‘Changing the health secretary provides an opportunity to also change the culture and policies within the Department of Health. I hope that in the coming days we will not only see more careful listening to the concerns of doctors as the new secretary of state starts to get to grips with his brief, but also a greater willingness to act on what we say'.
Dr Richard Vautrey, GPC deputy chair, GP in Leeds
‘We didn't all agree with what Andrew Lansley he did, but he was a very competent man who understood and knew the health service even if people didn't like him. Jeremy Hunt has a lot to prove. I think the challenge to him in the early days will be to make the right contacts and realise he has got to engage with the profession in a way that Lansley did.'
Dr Peter Swinyard, chair of Family Doctor Association, GP in Swindon
‘Andrew Lansley is a politician with exemplary commitment and dedication to his portfolio, which, combined with his understanding of the NHS and the wider health sector, enabled him to overcome the many challenges he faced during his time at the Department of Health. He leaves, as his legacy, the infrastructure on which the work on the modernisation of the NHS will take place.
Dr Charles Alessi, chair of NAPC, interim chair of NHS Clinical Commissioners, GP in Kingston
‘We would like to thank Andrew Lansley for his commitment to the NHS over the past eight and a half years, both in opposition and as health secretary. He has held his brief in health for almost a decade and that is something that not many other politicians can say they have done.'
Mike Farrar, chief executive of NHS Confederation
‘The new secretary of state must show political leadership by supporting the case for radical transformation in the delivery of care. Although funding pressures on the NHS and social care are an immediate and pressing concern, he must focus on addressing the longer term challenges and ensure change benefits patients.'
Professor Chris Ham. chief executive of the King's Fund
‘The NHS has been pushed to the brink of destruction by Andrew Lansley - a minister who simply would not listen either to the patients or the professionals. Jeremy Hunt must reflect deep and hard on the errors of his predecessor and seek immediate dialogue with the NHS team and their unions'.
Rachael Maskell, head of health at Unite
‘To praise the positive contribution of homeopathy to the NHS does not bode well for the new person in charge of UK healthcare. One can only hope that with the reality of the new job, there will be a more rational insight in the actual evidence on this topic.'
Professor Edzard Ernst, Emeritus Professor at the University of Exeter
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