CBI: Competition will be good for NHS

The Confederation of Business and Industry (CBI) has said that the publication of a strategy to provide competition between health providers will be a good thing for the NHS.

Welcoming the report, Dr Neil Bentley, the CBI’s director of public services, said that the Audit Commission report highlighted the “desperate” need to improve financial management skills in the NHS, which could be helped by private sector involvement.

However, Dr Bentley sought to allay recent concerns that this would be a method of “backdoor privatisation”.

He stated: “This is not privatisation. Nor is it a threat to the NHS’ ethos. Services will continue to be free at the point of need.”

“Campaigns from the unions or anywhere else against change need to be resisted as merely representative of a sectional interest. The health secretary has recognised the need to stand firm in the face of such attacks,” he added.

He concluded that allowing private sector expertise to improve NHS services was “absolutely right” for patients and the health service.

Recently, some members of the British Medical Association accused the government of trying to privatise the NHS through a series of incremental steps over a period of years. They started a campaign called “Keep Our NHS Public”.

Earlier this week, twelve unions joined forces to campaign against further health service reforms because of privatisation fears, according to BBC News.

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