Fact file: external affairs in 2024

1 Dr Peter Hampson, AOP clinical and policy director

“In terms of wider political events in 2024, it is almost impossible to look past the general election and the new government.

“We have a Labour government that swept to power with promises to ‘fix’ the ‘broken’ NHS and in the first few days, proposed a move of care from secondary to primary care. In theory this should be great news for optometry, with the skills, workforce and equipment to do so much that is currently carried out in secondary care.”

2 Donna O’Brien, policy, public affairs and research manager at SeeAbility

“It has to be the collaboration and support there has been on Special Schools Eye Care Service over the year. We are not there by any means, but we must celebrate that the pledge to create a service was embraced by the new government when it took office. 

“Our campaign carries on in making the promise of an England-wide service a reality. We are calling on policymakers not to undermine all the good work by setting such a low fee that it can’t be delivered, or at least not to the standard or quality these children need.”

3 James Moseley, head of health partnerships at Specsavers

“A highlight was Health and Social Care Secretary, Wes Streeting, name-checking Specsavers and the role of community optometry and audiology at the 2024 Labour Party Conference, along with his pledge to move more care from hospital to community.”

4 Sophie Dodgeon, head of policy and campaigns at the Royal National Institute for Blind People

“Karin Smyth, Minister of State in the Department of Health and Social Care, in January announced that opticians will be doing more routine care and how it could reduce the waiting list. 

“Karin’s speech was a standout moment because this was the start of eye care entering the national conversation about health care.

“It was followed by eye care being mentioned in Labour’s manifesto, recognising that there is a lot of potential to tackle eye care waiting lists in England by better harnessing primary care.”

5 John White, AOP communications and external affairs director

“The Labour health team’s open dialogue with us in the spring has to be a standout moment in 2024.

“This was a notable step in collaboration with Labour’s policy leads, which not only led to the inclusion of eye care in the incoming government’s election manifesto but also highlighted how we as an organisation can effectively use our insights and data from the profession to exert influence and create change.

“Most significant has been Labour’s continued commitment to use High Street optometry to help tackle the eye care backlog, frequently mentioned in interviews by Health Secretary, Wes Streeting, pre and post-election campaign.

“We were able to take forward this important dialogue at Labour Party Conference in the Autumn, by sharing a panel on primary care with Care Minister, Stephen Kinnock.” 

6 Dr Peter Bloomfield, Macular Society director of research

“This year, the progress made through The Eyes Have It has been promising and really built on our Foundations Report from 2023. 

“This ties in with parliamentary engagement through the Westminster Eye Health Day parliamentary drop in hosted in the autumn. We were really pleased to have good engagement from parliamentarians. That has enabled us to further develop our approach and help us advocate for the long-term benefits of better national eye health.”