Together with a wide range of other organisations from the health and care sector, the Richmond Group decided to log their concerns about the planned cuts to the already very small public health budget announced recently.
This is the letter that was published in the Times:
Sir - We believe the proposed £200m of cuts to public health budgets would be harmful both to the health of the population in England and to long-term efforts to reduce cost pressures.
Public health services target some of the most significant challenges of our time, such as smoking, alcohol misuse, obesity and inactivity.
For the NHS and social care to cope with challenges posed by growing demand and limited resources, there needs to be an increased emphasis on preventing ill-health.
NHS England’s Five Year Forward View, which has been fully adopted by the government, recognised this reality. It made prevention its cornerstone, establishing a consensus around which real progress could be made.
As the Department of Health launches this consultation, we urge Government to take note of the weight of evidence and recognise that cuts to public health services would be deeply counter-productive to the health of our nation.
Prof Karen Middleton - Chief executive, Chartered Society of Physiotherapy
Shirley Cramer - Chief Executive, Royal Society for Public Health
Prof John R Ashton - President, Faculty of Public Health
Prof Cathy Warwick - Chief Executive, Royal Society of Midwives
Tom Wright - Chief Executive, Age UK
Kay Boycott - Chief Executive, Asthma UK
Delyth Morgan - Chief Executive, Breast Cancer Now
Simon Gillespie - Chief Executive, British Heart Foundation
Dr Penny Woods - Chief Executive, British Lung Foundation
Barbara Young - Chief Executive, Diabetes UK
Lynda Thomas - Chief Executive, Macmillan Cancer Support
Arlene Wilkie - Chief Executive, The Neurological Alliance
Mark Winstanley - Chief Executive, Rethink Mental Illness
Jon Barrick - Chief Executive, The Stroke Association
Prof Russell Viner - Officer for Health Promotion, Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health
Dr Liam O’Toole - Chief Executive, Arthritis Research UK
Deborah Arnott - Chief Executive, Action on Smoking & Health
Jackie Ballard - Chief Executive, Alcohol Concern
Ben Reynolds - Acting Coordinator, Sustain: the alliance for better food and farming
Paul Farmer - Chief Executive, Mind