Diabetes UK worked hard to influence the content of the National Service Framework (NSF) from the moment it was first announced by the then UK Health Secretary Frank Dobson in 1999. Indeed, we perceived the announcement of the NSF as a victory in itself – recognition at last that diabetes is a serious condition with major implications for the 1.4 million already diagnosed as well as those yet to be diagnosed. The long wait inevitably resulted in high expectations. However, many were not surprised when the government did not meet these expectations in their entirety. While this latest initiative from the Department of Health has a lot to recommend it, there are some glaring omissions.