7 In seven Sir Michael Marmot 1 You have noted that housing is a food siloed to make connections between issues such as healthy eating and housing, Commonly, I am asked what one thing I would recommend to reduce health inequalities. A key reason for my refusing to answer that question is precisely because of the interconnections. Income is a housing question. Housing is a food question. Food insecurity is part of poverty. need to look at them in the context of the conditions in which people are born, grow, live, work and age. 2 The pandemic has shown how reliant we are on good-quality data and, in the UK at least, how blessed we are to have such high-quality data systems. In matters of public policy, scientists produce evidence and politicians decide how to act on that evidence. As you might expect, there is a spectrum. Some politicians are more receptive to evidence-based arguments than others. the balance quite markedly. The evidence has become front-page news. Professor Sir Michael Marmot is professor of epidemiology at University College London (UCL), director of the UCL Institute of Health Equity, and past president of the World Medical Association. He has led research groups on health inequalities for more than 40 years It is still the case that the evidence doesnt make the policy decisions, but it is having a bigger impact. The how vital it is to have an excellent 3 pandemic took hold in the UK, and inequalities in society. What impact will the pandemic have on how inequality is Because of the pandemic, in December 2020 we published Build back fairer: the Covid-19 Marmot Review, only 10 months, report was published. We showed that pre-existing health inequalities had been worse by the societal response. Hence, 4 We have laid out an agenda for action on social determinants of health and health equity. In each of the key domains, we connections. We also need to track on health equity of societal changes. We always have much to learn from determinants of health and assessing health equity. 5 Is public health policy too focused I think we are making real progress in getting organisations to recognise the importance of social determinants of health. 6 A good feature of what has happened under the pandemic is a great deal of high-quality public discussion about people who misuse information and evidence. That should not stop people of good faith discussing disagreements and 7 What is the biggest challenge facing The brilliant success of dedicated work on developing vaccines shows what well-funded science can do. As we emerge from the pandemic, we should give the same focus and resource to addressing the ongoing health challenges that we face. 74 Impact ISSUE 33 2021_pp74-76 Seven.indd 74 26/03/2021 10:23 JTD_In