Steve Barclay: What will new health secretary tackle first?

Steve Barclay has been named as the new health secretary following the resignation of Sajid Javid, who stepped down after saying he had lost faith in Boris Johnson's leadership.

He starts as secretary of state at a time when the NHS and social care in England are under serious pressure.

Amanda Pritchard, the head of NHS England, has warned that the next two years could be even tougher for the health service than the two years since the start of the pandemic.

NHS Providers, which represents hospitals and other NHS trusts, described the problems Mr Barclay faces on his first day in the job as "big and pressing".

At the very top of that list is a record backlog for planned operations.

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Source: BBC News, 6 July 2022