Market forces, Greece & our NHS

© Am Ang Zhang 2011

I returned from Greece after a lovely cruise. Greece has been hit by more financial problems and it was clear that market forces caused much hardship to its ordinary citizens! One taxi driver told me  that Greece will never pay back the EU. He may well be right.

Then I found this in the Guardian:

The British Medical Association's council, the executive committee of the union, voted to pass a series of motions critical of the government's bill – and crucially accepted that doctors "start a public campaign to call for the withdrawal of the health and social care bill".

Put forward by NHS consultants Clive Peedell and Jacky Davis, the motion will ratchet up the pressure on ministers over the summer break who had hoped that the bill's third reading in early September would be an easy ride.

The BMA, which represents 140,000 doctors, voted to "reject the idea that the government's proposed changes to the bill will significantly reduce the risk of further marketisation and privatisation of the NHS" and "agreed that the government is misleading the public by repeatedly stating that there will be 'no privatisation of the NHS'".

Dr Hamish Meldrum, chairman of council at the BMA, said: "Whilst the BMA recognises there have been some changes following the listening pause, there is widespread feeling that the proposed legislation is hopelessly complex, and it really would be better if the bill were withdrawn."

His colleague on the council Dr Peedell said that the health bill was "just a privatisation bill with a third of it devoted to [producing] an economic regulated market".

From Clive Peedell: (Thanks to ← A better NHS)

We have had a passionate and lively debate at BMA Council today about the Health and Social Care Bill.

The following motion proposed by myself and seconded by Jacky Davis was debated.

That this meeting of Council
(a) recognises the medical profession’s lack of support for the Health and Social Care Bill CARRIED
(b) recognises the lack of support from the majority of GPs for involvement in GP/clinical commissioning as proposed in the Health and Social Care Bill CARRIED
(c) rejects the idea that the Government’s proposed changes to the bill will significantly reduce the risk of further marketisation and privatisation of the NHS CARRIED
(d) agrees that the Government is misleading the public by repeatedly stating that there will be “no privatisation of the NHS” CARRIED
(e) calls for the BMA to start a public campaign to call for the withdrawal of the Health and Social Care Bill CARRIED
(f) calls on the BMA to ballot the membership with regard to the BMA taking a position of opposing the bill, rather than critical engagement LOST* 

*An amendment to change ‘ballot’ to ‘survey’ was accepted, but that part of the motion was still rejected.

This was an excellent outcome for us. We now have a mandate for a campaign to call for the bill to be withdrawn.

Thanks to you all for your continued help and support. The fight goes on….. 

To help keep an NHS that puts patients before profits, please join Keep Our NHS Public today!

Pulse:

The new RCGP poll found 85% of GPs had not been ‘reassured' by the Government's revisions. Almost half of GPs ‘disagreed' or ‘strongly disagreed' that the revised model of clinical commissioning groups would improve patient care. Meanwhile, 60% said they did not want to be involved on a commissioning group board.

.........Dr Paul Hobday, a GP in Maidstone, Kent, and a fierce critic of the reforms, said that he was not surprised GPs had ‘seen through the publicity stunt' of the Government's amendments and urged the RCGP to act on its members views and back calls to scrap the bill.

‘The bill should be scrapped. It is a complete joke now, the amendments just turned it into a dog's breakfast. I know the RCGP are in a delicate position, they're not supposed to be a political force, but given these survey findings I hope they have the confidence to back the BMA's call to get the Government to scrap this bill and get back to the drawing board.'

Ooops, looks as though they are unstoppable:

NHS services to be opened up to competition

Really?

BIJ: Circle.

The financial strength of Circle Health, one of the UK’s most prominent private health providers, will come under close scrutiny as its parent company prepares to float this week.

……Parent firm Circle Holdings’ expected introduction to the Alternative Investment Market on Thursday will refocus concern over the involvement of the private sector in the NHS in the wake of the intense difficulties besetting Southern Cross Healthcare. Circle Holdings’ management refuses to say how much money it hopes its float will generate. City speculation over the company’s valuation ranges from £66m to £188m.