Matt Hancock in front of a computer generated image of a neurone at Salford Royal Hospital. He says that drug companies are holding the NHS to ransom

For Matthew Hancock, the NHS is personal as well as political. Last year his sister Emily Gilruth, a professional rider, was rushed to hospital and spent four days in a coma after falling and hitting her head while competing in the Badminton Horse Trials. “One of the reasons we all love the NHS is that at some of the lowest points in our lives it’s there for us,” he says. “The NHS saved my sister’s life. Of course that’s emotional.”

The experience also made the health secretary think about the importance of improving technology in the NHS. “She was unconscious when she arrived at hospital. Thankfully she had people with her who knew her medical details but some people don’t. When you can’t find out