The NHS remains one of the reasons why people are proud to be British. It provides outstanding care to more than a million of us

admin2022-04-20  40

问题     The NHS remains one of the reasons why people are proud to be British. It provides outstanding care to more than a million of us every day, despite huge pressure caused by tight finances and an ageing population. At the last election, the British people were clear—a strong NHS needs a strong economy. So those who back Brexit need to explain what that would mean for the NHS.
    I am not someone who believes we could not survive economically outside the EU. Nor do I believe that—as the world’s fifth largest economy—we would not eventually negotiate new trade deals. But we know that would involve years of economic uncertainty and that no country outside the EU has ever secured full, unfettered access to the single market.
    Even the most bullish Brexiteers concede that the short-term impact on the British economy would be a period of uncertainty and volatility. The independent Office for Budget Responsibility has said that "there appears to be a greater consensus that a vote to leave would result in a period of potentially disruptive uncertainty while the precise details of the UK’s new relationship with the EU were negotiated". And therein lies the risk to the NHS of leaving.
    Those wishing to leave might say this uncertainty is a price worth paying, but my concern is more practical. The NHS consumes the second biggest budget in Whitehall. Next year, thanks to this government’s success in turning around the economy, it will have the sixth biggest increase in its history.
    Investing in the NHS will always be a priority for this government, but the simple fact is this: an economic shock would put pressure on our finances. According to the OECD, Greece, Portugal, Spain and Italy all cut health spending per head following the economic crisis.
    Of course, our economy is stronger and more resilient, but only in the last two weeks a series of studies from the likes of the London School of Economics, Oxford Economics and the CBI have shown that the impact of an exit could cost the UK more than 5% of the size of our economy.
    This would inevitably mean less money for public services like the NHS. Those who want to leave need to explain how they could protect the NHS from this economic shock.
    It is not just a question of the risk to the pounds in our pocket, but to the pounds in the NHS budget as well. We should not take that risk.
The author seems to be mainly concerned with the impact of leaving the EU on________.

选项 A、the role of public services
B、the income of households
C、the size of the economy
D、the budget of the NHS

答案D

解析 本题是细节题。文章第五段提到“对国民医疗保健体系的投资是政府优先考虑的”;第六段又指出“脱欧会给英国经济造成损失,会影响国民医疗保健体系的预算”;而结尾处作者得出的结论是,疲软的经济肯定会给国民医疗保健体系的预算造成风险。因此,“国民医疗保健体系的预算”才是作者关注的重点。故答案选D。A项“公共机构作用”和C项“经济规模”在文中并未提及,故均排除;B项“家庭收入”虽在文章末段提及(the pounds in our pocket),但不是作者关注的重点,故排除。
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