Health Care Targets — 27 Oct 2003 at 21:45

I beg to move,

That this House notes that the Government's obsession with target-setting now pervades almost every aspect of healthcare; believes that the volume of centrally set targets and the way in which these have been imposed is having a detrimental effect on clinical outcomes, since the welfare of the patient becomes a secondary consideration to the achievement of the target; further believes that the imposition of these targets is seriously demoralising the professional staff within the NHS, diverting them from spending time with patients to additional paperwork and bureaucracy; is appalled that pressure on managers to achieve targets has led to distortions in reporting on performance, so that the public has no confidence in claims that are made about achievements in the NHS; and calls on the Government to do away with their reliance on the target-setting culture, to re-invest the money saved on bureaucracy into front line medical care and to trust doctors, nurses and other professional staff to get on with their jobs with minimal interference, in the interests of all of their patients.

I beg to move, To leave out from "House" to the end of the Question, and to add instead thereof:

"welcomes the Government's record extra investment in the National Health Service; supports the Government's policy of linking investment to reform; notes that setting targets and monitoring performance against them are a vital part of the accountability process; welcomes the Government's determination to devolve power in the health service to the front line backed by three-year allocations of money to NHS organisations and clear delivery targets for the next three years; welcomes the positive effect of the right targets on staff morale, motivation and standards; welcomes the increases in capacity and workforce numbers, the greater availability of new and better drugs, the shorter waiting times and the greater choice available to all patients; notes that expenditure on NHS management as a proportion of the total NHS budget is falling; and supports the Government's commitment to a high quality NHS, responsive to the needs of patients, available to all free at the point of need."

Question put, That the original words stand part of the Question:-

The House divided: Ayes 132, Noes 333.

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