NHS Reform and Health Politics in the UK: Revolution, Counter-Revolution and Covid Crisis

“Calum Paton is one of our most insightful commentators on the NHS. His latest book details the failure of numerous attempts to introduce a market into the NHS. Paton is not afraid to slaughter a few sacred cows, either. Noticeably this includes the GP’s gatekeeper role which he argues restricts access to specialist outpatient care. He is similarly trenchant in his analysis of failures of leadership at the Department of Health.
A must read.” — Philip Hunt, The Rt Hon Lord Hunt of Kings Heath PC, OBE, and former Minister of State
“An insightful and candid account of the ‘redisorganisation’ from which the English NHS seems unable to escape. Written from the perspective of a seasoned observer of health policy who has also been an NHS insider, this trenchant analysis shows the folly of politicians’ constant meddling with the NHS’s structure. The book is a powerful polemic that pulls no punches. It is essential reading.” David J Hunter, Emeritus Professor of Health Policy and Management, Newcastle University


This book provides an original analysis of the trajectory of health policy reform in the United Kingdom from the beginning of the ‘Thatcher reforms’ in the 1980s right up to the latest changes in England in 2022. Rooted in political science and health policy analysis, it tackles key arguments around the ‘new integration’ of the NHS since 2015, what the new and emerging NHS structure represents, the UK’s poor response to the Covid-19 crisis, and the future threat to a comprehensive public NHS. It includes significant new material on what has happened since 2015, such as the politics of the Covid-19 pandemic, the effects of Brexit, and the conundrum of ‘social care’. The book is a scholarly and polemical analysis from an expert who has studied the politics of health services for more than forty years. It will be a key resource for students, academics and policy makers.

Calum Paton is Emeritus Professor of Public Policy at Keele University, UK. He chaired the University Hospital of North Staffordshire NHS Trust between 2000 and 2006, and was Editor-in-Chief of the International Journal of Health Planning and Management between 1998 and 2019. He has authored ten books and numerous articles on health policy and politics.