The real reason clinical staff are so poorly protected

callistemon???

Another mystery to behold

Tory MP Steve Double stood up and declared rather excitedly that he’d suddenly understood the value of unskilled workers to this country and perhaps Mme Defarge ( I think he meant P. Patel) would like to reflect on the things we have learned.

Anyone watched in wonder and awe at the nerve of Tory MPs who stood clapping for the NHS - who not 2 years ago voted against also clapped and cheered at the nurses pay rise being defeated?

Even worse here.
I live in the worst place for COVID19 cases after London. It is in Wales and the CEO said the reason was because we are on the border and therefore closer to London.

Run by idiots.

Anyone see Goves face when he was asked why the NHS has been stripped of 17000 beds and short of 100000 staff since the Tories took office. ???. He simply pushed the question to the National Health chappy who burbled and hoped for better in the future.

To that Gove could have been asked why, when they were warned of the coming crises, they wasted the whole of February?

The NHS has been underfunded for over 2 decades. This underfunding escalated in the last decade. Most of us were complacent and didn't make a fuss when we should have done. Those who did make a fuss were labelled as trouble causers and fear mongers.

Increases in waiting times and lists have been warning us that the NHS wasn't coping with it's normal workload but most of us turned a blind eye and trusted that if we needed it then it would be there. Now some people are paying the price for this turning of a blind eye. Not enough protective clothing for staff and not enough basic equipment.
As for ventilators, no health service could mothball thousands but the government and all subsequent governments have known since 2016 that we didn't have enough to deal with a massive increase in needs. The Influenza Pandemic exercise (Exercise Cygnet) showed up our short comings, one of which was our lack of ventilators. Surely that was the time to get companies like JCB and Rolls Royce on board. Design a ventilator that could be produced with very little alteration to existing machinery. Then, rather than going through this period of design and testing, ventilators could have been in production as soon as it was apparent that they'd be required in high numbers.

PPP's, yes exactly. Now the cost will be truly astronomical and the cost in human lives unbearable!

What took you so long, Varian?

It goes back to the Blair and Brown days when they cost us millions by going down the PPI route. Is that its title- my memory is going. They starved hospitals of money as have each Conservative government since, wanting and assisting us to go down the private route. Much of which cannot be undone without a lot of cost.

The NHS (and police force) have been run down and underfunded for over a decade. Surely, everyone knows that. Now that we desperately need them, were really up s* creek without a paddle.

Still, some will say that Boris and the government are doing a spiffing job and the pandemic response is timely and efficient, won't they?

Why has the NHS been o starved of funds in 2017 and since?

What was the government spending its money on?

No real surprise there.