WES STREETING has declared in the right-wing Sun newspaper that the NHS is “broken” and that he will launch an investigation into the performance of the health service.

The health secretary said the probe will aim at “diagnosing the problem” so that the government can “write the prescription.”

It will be led by former health minister Lord Ara Darzi, who worked on the failed polyclinics scheme under Gordon Brown, which was slammed as a potential gateway to increased NHS privatisation. 

Keep Our NHS Public co-chairman Dr John Puntis argued that a King’s Fund report had already established that “too few staff, too little equipment and too many outdated buildings were a major cause of NHS failings.

“The choice of Lord Darzi to lead the review suggests the direction of travel may be backwards towards such failed experiments as polyclinics and independent-sector treatment centres, rather than forward to meet all the present challenges.”

EveryDoctor chief executive Dr Julia Patterson also said that it was “hugely concerning to see that Lord Darzi will be in charge of this project, who has been widely criticised for being pro-privatisation in the past."

Johnbosco Nwogbo, lead campaigner at public ownership campaign group We Own It said: “Wes Streeting should not be wasting precious time on another Whitehall review.

“He should be reaching a pay deal with NHS staff, fighting for proper NHS funding from Treasury and changing legislation to end NHS outsourcing.

“The NHS is underperforming because huge chunks of money that should go into patient care is leaving in profits. Our research shows that 94% of outsourcing contracts for NHS services are expiring within the next 5 years.

“Wes Streeting has a historic opportunity to reinstate the NHS as a fully public service and improve performance.”

Mr Streeting’s announcement comes as Labour inherits a waiting list for routine hospital treatment that has soared to 7.6 million in England.

A total of 307,500 people had been waiting more than 52 weeks to start routine hospital treatment at the end of May, up from 302,589 at the end of April. 

The government is aiming to eliminate all waits of more than a year by next March.

Royal College of Nursing (RCN) England executive director Patricia Marquis said: “On the same day the health secretary announced a review into the NHS, the need for action could not be clearer. 

“Millions languish on waiting lists, suffering in pain and unable to get on with their lives. It's an intolerable situation and a drag on the economy.  

“The only route to bringing down waiting lists is through nursing. 

“We deliver the vast majority of care and yet are missing tens of thousands.

“The government’s growth mission must include a plan to grow the nursing workforce, including by raising pay.”