Tag: Downing Street

The press release issued by 10 Downing Street on 16 September 2024.

The Prime Minister’s remarks at a joint press conference with Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni of Italy on 16 September 2024.

Thank you, Giorgia.

This is my first visit to Italy as Prime Minister…

So it’s really great to be here today – particularly in this fantastic setting…

The perfect venue to follow Blenheim Palace.

And actually this is the first of a series of landmark meetings in Italy this week…

We have the G7 culture ministers meeting in Napoli…

And Arsenal meeting Atalanta in the Champions League!

But seriously, there are so many things that bring us together.

And I’m here today for a very simple reason…

Because I recognise Italy’s significance…

As a leader in Europe – and on the world stage…

As a G7 economy…

And NATO ally.

So as we open what I think will be a new era in Britain’s relations with the EU…

Our close friendship and partnership with Italy is more important than ever.

And that’s why it’s so important for me to come so early on as Prime Minister, it’s a real statement of intent.

I think we are both ambitious for what we can do together.

And that spirit has come through in all our long conversations so far. Not only today but also in previous occasions when we had a chance to discuss a number of issues.

A resolve to work together…

For the good of the British and Italian people…

For the security, stability and growth that we all want to see…

And for the fundamental values we share…

Democracy…

Justice…

The rule of law.

So we used our time today to discuss the global challenges before us…

And our determination to meet them together.

Giorgia, I want to thank you for your strong leadership particularly on Ukraine.

As Russia continues to escalate its illegal war…

We will continue to stand shoulder-to-shoulder…

To support Ukraine for as long as it takes.

We will work together to deliver the $50 billion in loans for Ukraine agreed under your G7 Presidency…

And I look forward to supporting the Ukraine Recovery Conference in Italy next year.

We also agreed to deepen our security cooperation, already very important.

Our forces will continue to exercise together through NATO…

The Italian Navy will join UK carrier operations next year…

And with vital projects like GCAP…

We are determined to work together to boost our defence industrial capacity.

On the Middle East, we are united in our support for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza.

We want to see the release of all hostages…

Desperately needed humanitarian aid flowing into Gaza…

And a calming of tensions on the West Bank.

And as we discussed, none of this is easy…

But it is urgent and vital…

So we will keep working to resolve this crisis…

And end the suffering on all sides.

We also discussed the challenge of irregular migration.

This is a problem across Europe, for both of our countries in particular but also across Europe.

As Director of Public Prosecutions in Britain some years ago,

I saw the important work that can be done, across borders…

On issues like counter terrorism.

I’ve never accepted as we discussed,

That we can’t do the same with the smuggling gangs…

And now Italy has shown that we can.

You have made remarkable progress…

Working with countries along migration routes, as equals…

To address the drivers of migration at source and tackle the gangs.

As a result, irregular arrivals to Italy by sea are down by 60% since 2023.

So I am pleased that we are deepening our cooperation here…

Led, on the UK side, by our new Border Security Commander who has been with me today in Italy.

To share intelligence, share tactics…

Shut down the smuggling routes…

And smash the gangs.

Finally, as leading European economies…

We also discussed the huge opportunities we can realise together.

Italy is already a top ten trading partner for the UK…

And our sixth largest source of Foreign Direct Investment.

That all supports economic growth…

Which is the number one mission of this government.

And there is real potential to do more.

It was a excellent to have a meeting with Italian businesses this morning who are already working in the UK…

And I’m pleased to announce that we have secured two new investments…

Worth over £450 million into our economy…

Leonardo investing over £400 million into R&D and helicopter manufacturing in Yeovil…

And Marcegaglia investing £50 million into green steel production in Sheffield…

Supporting hundreds of jobs across the country.

Those are the two investment decisions I want to announce today.

And we want to go further…

In key sectors like defence, green tech, science and innovation…

To drive growth for both sides, create jobs and improve people’s lives.

Because, underneath all of this…

It’s important to say that there is huge affection between our two nations…

And between our people…

Great respect for each other’s culture…

Shared passions and shared values.

