‘We need to be ready for two years of recession’

11 February 2009

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Alistair Darling says economic growth will return this year. But Alan Johnson, the normally chirpy Health Secretary, tells Fraser Nelson that Britain needs to brace itself

Opposite Alan Johnson’s desk is a plaque from the Chinese health ministry — a gift that must, at times, seem like a taunt. The Health Secretary controls 1.3 million staff, more than anyone bar the commander of the Red Army. His £120 billion budget is greater than any government department in Beijing. The Chinese economy and the NHS were both subjected to limited market-based reform — yet there the similarities end. Deng Xiaoping succeeded. Tony Blair was ousted. And now Mr Johnson stands in charge of the largest bureaucracy on the planet.

We have heard strikingly little about health since he took over, which he regards as a success. The Blairite health reform agenda had led to the most bitter feuding in government — at one stage, a Gordon Brown doll was dangling from a noose at one desk in the health department. His predecessor, Patricia Hewitt, latterly needed bodyguards when she went to speak to nurses. Now the ever-smiling Mr Johnson has calmed the department. The reform agenda has not died, he argues — it has just been rephrased.

‘The task we set ourselves was to change the language,’ he says, reclining in his office sofa. ‘You have to find a way of talking that takes people with you. Before it was all managerial-speak — practice-based commissioning, payment by results and all of that. It’s not language that people relate to in the health service.’ Surely it is more than that, I ask: what about those cancelled contracts for the private clinics that had been expected under the Blair years to carry out up to 10 per cent of operations?

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Kram Ekosum

February 12th, 2009 7:03pm Report this comment

An interesting man is Alan Johnson. Very slick politician, completely underated by some. He must be following almost identical policies of his predecessor Hewitt but he actually has some "witt", unlike her. NHS reforms are hardly new and most of the ideas have been centralising until Blair & acolytes suggested ALBs. Their sentiment is correct assuming true objective independence is maintained from politicians. Arguments about 'accountability' are the typical politicians wheeze to maintain their control freakery! Currently politicians are amongst the least accountable members of society when trouble strikes. Agree that Cameron can seem arrogant especially at weekly PMQs. However Cameron is also one of the first politicians since Blair who gets visibly publically upset, giving you the impression that he actually really cares(is it just good acting?). Polls are notoriously unreliable but if the economic gloom persists on New Labour's watch it is only fair that the (un)government loses. That's democracy....

Mrs Josephine Hyde-Hartley

February 12th, 2009 7:12pm Report this comment

Yes but it's no good clinging to nurse when nurse feels like she's being torn apart, with one face to the management ( eg "targets" or this increasingly inappropriate excuse of " security") and one face to the patient. It seems to me that citizens need to make that metaphorical nurse turn round to face us fair and square in order to support our individual civil and human rights first- as a matter of public interest. Protection of our needs as patients or citizens or anything else starts most noteably with our being able to safeguard each others rights to decline to provide consent, in whatever market without fear, favour or further explanation. I think it’s absolutely necessary to remind any untoward effectors of so called executive powers that so many disgraceful burdens which reflect badly on everyone could and should be nipped in the bud at the local level eg when we raise our concerns appropriately as individual citizens, employees or whatever by working in partnership to share perceived risks. I call this approach RISC (see NHS Best research for best health strategy). It's a seriously good idea if we’re interested in equally respectful and dignified new ways of working and may even help create new jobs.

Brian Clarke

February 13th, 2009 1:30pm Report this comment

We should not forget that was Mr Johnson who capitulated, in his pervious incarnation, to the Unions, allowing them early retirement as the expense of the Private sector. He has done almost as much damage to Pensions as Gordon Brown's £110bn Pensions raid. He is a Big State man - just the sort of person whom the country does not currently need.

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