Latest news with #SebastianRees
New Statesman
19-05-2025
- Health
- New Statesman
The Policy Ask: 'Put down the reports and listen to people on the front line'
Photo by IPPR / Sebastian Rees. Sebastian Rees leads the Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) think tank's work on health. Here he talks devolution, community healthcare, and London's best commute. How do you start your working day? With a bike ride along the stretch of the Thames between St Paul's Cathedral and parliament – easily the best commute in the city! What has been your career high? Joining the IPPR at what feels like the most important time for health policy in decades. It's make or break time for the NHS and having the chance to inject ambitious, progressive thinking into debates on its future is a huge privilege. What has been the most challenging moment of your career? Every day has its challenges, but a constant has been trying to address the acute, short-term problems facing the NHS while carving out time and space to think about the bolder, long-term reform necessary to build a healthier nation. If you could give your younger self career advice, what would it be? Put down the reports a bit more often and spend time listening to people working in and using the NHS. A few hours in an A&E, a GP waiting room or a hospital discharge lounge can teach you more than an (ever-growing) stack of think tank publications. Which political figure inspires you? Julia Gillard. As Australia's first female prime minister – and now chair of the Wellcome Trust – she brought bold thinking and real political courage to health and care reform. The creation of Australia's pioneering National Disability Insurance Scheme under her leadership was a landmark. Even after leaving frontline politics, she's continued to champion health equity and mental health in particular. What UK mental health policy or fund is the government getting right? Reforming the Mental Health Act has been a long time coming, but when it finally passes, it will be a major step forward. Modernising this outdated legislation is essential if we want a mental health system that's fairer and genuinely puts people first. Subscribe to The New Statesman today from only £8.99 per month Subscribe And what policy should the UK government scrap? There is still further to go for government to end its culture of micromanagement of the health system. Loading up NHS providers and systems with more and more targets is a dead-end when it comes to improving services for patients. But when things aren't going well there is always a temptation to add in more. Let's hope that the ten-year plan moves us in a different direction! What upcoming UK policy or law are you most looking forward to? I'm really interested in the potential of the upcoming English Devolution Bill. Most people I speak to in policy – especially in health – agree that hoarding control in Westminster and Whitehall is holding public services back. But shifting that culture will mean some very tricky conversations about accountability and funding. And it raises big questions about where the NHS – arguably our most centralised and most cherished institution – fits into that picture. What international government policy could the UK learn from? We've made real strides in the UK in recent decades when it comes to mental health, but there's still so much more to do to put people truly at the centre of their care. There's still a lot to learn from community-based approaches like those in Geel, Belgium, and Trieste, Italy – where support is deeply embedded in local life and relationships, not just services. If you could pass one law this year, what would it be? It's great to see the government legislating on issues like smoking, employment rights and housing, where law really can improve public health. It's not just about health legislation – it's about a whole agenda. But some of the biggest health gains don't need new legislation at all. They just need us to do the basics well – consistently, and for everyone. This article first appeared in the 15 May Spotlight policy report on Healthcare. To read the full report click here. Related
North Wales Chronicle
24-04-2025
- Health
- North Wales Chronicle
Tough policies to transform health not viewed as ‘nanny-statism', poll finds
Concerns about how initiatives may impact personal freedoms are 'likely overstated', the Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) and Public First said, with people caring more about measures being ineffective or increasing costs. A survey of 2,010 UK adults found the NHS was among the top concerns for the public, second only to the cost-of-living crisis. More than half of those polled (53%) said the UK's health has deteriorated in the past decade, while 77% said they need to live a healthier life. Asked about proactive interventions on health, eight in 10 said they would back tougher rules for landlords to ensure better living conditions, compared with 4% who opposed this. Seven in 10 supported early childhood development programmes like SureStart, with 6% opposing, while 67% backed free meals for all children in state-funded schools, with 15% opposed. Some 65% of people said they would support a ban on junk food advertising in public spaces, with one in 10 opposed. On smoking, 61% backed extending the smoking ban into more public spaces, like playgrounds or outside hospitals, compared with 19% who were opposed. Sebastian Rees, principal research fellow and head of health at IPPR, said: 'These findings dismantle the long-held assumption that bold health policy is politically risky. 'In reality, voters across the political spectrum see improving public health as a top priority and want the Government to do more to allow them to live healthier lives.' According to the report, 'concerns about personal freedoms or government overreach did not come up' in focus group discussions. The poll also found that limits to personal freedom ranked low on the list of concerns about government initiatives on health inequalities, with 26% saying it would be an issue. People were more concerned about policies not being effective, making products more expensive (32%). Mr Rees added: 'The vast majority of people don't see getting tough on the causes of illness as 'nanny-statism', but as a downpayment on the nation's future health and wealth. 'Taking on powerful interests who undermine health – rogue landlords, toxic employers and junk food advertisers – is seen as both fair and necessary to this cause.' A Department of Health and Social Care spokesperson said: 'This research confirms the British public wants bold action to tackle the root causes of ill health. 'For too long there has been an unwillingness to lead on issues like smoking, obesity and alcohol harm, but we are turning the tide. 'With strong public support for measures like restricting junk food advertising and creating the first smoke-free generation, we are shifting the focus from sickness to prevention through our ambitious 10 Year Health Plan.'