So today we are building on that…

Optimistic about what we can achieve together…

As strong partners, allies, and friends.

Thank you.

The press release issued by 10 Downing Street on 16 September 2024.

More jobs for British people will be created thanks to nearly half a billion pounds worth of investment by Italian businesses into the UK, the PM has announced today.

More jobs for British people will be created thanks to nearly half a billion pounds worth of investment by Italian businesses into the UK, the Prime Minister has announced today.

In a joint press conference with Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni this afternoon, he confirmed £485 million of investment into UK defence, clean growth and innovation by two major Italian companies – Leonardo and Marcegaglia.

This follows a business roundtable with leading Italian CEOs in Rome this morning, who collectively support over 20,000 jobs in every part of the UK.

The Prime Minister has been continuing his drive to reset the UK’s relationship with its closest European partners to deepen co-operation on shared challenges, boost bilateral trade and investment and drive economic growth at home.

Italy is one of the UK’s top ten trading partners, with annual bilateral trade between us worth £50 billion. It is also a pivotal NATO, G7 and EU player, and a key aim of the Prime Minister’s visit today was to unlock deeper co-operation across security, defence and migration.

Today’s visit follows trips to Berlin, Paris and Dublin in the last month as the Prime Minister strives to move beyond Brexit, improve our international partnerships and unlock tangible results for British people.

Prime Minister Keir Starmer said:

I am in Italy with a clear message for one of our closest international friends and partners: Britain is a place to do business.

It is only by resetting our relationships around the world that we can break down the barriers that have been holding the UK back for so long.

It means we can attract investment such as the significant sum I’m announcing today, create jobs for hardworking British people and deliver on my ultimate mission for the UK – economic growth.

Today’s confirmed investments include:

• Leonardo, one of the world’s leading defence, aerospace and security companies, will invest £435 million in 2024, to be spent at their Yeovil site, and in technology development and research programmes across the UK. It operates 8 major sites in the UK, supporting 8,000 employees.
• Marcegaglia, a steel manufacturer, will invest £50 million in Sheffield to build a new clean steel electric arc furnace, 50 new jobs directly and indirectly.

Stefano Pontecorvo, Chairman of Leonardo said:

It was a pleasure to meet with Prime Minister Starmer and discuss our new £435 million investment in the growth of Leonardo in the UK. This investment will support advanced research, thousands of highly skilled jobs and outstanding early careers opportunities at our eight UK sites as well as the resilience of our nationwide supply chain.

It is clear that the Prime Minister represents a pronounced change in approach for the UK and its relationship with the European Union. Leonardo’s presence in the UK is underpinned by transnational collaboration at a governmental level, which also supports cooperation at an industrial level. I look forward to working closely with the Prime Minister as we continue to invest in the UK and support the defence of Europe.

The Prime Minister also visited Italy’s National Coordination Centre earlier today with the newly appointed Border Security Commander Martin Hewitt CBE QPM. While there, they heard how Italy has successfully reduced irregular migration by 60% compared to last year, thanks to its innovative upstream work.

In a joint statement issued after his meeting with Prime Minister Meloni, he has also confirmed that the UK will contribute £4 million to the Rome Process, the Italian government’s project to tackle the root causes of irregular migration.

The UK and Italy have also agreed to work more closely to tackle illicit financial flows linked to organised immigration crime and share intelligence to disrupt the maritime equipment supply chains used by vile people smuggling gangs.

The two leaders also agreed to deepen their defence co-operation by confirming that Italian Army and Navy will participate in UK Carrier Strike Group Operations in the Indo-Pacific next year.

