Tory Brexiteer and new government adviser claims NHS 'not nearly as good as' US healthcare in resurfaced video

A video of former Tory MEP Daniel Hannan talking about the NHS just over 10 years ago has resurfaced after he was named adviser to the Board of Trade this week.

The announcement made waves particularly because of the appointment of former Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott, despite him expressing homophobic views in the past, and being accused of misogyny in an infamous speech by political opponent Julia Gillard.

Health secretary Matt Hancock was asked about this appointment by Sky News's Kay Burley who stated that Abbott "is a homophobe and a misogynist". Hancock's cringe-worthy response was: "He's also an expert on trade."

Amid the Tony Abbott drama, some people may not have given much thought to all the other advisers appointed by the government. Luckily, we have social media to keep us all on our toes.

Twitter user @Haggis_UK posted a clip from an interview between Hannan and journalist Michael C Moynihan, who was a senior editor for US-based libertarian magazine Reason.

The 10-minute interview was uploaded on 25 August 2009 to Reason's YouTube channel, but it's a 40-second clip which is now doing the rounds.

In it, Hannan describes the British healthcare system saying:

There is private health insurance, for the very very wealthy, for a tiny number of people who can afford to buy their way out of the NHS even though they've obviously paid for it in their taxes.

It almost sounds like the beginning of an argument in favour of abolishing private healthcare, but alas, he continues:

But it's such a tiny market that there isn't really any proper competition within it, and therefore 90-plus per cent of the population are left dependent on a state system which, you know, contains good people, where you can sometimes have good experiences, because there are kindly and dedicated doctors and nurses in it. 

But where overall it is not nearly as good as a system as it would be if we had the kind of consumer choice, the opportunity for redress that you have in you system.

In 2009, when Labour had been in power for 12 years, it was not unusual to hear Conservatives highlight problems in state-run services. But Hannan is not simply criticising the running of the NHS at the time, but rather suggest that the American system is blanketly better.

He also made the comments before Obama had passed the Affordable Care Act, which cut the number of uninsured citizens by half, protected the right to insurance of those with pre-existing conditions and slowed the rise of healthcare costs which were rising at a prohibitive level.

Hannan's central premise – that private healthcare is available to more people in the US – is also potentially flawed. According to a survey, in 2019 the average annual premium for a family of four in the US was $20,576, which is more than someone working full-time on minimum wage would make in a year.

A lot of these costs are covered by employers in the States, but there are a litany of issues which go along with tying your right to healthcare with your job.

In light of this video, people saw Hannan's appointment as a suggestion that the current government is looking to 'privatise' the NHS.

Lots of people pointed out the clear flaws in his argument.

And people shared their personal experiences.

The video worried people because of Hannan's view that a completely private healthcare system is superior, but also due to his seeming lack of understanding of how any of it really worked.

Perhaps now that he's a government adviser he'd like to re-think his answer.