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Politicians should avoid the temptation of another NHS top-down re-organisation
Following today’s Queen’s Speech and an election looming, Richard Murray warns that a major re-organisation of the NHS risks damaging a service that is already under strain.
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YOUR REPRESENTATIVE STATED ON THE NEWSNIGHT THAT ONE RESULT OF BREXIT WAS THE REQUIREMENT TO MAKE FURTHER SO CALLED "SAVINGS" TO THE AMOUNT THE GOVERNMENT IS PREPARED TO ALLOCATE TO THE NHS.
NO ONLY IS THE ABOVE WRONG IN FACT BUT IT IS ALSO LEGALLY INCORRECT AS IT IS OPEN TO THE GOVERNMENT TO ALLOCATE AS MUCH AS IT LIKES EACH YEAR TO THE NHS OUT OF THE OVERALL AMOUNT IT RECEIVES IN TAXES EACH YEAR.
THE REALITY IS THAT THE UK IS RANKED ONE FROM THE BOTTOM IN THE AMOUNT IT SPENDS EACH YEAR ON THE NHS AS COMPARED TO THE OTHER 15 ORIGINAL MEMBERS OF THE EU.
So far as the level of spending on the NHS in the UK is concerned (given the differences in the way countries fund their health care) it is usual to compare total spending (public plus private) expressed as a proportion of countries’ GDP.
On this basis, data from the OECD shows that in 2013 (the latest year for which figures have been published) the UK spent 8.5 per cent of its GDP on public and private health care. (This excludes capital spending equivalent to 0.3 per cent of GDP to make figures comparable with other countries’.)
•AS ALREADY MENTIONED This places the UK 13th out of the original 15 countries of the EU on the amount it spends on the NHS
THE ABOVE ALSO CONCLUSIVELY ESTABLISHES THE FACT THAT JEREMY HUNT IS "NOT TELLING THE TRUTH" ABOUT HIS AND THE GOVERNMENTS BEHAVIOUR TOWARDS THE NHS.
THE ABOVE INCLUDING HIS MISREPRESENTATION ABOUT HIS ABILITY TO GUARANTEE ANY IMPROVEMENTS IN THE NHS.
SINCE THE HEALTH AND SOCIAL CARE ACT 2012 NEITHER HE, THE GOVERNMENT, THE DEPT OF HEALTH NOR NHS ENGLAND HAS ANY POWER TO CONTROL HOW THE NOW LEGALLY INDEPENDENT NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTS BEHAVE.
HE AND THEY CAN ONLY "ADVISE OR RECOMMEND" BUT CAN DO NOTHING IF THE CHIEF EXS OF THESE TRUSTS CHOOSE TO IGNORE THAT ADVICE OR RECOMMENDATION.
IN ADDITION TO THE ABOVE, THE SUGGESTIONS MADE AS TO HOW "SAVINGS" COULD BE ACHIEVED AMOUNTED TO THE COMMISSION OF A SERIOUS CRIMINAL OFFENCE BY THE -CHIEF EXECUTIVE OR OTHER SENIOR MANAGER MAKING THAT DECISION
.The already identified (by the Public Accounts Select Committee) dangerous shortage of front line “operational” staff in the NHS is likely to worsen and the appalling existing number of legally “preventable” deaths increase if the criminal law is not enforced as a result of the current perceived (but legally invalid) need to “save” billions of pounds from the already overstretched NHS Budget.
Legally any Government can decide to spend as much of the tax payer’s money that it receives each year as that Government wishes – it is merely a matter of determining priorities.
A perceived need to make “savings” is no defence to the crime of manslaughter caused by a failure to comply with the overriding duty of care that a Chef Executive owes to that deceased individual..
The common factor in virtually all of the negative reports of the Care Quality Commission on individual NHS Foundation Trusts since 2013 has been their identification of the Chief Executives of the now “independent” organisations (although all funded by the tax payer) not employing sufficient front line staff in all “service delivery” areas to enable proper care to be provided.
In many instances this culpable failure has directly led to “preventable” deaths – each of which amounts to the commission of a serious criminal offence by the Chief Executive and/or senior manager “in charge”..
.In every other environment where such preventable deaths occur the Police routinely investigate and the Director of Public Prosecutions prosecute the individual Chief Executive/Senior manager in charge of the organisation where these preventable deaths have occurred
DESPITE WHAT WAS STATED ON NEWSNIGHT BREXIT WILL NOT HAVE ANY EFFECT ON THE AMOUNT OF MONEY AVAILABLE TO THE NHS - UNLESS THE GOVERNMENT ALLOWS IT TO FOR PURELY "POLITICAL" REASONS.
EACH YEAR THE GOVERNMENT DECIDES ON THE AMOUNT OF TAX PAYERS MONEY IT WANTS TO SPEND ON EACH "SERVICE" AND IT CAN EASILY DECIDE TO SPEND MORE MONEY ON THE NHS EITHER BY REDUCING THE AMOUNT ALLOCATED TO ANOTHER SERVICE AREA OR BY INCREASING THE AMOUNT OF TAX IT COLLECTS.
THE REALITY IS THAT THE MAJORITY OF TAX PAYERS WOULD BE PREPARED TO PAY MORE IN INCOME TAX IF THEY WERE ASSURED THAT THE EXTRA MONEY WOULD BE SPENT ON THE FRONT LINE OF SERVICE DELIVERY AND NOT ON EMPLOYING EVEN MORE MANAGERS AND INCREASING EVEN MORE THE ALREADY OBSCENE AMOUNTS OF TAX PAYERS MONEY THESE INDEPENDENT NHS FOUNDATION TRUSTS ALREADY PAY THEIR CHIEF EXECUTIVES AND OTHER MANAGERS..
THE UNFORTUNATE REALITY IS THAT SINCE THE HEALTH AND SOCIAL CARE ACT 2012 (WHICH REMOVED THE NHS FROM DEMOCRATIC CONTROL) NEITHER JEREMY HUNT - ONCE THE GOVERNMENT GIVES TAX PAYERS MONEY TO THE 165 OR SO LEGALLY INDEPENDENT TRUSTS THAT NOW RUN ALL NHS HOSPITAL - NOR THE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH NOR NHS ENGLAND HAS ANY CONTROL ON HOW THAT MONEY IS SPENT.
THE ABOVE IS A NATIONAL DISGRACE
IN ONE HOSPITAL ALONE (IN RURAL NORFOLK) OVER TEN OF THEIR "MANAGERS" ARE PAID SIGNIFICANTLY MORE THAT THE PRIME MINISTER THE CHIEF EXECUTIVE RECEIVING MORE THAT £250,000.
THE POSITION IS FAR FAR WORSE IN LONDON AND OTHER MAJOR CITIES..
JEREMY HUNT ASKED THESE ORGANISATIONS TO EXERCISE RESTRAINT IN THE AMOUNT OF MONEY THEY WERE PAYING THEIR CHIEF EXECUTIVES AND OTHER SENIOR MANAGERS BUT THEY ALL CHOSE TO IGNORE THAT REQUEST AND THERE WAS NOTHING JEREMY HUNT OR NHS ENGLAND COULD DO ABOUT THAT REFUSAL.
KEVIN S. RILEY SOLICITOR (Ret.).
HE AND THEY CAN ONLY "ADVISE OR RECOMMEND" BUT CAN DO NOTHING IF THE CHIEF EXS OF THESE TRUSTS CHOOSE TO IGNORE THAT ADVICE OR RECOMMENDATION
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