Notes to Editors:

Attendees of the roundtable, hosted at the British Ambassador’s Residence in Rome, were as follows:

• Claudio Descalzi, CEO, Eni
• Stefano Pontecorvo, Chairman, Leonardo
• Lady Suzanne Heywood, COO, Exor and Chair, CNH Industrial N.V. and Iveco Group
• Stefano Venier, CEO, Snam
• Emma Marcegaglia, Chairman and CEO, Marcegaglia
• Filippo Modulo, Partner, Chiomenti
• Marco Tronchetti Provera, Executive Vice Chairman, Pirelli
• Andrea Bonomi, Founder and Chairman, Investindustrial

Further business quotes:

Emma Marcegaglia, Chair and CEO of Marcegaglia Holding, said:

The announced investments are evidence of Marcegaglia’s willingness and ability to invest to grow the UK business, which is beneficial also to Marcegaglia Italy to reduce the carbon footprint of the whole group by insourcing primary steelmaking for stainless steel.”

Claudio Descalzi, CEO of Eni, said:

Eni sees the UK as a primary destination for its investments. The Government is establishing a favourable regulatory environment and promoting a clear strategy towards an orderly and fast energy transition. Eni believes a close cooperation with the public sector will be critical to develop the kind of groundbreaking projects we need to address the climate challenge. The recent award Green Volt, participated by Plenitude through the JV Vårgrønn – and set to become the biggest floating offshore wind project in the world with up to 560 MW capacity – in the Government’s annual green energy auction this month, is a clear testament of how Government and industry can work together to develop one of the most promising technologies of the future.

Marco Trochetti Provera, Executive Vice-Chairman of Pirelli, said:

We are honoured to be here today to welcome Prime Minister Starmer on a visit that strengthens the ties between Italy and the UK. Pirelli has been present in the UK for almost a century and it is a Country which represents a strategic market for us in terms of presiding over high-end car manufacturers.

The collaboration between the public and private sectors, together with the professionalism and passion of the people who work there, has allowed us to gradually consolidate our presence in the British market, where today we are the sole tyre producer and which includes our factories in Carlisle and Burton-on-Trent where our headquarters are also located.

Lady Suzanne Heywood, Chair of CNH, said:

CNH announces its intention to further develop its leading role of capturing fugitive methane from farm operations as alternative fuel with its investment in Bennamann in UK.

The press release issued by 10 Downing Street on 14 September 2024.

The Prime Minister and U.S. President Joe Biden held talks at the White House this afternoon.

The leaders both welcomed the opportunity for an in-depth discussion on a wide range of foreign policy issues, including the situation in Ukraine, the Middle East and the Indo-Pacific.

With both conflicts continuing, they agreed that now was the time for a more detailed discussion focused on immediate co-operation as well as long-term strategy over the next few months.

On Ukraine, they heard from the Foreign Secretary and the U.S. Secretary of State about their recent visit to Kyiv. They updated on the courageous campaign of the Ukrainians to defend their territory and deter Russian aggression. They strongly condemned the transfer of lethal weapons to Russia from North Korea and Iran.

Both leaders agreed on the importance of sustaining support to Ukraine in all aspects, including military, economic and diplomatic, for as long as it takes for Russia to withdraw.

On the Middle East, they discussed the urgent need for a ceasefire deal, the imperative of ensuring much greater flows of humanitarian aid into Gaza and the deeply concerning escalation in the West Bank – including settlement expansion and increasing settler violence. They agreed to work together to tackle these concerns. The Prime Minister reiterated his view that the only viable long-term solution to this conflict is the establishment of a Palestinian state alongside the State of Israel, that provides security for both Israelis and Palestinians.

They moved on to discuss the Indo-Pacific region and agreed on the vital importance of our global defence partnerships, including AUKUS.

They agreed to continue their discussions.

The press release issued by 10 Downing Street on 13 September 2024.

The King has approved the nomination of The Venerable Rhiannon King, Archdeacon of Ipswich and Director of ‘Inspiring Ipswich’, in the Diocese of St Edmundsbury and Ipswich, as Suffragan Bishop of Southampton, in the Diocese of Winchester, in succession to The Right Reverend Deborah Sellin, following her translation to Bishop of Peterborough.

