2015 Election - antidotes?

This is what the Tories can do to the NHS already. Think what will happen if they get voted in again.

www.buzzfeed.com/solomonhughes/nhs-contract-stoke

Malcolm Rifkind is on the board of the company that was awarded the contract. He gets £60,000 per year for attending these meetings.
Isn't that more or less the amount he gets for being an MP?

Just read this. I think it is very interesting; more to the point I hope it is right.

www.politics.co.uk/blogs/2015/02/06/even-if-labour-wins-fewer-seats-it-can-still-win-the-electio

But here is a link for you.

www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/the-tragic-tale-of-the-pensioner-who-killed-himself-after-begging-for-help-over-benefit-cuts-10029754.html

It's not just a tragedy for the pensioner, but for the boys who tried to save him. It's also appalling that people sat in their cars and did nothing to help.
Is that what this country is coming to? What was it Thatcher said, no such thing as community, just lots of individuals.

Sorry, POGS but I am not going to look for a link for you.
I am told I put up too many links anyway, and you do not read them.

durhamjen

Thank you for the link but that was not. the one I was referring to.

It was a link you put up on the Health Forum, The NHS Again, I believe and I responded on 12th Jan 10.57

I can't find your link

It was a link you put up to a left wing blogger called Andrew Robertson.

I said whilst he was a left wing blogger I thought the link was fairly balanced.

What I liked about it was his policy to not only list conservative connections to the private health companies but the Labour/Lib Dems and Lords he knows of!!!! Such as Frank Dobson, Alistair Darling and David Miliband.

I said I thought his response to one of the posters on his blog summed up the state of play rather well.

Somebody asked him why Labour started the privatisation of the NHS.

His reply:-

"Because they (Labour) also represented the market, shared the ideology and 'obtained the vested interests'.

That link .

There are quite a few sites that mention Labour and privatisation (not right wing) but I haven't a clue how to put them up.

I presume you've all heard on the news about the King's Fund and what it says on what the coalition has done to the NHS?

nhap.org/nha-party-vindicated-nhs-warnings/

For anyone who thinks the Tories are okay, I sincerely hope that you do not agree that these are the sort of people you want as MPs.

https://www.opendemocracy.net/ournhs/alan-taman/tories-filibuster-to-stall-labour%27s-nhs-bill

It's not yet supposed to be the silly season.

pulsetoday.msgfocus.com/c/12oueDxUFrRWmGcEwJ8qFRTl

Just read this on Pulse.
Do you think it is right that hospitals are being encouraged to pay GPs to work in hospitals?
Surely a GP works locally. I do not want to have to drive and pay for parking at my 'local' hospital just to see a GP.
Or have I got this wrong? Are hospitals just supposed to make money out of local GP practices?

Well said, Eloethan.
Following on from my last post, after watching Question Time last night, I watched This Week. Andrew Neill actually asked Michael Portillo why, if Labour were doing so appallingly, the Tories were not ten points ahead.
Portillo could not answer.
The fact is that in the poll of polls, Labour are still ahead despite Miliband always getting a drubbing from the papers.

It appears that slinging insults at Labour and Green politicians is preferable to actually addressing the issues.

One of the reasons why Blair got in was the appalling neglect of the NHS, including its buildings and facilities, and of schools which were falling into serious disrepair. Unwisely, they eventually decided to set up private finance initiatives but the motivation behind it was to try and rectify, with as little delay as possible, the chaos in public health and education provision.

The Conservatives, on the other hand, have on many occasions stated their wish to shrink the state by contracting out public services to private companies.

The evidence is well documented. When out of office, three of the Conservative Shadow Cabinet – Michael Gove, Greg Clark and Jeremy Hunt – called for the health service to be dismantled. In a book called "Direct Democracy", co-authored with Conservative MEP Daniel Hannan, they claimed it was “no longer relevant”. Mr Hannan also went on US TV to describe the NHS as a “60year-old mistake”.

The Health & Social Care Bill enshrines Conservative ideology. It forces services to be put out to tender - a costly and complex process in which the NHS - with its limited resources - is no match for huge healthcare organisations which have vast amounts of money and expertise at their disposal.

David Owen, who can hardly be described as a "left winger" wrote in his pamphlet "Still Fatally Flawed":

"Earl Howe wrote to Peers on 22 December about the regulations “requiring commissioners to justify their decisions in terms of benefits to patients and value for taxpayers money. The Regulations would reflect the existing Principles and Rules for Competition and Cooperation in the NHS”. But in fairness to the last Labour Government competition was not for universal application. There was no insistence that any willing provider had the right to tender for virtually every health provision contract in England."

may2015.com/ideas/memo-to-the-right-if-labour-is-as-rubbish-as-you-say-why-arent-the-tories-streets-ahead/

A very long article, but worth reading, for those who are interested.
Refutes what you say, jo.
Once again, someone just bothered about looks and soundbites, rather than policy, jo.
I like fire in the belly politics. How do you know I am really objectionable?

