Labour’s Election Pledge to Tackle Health Inequality: A Broken Promise?

During the lead-up to the July 2024 general election, Labour promised to reduce various health inequalities within the UK, shifting the focus to the social determinants of health and “halving the gap in healthy life expectancy between the richest and poorest regions in England”. Key to Labour’s strategy of tackling health inequality was a promise to address the gender health gap – something, they say, previous governments have failed to do.   

While often assumed to be unique to less economically developed countries, the gender health gap is very much alive and well in this part of the world, particularly in the UK. In 2024, the UK had the largest women’s health gap across all G20 countries and the 12th largest globally. While one in three women in the UK will suffer from a reproductive or gynaecological health issue in their lives, less than 2.5% of publicly funded research is dedicated solely to reproductive health. On top of that, five times more research goes into erectile dysfunction — which affects 19% of men — than into premenstrual syndrome, which affects 90% of women. This lack of research into women’s health feeds into more practical issues surrounding treatment, with many women feeling overlooked by the UK healthcare system and healthcare professionals feeling ill-equipped to help women who are suffering.  

It was therefore welcomed by many across the healthcare community when Labour announced in the summer that they would be making women’s health a priority if elected. “Never again will women’s health be neglected”, they promised. It was disappointing then, in January, when the Health Secretary Wes Streeting dropped targets for women's health from his new 2025 NHS mandate, abandoning plans to ensure each of the 42 NHS regions in England has a dedicated women’s health hub. This prompted healthcare charities to accuse the Government of yet again “sidelining” women. Organisations like the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists and the Men’s Health Forum wrote to Streeting to express their “deep concern” over the decision. 

While campaigners are frustrated with Labour over their failure to adequately address the gender health gap, when we look at Labour’s commitments to address other health inequalities, the story looks like it could be a little more promising. Another pre-election promise from Labour was to half the gap in healthy life expectancy between the richest and poorest regions in England - central to achieving this, the Health Secretary says, is moving away from a centralised health system, towards community-based care. 

The Government is pushing forward this commitment with their latest announcement of a £200 million boost in funding for local community health services, including family and school nurses, sexual health clinics, and addiction recovery services. However, this announcement comes just months after Labour scrapped planned investments in the social care system, which prompts concerns over an unclear direction of Labour’s health strategy.  

Between Reform recently overtaking Labour in the polls, and the pushback the government is receiving from businesses on the Budget and the Employment Rights Bill, claims that they are breaking health-related promises could cause friction between the government and a further group of key stakeholders. That being said, Streeting seems unphased by these recent health criticisms and remains insistent that the Government’s current health strategy is the right one.