Background

Rhiannon was educated at Exeter University, has two Master’s degrees and trained for ministry at Ridley Hall, Cambridge. She served her title in the Huntingdon Team Ministry in the Diocese of Ely and in 2001 she was ordained priest. From 2004, Rhiannon served as Rector of Fulbourn and the Wilbrahams, a rural multi-parish benefice outside Cambridge, during which time she was elected to General Synod. In 2010 she was appointed Transforming Church Co-ordinator/Diocesan Mission Enabler in the Diocese of Birmingham and, from 2014, she served as the Director of Mission.

In 2019, Rhiannon took up her current roles as Archdeacon of Ipswich and Director of ‘Inspiring Ipswich’, in the Diocese of St Edmundsbury and Ipswich.

The press release issued by 10 Downing Street on 13 September 2024.

The Prime Minister has arrived in Washington to hold talks with U.S. President Joe Biden today.

In an extended meeting at the White House, the Prime Minister and the President will discuss a wide range of pressing international issues – including our ongoing support for Ukraine, and the urgent need for a ceasefire deal and the release of all hostages in the Middle East.

The session will focus on strategy and how progress can be made towards long-term solutions for both conflicts.

It follows the Foreign Secretary and US Secretary of State’s visit to Kyiv this week, where they heard directly from President Zelenskyy about Ukraine’s current position against Russia’s ongoing barbaric invasion.

In a significant escalation, it was also confirmed this week that Iran has transferred ballistic missiles to Russia – bolstering Putin’s capability to continue his illegal war. The UK confirmed an extra £600 million of support for Ukraine yesterday, on top of the £3 billion a year for as long as needed confirmed by the Prime Minister in July.

On the Middle East, they will discuss the devastating loss of life in Gaza and how urgent progress can be made towards the release of all hostages, a ceasefire deal on both sides, and avoiding regional escalation at all costs.

The meeting is also expected to touch on a wider range of global issues, including advancing a free and open Indo-Pacific and strengthening US-UK co-operation to secure supply chains and increase climate resilience.

Both the President and Prime Minister agree we should be using the strength of the US-UK relationship to deepen co-operation on shared global challenges.

The press release issued by 10 Downing Street on 13 September 2024.

Faron Paul is an anti-knife crime campaigner who has survived two knife attacks. On 9 September 2024, he attended the first annual Knife Crime Summit at Downing Street.

My motto is “if I can prevent one young person losing their life then it’s all worth it to me.”

I’ve been stabbed a total of 18 times on two separate occasions. One attack left me in a coma and I suffered severe nerve damage that required years of rehabilitation.

I had to rebuild my life physically, mentally and emotionally.

FazAmnesty, my organisation that helps young people hand in their knives with no questions asked, began with my mentoring work as well as doing online awareness videos on social media. Then one day a group of boys brought knives to my niece’s party and demanded entry.

I went down to the party and managed to take three knives from the boys in question.

It was then that I realised I had to find a way to make this an ongoing practice. Day by day, year by year FazAmnesty grew, and ever since then I’ve become inundated with requests for weapons collections and other services.

I remember one day in 2018 I got a phone call from a private number and it was Idris Elba’s PA. She told me that Idris was starting a campaign called ‘Don’t Stop Your Future’ and he wanted me to be a part of it.

24 hours later I was in Enfield with Idris conducting a weapons collection and ever since then we’ve kept up this close connection, working on various projects together.

This week’s roundtable feels like a positive move in the right direction in the fight against knife crime. It felt like there was a positive energy in the room with all the people involved.

I feel the policies put forward are helping to target key areas that need to be addressed if we want to reduce the impacts of knife crime. So, I’m happy to see these discussions formulating and witnessing so many organisations from different parts of society coming together to put actions in place.

The highlight for me was the fact that this event and the new coalition being introduced has happened within a really short time of the government being in power.

It almost feels like the work that I’ve done through FazAmnesty has got me to a position where I can be part of conversations such as these and it makes me feel proud of the work I’ve done.

I am both appreciative of, and humbled by, the government and the Elba Hope Foundation. They’ve given me the opportunity to share my work and make me part of the process, enabling me to work more effectively and help more young people.

The press release issued by 10 Downing Street on 12 September 2024.

