Labour’s plans for health and social care would not require more “top-down” NHS changes, says Burnham

Ambitious proposals from the UK Labour Party to merge the budgets for health and social care and mental health services in England would be a challenge without another full scale reorganisation of the NHS, health policy experts have cautioned.

The proposals, launched on 24 January by Labour’s shadow health secretary Andy Burnham,1 have been put forward for consultation by the party, as they seek to formulate the party’s policy for the future of health and social care ahead of the next general election in 2015.

Burnham said that the demands of an ageing population, the changing burden of disease, and the perilous financial …