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The government is “chronically incapable of delivery” as opportunities are missed to reform the NHS, the Tories have claimed.
Shadow health secretary Andrew Lansley told MPs that legislation on the proposed constitution for the health service should have been “original, purposeful and substantive.”
He claimed that the new Health Bill could make a “real difference”, but instead it has no new legal rights and is only being introduced “because Prime Minister Gordon Brown wants one to exist.”
Mr Lansley said that legislation could have given patients a legal voice and could have defined the responsibilities and duties of NHS bodies in law.
Mr Johnson insisted that the constitution should set out the “key principles and values” of the service.
He said: “I believe, building on the solid foundations established over the last 11 years, the NHS constitution and the measures we have set out in the Gracious Speech will accelerate further progress, improve quality and intensify the focus on prevention.”
Copyright Press Association 2008