Serena Wiebe is a campaigner, and boxing coach and mentor at Empire Fighting Chance. On Monday 9 September, she attended the first annual Knife Crime Summit at Downing Street.

Knife crime has impacted me in ways I can’t explain. It’s forced me to grow up and deal with situations I shouldn’t have had to deal with at such a young age.

I’m 20 now, but I’ve been losing friends constantly since I was 17. When I hear someone has been stabbed, I think: oh my god, is it someone in my family? Is it one of my friends?

Imagine you losing your child or your friend to a knife, and how damaging that is. Imagine not being able to see them again because their life has been taken from them by someone else. That has become my reality, it’s what I am used to now.

I originally started working with Empire Fighting Chance because my brother took his own life. We’re a charity which uses non-contact boxing to inspire young people to reach their full potential, and my journey with them started because I wanted to help young people who were in the same situation as him, and me.

Over time, I began losing more and more people in my life to knife crime. But the trigger for me was losing Eddie, one of my best friends growing up.

Eddie King Muthemba Kinuthia and I had been friends since we were three years old. We were always together. We went to the same nursery and primary school. For a while we went to the same secondary school. As we got older, we drifted slightly, but the love was still there.

He was a really kind person; everyone in our community knew him, and they knew him for the right things. Ever since he died, so many people he knew have tried to honour him in some way, because he was such an important person to so many, and such a good role model.

To have to speak about him in the past tense is crazy. I still can’t believe that he’s gone.

We’re still seeking justice for Eddie, but after losing him I thought, okay I need to do something. This is getting out of hand. I don’t want to see another person I love die.

Since then, I have continued to work with Empire and deliver boxing lessons for free every week to young men who may be involved in knife crime, drug dealing, or any situation that could lead to those things happening.

I work with various organisations which enable me to speak with young people about their experiences with the system and crime and what they would like to change, and I am starting my own youth group, where we come together every fortnight and talk about what we want to change, which I hope can grow and develop over time.

I believe we’re not hearing from young people enough.

We need to be inviting young people to events like today, to places like Downing Street, so they know that their voices are heard. I am so grateful for the opportunity I have been given, but we need to give more young people the platform to share their views.

Attending events like the Knife Crime Summit will help – even being invited has probably changed my life. If I look back to five years ago, I could have gone down a very different path where I was involved in knife crime.

A lot of the young people I work with ask me: “How did you go from there to where you are today?”

Just inviting one young person like me here could have a domino effect on other young people.

I believe it’s important for the right legislation to be in place – that change is good – but we need to focus on immediate action. It’s getting to the point where someone is dying every day.

In my opinion, it’s also about the little things we can do that don’t cost money. Around that table today there were so many role models – Idris Elba, the Prime Minister, loads of MPs – and it is so important to see them supporting organisations like mine, because it can inspire young people.

I was a young person who didn’t believe that I could do anything. Then I met Marvin Rees, who was Mayor of Bristol at the time, and Martin Bisp, the Chief Executive of Empire. They are the reason I am here today.

They showed me that I can come to places like this, I can speak about issues like this, and I can have that domino effect on other young people who feel they don’t have a voice.

The press release issued by 10 Downing Street on 11 September 2024.

The Prime Minister will pledge the ‘biggest reimagining of our NHS since its birth’ in a speech this morning [12 September 2024], following the publication today of a full and independent investigation into the state of the NHS.

The PM will pledge the ‘biggest reimagining of our NHS since its birth’ in a speech this morning [12 September 2024], following the publication today of a full and independent investigation into the state of the NHS.

Lord Ara Darzi’s probe has concluded the service is in a ‘critical condition’ amidst surging waiting lists and a deterioration in the nation’s underlying health, identifying serious and widespread problems for people accessing services.

The PM will say that the scale of the damage done to the NHS revealed by the report is “unforgivable”, recognising the tragic consequences for too many patients and their families:

People have every right to be angry. It’s not just because the NHS is so personal to all of us – it’s because some of these failings are life and death.

Take the waiting times in A&E. That’s not just a source of fear and anxiety – it’s leading to avoidable deaths.

