Ara Darzi resigns as health minister but remains government adviser

Ara Darzi, appointed a health minister in Gordon Brown’s “government of all the talents” in 2007, announced his resignation on 15 July. His departure from the UK government leaves just one of the ministers appointed from outside politics still holding office, the city minister Paul Myners.

The resignation represents a serious blow to the government, as Lord Darzi had made some progress towards convincing doctors that their role in improving NHS care was being taken seriously. His “next steps” report, published in June 2008, emphasised quality of care as the driving force for NHS reform, something with which doctors could sympathise (BMJ 2008;337:a642, doi:10.1136/bmj.a642).

Lord Darzi’s resignation letter implies that he was finding the burden of being a minister too onerous. “During my time as a …