Where would you begin if you were the next government?

Galaxy62

Campaigners have warned that “procreation has become a luxury item”, after it emerged that the fertility rate in England and Wales had fallen to its lowest level since records began in 1939.

A falling birthday rate in the UK is a fact. How do you think the country will manage without immigration? Your argument is ridiculous., get real. The UK needs immigration to survive. Bury your prejudices and accept reality.

Mt61

Galaxy62

They need to solve immigration and this will solve a lot of other problems

They do, we are being swamped, first country is supposed to sort them out but of course they want to come to our land of milk & honey, where streets are paved with gold! I would tow them back to France 🇫🇷 what are escaping from cheese & baguettes. How they can’t have an impact on the NHS is beyond me!

The majority of immigrants to the UK don't arrive via an overland route and small boats across the Channel. Most of them probably haven't ever stepped foot in France in their lives.

In the year ending June 2023, the top five non-EU nationalities for immigration flows into the UK were: Indian (253,000), Nigerian (141,000), Chinese (89,000), Pakistani (55,000) and Ukrainian (35,000). They have visas to be in the UK.

Galaxy62

They need to solve immigration and this will solve a lot of other problems

They do, we are being swamped, first country is supposed to sort them out but of course they want to come to our land of milk & honey, where streets are paved with gold! I would tow them back to France 🇫🇷 what are escaping from cheese & baguettes. How they can’t have an impact on the NHS is beyond me!

Until or unless we get everyone well, educated, with adequate support and care, then other things can be put into place.

Ignoring the support side of things will just mean more problems down the line.

Why more social workers?Money would better spent elsewhere .

growstuff

Katie59

growstuff

SuperTinny It's good to hear from somebody who appreciates the problems "on the ground". As users (patients) of the NHS, I expect we've all experienced problems and I expect many of the staff are frustrated by them too. It would be ridiculous to re-organise the NHS completely because the cost and issues caused by re-organisation itself would be horrendous. However, I do think there should be more opportunities for people who really do understand the systems to have a say and make practical suggestions for improvement.

Here’s a Practical Solution

More money to employ more nurses, nothing is going to change until staffing levels are increased.

Well, yes, that would be an excellent start!

More money to train more is the answer, not more money to employ qualified nurses, because they aren’t out there waiting to be employed, there’s a very high vacancy factor already. That’s why it’s not a quick fix.

They need to solve immigration and this will solve a lot of other problems

Katie59

growstuff

SuperTinny It's good to hear from somebody who appreciates the problems "on the ground". As users (patients) of the NHS, I expect we've all experienced problems and I expect many of the staff are frustrated by them too. It would be ridiculous to re-organise the NHS completely because the cost and issues caused by re-organisation itself would be horrendous. However, I do think there should be more opportunities for people who really do understand the systems to have a say and make practical suggestions for improvement.

Here’s a Practical Solution

More money to employ more nurses, nothing is going to change until staffing levels are increased.

Well, yes, that would be an excellent start!

Mt61

nanna8

Stop paying the pension to everyone without a means test. That would raise a lot of money which could go to the NHS. That’s what we do and, painful though it is, it saves heaps.

Why? If we have contributed all our working lives!
Stop allowing all these illegals into this country & help our own homeless, people, some who have fought in the wars under Blair & for what? Who can’t can’t house but will house all these migrants, it’s shameful!

Yes we have contributed but the level of service we need is far in excess of those contributions, we have been relying on contributions from younger workers to fill the gap, now there are too few of them and too many of us receiving care and pensions.

growstuff

SuperTinny It's good to hear from somebody who appreciates the problems "on the ground". As users (patients) of the NHS, I expect we've all experienced problems and I expect many of the staff are frustrated by them too. It would be ridiculous to re-organise the NHS completely because the cost and issues caused by re-organisation itself would be horrendous. However, I do think there should be more opportunities for people who really do understand the systems to have a say and make practical suggestions for improvement.

Here’s a Practical Solution

More money to employ more nurses, nothing is going to change until staffing levels are increased.

SuperTinny It's good to hear from somebody who appreciates the problems "on the ground". As users (patients) of the NHS, I expect we've all experienced problems and I expect many of the staff are frustrated by them too. It would be ridiculous to re-organise the NHS completely because the cost and issues caused by re-organisation itself would be horrendous. However, I do think there should be more opportunities for people who really do understand the systems to have a say and make practical suggestions for improvement.

Juniewoonie

Goodness I wouldn’t know where to start - immigration, NHS, energy costs, the economy! All huge issues with no easy fix. I’m guessing Labour might be the next government and I do wonder exactly what their plans are, they’re playing their cards close to their chests at the moment. It’s certainly easier to be in the opposition.

No better than the tories, no doubt!

nanna8

Stop paying the pension to everyone without a means test. That would raise a lot of money which could go to the NHS. That’s what we do and, painful though it is, it saves heaps.

Why? If we have contributed all our working lives!
Stop allowing all these illegals into this country & help our own homeless, people, some who have fought in the wars under Blair & for what? Who can’t can’t house but will house all these migrants, it’s shameful!

A blanket approach to train more staff for the NHS is not the answer. There are plenty of staff already and plenty of training places.
What we lack is training placements (enough clinical areas where nurses and doctors can be placed to complete their clinical competencies).