People’s loved ones who could have been saved. Doctors and nurses whose whole vocation is to save them – hampered from doing so. It’s devastating.

He will also address the causes behind the state of the NHS, including the long term impacts of the 2012 Health and Social Care Act which is described in the report as “a calamity without international precedent” which “proved disastrous”, as well as the far reaching consequences of underinvestment throughout the 2010s. The PM is expected to say:

Our NHS went into the pandemic in a much more fragile state.

We had higher bed-occupancy rates, fewer doctors, fewer nurses and fewer beds than most other high income health systems in the world.

And let’s be clear about what caused that…a “scorched earth” approach to health reform, the effects of which are still felt to this day.

Lord Darzi describes [the 2010s] as “the most austere decade since the NHS was founded”. Crumbling buildings, decrepit portacabins, mental health patients accommodated in Victorian-era cells infested with vermin.

The 2010s were a lost decade for our NHS…which left the NHS unable to be there for patients today, and totally unprepared for the challenges and opportunities of tomorrow.

As well as recognising the cost to people’s health, the PM will also address the inextricable link between the state of the NHS and the nation’s economy:

It’s not just the state of our National Health Service in crisis – it’s also the state of our national health.

There are 2.8 million people economically inactive due to long term sickness, and more than half of those on the current waiting lists for inpatient treatment are working age adults.

Getting people back to health and work will not only reduce the costs on the NHS, it will drive economic growth – in turn creating more tax receipts to fund public services.

In the face of these dire findings and the growing pressures on the NHS from an ageing society and preventable illnesses, the PM will set out his belief in the ‘profound responsibility’ of government to do the hard work necessary to tackle them:

What we need is the courage to deliver long-term reform – major surgery not sticking plaster solutions.

The NHS is at a fork in the road, and we have a choice about how it should meet these rising demands.

Raise taxes on working people to meet the ever-higher costs of aging population – or reform to secure its future.

We know working people can’t afford to pay more, so it’s reform or die.

Rooted in Lord Darzi’s diagnoses of the challenges facing the NHS, the PM will outline three fundamental areas of reform and the imperative to work with staff and patients throughout this process. He is expected to say:

This government is working at pace to build a Ten-Year Plan. Something so different from anything that has come before.

Instead of the top-down approach of the past, this plan is going to have the fingerprints of NHS staff and patients all over it.

And as we build it together, I want to frame this plan around three big shifts – first, moving from an analogue to a digital NHS. A tomorrow service not just a today service.

Second, we’ve got to shift more care from hospitals to communities… And third, we’ve got to be much bolder in moving from sickness to prevention.

Only fundamental reform and a plan for the long term can turn around the NHS and build a healthy society. It won’t be easy or quick. But I know we can do it.

The challenge is clear before us; the change could amount to the biggest reimagining of our NHS since its birth.

Lord Darzi is an independent peer and practising surgeon with 30 years’ experience in the NHS. He examined over 600 pieces of analysis from DHSC, NHS England and external organisations during his investigation. His report will inform the government’s 10-year plan to reform the health service.

Lord Darzi said:

Although I have worked in the NHS for more than 30 years, I have been shocked by what I have found during this investigation – not just in the health service but in the state of the nation’s health.

We want to deliver high quality care for all but far too many people are waiting for too long and in too many clinical areas, quality of care has gone backwards.

My colleagues in the NHS are working harder than ever but our productivity has fallen.

We get caught up frantically trying to find beds that have been axed or using IT that is outdated or trying to work out how to get things done because operational processes are overwhelmed. It sucks the joy from our work – we became clinicians to help patients get better, not to go into battle with a broken system.

We need to rebalance the system towards care in the community rather than adding more and more staff to hospitals. And we need a more honest conversation about performance – the NHS is now an open book.

In the last 15 years, the NHS was hit by three shocks – austerity and starvation of investment, confusion caused by top-down reorganisation, and then the pandemic which came with resilience at an all-time low. Two out of three of those shocks were choices made in Westminster.

