I have always said I am health through and through. I live it, breathe it and walk it every day.
For 25 years, I had the privilege of serving as an NHS nurse. I saw first-hand the difference compassionate care can make to people’s lives, but I also saw the gaps that exist when health and social care are not working together.
Later, while leading on the health and social care brief at Birmingham City Council, the largest local authority in Western Europe, I saw those challenges from another perspective. I saw the pressure on services, the impact on families, and the consequences when people do not receive the right support at the right time.
That is why Andy Burnham’s speech on social care struck a chord with me.
For more than 40 years, I have watched governments talk about the challenges facing social care. There have been reviews, reports and commitments, but too often the difficult decisions have been delayed. Andy acknowledged that reality and, importantly, recognised that this is not just a policy challenge, it is a human one.
What stood out was the sincerity behind his words.
He spoke from personal experience, sharing the impact of caring for his own father and paying tribute to the thousands of care workers who provide skilled, compassionate support every single day. That recognition matters, because social care workers look after our parents, grandparents, loved ones and neighbours. They carry enormous responsibility, yet for too long their contribution has not been valued as it should be.
Social care must become a national priority.
This is not about party politics. It is about recognising a challenge that affects every community, every family and every generation.
I welcome the commitment from the Prime Minister to bring political parties together and find common ground. After decades of delay, reform will only succeed if we are willing to move beyond short-term politics and focus on the long-term future of care in this country.
The NHS is one of our country’s greatest achievements. It belongs to the whole nation, and protecting its future requires a national effort. But we cannot secure the future of the NHS without fixing social care.
The two systems are deeply connected.
When social care is under pressure, families are left carrying impossible responsibilities, care workers are stretched, and hospitals face additional pressures because people are not always able to leave hospital safely and return to the right support in the community. The answer is not to treat health and social care as separate services, they must work together as equal partners.
This is particularly important when we talk about palliative care.
How we support people at the end of their lives is one of the clearest measures of a compassionate society. People deserve dignity and comfort when they are dying. Families deserve support and reassurance during some of the most difficult moments of their lives.
A truly joined-up approach between the NHS, social care, hospices and community services is essential to making sure people receive the care they need, where they need it.
As Vice Chair of the Health and Social Care Committee, I know the scale of the challenge ahead. I also know that we have already learned a great deal from decades of reviews and evidence. The question now is not whether we understand the problems, we do. The question is whether we have the courage and determination to deliver the change people need.
I welcome the decision to accelerate Baroness Casey’s independent work and the wider public conversation about the future of social care. The public must be part of this debate, because lasting reform will require honesty about the choices ahead.
What also stood out was the recognition that social care cannot be fixed by one department or one part of government alone. This is a challenge that crosses traditional boundaries and requires a truly joined-up approach.
Andy Burnham highlighted the importance of bringing together colleagues across government, with Yvette Cooper, Angela Rayner and John Healey playing key roles in driving forward this work. That sends an important message: social care is not simply a health issue, it is connected to housing, communities, local government, employment, families and the wider support people need to live independent and fulfilling lives.
That cross-departmental approach is exactly what is needed. Health and social care do not exist in isolation, and neither should the solutions. A future system must bring together the NHS, councils, care providers, voluntary organisations and communities to deliver better outcomes for people.
One of the most important parts of that conversation will be funding. We cannot build a sustainable social care system without being honest about the resources it will require. The public deserve that honesty, and they deserve to understand the cost of inaction as well as the investment needed to create a system that gives people dignity, security and peace of mind.
After decades of reviews and delay, the opportunity now is to bring people with us, to explain why reform is needed, listen to concerns, and build a lasting consensus around a social care system that future generations can rely on.
I also welcome the focus on the social care workforce. Care workers should not be an afterthought, they are the foundation of the system. Better recognition, training, career opportunities and fair pay are essential if we are to build a care service fit for the future.
I know difficult decisions will be unavoidable. Serious reform requires ambition, honesty and a willingness to have conversations that previous generations of politicians have avoided.
But I remain optimistic.
Because behind every statistic is a person. A person who wants to remain independent. A family member who needs support. A care worker who deserves respect. A person approaching the end of their life who deserves dignity and compassion.
Social care should never be seen as a burden. It is a vital national service.
Andy Burnham’s speech gave many people something that has been missing for too long, a sense of ambition, determination and a glimmer of hope that this long-standing challenge can finally be addressed.
There is a significant journey ahead, and there will be difficult conversations along the way, particularly around funding and how we build a system that is fair and sustainable for future generations. But I welcome the commitment to having those conversations honestly, bringing people with us, and putting problem-solving before point-scoring.
Having spent my career caring for people, supporting our NHS and championing better health and social care, I look forward to being part of that journey with optimism and determination.
Because this is not just about reforming a system, it is about deciding what kind of society we want to be. A society where people are valued, where families are supported, where care workers are respected, and where everyone can have dignity at every stage of life.
Andy has given us a reason to believe that change is possible. Now comes the hard work of turning that ambition into reality, and I look forward to playing my part in that journey ahead with hope and optimism.