Sick note Britain: Country’s ‘sickness explosion’ costing economy £15bn every year, experts warn

The UK is being gripped by a “sickness explosion” that is costing the economy £15bn a year, experts have warned.

A new report by health experts and peers has found that Britain has “among the worst population health in Europe” as a result of high levels of obesity, excessive drinking, and significant health inequalities.

Coupled with a rising number of elderly people and a “ballooning demand” for care, this is leading to a “health emergency”, according to the report, which is titled A Covenant for Health. The report says that these factors have led to a high level of “premature often avoidable ill health”, which it says is damaging the economy and the NHS.

Authored by former Labour minister Geoffrey Filkin and former Conservative health minister James Bethell, along with public health experts and academics from think tank The King’s Fund, the report found that millions of people in Britain are becoming prematurely ill, which is forcing many to drop out of the workforce. This cost the economy £15bn in 2022-23 because of the associated higher welfare costs and lower tax revenue.

“Without resolute action it will get worse,” the report concludes, calling for an “emergency programme for better health”.

Lord Filkin, who is chair of the Covenant for Health Commission, said: “There will be 16 million people living with obesity by 2030, and 500,000 will die from smoking and poor air quality over the next five years.

“The NHS alone cannot solve this. Far too many of us get avoidable illnesses which harm our lives and cause us to drop out of work.”

He added that Britain’s people need to “keep well to be happy, to contribute and to sustain our economy and our NHS”, but noted that “we have all done far too little to prevent ill health”.

Former health minister Lord Bethell added: “Our leaders should recognise that the public do support measures to tackle smoking, obesity, heart disease and other chronic illnesses, to address junk food and dirty air, to support healthy communities, and to engage people in their own health.”

Richard Murray, chief executive of The King’s Fund, added: “Apart from the obvious fact that no one wants to be ill or to die prematurely, this state of affairs weighs heavily on the economy and the Exchequer, 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.

“Tackling this problem is not just a job for the NHS – we cannot treat our way out of a public health crisis.”

Mr Murray said that improving the UK’s health will require “urgent cross-government action that encompasses better-quality housing, policies to ensure the air we breathe is clean, and the use of tax and regulation to encourage healthy behaviours”.

Local councils, the NHS, businesses and charities all have the power to improve the health of their employees, citizens and beneficiaries, he added.