It took more than a decade for the NHS to fall into disrepair so it’s going to take time to fix it. But we in the NHS have turned things around before, and I’m confident we will do it again.

Despite the damning analysis, Lord Darzi insists the NHS’s vital signs ‘remain strong’ and he praised staff for their ‘shared passion and determination to make the NHS better for our patients’.

In carrying out the review, Lord Darzi brought more than 70 organisations together in an Expert Reference Group and sought input from NHS staff and patients through focus groups and frontline visits.

Responding to the report, Secretary of State Wes Streeting said:

I asked Lord Darzi to tell hard truths about the state of the NHS. He has produced an honest, expert, comprehensive report on the appalling state our health service is in.

Today’s findings will inform our 10-year plan to radically reform the NHS and get patients treated on time again.

The damage done to the NHS has been more than a decade in the making. We clearly have a long road ahead. But while the NHS is broken, it’s not beaten. We will turn the NHS around so it is there for you when you need it, once again.

Today’s report has been welcomed by NHS England and health organisations who have pledged to work closely with the government on its mission to rebuild the NHS.

Amanda Pritchard, NHS England Chief Executive, said:

As this report sets out, staff are the beating heart of the NHS with a shared passion and determination for making the NHS better for patients – but it is also clear they are facing unprecedented challenges.

Our staff are treating record numbers of patients every day despite ageing equipment and crumbling buildings, a surge in multiple long-term illnesses, and managing the long-lasting effects of the pandemic.

While teams are working hard to get services back on track, it is clear waiting times across many services are unacceptable and we need to address the underlying issues outlined in Lord Darzi’s report so we can deliver the care we all want for patients.

As Lord Darzi rightly points out, many of the solutions can be found in parts of the NHS today. That is why we are fully committed to working with government to create a 10-year plan for healthcare to ensure the NHS recovers from Covid, strengthens its foundations and continues to reform so it is fit for future generations.

Key findings from Lord Darzi’s 142-page report include:

• Deterioration: The health of the nation has deteriorated over the past 15 years, with a substantial increase in the number of people living with multiple long-term conditions.
• Spending: Too great a share of the NHS budget is being spent in hospitals, too little in the community, and productivity is too low.
• Waiting times: Waiting lists have swelled and waiting times have surged, with A&E queues more than doubling from an average of just under 40 people on a typical evening in April 2009 to over 100 in April 2024. 1 in 10 patients are now waiting for 12 hours or more.
• Cancer care: The UK has appreciably higher cancer mortality rates than other countries, with no progress whatsoever made in diagnosing cancer at stage one and two between 2013 and 2021.
• Lasting damage: The Health and Social Care Act of 2012 did lasting damage to the management capacity and capability of the NHS. It took 10 years to return to a sensible structure, and the effects continue to be felt to this day.
• Productivity: Too many resources have been being poured into hospitals where productivity had substantially fallen, while too little has been spent in the community.

The press release issued by 10 Downing Street on 11 September 2024.

Dr Lynne Baird MBE set up the Daniel Baird Foundation after her son was killed in 2017. On Monday 9 September, she attended the first annual Knife Crime Summit at Downing Street.

Daniel had got a new job on the day he died.

He was a very happy go lucky lad and that day he was particularly full of joy – he’d been after that role for a long time and had finally passed the interview stage.

“I’ll be able to get married now, Mum”, he said. “I’ll be able to get a mortgage and do everything I planned.”

He said he wouldn’t be out for long when he went out that night to celebrate, but I never saw him again.

I found out on a Saturday morning. I hadn’t been able to sleep for some reason. I remember the sun was very bright, it was a beautiful sunrise – but I had an uneasy feeling. I heard a car door outside, and I looked out the window. There was a police car and a female officer walking towards the door. I had the most awful feeling. She didn’t need to say anything.

“Are you Dan Baird’s mum,” she asked.

I said yes and she told me I needed to get to the hospital quickly, and to phone any other family members who should be there. That was it, she didn’t give me any more information.

By the time we got to the hospital it was too late.

