Over the last couple of months, it has become clear that the government’s proposed changes to the NHS have some very real and some very large problems within it. From the Royal College of Nursing passing a vote of no confidence in Andrew Lansley, to the Lib Dem’s voting against the reforms at their Spring Conference, to the government itself ‘pausing’ to conduct a ‘listening exercise’ and to discuss the bill, it is clear that the bill is opposed by a wide section of the population.
However, even in the face of overwhelming opposition, Lansley has never admitted that the bill is the problem. The problem, in his eyes, is that ‘the thinking behind the bill has not been properly explained.’ It is clear that the ‘listening’ exercise that the government is currently undertaking is very much a listening exercise – they’ll talk, we have to listen. If we still oppose their plans, they’ll go ahead and impose the changes anyway. Although many would agree that improvements could be made to the NHS, dismantling the NHS and opening it up to privatisation and competition is not the way to do it. Free health care at the point of use has been an idea that is central to British life, and it’s part of what makes the UK a great place to live. We can’t let this group of Tories decide that the NHS is to be a thing of the past.
As an organisation, Save Our Services in Reading is committed to defending the NHS from any and all cuts, along with all other vital services. Cuts are unnecessary – there are other ways that the deficit can be cleared without one cut to our public services. With regards to the NHS, the changes we’re faced with will destroy the service as we know it. GP’s are private contractors contracted to the NHS. Therefore, the bill is privatising the NHS because it gives GP’s the right to commission the NHS’s budget; we are effectively handing the funding of a public service to a group of businessmen. Furthermore, a lot of GP’s themselves oppose the plans – many GP’s in the West Midlands have signed a statement saying that they are worried about whether they’ll have the time to organise these budgets. Therefore, we’ll likely see them sub-contracting the budgeting out to private companies – yet another step down the privatisation road. Once an institution has been privatised, it’ll be almost impossible to bring it back into the public sphere (as we can see by the continuing problems being experienced in the privatised rail service). And privatisation means profit before people – private companies have to make a profit no matter what the cost; if service is sacrificed for an extra couple of pounds in the bank account, so be it. We cannot allow this bill to privatise our beloved NHS.
We believe that the only way we can stop this bill from being passed is by active resistance. This resistance has to come from two groups. Firstly, those who work in the health service must express their opposition. We have already seen this starting with the RCN passing a vote of no confidence in Andrew Lansley, and from the various GP’s, doctors and health workers who have gone on record opposing the bill. Secondly, service users need to voice their displeasure. From letters to MP’s, direct lobbying, to other acts of opposition, we have to show we will not accept this lying down. SOS will be organising protests and activities that anyone can get involved with, from letter writing, to signing a petition to attending a meeting. So if you feel that the NHS is an institution and an idea that has to be defended get in contact, and let’s make our views known and our voices heard.
