In his first message of the new year, Duncan Selbie highlights the recent announcement of ring-fenced public health funding for local authorities and two further director appointments for Public Health England.
Yesterday’s announcement by Jeremy Hunt, Secretary of State for Health, of the £2.7 billion ring fenced public health funding for 2013/14 and £2.8 billion for 2014/15 has been well received, representing real terms growth for every local authority in England with around a third receiving 10 per cent more in each year. This was set out in a joint letter from the Secretary of State and me, together with a summary of the allocations by each local authority. This is an important mark of confidence in local government as they assume their new legal duties to improve the health of their people.
I am very glad to say that we have appointed Dr Rashmi Shukla as Regional Director for the Midlands and East of England and that Dr David Walker has been appointed Deputy Chief Medical Officer at the Department of Health. This week also saw the start in post of Professor Kevin Fenton as Director of Health Improvement and Population Health and Richard Gleave as Chief Operating Officer.
We have a review underway with the Local Government Association looking at how local government can be best supported in implementing the NHS Health Check programme as they take this on from April. Your thoughts and contributions would be greatly appreciated and can be made by contacting publichealthengagement@dh.gsi.gov.uk, and the outcomes will be widely shared.
You must have noticed the current media campaign about the immediate harm done by cigarettes – for every fifteen smoked there is a potentially cancer-causing mutation in the smoker. The television adverts have already gone viral, with a record breaking three million YouTube views. The campaign is supported by a new Quit Kit that can be found in thousands of pharmacies across the country. We have also launched the next phase of our Change4Life campaign which is featuring extensively in the broadcast, print and digital media. This aims to give people practical information and advice to support them in making healthier choices around eating well, in addition to flagging up offers which will give money off healthier food and drink.
And finally, I hope everyone had an enjoyable festive break and I wish each of you a happy new year. I am very much looking forward to continuing to work alongside you as Public Health England makes its final preparations for going live and beyond. Without our partners – in local government, the NHS, the voluntary sector, and across government – we will not be able to do what we have been set up to do or support the front line in doing so, which is to protect and improve the nation’s health, address inequalities and improve the health of the most vulnerable fastest.