NHS staff facing rising tide of ‘ugly, 1970s-style racism’, Health Secretary says
Racism directed at NHS staff a ‘stain on society’
- Health Secretary Wes Streeting has warned that NHS staff are enduring a resurgence of "1970s, 1980s-style" racist abuse.
- Mr Streeting urged patients not to direct frustrations at frontline workers, especially with the health service facing a "triple threat" this winter from Covid, flu, and doctors’ strikes.
- He expressed disgust at the comeback of such racism and criticised politicians who have seemingly condoned or "leaned into" it.
- An example cited involved an Asian NHS doctor who refused to treat a patient demanding only white staff, a decision Streeting supported.
- Professor Nicola Ranger of the Royal College of Nursing condemned the abuse as "a stain on society and a stain on our NHS", attributing it partly to anti-migrant rhetoric and calling for accountability.