I can't believe someone has hope in "Wallace and Gromit" The trouble with "fire in the belly" politics is that they are spewed forth by really objectionable people. Can anyone really listen to Balls or Milliband et al? whatever their message is. I am sorry, but the smoothies will will.

Labour did not privatise the NHS, and nobody on social investigations has said so. The NHS is in danger of being privatised unless we stop the coalition from doing it.
As you like social investigations blog, this is for you to read, Pogs.

socialinvestigations.blogspot.co.uk/2014/07/healthcare-uk-conduit-for-market-part_31.html

You will see that Labour wanted to allow companies from abroad to use NHS expertise, but all the money made from it was to go back into the NHS.

" Did they vote for the Health and Social Care Act and privatisation?
Have they made money from private health connections?
Do they want NHS healthcare to be included in the EU-US trade deal? "

As usual you only see what you want to see.

I do not think any Labour MPs voted for the Health and Social Care Act, but doubtless you will disagree about that, too.

durhamjen

Am I missing something.

There were 3 categories one of which was 'voted for privatisation'

How come Andy Burnham and all Labour MP's are squeaky clean when Labour were the first to privatise?

I think I prefer the link you provided to the left wing blogger Andrew Robertson who writes for the Guardian who at least had the honesty to say Labour privatised the NHS and mentions the likes of Frank Dobson, Alistair Darling, David Miliband .
social investigations.blogspot.

I've just come across this map which shows which of your MPs benefit from the privatisation of the NHS.

www.peoplesnhs.org/where-do-they-stand/

NHS again. An article from a locum, who says what has happened to the NHS pay and conditions.

https://www.opendemocracy.net/ournhs/paul-teed/locum-ae-doctor-speaks-out-about-silent-privatisation-of-nhs-workforce

He says he has a zero hours contract, but never worries about paying the mortgage.

Tax payers in this country gave Smythsons a £2 million government backed loan in 2013. Why?

"Richard Murphy, a tax expert, said: “I can think of no reason why you would adopt this structure other than for tax avoidance.”

Despite its high profile, Smythson is a relatively small retailer, with just 15 outlets, mostly of them in London, although it also has shops in the US, France and Asia. In the 12 months to the end of March 2014, the company recorded a turnover of just under £30 million and reported a loss of £1.2 million.

Molly Scott Cato, a Green party MEP, who has been a frequent critic of tax avoiders, said that the Smythson revelations raised questions about “deep conflicts”.

“It demonstrates yet again why [the government’s] rhetoric on tax avoidance is not matched with action. If Cameron and [George] Osborne were really serious about tackling tax avoidance in Europe, they would urge their MEPs to join the Greens in a call for a full inquiry into illegal and anti-competitive tax agreements,” she said.

A spokesman for Smythson declined to comment. Downing Street also declined to comment."

From the Times.

Soon, she's the wife of the British Prime Minister. If she doesn't know she should, particularly as that's how her father-in-law made his money, by advising people how to save tax.

Havent seen the Jordanian Pilot thread yet.

Shares may be a different matter. Though I dont think that having shares means shareholders necessarily know a whole lot. But I dont think I own any shares so I dont know for sure.

I cant see how what you are writing on this occasion dj is at all stickable. Me thinks instead that you are trying to stir and confuse people. I will go so far as to say that is not on really.

That's twice you have been told to 'come on' soon, in the space of 3 minutes I believe.

You are being told the same on the Jordanian Pilot thread.

At least it's consistant

Come on soontobe. She works part time for them and takes home £100, 000 a year. The prime minister refuses to comment on this article. I think he should, just to show what a hypocrite he is. She has shares in the company. She isn't a shop counter girl.
In 2011 the company made over £4 million profit, yet it has only paid over £1 million in tax since this government came into power. You and I would be pursued by HMRC and fined if we did this.

The only paper I cannot find this article in is the Telegraph. No surprise there as its owners live in Guernsey and do not pay their taxes either.
The sooner country by country reporting comes in, the better for our taxes.

I think she was a director, but isnt now. And it is now that it is in a tax haven?
If she consults for them, and is paid well, that is not here nor there?

Oh, and she's paid more than an MP to consult for them.