The Office for Budget Responsibility reminded us in their report of Fiscal Risk in July of financial pressures facing health and social care. They argue that if ‘not addressed or offset’ it is the ‘biggest risk to financial sustainability’. The report cites the demographic trends and that spending in both areas have reduced as a percentage of GDP.

It was Kate Barker, twice a member of the Bank of England monetary committee, who argued in the report of her commission for the King’s Fund on the future of health and social care in 2014 that it was inevitable that over time we would spend a greater proportion of GDP on health and care. We are all living longer, but not all this is spent in good health. We need to address this in a way that promotes our independence and quality of life.