ABSTRACT
Improving health has been a key concern for Welsh society and responsibilities for public health have been shared between central and local government and the National Health Service. Administrative devolution was introduced in the 1960s with the establishment of the Welsh Office. Devolution is already manifesting some significant changes in the delivery of public health. The new public health policy Better Health – Better Wales was produced for consultation by the Welsh Office in 1998 and was based on the analysis of the Chief Medical Officer (CMO) report. In 2002, Well Being in Wales was published, which built on Better Health – Better Wales. It set out the policy expectations for health in all parts of the Welsh Assembly Government responsibilities, including transport, housing, culture and rural affairs. The English white paper on public health followed the second Wanless report, Securing Good Health for the Whole Population.
