In addition to the obvious fact that no one wants to be ill or to die prematurely, this state of affairs weighs heavily on the economy and HM Treasury, whether in terms of higher treatment costs, increased welfare payments or the loss of potential staff to ill-health at a time when many parts of the economy are facing deep workforce shortages.

The latest Office for Budget Responsibility report shows the rise in health-related economic inactivity has already added almost £16 billion in annual costs to the economy; in this we are an international outlier and this particular issue will not be solved by reducing NHS waiting lists.