The days following were awful. I don’t remember very much – I think I was in shock – but it was like someone had stuffed my head full of cotton wool, I couldn’t even hear properly.

At this point I had already started asking questions. What more could have been done to save Daniel after he had been stabbed? I think asking questions was the only thing that kept me sane.

I asked Dan’s brother, Tom, who is a doctor at the hospital Dan was taken to that night, what more could have been done for him.

He told me that if someone who knew what to do in case of a severe bleed had been there, or there had been some special equipment there he could have saved Dan, there might have been a different outcome.

Daniel died in the early hours of July 8th, 2017. We didn’t get his body back until the 13th of September 2017, and by November of that year we had the first bleed control kit in this country.

I was relentless. I spoke to everybody I possibly could. At first, it felt like nobody wanted to give me answers. It was very difficult, but you must do these things right.

In the end, I managed to get an interview with the Chief Executive of West Midlands Ambulance at the time, who agreed that there should be an advanced first aid kit to control severe bleeds available for members of the public.

It was decided they would develop a bleed control kit now available in various locations worldwide. They contain very simple components which can be used to stop severe bleeding, and they save lives.

The kits are designed so that in the event of an emergency, you don’t need any training to know what to do. That has always been the foundation of our campaign, and it has grown from there. We’ve worked with the police and fire service and have done lots of work with our local MP, Jess Phillips.

The West Midlands has developed a very advanced model, where a person can call the emergency services, say there has been a severe bleed, be directed to their nearest kit and given instructions on how to use it.

Severe bleeds can happen all the time – in workplaces, car accidents and dog attacks – and if there had been one available when Daniel was stabbed, things might have been very different for him and our family.

It’s always positive to get certain people round the table, as we did today, and I agree with many of the points made – primarily that prevention needs to start very early on in primary school, because by the time children reach secondary school it’s often difficult to reach them.

I believe that legislation announced by the Prime Minister is a step in the right direction – though we must always keep doing more.

The press release issued by 10 Downing Street on 11 September 2024.

We’re giving greater rights and protections to people renting their homes.

New laws will ban unfair no-fault evictions and help protect tenants from discriminatory treatment and poor living conditions.

Our Renters’ Rights Bill will put an end to bad practices, such as landlords and letting agents forcing bidding wars to drive up rents, and unreasonable mid-tenancy rent increases often used to force out tenants.

This Bill will overhaul the private rented sector in England, with the government determined to address the insecurity and injustice that far too many renters experience, by:

Ending no fault evictions

More than 11 million people in England live day in, day out with the knowledge that they could be uprooted from their home with little notice and no justification.

Our new Bill will end Section 21 ‘no fault’ evictions for new and existing tenancies, giving all private renters security and assurance.

The Bill will give renters much greater stability – so they can build lives in their communities, and reduce the risk of homelessness.

End bidding wars and mid-tenancy price increases

We will empower tenants to challenge rent increases designed to force them out by the backdoor and introduce new laws to end the practice of rental bidding wars by landlords and letting agents.

This Bill will crack down on those who exploit the housing crisis by forcing tenants to bid for their properties. Landlords and letting agents will be legally required to publish an asking rent for their property. They will also be banned from asking for, encouraging, or accepting any bids above this price.

It’ll also ban in-tenancy rent increases written into contracts to prevent landlords implementing too high rents mid-tenancy, often to push out the current tenants. Under these reforms, landlords will only be allowed to raise the rent once a year, and to the market rate.

Greater rights and protection

The Renters’ Rights Bill will make it illegal for landlords to discriminate against tenants in receipt of benefits, or with children when choosing to let their property – so no family is discriminated against and denied a home when they need it.

It’ll also apply ‘Awaab’s Law’ to the sector, setting clear legal expectations about the timeframes within which landlords must make sure homes containing serious hazards are safe.

The new Bill will also give tenants the right to request a pet, which landlords must consider and cannot unreasonably refuse.

It will also apply a Decent Homes Standard to the private rented sector. This will make sure that homes are safe, secure and hazard free.