Looks like it could soon be 'RIP the NHS'?

That sentence about immigrants was not in the Guardian article.

It is probably because they are relatively young, and are just settled into an environment where they have the opportunity to raise a family - just like in the UK just after WW2, when returning demobbed servicemen were re-united with their wives (or married their sweethearts after postponing while they were abroad) The birth rate shot up then, creating the original "baby boom"

Without looking at the whole article, I would agree, ana. I've heard several times from several sources that the birth rate amongst UK immigrants is higher than amongst what one might call "long-term" Brits. If it's true it's simply a fact. It's not judgmental to mention facts.

Besides, it's not so very long ago that birth rates were much higher amongst long-term Brits. Immigrant birth rates will fall too in due course.

The only reference I could find to immigrants in the article was this one sentence:

Labour wards are also under pressure because of high birth rates fuelled by migration.

I don't see that as 'putting the blame on immigrants for having too many babies'.

Mail running story today implying maternity wards unsafe at night because consultants not there. Registrars are though, who do vast proportion of forceps etc etc. Another shock horror story designed to frighten patients rather than look at the evidence.
I note the blame is put on immigrants for having too many babies and not on Jeremy Hunt.
www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3872840/Don-t-NHS-baby-hours-Three-quarters-maternity-wards-no-consultant-duty-overnight.html

www.opendemocracy.net/ournhs/john-lister/councillors-must-look-before-they-leap-into-secret-nhs-cuts-plans

Birmingham and Solihull.

nhap.us7.list-manage.com/track/click?u=937c3e62bc24fa37708920cc9&id=2091bb8d6f&e=814ede4ddc

These are the only ones in the public domain at the moment, even though they are supposed to have consulted with us, the public, on them.

This is the one for Camden.

nhap.us7.list-manage1.com/track/click?u=937c3e62bc24fa37708920cc9&id=63809a34ae&e=814ede4ddc

For people living in North Devon, your STP has been leaked.

nhap.us7.list-manage1.com/track/click?u=937c3e62bc24fa37708920cc9&id=45aefaee1d&e=814ede4ddc

Research into how little we spend on the NHS compared to 20 other countries.

theconversation.com/britains-nhs-is-chronically-underfunded-but-great-value-for-money-for-now-67579

For those who want the NHS to be properly funded.

act.goingtowork.org.uk/page/m/1f11b213/3ab9ec2e/5403ba6b/5407f9b4/2057470596/VEsE/

Not that this government will take any notice of the TUC...

This is interesting, Dr Sarah Wollaston telling Hunt off for lying about NHS cash.

www.pulsetoday.co.uk/home/finance-and-practice-life-news/stop-pretending-nhs-is-awash-with-cash-mps-tell-health-secretary/20033045.article

Just a shame it's taken so long and will not save the NHS anyway.

www.opendemocracy.net/ournhs/paul-hobday/nhs-is-it-all-about-money-money-money

We can afford the NHS. It's just a question of priorities.

So what do you suggest, Ruth 1958?

@gillybob

Local authorities hardly employ any admin staff these days. That's why the whole system is so fragmented and why, incidentally, nobody was in the position to plan for places for your grandchildren. Local authorities control transport, some admissions and special needs but almost everything else is delegated to schools. There's a shortage of permanent strategic oversight and planning.

I agree with you, Anya. Over the years, LAs have employed fewer managers capable of strategic reports, as they've had money siphoned off first to grant maintained schools and then academies and free schools. In Essex, the Children's Services boss is a political appointment and, from the evidence I've seen, he knows sod all about education. He wouldn't be capable of producing a report.

Wouldn't matter how much money you put it, it's just not sustainable.

Bottomless pit...it is not sustainable!

'In her response to Corbyn’s question, May put the following figure on extra NHS spending:

We’re giving £10bn of extra funding to the NHS.

But, only a day ago the Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt admitted the £10bn funding had been abandoned. Considering this, May appears to have dodged the question by making stuff up.
Breaking the wrong records

A historic level of debt is not the only record the government has broken with our health service. On Friday 14 October, the Conservatives tried to sneak out the biggest sell-off in the history of the NHS. £7.9bn of contracts are up for sale in the latest NHS bonanza, 7.3% of the entire health budget.

The Conservative’s accelerated privatisation takes us up another rung of the ladder. DoH figures show that the amount of money going to “independent sector providers” more than doubled from £4.1bn in 2009-10 to £8.7bn in 2015-16.

Privatisation of the NHS appears to be the aim of the Tory government. Unsustainable public funding levels fabricate the need for private provision. But much of the mainstream media looks more concerned with documenting so-called jokes than the ongoing sell-off.'

This is what it's all about. Privatisation of the NHS.
How can Hunt say one day that the NHS is not getting £10 billion extra and May say it is the next day?
She has no idea what is going on in her government departments.

It's more 'jobs for the boys' in fact.

What wasn't mentioned, but happens, is that managers who were initially employed by the LEA, NHS, etc, often take 'early' retirement, on a final salary pension, then are immediately re-employed on a 'consultancy' basis!!

I really wanted to watch that programme, and now I wished I hadn't. I knew this consultancy business was one big rip off but I'm sure none of us realised how bad it is.

Yes I was pleased to see Liverpool taking charge Anya and getting rid of the vast amount of consultancies. Can't remember the name of the Welsh council but that woman? She definitely had something massive to hide .

These 'initiatives' do not need management consultants. The wages paid to top managers ought to ensure they have the skills to do the job themselves.

I saw this first happening with our LEA in 2001 when, rather than undertake an internal restructuring exercise, a firm of these 'consultants' were paid to prepare a report. There was no need to employ this firm, there was sufficient expertise to complete the report 'in house' but it was easier just to get someone else to do it, and money was being thrown at LEAs by the, then, Labour government.

Gradually more and more was handed over until now a huge proportion of council budgets are eaten up by managemnt consultancy fees according to this programme.

I was pleased to see some councils, such as Liverpool, taking much of the work back in house. That's the way foreword.

We will have to agree to disagree re the kick up the pants daphnedill one thing for sure is you couldn't run a private company the way the public sector is run. They would all be bust. Imagine running an engineering company with 2 engineers and 10 admin staff? Imagine running a garage with 3 mechanics, 1 salesman and 20 admin staff? Also imagine those companies bringing in PWC to write a paper about where they could make savings. It's a joke.