Gray observes that "Jacques is enduringly associated with the role of hospital matron" and her portrayal of the character in five films had a lasting impact on both her legacy and on the role and view of Matrons in the National Health Service. An article in "The Guardian" by Mark Lawson mixed fiction with reality when he wrote that "standards of hygiene have slipped since Hattie Jacques ran NHS wards". According to "The Scotsman", the 2003 Labour Party Conference "applauded deliriously because the government has revived Hattie Jacques", in relation to a change in government policy. After complaints about the NHS in 2008, the "Western Morning News" suggested the government should "clone a Hattie Jacques-type matron to run a tight ship everywhere". NHS nurses have complained about the stereotype: in August 2013 the "Nursing Times" quoted one matron, who protested that they were "not like Hattie Jacques anymore".