Worsening health inequalities with more austerity

JVL Introduction

The effects of poverty are dramatically and tragically reflected in our health.  A new Report from the Royal College of Physicians includes some staggering examples.  Nearly all respondents to the RCP’s survey expressed concern about this and “46% said that at least a half of their workload was due to illnesses linked to social and economic factors – such as poor housing, education, and employment.”

The RCP notes that there is “a nearly 20-year gap in healthy life expectancy between the most and least deprived areas of England” and “72%… reported seeing more patients in the past three months with illnesses caused or worsened by wider social determinants of health – things like poor quality housing, education, employment (including how much money someone has), air pollution and access to transport.

This is Britain under Starmer and Reeves; that things are getting worse and not better and with few signs of improving the underlying causes. How can it be possible to continue with austerity policies after 14 years of austerity?  The government claims it is committed to addressing health inequalities but how? When, for example, the government is planning to cut benefits to the poorest people while leaving the wealthiest people to get richer, even when there are wealthy people  calling for higher taxes.  The RCP call om the government to take action but do they even understand what is needed?  For example secure and decent homes, secure jobs or at least secure income, decent schools where creativity, cooperation and critical thinking are key as well as youth provision and local government and health servies properly funded to do the work that they need to do.

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This article was originally published by The Guardian on Thu 3 Apr 2025. Read the original here.