Trainee nurses in particular often find themselves travelling nearly a hundred mile round trip (every day) to get to their allocated placements. I spoke to one trainee nurse recently who is at university in one city but is travelling to another 50 miles away for her placement. She doesn't drive so relies on public transport or lifts from fellow trainees who may be on the same shift as her in the same hospital. She said she was thinking of moving back home because the distances she needed to travel would be the same (from a different direction) but at least she would have comfy bed, not be disturbed by fellow students on a different course who have different lecture pattern and be looked after by her Mum who she knew would feed her! She also said her Dad would probably take her to and from placements a few days a week as well. I can't fault her logic.

By centralising university training for nurses we often expect them to travel to different counties for their placements because we don't have enough clinical placements for them.

We then need to look at how best to support the staff we have, get the long term sick back to work and then look at the gaps.

albertina

I would start with education and put lots of £ into poorer areas where children lives are difficult. Working in a deprived area like that needs the most caring teachers. And they need paying properly. In the earliest years of their lives these children in this sort of area need Surestart to be brought back. Health visitors giving children books who might never see one ( it used to happen, I'm pretty sure it doesn't happen now )
Re the NHS. I remember the wonderful Sir Gerry Robinson did a tv programme that asked if the NHS could be saved. He examined it very carefully and spoke to all levels of workers. His ideas seemed pretty sound to me. Perhaps the Minister for Health might give it a glance. People are dying unnecesarily because they are not getting the treatment they need ( my friend's husband is a case in point, he died recently because 111 mismanaged the situation. He did finally get into a hospital, but died on a trolley)
All the things people are mentioning here like tax and housing are very important, but if we don't give our children the best start in life what future is there ?

I could not agree more.

Oreo

In the sense that she isn’t an MP I should imagine.

Maybe in the sense that no one would want to elect her?

Stop sticking our heads in the sand and order a Royal Commision re the NHS. All governments are too scared to do anything to sort out the mess which it is. Show some guts. Throwing money at it doesn't work it just disappears into a deep hole and nothing improves or even changes. Just admit it.

If Labour do get into government, where on earth would they start…….. ?
Hopefully with the problems of the NHS

“That is why a core component of my platform is a comprehensive cross-party review of future NHS and social care funding, aimed at creating a stable cross-party consensus for the future. We have kicked the can down the road for too long in this area, and it is essential that our next leader takes up the challenge and converts the excellent thinking that has already been done into practical action.”
Rory Stewart June 2019

If you read his latest book ‘Politics on the Edge’
you too might feel might feel he is the man for the job !
Divisive yes but hugely talented.

Greyisnotmycolour

53Maggierose

"Abolish the right to buy
Abolish the 2 child benefit cap
Bring back rent controls
Renationalise water"

I'd like to add:
Invest in public transport
Build council houses
Abolish housing benefit that goes straight to private landlords
Press ahead with plans for new towns, Great British Energy and reforming the House of Lords

Housing benefit, tax payers money paying for someone to have a home. More rent arrears since tenants have had Housing benefit straight to themselves.
26,000 arrears in Lincoln,from tenant who had housing benefit paid directly to him.
I rented out once,never again, would rather sell up.

I feel so sorry if Labour win the next election because they have the most difficult job to get this country on its feet again heaving to deal with the dreadful mess the Tories will have left I their wake.

53Maggierose

"Abolish the right to buy
Abolish the 2 child benefit cap
Bring back rent controls
Renationalise water"

I'd like to add:
Invest in public transport
Build council houses
Abolish housing benefit that goes straight to private landlords
Press ahead with plans for new towns, Great British Energy and reforming the House of Lords

I'm quite sure Labour will win the election.

However I wouldn't want to be in their government.

They promise plenty but it will be very hard to deliver. Especially in the first term

What we will hear endlessly, is they have to cope with 12 years of Tory mismanagement.

Fair enough , but it's not going to be a picnic for them.

Goodness only knows. Our health, education, housing, transport and justice systems are all on their knees. Where to prioritise, especially when there are quite justifiable demands from all these sectors?

If Labour gets in - which I hope they will, though I am no longer a member of the Labour Party - I really don't envy them.

Well - I don’t know I’m sure- I remember the mess left by each Labour government- have we forgotten the stranglehold that the unions had over the Wilson/Callaghan governments? It took Maggie Thatcher to release us all from their grip. She of course was felled by the poll tax. All governments seem to end in a mess. So when the opposition takes over, everyone has a chance to throw brickbats at them - will make a change anyway.

I would start with education and put lots of £ into poorer areas where children lives are difficult. Working in a deprived area like that needs the most caring teachers. And they need paying properly. In the earliest years of their lives these children in this sort of area need Surestart to be brought back. Health visitors giving children books who might never see one ( it used to happen, I'm pretty sure it doesn't happen now )
Re the NHS. I remember the wonderful Sir Gerry Robinson did a tv programme that asked if the NHS could be saved. He examined it very carefully and spoke to all levels of workers. His ideas seemed pretty sound to me. Perhaps the Minister for Health might give it a glance. People are dying unnecesarily because they are not getting the treatment they need ( my friend's husband is a case in point, he died recently because 111 mismanaged the situation. He did finally get into a hospital, but died on a trolley)
All the things people are mentioning here like tax and housing are very important, but if we don't give our children the best start in life what future is there ?