Pharmacies are in "crisis," and there will not be enough nurses to implement Labour's ambitions to transform the NHS into a "neighbourhood health service," according to health leaders. The warning comes as Wes Streeting prepares to launch a major consultation next week to help shape the government's 10-year health care strategy, urging patients and NHS workers to participate in the "national conversation." While in opposition, Labour promised to construct "an NHS fit for the future," with a focus on avoiding illness, moving treatment from hospitals to communities, and leveraging cutting-edge technology to improve care.Some of Labour’s plans have already been outlined, including the creation of neighbourhood health centres to enable people to see GPs, nurses, care workers and other medical professionals in the same building, closer than their nearest hospital.

However, despite welcoming plans to shift treatment from hospitals to communities, the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) general secretary Professor Nicola Ranger has warned the NHS “simply does not have the nursing numbers to deliver it”.

She said: “Without new investment, the number of community nurses will stay on track to be half what it was two decades ago.“Nursing staff are ready to help deliver the modernisation our health service needs, but staff are overworked and chronically undervalued.”

According to the RCN, the number of community nurses is projected to fall to 8,995 by 2029, compared with 18,070 in 2009, without government intervention.The National Pharmacy Association (NPA) has warned that pharmacies are in a financial crisis and that urgent action is needed to address this. The NPA hopes the government will stabilize the community pharmacy network and expand pharmacy services to bring care closer to patients and their communities. The Royal College of GPs has called for changes to general practice to be developed in partnership with GPs and patients, while ensuring resources are used effectively.