- Conservative election poster 2010
A few recent news articles about the UK’s Conservative and Liberal-Democrat(Conservative) coalition government – the ConDem’s – brutal attack on the National Health Service.
NHS news is looking increasingly toxic for the illegitimate ConDem coalition government.
- A poll shows that the government is not trusted in claimed support for NHS principles.
- The e-petiton calling for the Health and Social Care / Destroy the NHS Bill to be scrapped reaches 150 thousand and will imminently be the most supported e-petition.
- Cameron has called a summit of health professionals supportive of reforms at Downing Street today. Commentators note that Cameron and Lansley do not listen to opposing opinions and opponents hold an opposing summit.
Cameron not trusted over NHS
Cameron facing collapse in trust over health reforms says poll
Six times as many people trust health professionals than David Cameron and Andrew Lansley (60 per cent – 10 per cent) over their health reforms and 68 per cent want the government to publish its own risk register on the reforms says a new YouGov poll.
The YouGov poll for Progressive Polling/Unite the union, also shows splits in the coalition’s support. Lib Dem supporters (80 per cent) are more likely to want the risk register published. The register crucially details the impact of the coalition’s plans on the NHS.
Labour supporters follow closely (73 per cent) with a majority of Conservatives (62 per cent) backing the information commissioner’s ruling to release the document under the Freedom of Information Act.
The poll of 1,772 people makes grim reading for the prime minister’s personal ratings and shows that the NHS is quickly becoming a toxic issue for the Tories.
Three times as many people think David Cameron has not delivered on his pre-election assurances (59 per cent to 19 per cent). Among Female voters, 16 per cent believe he has not delivered with just 8 per cent trusting him and Andrew Lansley more than health professionals over the reforms.
Labour also has a 15 per cent lead over the Tories on which party has the best approach to health.
The damning poll comes ahead of Wednesday’s (22 February) opposition debate in the House of Commons over the government’s refusal to release the NHS risk register. The following week will see the government go to the high court to stop the potentially damaging report from being published.
Commenting, Len McCluskey, general secretary of Unite, said: “David Cameron is haemorrhaging trust over the health bill with public disquiet growing each day the government fights to keep the risk register secret. People have a right to know what damage these so called reforms will do to their NHS.
“The government’s secrecy begs the question of who comes first; the people who pay for and use the NHS, or corporate consultants like McKinsey who drafted the bill and stand to make money from Cameron’s privatisation plan? David Cameron and Andrew Lansley need to come clean, get in step with public opinion and drop this unnecessary and damaging bill.”
Critical doctors ‘locked out’ of Downing Street NHS meeting
Prime Minister takes charge of controversial reforms and hosts implementation summitDavid Cameron will today signal his determination to press ahead with health reforms as he stages a Downing Street summit from which critics of the plans have been excluded.
The Prime Minister, who has taken personal charge of implementing the overhaul, will make clear he believes the preparations for the changes are too advanced to be halted and will argue that patients can already see improvements where preparations have been begun.
Andrew Lansley, the Health Secretary, has faced renewed calls to scrap the Health and Social Care Bill from organisations representing doctors and nurses, as well as intense speculation he could be reshuffled out of his job.
Liberal Democrat critics will try to raise the issue in an emergency motion to their spring conference next month and disquiet over the reforms has even surfaced around the Cabinet table.
Last night, Government sources said this afternoon’s session was designed to examine in detail how the reforms could be rolled out rather than to discuss amending or abandoning them.
Downing Street said the guest list comprised a “range of national healthcare organisations and clinical commissioning groups”, thought to include the NHS Confederation and groups of family doctors who back the shake-up.
However, the British Medical Association, the Royal Colleges representing GPs, nursing and midwives and health unions said they had not been invited to the discussion with Mr Cameron and Mr Lansley. Andy Burnham, the shadow Health Secretary, said: “The NHS means too much to too many people for the Government to play this dangerous game of divide and rule.
“People have strong and sincerely-held views about the risks to the NHS from the Government’s re-organisation. They deserve a hearing – not to have the door of Downing Street shut in their faces.”
Peter Carter, the chief executive of the Royal College of Nursing, said: “We don’t know why we haven’t been invited but we, like others, find it extraordinary because at the end of the day, it is nurses, doctors, physios, GPs that actually keep the health service going.”
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More of the same:
David Cameron accused of divide and rule on health bill
Cameron’s ‘Cold Shoulder’ To Health Leaders
David Cameron facing questions about NHS reforms summit
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