeting hates his guts.

[@keithbarlow6596]

Oh my lord. God save us!

[@tapaarn5863]

Impressive? 😂

[@KevTheImpaler]

I think Wes Streeting is the best MP Labour have and I don't support Labour.

[@timwoodger7896]

Alright Wes we know it’s you 😂😂

[@bruceplenderleith838]

the sugar tax has made every soft drink undrinkable, because of course profit is everything

[@deanunio]

Andrew Marr is now so out of touch with the real world

[@Dayrile123]

Wes Streeting has been one of the most impressive MPs the Labour Party has had. Surely a future leader?

[@timwoodger7896]

Is that you Wes? 😂😂

[@garyb455]

This is the last Labour Government you will see in your lifetime

[@Dayrile123]

Na.

[@timwoodger7896]

This might be the longest government ever as the next election will be between Labour and reform. All Starmer has to do is keep going to the right because he already has the left pinned down. Starmer knows most people don’t want reform and will have no choice but to vote for labour just to keep reform out.

[@prideofdurham4776]

IF he fails, IF. He has!

[@Dayrile123]

How?