18 September 2007
The NHS "has to change and become better" to make it fit for the 21st Century, the Prime Minister has said.
Mr Brown joined more than a thousand citizens, patients, doctors and nurses in Birmingham earlier today to discuss the future of the National Health Service.
Topics up for discussion included how to make the NHS more accessible and more accountable, and new ideas for how healthcare could be improved.
The event is one of nine being held across the country as part of the largest consultation on the future of the NHS ever conducted.
Led by the new health minister, Lord Ara Darzi, the review will examine the impact of technology and lifestyle choices on the nation’s well-being, and will look to make the NHS more responsive and better able to serve the needs of the public.
The Prime Minister said in a statement launching the consultation that the challenges can only be met by "remaining true" to the values of the NHS, whilst adapting to citizen demands and persuading people to change their own lifestyles.
"Next summer will be the 60th anniversary of the NHS", he said.
"By that time I hope that Ara’s consultation will have led not only to immediate action in the areas identified today as priorities for change but also to a new consensus around a world-class NHS fit for the decade ahead."
Lord Darzi will be here taking your questions on the NHS review in a Downing Street webchat on 27th September at 10:00 BST.
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