Post 21 distracting democracy

Distraction and democracy May ‘22

Tabloids do ‘Distraction’ tactics
Of headline shout and shock
Which divert the enquiring reader
Enraged by the latest ‘exclusive’ leader
Appealing to prurience, sleaze and sensation
Encouraging voluble high indignation

Meanwhile, where our laws are shaped
Our suffrage is routinely raped
Cohorts of the right wing crew
Make sure new laws get voted through
That increase private representation
Of public services for the Nation

When I started this blog, back in July 2021, I made the initial decision to try and stay non political; despite my belief that our democratic probity is now under constant and dangerous threat. However, I find it impossible to stick to this premise, when new laws have crept in under the wire, which should give us all pause for thought. The most worrying, for me, is the ‘hollowing out’ of our increasingly vulnerable health service. A few facts to illustrate my concern.

The Health and Social Care bill ( a misnomer, seeing as it does not address the ‘integration’ of Social Care), was recently passed through the Commons, and proposes to set up:

42 ‘Integrated Care Boards’ in England. These will allow private providers to sit on these boards and oversee the  ‘Integrated Care Systems’

The Government have refused an amendment to establish the NHS as ‘preferred provider’

The Health Secretary will be in charge of appointments of all directors on the Boards.

This bill is yet another major step towards the ultimate privatisation of our NHS. Despite the praise and the clapping, I read that at least 40% of NHS services are already privatised. Several, mainly, US companies have acquired NHS contracts. Centene, a US company, are one of the largest primary care providers in England (58 practices & 500,000 patients). After a recent takeover, the CEO of Centene resigned and was then appointed as Boris Johnson’s Health Advisor.

United Health (US company) has had NHS contracts for more than a decade. The former vice president of U.H. was recently the Chief Executive of NHS England. He now sits in the House of Lords and the Health and Social Care bill is purported to be his brainchild.

You must forgive me if I appear suspicious of executives, plucked from the private sector, and often from US big pharma, being put in charge of our public services; especially when they end up in privileged positions of government. The stories of ‘advantaged mates’, especially during the Covid contracts scandals, can’t all be wrongly reported! 

And, a few more facts to make the caring and the carers among us even more concerned as to where our NHS is heading.

In 2010, our NHS waiting lists were low. Before Covid struck they had reached 4 million. Now they are 6 million.

Funding has been at it’s lowest level for a decade. ‘Efficiency’ cuts of 17,000 staff.

100,000 vacancies of Doctors and Nurses.

24% cut from the Public Health budget since 2015-16  

Thousands of ‘Sure Start ‘ Centres lost, which were proved to cut childrens’ hospitalisation by 18%.

I could go on. These facts have all been gleaned from reliable sources. I don’t follow social media, so I’m assuming all figures quoted are accurate. Those that can afford the fees, but not the time, are going private. Most will have an increasingly hollowed out service to rely on; a two tier system is inevitable. Already, trying to find a dentist or other medical specialist is a lottery. Aneurin Bevan would be pretty shocked if could see how his brilliant achievement, the creation of the NHS, was being sold down the river.

Many years back, we met a North American, holidaying in Wales, who had the misfortune to break his leg. He was treated in a Welsh NHS hospital, and was absolutely gobsmacked at the fact that his treatment was free. He reckoned that, in America, this treatment would have cost him ‘an arm’ and the leg!

I’m pretty sure that the majority of the British public are, mainly, unaware of the destruction of our NHS, which, despite it’s gradual depletion, is still regarded worldwide as a successful model for national health care; and a proven better system than those based on private provision. 

Let’s hope we will recover that ‘Forward to the Past’ that arrived in 1948 and be able to reverse the cuts that were endemic by 2015.

Check out my poem on Blog 9 ‘Privation and Privatisation’ for a more general view of the effects of ever increasing private ownership.

 

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