Howe: NHS reform bill will stay true to its original intent
Health minister Earl Howe says the latest amendments to the health and social care bill do not diminish its original goals:
"The amendments we have brought forward today will provide ongoing reassurance that the NHS will always operate in the interests of patients.
"They clarify Monitor's transitional intervention powers over foundation trusts and introduce further safeguards about foundation trusts' ability to earn non-NHS income.
"The principles of our modernisation plans – doctors and nurses making decisions, patients being at the heart of the health system, and less bureaucracy – have always been at the core of the bill.
"These principles are widely accepted according to the independent NHS Future Forum. We will continue to work with peers to provide the reassurance and clarity necessary as the Health Bill progresses through Parliament."
