Britain's state-funded health system must 'reform or die,' prime minister says
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer says the country's much-loved but overstretched health system is in critical condition and must “reform or die.”
By JILL LAWLESS
Published - Sep 12, 2024, 08:15 AM ET
Last Updated - Dec 16, 2024, 07:19 PM EST
LONDON (AP) — Britain’s much-loved but overstretched health system is in critical condition and must “reform or die,” Prime Minister Keir Starmer said Thursday, claiming that years of neglect and botched restructuring had made the United Kingdom an increasingly unhealthy nation.
Starmer promised a 10-year plan to fix the state-funded National Health Service, which in recent years had gone from a source of national pride to a symbol of a state and society under growing strain.
“We are becoming a sicker society,” Starmer said during a speech in London, pinning blame on the Conservative Party that was in power for 14 years until July.
“The last government broke the NHS,” he said.
