The independent review panel is chaired by Dr Ruth Hussey, the former Chief Medical Officer for Wales, and consists of national and international experts in the field of health and social care. At the outset, I want to thank Ruth and her fellow panel members, and, indeed, everyone who has engaged with the panel, for their commitment to this important work. I also welcome the cross-party support for the review, and the nature with which opposition spokespersons, and the chair of the Health, Social Care and Sport Committee, have engaged in it. This of course comes from an initial agreement between my party and Plaid Cymru at the start of this Assembly term.

The agreed terms of reference set for the review are challenging. The panel are tasked with assessing and making recommendations on: how the health and care system might deliver improved health and well-being outcomes for people across Wales; reduce existing inequalities between certain population groups; and how best to enable the whole health and social care system to be sustainable over the next five to 10 years.

Change in the system is essential for future financial sustainability. Without effective action to reduce cost pressures, increase efficiency, or reduce the demand for services, the Health Foundation has shown that NHS spending in Wales will need to rise by an average of 3.2 per cent a year in real terms to 2030-31, just to keep pace. Cost pressures for adult social care are projected to rise even faster than for the NHS, by an average of 4.1 per cent per year.

I am pleased that the panel has responded at this still early stage of their work with an insightful interim report. Over the next few months, the review will be holding discussions across Wales, engaging with key groups, and working with stakeholders on integrated models of care. They will also look in more depth at some key issues and make clear recommendations on key issues for the final report.

The panel rightly recognises the tremendous commitment of the health and care workforce and its significant achievements. However, the case for change in how health and social care services should be organised in future could not be clearer. As the report shows, the changing make-up of the population presents a particular challenge. Wales has the largest and fastest growing proportion of older people in the UK. Whilst that is of course a source of celebration, an increasing older population with more complex health conditions and needs will also lead to a greater need for care. At the same time, the proportion of working age people will shrink, providing a smaller pool of taxpayers, informal carers and potential employees in health and care.

Despite our recent successes in recruitment, Wales—in common with many other countries—sees shortages in certain professional fields. In common with many post-industrial societies, Wales is already experiencing inequalities in health and well-being outcomes. The panel has shared the view expressed by professionals and the public alike, that healthcare is not always provided effectively based on the needs of service users. However, there are positive opportunities to be seized through the faster uptake of technologies and a more systematic approach to innovation, which could help deliver more effective care.

Many people will of course recognise this picture. What comes across clearly in this interim report is the pace at which rapidly changing social and technological factors are impacting on service provision. The report is clear that health and care will not be sustainable if traditional service configurations and ways of working are perpetuated. The report makes clear that new models of delivering health and social care are needed.

But the panel did find significant consensus amongst health and care stakeholders about what the characteristics of a future integrated health and care system should be. These are: a universal primary health service, which promotes well-being of the population; a greater emphasis on preventative care; individuals to be supported to self-manage where possible and safe; greater access to online support; wherever possible, services provided at home first or in the community, with access to hospital care only for services a hospital facility can provide; a more flexible model of home-based care and support that enables the individual to have control over when, and for how long, they use a service; a seamless co-ordination between different types of care; orientation of a care culture to focus on the outcomes the citizen wants and can achieve; and a relentless focus on quality and efficiency, with staff having a supportive and engaged working environment.

All of those above issues can be enhanced by new technology and informed by shared data and analytics. However, whilst there is of course a broad consensus on the vision, the panel reports that health and care organisations are searching for advice and practical support on how this is to be delivered consistently across our system. To address this, the panel suggests that the next steps for Wales are to identify the most promising, broad models of whole-system health and social care, drawing on international evidence, and that new models should then be used at scale to deliver whole-system transformational change.

These new models of care should include a combination of hospital, primary care, community health and social care providers. They should work in different settings, such as urban and rural, and of course take account of Welsh language needs. The panel envisages that a limited number of models could be widely trialled, developed and evaluated. The panel will set up a stakeholder forum to work with them to develop these new models and the principles that should be used to plan future service development.

Doing this work now will create momentum and an environment for progress after the review has concluded. Alongside this, the panel’s view is that new models alone will not be enough to ensure sustainable services without parallel action on a number of enablers. These are outlined in the report as areas where the panel will look to develop recommendations. They are: public dialogue; the workforce; digital and infrastructure; innovation; and, crucially, making change happen faster.

This is a strong interim report and I welcome the practical approach that the review panel intend to take to their work. I look to health and care organisations and members of the public to respond with equal vigour and work constructively with the parliamentary review over the coming months.