ABSTRACT
Arguments about health care policy are right at the centre of British politics, and no wonder. In personal terms, health is something we all value immensely; and since at least the Second World War governments in Britain have accepted a large measure of responsibility for the health of the population. Many measures show the importance of health. Every year Britain now spends around 7% of its Gross National Product (the standard measure of national wealth) on health care and the figure has nearly doubled in the last generation (see Table 18.1). Most of that money comes from the public purse – over 80% of spending on health care comes from the taxpayer. The National Health Service is one of the biggest components of the welfare state in Britain and takes a large slice of public spending. The sheer size of the National Health Service is awesome: more than one million people work in the NHS, ranging from the most highly-paid consultants and managers to the most poorly-paid cleaners and porters. The Service is the equivalent of a giant industry, and those who work in it form a large and well-organised section of the electorate. What is more, this ‘industry’ helps support other important parts of the economy. About 100,000 people are estimated to work in the pharmaceutical industry in the UK, for example, and the NHS is a major customer of that industry.
