Public Health England unveiled; powers devolved to councils

The Public Health England body will have a budget of approximately £4bn which will be ring fenced for spending on public health.

The burden for the majority of public health provision will now fall on councils who will commission services from their ring-fenced budget.

Andrew Lansley MP, Secretary of State for Health, revealed the plans as part of the government White Paper, Healthy Lives, Healthy People.

It also sets out how funding from the overall NHS budget will be ring-fenced for spending on public health.

Directors of public health will be employed by local authorities with the role of being ambassadors of health issues for the local population.

They are charged with leading discussions about how the ring-fenced money is spent to improve health.

This will include influencing investment decisions right across the council, with the goal of enhancing health and well-being.

Speaking at the announcement, Lansley said the decision would stop the NHS using public health budgets.

"The money will be ring-fenced to be used as it should be, for preventing ill health," he said.

"People's health and wellbeing will be at the heart of everything local councils do. It's nonsense to think that health can be tackled on its own. Directors of public health will be able to champion local cooperation so that health issues are considered alongside housing, transport, and education.

"With local authorities in the driving seat, supported by the latest evidence on behaviour change from Public Health England, we will start seeing significant improvements in the nation's health," he added.

The White Paper also revealed a public health responsibility deal involving working with industry, charities, and leading experts from the field with the aim of making it easier for people to make healthy choices.

This includes better food labelling, more information about alcohol harms, and much bigger contribution from industry around campaigns such as Change4Life.