The Department of Health and Social Care has announced that Prime Minister Boris Johnson has launched a new mission to tackle dementia nationally, as well as doubling the amount of funding available for research, in memory of the late Dame Barbara Windsor.
After discussing the significant suffering caused by dementia, as well as how slow the process is for finding treatments and cures, the Prime Minister has launched the Dame Barbara Windsor Dementia Mission. £95 million in additional funding has been ringfenced to support the mission, with the ability to boost the number of clinical trials and innovative research projects.
Boris Johnson, Prime Minister, said:
“Dame Barbara Windsor was a British hero. I had the pleasure of meeting her both on the set of Eastenders as Peggy Mitchell, and at Downing Street as we discussed the injustices faced by dementia sufferers.
“I am delighted that we can now honour Dame Barbara in such a fitting way, launching a new national dementia mission in her name.
“Working with her husband, Scott, and on behalf of everyone who is living with dementia or has a loved one affected by this devastating condition, I am doubling research funding and calling for volunteers to join ‘Babs’ Army.’ We can work together to beat this disease and honour an exceptional woman who campaigned tirelessly for change.”
Leading the mission will be a new taskforce, combining industry, the NHS, academia, and families living with dementia. The hope is that more hypotheses, as well as potential treatments can be tested by speeding up the clinical process, with focus not just being on dementia, as other neurodegenerative disease come into view.
Health and Social Care Secretary, Steve Barclay, said:
“Anyone who lives with dementia, or has a loved one affected, knows the devastating impact this condition can have on their daily lives, but for too long our understanding of its causes have not been fully understood.
“By harnessing the same spirit of innovation that delivered the vaccine rollout, this new Dementia mission, backed by £95 million of government funding, will help us find new ways to deliver earlier diagnosis, enhanced treatments and ensure a better quality of life for those living with this disease, both now and in the future.”
The recruitment for a taskforce lead will begin this week, with the candidate selected being required to focus on galvanising action, whilst also ensuring that tax-payer money is used as effectively as possible.
