Inventing our future Collective action for a sustainable economy

08 Theme C: Health in
A Connected Region
Chapter summary
The focus of Theme C is Health in a Connected Region, recognising that the East of England
is facing some distinctive issues in this context. Three Strategic Priorities are identified, together
with appropriate Actions:
• Strategic Priority 7: To recognise and respond to the practical implications of international
gateways for health and health inequalities within the East of England
• Strategic Priority 8: To harness the East of England’s international position to encourage
learning, knowledge development and R&D for health
• Strategic Priority 9: To understand and plan for the impacts of climate change and the more
sustainable use of resources within the Region, in terms of health and health inequalities issues
8.1 The third major Theme within Healthy Futures is concerned with the position of the East of England
globally. Three major issues – all of which were identified in the Integrated Regional Strategy – are
likely to have a significant bearing on the health of the population and health inequalities. These
are introduced briefly in the paragraphs which follow.
Strategic Priority 7: To recognise and respond to the practical
implications of international gateways for health and health
inequalities within the East of England
8.2 Our seventh Strategic Priority is concerned with the implications of increased physical movement –
of both people and freight – into and out of the East of England. The Region’s airports – particularly
Stansted and Luton – are growing and there are expansion plans for the Haven and Thames Gateway
Ports. All of this means that the East of England is increasingly globally inter-connected. This brings
both pros and cons which – in seeking to improve the Region’s health and reduce inequalities in
health – need to be taken into account fully.
8.3 The fact of growing international gateway functions brings with it important issues with regard
to health protection; substantial volumes of tobacco may, for example, be imported illegally while
gateways can also provide a focus for low-cost alcohol sourced from continental Europe and further
afield. More positively, the international gateways are expected to precipitate employment growth
and this in turn needs to be harnessed – linking with Strategic Priority 5 – to provide better jobs for
more people.
8.4 A further dimension of international gateways relates to the people entering the UK at ports and
airports in the East of England. Some of these people are extremely vulnerable and it is important
that appropriate health advice and support is provided.
8.5 Within the East of England there are currently around 600 dispersed asylum seekers, the majority
of whom come from one of five countries (Turkey, Iran, Iraq, Eritrea and Sudan). 135 These people enter
the UK seeking sanctuary because of persecution at home and they officially become refugees once
their case has been investigated and it is proven that their fear of persecution is well-founded. Both
135 Asylum Seekers: The Facts Published by the EERA Consortium for Asylum and Refugee Integration, July 2005.
A Regional Health Strategy for the East of England 103