Several reports criticized labour's lack of action on the independent
Acheson report on its release in 1998. However, it is important to
note that the recommendations of the Acheson Report were not costed
and they crossed through many sectors of the British economy; in most
cases immediate action was not possible.
Up to February 2001, the largest impact of the Acheson report on New
Labour could be seen in the language used by government officials
(i.e. using "inequalities" instead of "variations").
The early response is best summed up by Alex Scott-Samuel [source:
http://www.sochealth.co.uk/news/ukheg.htm]
"The Government's response to Acheson (Department of Health, 1999) was
embarrassingly minimalist, providing detailed lists of policy actions
already taken in the areas covered by Acheson, but no real indication
of any explicit response to the Acheson analysis. As Macintyre (1999)
points out, the breadth of the listed policy actions 'means that it is
very hard to discern in what ways the Acheson report has had any
direct impact on government policy'. In addition, there is no apparent
awareness of the distinction between inequality and poverty, nor of
the major policy implications of this distinction. The Acheson
recommendation on income inequality is ignored."
The first real response from New Labour to the report came in in February 2001,
"...two health inequalities targets were finally set. These are:
1. To reduce by at least 10% the gap in infant mortality between
manual and non-manual groups.
2. To reduce by at least 10% the gap between the quintile of areas
(using Health Authorities) with the lowest life expectancies at birth
and the population as a whole.
It has taken Labour four years to establish its targets on reducing
health inequality." [source:
http://www.social-medicine.com/townrep2.html]
Since 2001, however, the Labour government has released more detailed
goals to address health inequalities, including the "2001 NHS Plan",
the "2002 Cross-Cutting Report", and 2003's "Plan for Action".
[source: http://www.doh.gov.uk/healthinequalities/index.htm]
While early impact of the report was not apparent, the more recent
impact seems obvious -- almost every press release and report
published from the Department of Health mentions the Acheson report.
Google Search terms:
"Acheson Report" + "New Labour"
"Acheson Report" + Labour + "since 2001"
"2002 Cross Cutting Report" + DOH
Sources:
http://www.social-medicine.com/townrep2.html
http://www.sochealth.co.uk/news/ukheg.htm
http://www.bris.ac.uk/poverty/publication_pdf/widening%20gap.pdf
http://www.brightonandhovepct.nhs.uk/healthycity/files/health_inequalities.pdf
http://www.doh.gov.uk/healthinequalities/ccsrsummaryreport.htm |
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