Diversity in the NHS means staff are now promoting ‘anti-whiteness’, warns Health Secretary

Diversity and inclusion in the NHS has gone too far with some staff now promoting ‘anti-whiteness’, Wes Streeting has warned.

The health secretary said there are some ‘really daft things’ being done in the name of equality that risk undermining its cause.

He said the health service must get back to the fundamentals of what equality means, so everyone gets high quality care.

Highlighting an example of an NHS worker who ‘merrily tweeted a job advert’ saying she practiced ‘anti-whiteness’, Mr Streeting said: ‘What the hell does that say to the bloke up in Wigan who’s more likely to die earlier than his ore affluent counterparts down in London?

‘We’ve got real issues of inequality that affect white working class people.’

The prevalence of equality, diversion and inclusion jobs in government and business has faced growing scrutiny following a boom which began in 2020.

US President Donald Trump has already axed federal DEI departments since returning to power.

In 2023, the then Conservative health secretary Steve Barclay ordered the NHS not to recruit any more specialist EDI roles but health chiefs refused to obey his instructions.

Some 35 such roles have been advertised since Sir Keir Starmer’s Labour Government won the last general election – equal to one per week.

All but six of the positions allowed staff to work from home and some posts offered salaries of more than £80,000.

Mr Streeting said there are some ‘real racial inequalities’ in health that need addressing, including black men being twice as likely as white men to die of prostate cancer and black women being three times as likely as white women to die in childbirth.

But he insisted the ‘ideological hobby horses need to go’, adding that ‘what’s been lost, I think, with some well-meaning but misguided approaches to equality, diversity, inclusion – the clue is in the name – it’s equality, it should be applicable to everyone.

‘And where we see health inequalities, whether they affect men and women, black people, white people, rich and poor, we’ve got to be take a much more evidence-based approach to those inequalities, and say if you’re on the wrong end of the stats, we want to deal with that to make sure we get equality of outcome.’

Speaking at an event hosted by Macmillan Cancer Support to mark World Cancer Day, Mr Streeting said he could ‘save loads of money’ and ‘get quite a lot of plaudits’ by axing EDI roles altogether but he plans to keep them as he believes they deliver some benefits.

Asked if the battle to keep them was a political fight he was willing to have, Mr Streeting said: ‘Yeah, but I also need the profession to help.

‘And sometimes there are some really daft things being done in the name of equality, diversity and inclusion, which undermined the cause.

‘For example, there was one member of NHS staff who was merrily tweeting a job ad online and saying part of her practice was anti-whiteness.

‘And I just thought, ‘What the hell does that say to the bloke up in Wigan who’s more likely to die earlier than his more affluent white counterparts down in London?’

‘We’ve got real issues of inequality that affect white working class people.’

Mr Streeting is believed to have been referring to a post on LinkedIn by a psychologist working at East London NHS Foundation trust.

In it, Dr Florencia Gysbertha called for trainees to apply for a work placement in the NHS.

She said: ‘The trainee will be supervised by myself, a counselling psychologist, who integrates anti-whiteness/anti-racist praxis into supervision and approaches to clinical work.’

Mr Streeting also hit out at recent claims he was now prioritising men’s health over women’s health by axing targets to open women’s health hubs across the country while delivering a men’s health strategy.

He continued: ‘Part of what I’m doing is kind of trying to win again the fundamental arguments for equality, diversity and inclusion when they’re under attack.’

William Yarwood, from the TaxPayers’ Alliance, said: ‘Taxpayers have had enough of DEI managers in their NHS.

‘While Streeting’s comments about ‘anti-whiteness’ are correct, he needs to recognise that such an approach is not a glitch in the DEI system but an inherent part of it.

‘All such roles inside the NHS need to be defunded and the money put towards cutting the waiting lists.’

Saffron Cordery, interim chief executive of NHS Providers, which represents health bosses, said: ‘NHS trust leaders want a more equal, diverse and inclusive health service which ensures fair treatment and opportunities for everybody.

‘EDI roles help to tackle discrimination for the benefit of staff and patients.’

Mr Streeting also used his speech to call for a ‘cultural change’ in the NHS, with doctors told to listen to patients’ concerns if they fear they may have cancer and not to ‘provide false hope or false assurance’ regardless of how low the odds may be.

A spokesperson for East London NHS Foundation Trust said: ‘A post was shared last year by one colleague using their own social media which does not in any way represent the views, values or recruitment practices of the Trust and this matter was addressed internally.

‘The Trust promotes equity, diversity and inclusion in all aspects of its work and services to the community.’

A spokesperson for NHS England said: ‘NHS trusts should be working to address inequalities to ensure the best possible outcomes for all patients and equal opportunities for staff – but equally should avoid making tokenistic gestures that don’t ultimately improve patient care.’