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As winter sickness hits the NHS, Sir Keir Starmer has unveiled the government’s plans to support the service with a new partnership with the private sector.
Labour want to get waiting times for non-urgent care back down to the target of 18 weeks over the next five years, with Sir Keir saying the new arrangement will mean “resources of private hospitals [are] more readily available to the NHS”.
The plan includes the development of new “community diagnostic centres”. Ashish Joshi, our health correspondent, speaks to Niall from one of the new centres in a shopping centre in Wood Green, north London.
Niall is also joined by Dr Rob Findlay, a contributor to the Health Service Journal and specialist in NHS demand and capacity planning and waiting times, to discuss whether the plans will actually help the service and its staff.
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